Abstract
The global nitrogen (N) cycle is markedly, and increasingly, influenced by anthropogenic inputs. A large unknown remains the quantity of biological N fixation (BNF) inputs derived from agriculture. This leads to major uncertainties in modelling reactive N interactions with climate change, and understanding N biogeochemical processes. Understanding N dynamics is central to enhancing productivity in cropping systems. To fill this gap, we used measurements of natural abundance of the 15N isotope to quantify BNF and yield of groundnut and pigeonpea at 18 on-farm sites in Ekwendeni, Northern Malawi. The study was conducted over the 2007/08 (2008) and 2008/09 (2009) cropping seasons under farmer management, for a range of edaphic environments. Overall, the soils are largely sandy with low to moderate organic carbon (0.12–1.56%), pH (5.5–6.5), and very low to moderately high inorganic phosphorus (P) (3–85 mg kg−1). The main drivers of BNF were plant density, inorganic P and interspecific competition. The proportion of N derived from the atmosphere (22–99%) was influenced by soil P status across seasons and crop species, but not by cropping system. The mean proportion of nitrogen derived from atmosphere (Ndfa) was high in both groundnut (75%) and pigeonpea (76%). Total N fixed by groundnut and pigeonpea differed between cropping system in the dry year, where intercropping was associated with low levels of N fixed by pigeonpea (15 kg N ha−1) compared to sole pigeonpea (32 kg N ha−1). A short rainfall season could not support biomass production of pigeonpea and this has negative implications for relying on BNF to drive productivity on smallholder farms.
This chapter is an edited version of Mhango et al. (2017), Biological nitrogen fixation and yield of pigeonpea and groundnut: quantifying response on smallholder farms in northern Malawi, African Journal of Agricultural Research, 12(16), 1385–1394, doi:10.5897/AJAR2017.12232 (https://academicjournals.org/journal/AJAR/article-abstract/637190263880). It is re-used here in edited form under Creative Commons license CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0).
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Acknowledgements
The authors would like to acknowledge the funding from The Mc Knight Foundation Collaborative Crop Research Program through the Legume Best Bets project. We are also grateful for the financial support from CS Mott Fellowship for Sustainable Agriculture of Michigan State University (MSU), University of Malawi—Bunda College of Agriculture, and MSU International Predissertation Travel Award. Lastly, we are grateful to the staff and farmers working with the SFHC project of Ekwendeni Mission Hospital for their support. This chapter is an edited version of Mhango et al. (2017), Biological nitrogen fixation and yield of pigeonpea and groundnut: quantifying response on smallholder farms in northern Malawi, African Journal of Agricultural Research, 12(16), 1385–1394, https://doi.org/10.5897/ajar2017.12232. It is re-used here in edited form under Creative Commons license CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0).
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Mhango, W.G., Snapp, S., Kanyama-Phiri, G.Y. (2020). Biological Nitrogen Fixation of Pigeonpea and Groundnut: Quantifying Response Across 18 Farm Sites in Northern Malawi. In: Sutton, M.A., et al. Just Enough Nitrogen. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58065-0_10
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