Effects of Mineral Fertilisation on Soil Organic Carbon Stocks in Cocoa Plantations of South-Western Côte d'Ivoire
KOUAME Amany Guillaume
Agro Pedology Départment, Jean Lorougnon Guédé University, UFR Agroforestry, Agricultural Production Improvement Laboratory, BP 150 Daloa, Côte d’Ivoire.
KOUADIO Koffi Hypolith
*
Agro Pedology Départment, Jean Lorougnon Guédé University, UFR Agroforestry, Agricultural Production Improvement Laboratory, BP 150 Daloa, Côte d’Ivoire.
KOFFI Kouakou Stanislas
Agro Pedology Départment, Jean Lorougnon Guédé University, UFR Agroforestry, Agricultural Production Improvement Laboratory, BP 150 Daloa, Côte d’Ivoire.
ABOBI Akré Herbert Damien
Agro Pedology Départment, Jean Lorougnon Guédé University, UFR Agroforestry, Agricultural Production Improvement Laboratory, BP 150 Daloa, Côte d’Ivoire.
ZRO Bi Gohi Ferdinand
Agro Pedology Départment, Jean Lorougnon Guédé University, UFR Agroforestry, Agricultural Production Improvement Laboratory, BP 150 Daloa, Côte d’Ivoire.
BAKAYOKO Sidiky
Agro Pedology Départment, Jean Lorougnon Guédé University, UFR Agroforestry, Agricultural Production Improvement Laboratory, BP 150 Daloa, Côte d’Ivoire.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Agriculture is partly responsible for environmental degradation due to greenhouse gas emissions. Cocoa farming is no exception because of the fertilisers used, particularly mineral fertilisers, to maintain soil fertility. With the aim of producing cocoa sustainably while preserving the environment, a study is being conducted to identify mineral fertilisers that could have a positive impact on carbon stocks in cocoa farm soils. The study was conducted over three years in three cocoa farms in the Nawa region, in south-central Côte d'Ivoire. The experimental design consisted of four complete Fisher blocks with four treatments: T0 was the control without fertiliser, and T1, T2, and T3 were NPK 0-23-19+10CaO+5MgO, NPK 0-15-15+17CaO+5MgO+1B2O3+0.5Zn, and NPK 4-10-10+19CaO+4MgO+0.8B2O3+0.3Zn, respectively. Soil carbon stocks were measured in the top 30 centimetres using a synchronous approach three years after fertiliser application. The results indicate that soil organic carbon stocks do not differ significantly between the various treatments. However, the emerging trend reveals that T1, T3, and T2, in that order, stored more organic carbon in the soil than T0. Their average values are, in that order: 5517.3; 4747.5; 4076.7; 3650.9 gC.m-2. This result is linked to the short duration of the experiment. Therefore, it demonstrates the possibility to make cocoa farming more sustainable by adopting mineral fertilisation. However, it is necessary to conduct this study over the long term to see what changes may occur.
Keywords: Mineral fertilization, carbon stock, soil, Côte d’Ivoire, cocoa farming