Soil Fertility Management TIMPs

  • Soil fertility is the ability of soil to grow crops and give maximum crop harvest. 
  • A fertile soil produces healthy food, which has necessary nutrients needed for human health. 
  • Practices that contribute to good soil fertility include use of fertilizers, use of manures, crop rotation, use of crops like legumes, use of improved seeds, and good agricultural knowledge.
1.Integrated Soil Fertility Management

Description: A set of soil fertility management practices that include:

  • Use of fertilizers and organic inputs e.g., manures; 
  • Planting well adapted, diseases and pest resistant crops; 
  • Good agronomic practice – timely planting, correct crop densities, timely weeding; 
  • Crop rotation and intercropping with legumes or plants that help in increasing soil fertility. 

Source KALRO

How to Apply Fertilizers 

  • Fertilizer banding – apply fertilizer directly in crop root-zone area.  
  • Micro dosing - apply small quantities of fertilizer with the seed at planting time and a few weeks after emergence.

 

What to Know When Applying Fertilizers 

  • Right source – get the right fertilizer for your crop and soil.
  • Right fertilizer rate – use the right fertilizer amount depending on what the crop needs and size of land. 
  • Right time for fertilizer application – apply fertilizer when the crop needs it; basal fertilizer – apply at planting or just after planting; top dressing; 
    • Don’t apply fertilizer, or manure on wet soils - to minimize compaction, runoff and loss of nutrients. 
  • Right placement of fertilizer – apply the fertilizer where the crop can easily get the nutrients from the fertilizer. 

What you Need Before Applying ISFM

  • Affordable and quality manure, fertilizers.
  • Clean planting materials e.g., seeds.
  • Know your farm size.
  • Have production resources like labor and money.

Benefits of ISFM

  • Increased crop production leading to food security and incomes. 
  • Increased soil fertility. 
  • Stabilizes production.
  • Reduces cost of production.

2. Integrated Manure Management

Description 

  • This is handling of livestock manure from collection, through treatment and storage up to application to crops (and aquaculture) depending on the location. 
  • This is important because manure can provide important soil nutrients and improve the soil health. 

Housing and Manure Collection

  • Housing will determine the characteristics of manure i.e., dry manure, solid manure, farm-yard manure, slurry and liquid manure. 
  • Animal housing should allow the collection of all dung and urine and prevent losses. 
  • Solid manure must be stored on a waterproof floor and with a cover against rain. 
  • Urine should be collected because it is a valuable nitrogen and potassium fertilizer. 
  • Flooring allows the farmer to collect both dung and urine.
  • Roofing prevents run-off and nutrient losses due to rain.
  • Urine can be captured using bedding materials. 

 

 

Manure storage

Storage of manure is important because it: -

  • Preserves crop nutrients until the time of application. 
  • Prevents runoff of nutrients to the soil and water. 
  • Prevents escape of nutrients into the soil and water. 
  • Prevents nutrients from volatilization/escaping to the air. 

How to Store Manure

  • Stackable manures: Heap the manure and compress the heap. Cover to protect the manure against the wind, water and sunlight. 
  • Liquid manures and slurry: Liquid manure is often the result of flushing the livestock house with water. Slurry needs a large storage capacity e.g., lagoons, outdoor silo or pit. 
  • Don’t keep mature compost for too long, it will lose some nutrients.
  • You can produce a regular supply of compost by digging three pits (or piling three heaps) side by side. Every 2 to 3 weeks, turn the compost from one pit into the next one, and start a new compost pile with fresh vegetation in the empty pit.

How to Treat Manure

Composting 

  • Turns on-farm organic waste materials into a valuable soil amendment and fertilizer resource. Composting is suitable on all farms. 
  • Compost is a rich source of organic matter which sustains soil quality, is a source of crop nutrients, it improves the soils water holding capacity, and improves soils resistance to erosion.
  • It is labor intensive and demands regular attention – collection of composting materials, setting up the heap, regular watering and repeated turning of the heap.

How to Tell a Mature Compost  

  • Compost materials become finer over time until a fine, loamy material is produced; 
  • The different materials are no longer recognizable; 
  • The material has a slight ‘earthy’ and harmless smell; 
  • Temperature drops and the compost is cool; 
  • Compost is dry. 

How to Compost 

The two most common are: 

  • Heap or pile method, suitable for large-scale processing and for small-scale operations in areas with higher rainfall. 
  • Pit method, suitable for small-scale processing in areas with low rainfall and a long dry season and for composting of liquid manures. 

How to Apply Manure 

Always refill the amounts of nutrients that are harvested with crops. The farmer should: 

  • Know the quality of manure through testing. 
  • Not apply manures before carrying out a soils test, to know how much is needed.
  • Only apply manures at the time the crops need the nutrients. 
  • Apply the right amount that the crop requires. Avoid over fertilization. 
  • Should not apply slurry/liquid manure to fruits and vegetables grown for fresh consumption. 

Basic Costs 

  • Labor for collecting the manure, building a compost heap, storing, maintaining it, transporting and applying it in the field. 
  • Flooring and or roofing of the livestock houses. 
  • Storage facilities.

Benefits 

The benefits of using manure include:

  • Reduces nutrient losses hence low environmental pollution;
  • Produces biogas energy. 
  • Applying manure to soil increases soil health.
  • Increased organic matter content increases the soils water-holding capacity;
  • Better water-holding capacity improves resilience to climate change;
  • Applying manure to soil improves crop nutrient supply;
  • Improved crop nutrient supply enhances crop growth and yield, which contributes to food security;
  • Enhanced crop production, increases farm income;

3. Rapid Soil Testing Services

  • Soils should be tested to be sure of the type of fertilizer to use. 
  • This is a dry method for soil testing using the interaction of electromagnetic radiation with matter to characterize biochemical composition of a soil and/or plant tissue. 
  • Soil testing services are offered at some KALRO Centres and other institutions

4.Low-Cost Composting technology

  • Biological decomposition of organic waste such as food or plant material by bacteria, fungi, worms and other organisms.
  • One of the most effective processes for recycling organic wastes intended for use in agriculture

Further Reading
  • Esilaba, A.O.et al. (2021). KCEP-CRAL CSA Extension Manual. Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization, Nairobi, Kenya.
  • E. Teenstra, F. De Buisonjé, A. Ndambi, D. Pelster, 2015. Manure Management in the (Sub-)Tropics; Training Manual for Extension Workers. Wageningen, Wageningen UR (University & Research Centre) Livestock Research, Livestock Research Report 919.
  • Esilaba, A.O. et al. (2021). KCEP-CRAL Integrated Soil Fertility and Water Management Extension Manual. Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization, Nairobi, Kenya.
  • Fairhurst, T. (ed.) (2012) Handbook for Integrated Soil Fertility Management. Africa Soil Health Consortium, Nairobi.

 

Contacts

Contacts

Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization

P.O. Box 57811-00200, Nairobi, Kenya

Call: 0111010100