| Autor: |
Jerome A. Dogbatse, Godfred K. Awudzi, Alfred Arthur, Frank Owusu-Ansah, Ishmael Amoako-Attah, Amos K. Quaye, Sampson Konlan, Fredrick Amon-Armah, Andrews A. Amaning |
| Jazyk: |
angličtina |
| Rok vydání: |
2024 |
| Předmět: |
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| Zdroj: |
International Journal of Agronomy, Vol 2024 (2024) |
| Druh dokumentu: |
article |
| ISSN: |
1687-8167 |
| DOI: |
10.1155/2024/5578534 |
| Popis: |
Urea or sulphate of ammonia fertilizer application on cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) in Ghana has either caused no changes or a decrease in cacao yields. In Ghana, soil diagnosis has shown low soil N in cacao-growing areas, which could be limiting cacao production. Alleviating the low soil N to increase cacao yields without negative effects requires the use of an appropriate source and dose of N fertilizer. A study was conducted to determine the suitability of calcium nitrate fertilizer as a source of N and the right N dose that will ensure an increase in cacao yield. A randomized complete block design with three replications was used to evaluate the effects of 11 treatments which were combinations of dose and number of N fertilizer application. The results showed an increase in soil pH, N, and P contents and a decrease in exchangeable bases over the four years for the surface soil depth. For organic carbon (OC), the average annual rate of change resulted in a gain of OC in the soils for all the treatment plots, except for treatment with 60 kg N ha−1 applied once over the 4 years. Soil P concentrations of the plots saw a drastic increase and a gain of P for all the treatment plots. The concentration of exchangeable bases declined in 4 years. Significant differences were observed in the 3-year cumulative dry bean yield of cacao for the treatments with 75 kg N ha−1 split applied being the highest. The study showed that the calcium nitrate fertilizer is a suitable N source for cacao in Ghana and a dose of 75 kg N ha−1 of the fertilizer should be split applied, i.e., half applied in May and half applied in September to ensure an increase in cacao yield. |
| Databáze: |
Directory of Open Access Journals |
| Externí odkaz: |
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