Zai Pits And Integrated Soil Fertility Management Enhances Crop Yields In The Drier Parts Of Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya

ABSTRACT

Low crop yields due to low erratic rainfall, high evapotranspiration, and deteriorating soil fertility in smallholder farmers‘ fields of sub-Saharan Africa have led to a quest for sustainable production practices with greater resource use efficiency. To alleviate water stress, soil fertility decline and reduce runoff, water harvesting technologies and integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) are alternative promising options whose impact on agricultural productivity are not yet clear. The study therefore aimed to assess the effect of using zai pits in combination with organic/inorganic ammendments and conventional cropping technique on sorghum production. Effects of zai pit and conventional cropping techniques combined with integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) (organic materials as sole or combined with inorganic fertilizer) on selected soil physico-chemical properties and sorghum yields were assessed in a field experiment. Economic performance of all the treatments was evaluated using standard enterprise budgeting techniques to determine production costs and profitability. Descriptive statistics, chi-square, paired t tests and binary logistic regression were used in analysis of socio-economic data. Experimental data were subjected to analysis of variance and mean separation done using least significant difference (LSD) at p