Differential Impact of Land Use Types on Soil Productivity Components in Two Agro-ecological Zones of Southern Ghana

Abstract

The maintenance of soil productivity is important for sustained crop yield in low-input systems in the tropics. This study investigated the impact of four different land use types, namely, maize and cassava cropping, woodlot/plantations, and natural forests on soil productivity components, especially soil carbon accretion, at six sites within two agro-ecological zones of southern Ghana. Soil properties were significantly different between sites and ecological zones. The coastal savanna zones, which is a low rainfall zone had relatively lower soil carbon storage than the high rainfall forest-savanna transition zone. Soil productivity conditions in the later zone were much more favorable for cropping than the former. Land use types significantly affected the soil carbon (SOC) storage within the two ecological zones. In the low rainfall zone, soil carbon accretion by maize cropping, cassava cropping, and plantations were 48%, 54%, and 60%, respectively, of the forest carbon stock (47,617 kg/ha). In the transition zone, the soil carbon accretion was over 90% of the forest value (48,216 kg/ha) for all land use types. In effect use of land use types in maintaining soil productivity must consider the conditions in a given ecological zone.

Charge properties and fingerprints of some urban and peri-urban garden soils in Accra, Ghana

“…These are the reasons for which a bulk density of 1.2 Mg/m 3 is assigned a soil quality indicator rating of 80% whereas a bulk density of 1.4 Mg/m 3 has almost a rating of 40%(Weil and Brady 2017).The pH water > 5.5 of the soils suggests less risks of phosphate retention as well as Al and micronutrients toxicities since exchangeable Al is precipitated at pH < 5.2(Pansu and Gautheyrou 2007). The pH values corroborates those ofEze(2015) for the same soil types located in other parts of the Accra plains, but were below those found in Ferric Acrisols of the CS zone(Owoade et al 2021). Such pH values are rated high in during soil quality assessment…”

Charge Properties and Fingerprints of Some Urban and Peri-Urban Garden Soils in Accra, Ghana

“…This is essential since "thermal and moisture regimes of soils" are factors that limit soil productivity in the tropics (Mueller et al 2010). Further, the bulk densities (Table 1), some of which were found by Eze (2015), were too high to be acceptable for a garden except that of the KB Ferric Acrisol, but were lower than those of Owoade et al (2021). Soil texture and SOM contents seemed to have in uenced the bulk density although no clear correlations were found.…”

Potential environmental impact of mycelium composites on African communities

“…The primary reason for the impact difference could be the fact that the EcoInvent database treats maize as a crop primarily cultivated for MCB production, and not as biomass obtained from agricultural waste and byproducts which would be otherwise discarded. The disparity may also be influenced by the distinct cultivation processes and practices 89 . Annual crops like maize complete their lifecycle within a single growing season and, therefore, are planted, harvested, and replanted every year.…”