Abstract
Nitrogen-15 isotopic dilution method was used to estimate biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) and nitrogen (N) budget of fourteen (14) soybean varieties using maize as reference crop. The experiment was carried out at Sekou in Southern Benin. The amount of N derived from air (Ndfa kg N ha-1) ranged from 51 for variety BRS 261 to 148 for variety Canarana. In a scenario where the soybean shoot dry matter and grains were removed from the field after harvest and only the fallen leaves were incorporated into the soil, the N budget ranged between -91 (Canarana) and -17 kg N ha-1 (BRS 260). When only soybean grain was exported from the fields and fallen leaves and shoot dry matter are incorporated into the soil, the N budget varied from 7 (BRS 261) to 74 kg N ha-1 (BRS Garantia). The study showed that Canarana, TGX 1448 2E and BRS Paraiso soybean varieties fixed the highest amount of N among the 14 varieties. The inclusion of those soybean varieties in cereal-based cropping systems would help reduce N inputs and improve soil and crop productivity in farming systems in Benin. Key words: 15N enrichment technique, N2 fixation, N balance, soil fertility, Benin.
Highlights
In tropical regions, nitrogen (N) deficiency is frequently one of the major factors limiting crop yields and N fertilization is increasingly applied to increase the crop yields (Reinhold-Hurek and Hurek, 2003)
The amount of N derived from air (Ndfa kg N ha-1) ranged from 51 for variety BRS 261 to 148 for variety Canarana
This study aims to estimate the biological N2 fixation of fourteen Brazilian soybean varieties introduced in the Southern Benin by the 15N isotopic dilution method and estimate the total net N inputs in soil system
Summary
Nitrogen (N) deficiency is frequently one of the major factors limiting crop yields and N fertilization is increasingly applied to increase the crop yields (Reinhold-Hurek and Hurek, 2003). Managing nitrogen inputs in crop production system to achieve economic and environmental sustainability is a major challenge facing agriculture (Haque and Sattar, 2010). In this context, biological fixation (BNF) has become one of the most attractive strategies for the development of sustainable agricultural systems (Hayat et al, 2008). Farmers in West Africa are often reticent to adopt legume cover crops such as Mucuna species that.
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