Yield and economics of bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) as affected by blended NPS fertilizer rates and inter row spacing at maenitgoldia, Southwest Ethiopia

Abstract

The common bean is one of Ethiopia's most economically important legumes. However, its national average yield remains lower than the potential yield obtained at research stations. This is because of low soil fertility, inappropriate plant spacing, disease and insect pest problems. As a result, this experiment was carried out during the 2021 to investigate the impact of blended NPS fertilizer rates and spacing between crops on the growth and yield of common bean and to analyze the economic feasibility of blended NPS rates with common bean spacing. A four-factorial combination of mixed NPS levels (0, 50, 100 and 150 kg ha-1) and three row spacing (30, 40, and 50 cm) were used in a three-replicate randomized complete block design. After collecting plant phenology, growth, yield, and yield attribute parameters were analyzed by using SAS version 9.3 software. The results revealed significant differences for the main effect of the NPS blended fertilizer, row spacings, and their interaction on most of the measured phenological, growth, yield, and yield attributes of the common bean, however, neither the main effect nor the interaction effects affected seedling emergence. The combined use of 150 kg of mixed NPS ha-1 with a row spacing of 40 cm resulted in a higher grain yield (2.5 t ha-1) and maximum net benefit (41775 ETB ha-1). Hence, it can be established that earlier mentioned NPS fertilizer rate and row spacing isa better choice for farmers in the area and similar agro-ecologies in order to achieve the highest possible grain yield and a higher net return.

Determination of the Appropriate Blended Inorganic Fertilizer Rate Recommendation for the Optimal Common Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) Grain Yield and Profitability in the Dawuro Zone, Ethiopia

“…Te study suggests that blended NPSB rates led to increased biomass yield due to enhanced N availability, plant height, pod number, and vegetative growth. Tis fnding aligns with previous studies by Zewide et al [46], Mekonnen and Saliha [47], and Dela et al [48], which reported maximum biomass yields with varying NPSB fertilizer rates.…”

“…On the other hand, the decrease in grain yield associated with NPSB fertilizer rates beyond 125 kg•ha −1 may be attributed to an increased nitrogen rate, which promotes excessive vegetative growth in crop plants, consequently reducing the grain yield of common beans. Tis fnding aligns with previous studies by Arega and Mekonnen [42], Deresa [43], Tirfessa et al [45], Zewide et al [46], and Dela et al [48], which suggested that the increase in grain yield with the application of blended inorganic fertilizer could be attributed to the sufcient supply of N, P, S, and B soil solutions for crop uptake. Tis leads to an increase in the number of branches per plant and, subsequently, an increased photosynthetic area, resulting in more pods per plant and a higher number of seeds per pod.…”

“…In Deneba, increasing the NPSB fertilizer rate from 0 to 125 kg•ha −1 , and in Wara, increasing it from 0 to 175 kg•ha −1 , signifcantly increased the number of seeds per pod, with a subsequent decrease observed after reaching the maximum fertilizer rate. Previous studies by Tadesse et al [44], Tirfessa et al [45], and Zewide et al [46] reported similar fndings, where varying NPSB fertilizer rates (100-150 kg•ha −1 ) resulted in the highest number of pods per plant and seeds per pod. Tese studies highlight the importance of considering geographical location and soil type when determining optimal fertilizer rates.…”