Effect of deep placement of NPK supergranule on irrigated tomato productivity and nutrient use efficiency in the semi-arid zone of Burkina Faso.

Placement profond de l’engrais en production de tomate

Abstract

Inherent low soil fertility, high input costs and poor input management limit tomato productivity in Burkina Faso. This study aimed at assessing the effect of NPK supergranule on tomato productivity in the semi-arid zone of Burkina Faso. To this end, a Fisher block design was carried out in farmer field with three replications. Five treatments combining the super-granulated forms of NPK and urea, the pearl form of urea and potassium chloride were compared.  The agromorphological parameters and agronomic efficiency of the nutrients were assessed. The results indicate that the treatment with 5 granules of NPK 16-26-12-4.5S-0.3Zn + 111 kg.ha^-1 of perlurea (46%) + 37 kg.ha^-1 KCl (60%) recorded the highest fruit weight (39.27 g) and the highest fruit yield (18.30 t/ha). It increased tomato yield by 37.21% over the control. However, there were no significant differences (P > 0.05) between the treatments in terms of nutrient use efficiency. These results show that deep placement of NPK fertilizers improves tomato productivity but would require integration of organic matter for sustainable management of cropping systems. Key words: Agronomic efficiency; NPK deep placement; tomato; Burkina Faso.