Smallholder Farmers' Knowledge on the Use of Bioslurry as a Soil Fertility Amendment Input for Potato Production in Kenya
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Date
2022
Authors
Mwakidoshi, Emmanuel R.
Gitari, Harun H.
Muindi, Esther M.
Wamukota, Andrew
Seleiman, Mahmoud F.
Maitra, Sagar
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Wiley Online Library
Abstract
A survey was conducted on farmers' fields at Werugha and Wusi-Kishamba wards in
Taita Taveta County, Kenya, to assess the factors influencing farmers' decisions on
the use of bioslurry in the management of soil fertility. Knowledge gaps on bioslurry
use provide contrasting claims about the value of bioslurry from source, storage and
handling, crop types, soil, and climate conditions, and as a fertilizer. The majority of
the farmers in the study sites double up as dairy farmers which has resulted in enormous production of under-utilized cow dung. Over-dependence on the use of inorganic fertilizers leads to the destruction of soil physical and biological properties;
hence, the provision of essential nutrients required by plants for growth and development is not achieved at the maximum recommended rates. This results in a yield
decrease with potato yield ranging from 8 to 15 t ha 1
, which is 2- to 3-times below
the achievable yield of 40 t ha 1
. A survey questionnaire was developed and administered to 120 small-scale farmers within the two wards. Results showed that the use
of bioslurry has not been well adopted by farmers from the two wards as only 18%
responded to using bioslurry on their farms whereas 78% relied on chemical fertilizers and other forms of manures such as farmyard manure. However, even those
using slurry had since been reported to have challenges with its use and application.
The 36% of farmers who applied bioslurry alone did so due to its availability considering the high cost of inorganic fertilizers while those who combined it with inorganic
fertilizers had faith in chemical fertilizers and that they aimed at achieving high crop
yields. The major challenges farmers faced while using slurry on their farms were
reported to be on lack of knowledge on the exact quantity to be applied per unit area
and on the storage of excess slurry from biodigesters. This implied that even though
slurry was available, it was still not useful to the farmers due to under/over application and poor storage. The study, therefore, recommends capacity-building programs
and agricultural extension services to be developed, to ensure adequate knowledge
on bioslurry use and adoption by smallholder farmers in the management of soil fertility in enhancing crop productivity.
Description
Article
Keywords
bioslurry, farmyard manure, land degradation, potato, soil fertility
Citation
Mwakidoshi, E. R., Gitari, H. H., Muindi, E. M., Wamukota, A., Seleiman, M. F., & Maitra, S. Smallholder farmers’ knowledge of the use of bioslurry as a soil fertility amendment for potato production in Kenya. Land Degradation & Development.