Abstract
The objective of the study was to evaluate chitosans produced from the exoskeletons of water (Callinectes amnicola) and land (Cardisoma armatum) crabs for use in agriculture in Benin. Then, the effects of these chitosans were combined with Pseudomonas putida in order to see their synergistic effects on the growth and yield of maize seeds of the variety EVDT 97 STR C1 for 80 days. The experimental design was a block of 13 treatments with three (03) replicates. After 60 DAS in the field, application of the combination C. amicola + P. putida + 50% NPK and C. armatum + P. putida + 50% NPK showed the highest average heights. Plants treated with the combination of C. armatum + P. putida + 50% NPK and C. amnicola + 50% NPK gave the best corn grain yields with increases of 51.68% and 45.57% respectively. This study confirms that sources of chitosan from shellfish exoskeletons are available in Benin and shows the potential to use chitosan alone or in combination with Rhizobacteria as bio fertilizers to improve productivity and increase maize yield in Benin while reducing the use of chemical fertilizers.
Highlights
Faced with the ever-increasing population of Africa and West Africa and the resulting growing food needs, increasing yields in agriculture has become a major challenge
After 60 days after sowing (DAS), there was good elevation of maize plants in all treatments (Figure 5). This elevation is increasingly remarkable with the combination of plants treated with chitosan extracted from C. amnicola (163.53 cm) or C. armatum (155.51 cm) plus P. putida with 50% NPK
The plants treated with the combination of C. amnicola + P. putida+50% NPK and C. armatum + P. putida+50% NPK showed the highest average heights with increases of 27.33% and 28.09% respectively
Summary
Faced with the ever-increasing population of Africa and West Africa and the resulting growing food needs, increasing yields in agriculture has become a major challenge. The agricultural sector is facing problems, one of the most important of which is the degradation of soil fertility. The overuse of external inputs such as mineral fertilizers and pesticides can reduce considerable increases in food production and reduce soil fertility and its biological components [1]. This has adverse consequences for human health. In response to this problem, improving soil fertility is one of the common strategies for increasing agricultural production. It becomes important to develop different biological control methods using natural organisms to reduce the effects of a harmful organism
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