New fertiliser technology offers relief to farmers
Two farming communities near Adidome, Dadome and Lakpoe, have heaved a sigh of relief over poor yields on their rice farms, with the introduction of a new fertiliser technology that has improved yields and reduced their input costs.
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The Urea Deep Placement (UDP) fertiliser technology being promoted by the International Fertiliser Development Centre (IFDC), comes in larger granules, known as briquette, which is placed in between four plants to release the right amount of macro and micronutrients for the plants.
The UDP technology allows farmers to use fewer bags of fertiliser as against the ordinary urea fertilisers on the local market, while at the same time boosting yields on the farm, because it does not leach (waste away in the soil). It also contains several secondary micronutrients not present in the ordinary fertiliser.
Under the urea fertiliser broadcast method, it is estimated that when three bags of fertiliser are used, the effect is equivalent to only one bag, as the rest is lost to leaching and competing plants (weed).
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On the average, 33 per cent less fertiliser is used under UDP, which also increases yield between 15 per cent and 35 per cent, depending on type of crop and season.
During a field visit to the Mawuko Farmers’ Association in Dadome in the North Tongu District of the Volta Region, where members have applied the technology, it came to light that on demonstration beds where the UDP technology of fertiliser application had been applied, the rice sprout, fruit and blossom better.
“What we have realised is that applying the Urea Super Granules leads to higher yields of between 18 per cent to 50 per cent; also the cost of fertiliser is reduced between 20 per cent to 30 per cent. This means that the farmer’s productivity is better,” the President of the Mawuko Farmers’ Association, Mr Ferguson Afelete, told the GRAPHIC BUSINESS on December 12.
He said it, therefore, guaranteed more income for the farmers to meet input costs and enhance their livelihoods.
In addition, the environment is protected as the fertiliser broadcasting under the ordinary application, leached into streams and rivers, rendering it unfriendly to the environment. The UDP, on the other hand, placed near the root zone of the plant remained in the soil and gradually released nutrients directly to the plant throughout its growth cycle.
The support for Mawuko Farmers is part of the West Africa Fertiliser Programme (WAFP) funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by IFDC with support from the Africa Fertiliser and Agribusiness Partnerships (AFAP), which finances input providers to deliver inputs to farmers.
The Chief of Party of the WAFP, Dr Kofi Debrah, explained that fertiliser was important in raising agricultural productivity, saying 30 per cent of the global increase in cereal yields in the last three decades was due to fertiliser use.
African leaders at the Fertiliser Summit in Abuja, Nigeria, adopted the need to use more fertiliser on farms, from 10kg/hectare to 50kg/ha, mainly due to the low soil fertility.
Dr Debrah also drew attention to the blanket application of single fertiliser recommendation containing only macronutrients – nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium (NPK) – by most farmers in the country and most parts of sub-Saharan Africa.
“These blanket fertiliser recommendation concentrates on the macronutrients and usually do not include secondary nutrients – sulphur, magnesium, and calcium nor micronutrients zinc, copper, manganese, iron, boron and molybdenum,” he stated. GB