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Assessment of soil fertility and quality for improved cocoa production in six cocoa growing regions in Ghana

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Abstract

Inadequate or lack of prudent soil fertility management by cocoa farmers leads to nutrient depletion in cocoa production fields. The objective of this study was to assess current soil fertility status of cocoa farms from six cocoa growing regions in Ghana and to derive an integrated soil quality index (SQI). Composite soil samples from 0 to 30 cm depth were collected from 100 selected farms covering the six cocoa regions. Soil pH, %C, %N, total and available P, cation exchange capacity (CEC), and exchangeable cations (Ca, Mg, K) were measured. These parameters were analyzed using principal component analysis, normalized, and integrated into a weighted-additive SQI. Soil pH of majority (59.0%) of the farms was within 5.6–7.2, suitable for cocoa production. Available soil-P in most (82%) of the farms was < 20 mg kg−1. Soil quality in most farms was generally low, with an average SQI of 0.41 ± 0.14. Soil quality in Western region farms was relatively high, followed by farms in Brong Ahafo and Volta regions. Farms in Eastern, Central and Ashanti regions had the least soil quality. Soil pH, CEC and available P showed great influence on SQI. Given the latter observation, diagnostic yield response experiments should be conducted, which include: application of locally generated liming materials, organic residues and agro-mineral base fertilizers such as phosphate rock and dolomite.

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Fig. 1

Adapted from: Kongor et al. (2017)

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Acknowledgements

This work was conducted as part of a project funded by the Belgium Government via the VLIR-UOS TEAM project—Sustaining high quality cocoa production by West-African smallholder farmers (ZEIN2013PR394). VLIR-UOS is gratefully acknowledged for their research support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Food Safety and Food Quality, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    J. E. Kongor, D. Van de Walle & K. Dewettinck

  2. Isotope Bioscience Laboratory - ISOFYS, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    P. Boeckx

  3. Laboratory for Chemical Analysis - LCA, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Valentin Vaerwyckweg 1, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    P. Vermeir

  4. Department of Applied Biosciences, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Valentin Vaerwyckweg 1, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    G. Baert

  5. Department of Nutrition and Food Science, University of Ghana, P. O. Box LG 134, Legon-Accra, Ghana

    J. E. Kongor & E. O. Afoakwa

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  1. J. E. Kongor
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  2. P. Boeckx
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  3. P. Vermeir
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  4. D. Van de Walle
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  6. E. O. Afoakwa
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  7. K. Dewettinck
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Correspondence to J. E. Kongor.

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Kongor, J.E., Boeckx, P., Vermeir, P. et al. Assessment of soil fertility and quality for improved cocoa production in six cocoa growing regions in Ghana. Agroforest Syst 93, 1455–1467 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-018-0253-3

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