Effet de l’inoculum «Compost Plus» Sur le Compostage des Tiges de Cotonnier et les Rendements en Coton au Burkina Faso

Afin de recycler les tiges de cotonnier en compost, l’inoculum «compost plus» comparé au fumier habituellement utilisé comme ferment, a été testé par un groupe de paysans en 2006. La durée de compostage, les consommations d’eau et les caractéristiques chimiques des composts ont été déterminées. Les composts obtenus ont été associés à la fumure minérale vulgarisée, à 5 t ha-1 pour déterminer leur efficacité sur les rendements du cotonnier. La durée moyenne du compostage des tiges de cotonnier a été de 70 et 64 j avec « compost plus » et le fumier, respectivement. Durant le compostage, en saison sèche, les consommations d’eau par tonne de tiges de cotonnier avec «compost plus» (3584 l) ont été plus importantes que celles avec le fumier (2077 l). Ces quantités d’eau ont diminué significativement, en saison pluvieuse, de même que la durée de maturation du compost. Les composts obtenus se sont révélés pauvres en P et riches en N et en K. Ces composts, associés à la fumure minérale vulgarisée, ont amélioré significativement les rendements en coton graine. L’utilisation de « compost plus » pourrait améliorer les rendements à travers un recyclage approprié des tiges de cotonnier.Mots clés : Tiges de cotonnier, compostage, « compost plus », fumier, rendement.The inoculum «compost plus», as compared to manure, usually used as ferment, was used for the composting of cotton straws by farmers in 2006. Composting time, quantities of water used and chemical properties of the compost were determined. The use of the compost, at the rate of 5 t ha-1, associated with conventional mineral fertilizer, was evaluated for cotton seed yield. The results showed that the time for cotton straw composting with «compost plus» and manure was 70 and 64 days, respectively. The quantity of water used, with «compost plus» during the dry season was higher (3584 l t-1) than that of the manure (2077 l t-1). The quantities of water decreased significantly during the rainy season. The same was true for composting time. The composts obtained with «compost plus» and manure, were lower in P and higher in N and K. Seed cotton yield increased significantly with the use of compost associated to mineral fertilizer. Finally the use of the «compost plus» inoculum could be an alternative for the recycling of cotton straws, with an increase in the organic matter content of soil and cotton production.Key words : Cotton straws, composting, «compost plus», manure, yield

Acidification des sols ferrugineux et ferrallitiques dans les systèmes de production cotonnière au Burkina Faso

La productivité des systèmes de culture coton-céréales est menacée par la dégradation et l’acidification des terres. Afin de déterminer les causes de l’acidification des sols dans la zone cotonnière du Burkina Faso, une expérimentation a été conduite pendant deux années, en milieu paysan, sur des sols ferrugineux et ferrallitiques, respectivement sur les sites de Dohoun et Balla. Trois modes d’exploitation des terres, définis par la jachère, la culture attelée et la culture motorisée, ont été comparés pour déterminer leurs effets sur les caractéristiques physico-chimiques des sols étudiés. Par rapport à la jachère, comparée à la culture attelée, la culture motorisée a entraîné, en surface (0-20 cm) des sols ferrugineux et ferrallitiques, une augmentation des teneurs en sable de 8 à 12% et une baisse du taux d’argile de 35% qui expose ces sols à l’acidification. Contrairement à la jachère, la culture motorisée a entraîné des pertes significatives de carbone et d’azote, qui rendent les sols plus sensibles à l’acidification qu’en culture attelée. L’exploitation des terres s’est aussi traduite par une baisse significative des teneurs des cations majeurs du complexe adsorbant (Ca2+ et Mg2+), de la somme des bases échangeables (SBE) et de la capacité d’échange cationique (CEC), accentuant la vulnérabilité à l’acidification sous culture motorisée. La dégradation des sols cultivés a été plus importante pour les sols ferrallitiques qu’au niveau des sols ferrugineux, dont la CEC a été 2 à 3 fois plus élevée. La culture attelée et la culture motorisée, pratiquées, le plus souvent, sans restitution organique, se sont révélées comme étant des causes de l’acidification des sols ferrallitiques, plus accentuée que celle des sols ferrugineux. L’étude recommande d’adopter des techniques adéquates de travail du sol et de procéder à des amendements appropriés pour atténuer l’acidification et garantir la durabilité des systèmes de production.Mots clés: Exploitation des terres, acidification, sol ferrugineux, sol ferrallitique, zone cotonnière

Efficacy of the association of cover crops with maize and direct sowing short-term effect on crops? yields in maize-cotton cropping system in Western Burkina Faso.

To improve the productivity and sustainability of cotton and cereals based system, direct sow ing under mulch was tested for its efficacy on cotton and maize yields on the research station of Farako - Bâ, in Western Burkina Faso. The experimental design was a complete randomized blocks of Fisher with four replications. Conventional tillage by annual moldboard plowing (T7) was compared with direct sowing under mulch -based cropping system (DMC) using maize association with cover crop s defined as: maize without cover crop (T1), maize +Brachiaria ruziziensis(T2), maize + B. ruziziensis+ Mucuna cochinchinensis (T3), maize + B. ruziziensis+ Panicum maximum (T4), maize + B. ruziziensis + Stylosantes hamata (T5), and maize + Crotalaria juncea (T6). Cover crops were planted 21 days after maize emergence between the rows of this main crop. The biomass produced by the cover crops and maize straws were evaluated as well as maize and cotton yields, during the first 6 years of the study, from 2010 to 2015. Results showed that among cover crops, the biomass production was significantly lower with C. juncea. The associations of cover crops with maize increased significantly the production of total dry matter compared to plots without cover crops, in the conventional tillage. Association with cover crops did not influence significantly nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium contents of maize and the maize’s yields even if the depressive effects were recorded. Compared to the conventional tillage, the DMC appeared also effective on seed cotton yields even without a significant improvement during the 6 first years of the study . These promising results, confirm the feasibility in tropical conditions of DMC which must be continued to better analyze its long-term effects on soil properties

GEMv2 : Multilingual NLG benchmarking in a single line of code

Evaluation in machine learning is usually informed by past choices, for example which datasets or metrics to use. This standardization enables the comparison on equal footing using leaderboards, but the evaluation choices become sub-optimal as better alternatives arise. This problem is especially pertinent in natural language generation which requires ever-improving suites of datasets, metrics, and human evaluation to make definitive claims. To make following best model evaluation practices easier, we introduce GEMv2. The new version of the Generation, Evaluation, and Metrics Benchmark introduces a modular infrastructure for dataset, model, and metric developers to benefit from each others work. GEMv2 supports 40 documented datasets in 51 languages. Models for all datasets can be evaluated online and our interactive data card creation and rendering tools make it easier to add new datasets to the living benchmark.Peer reviewe

GEMv2 : Multilingual NLG benchmarking in a single line of code

Evaluation in machine learning is usually informed by past choices, for example which datasets or metrics to use. This standardization enables the comparison on equal footing using leaderboards, but the evaluation choices become sub-optimal as better alternatives arise. This problem is especially pertinent in natural language generation which requires ever-improving suites of datasets, metrics, and human evaluation to make definitive claims. To make following best model evaluation practices easier, we introduce GEMv2. The new version of the Generation, Evaluation, and Metrics Benchmark introduces a modular infrastructure for dataset, model, and metric developers to benefit from each others work. GEMv2 supports 40 documented datasets in 51 languages. Models for all datasets can be evaluated online and our interactive data card creation and rendering tools make it easier to add new datasets to the living benchmark.Peer reviewe

Effets de l'association du compost et de la fumure minérale sur la productivité d'un système de culture à base de cotonnier et de maïs au Burkina Faso

Effects of the Association of Compost and Mineral Fertilizer on the Productivity of Cotton and Maize Cropping System in Burkina Faso. To improve the productivity of a cotton - maize rotation using organic and mineral fertilization, a study was carried out in experimental station from 2008 to 2010. Five levels of compost (0, 2, 6, 9 and 12 t of dry matter ha­1) combined to four rate of mineral fertilizer were compared in split­plot statistical design. The physical and chemical characteristics of soil, crop yields, as well as the mineral nutrition of maize and cotton plants were evaluated. The results show that the content of assimilable P and available K was significantly improved in amended soils by compost which had no significant effect on the carbon content. In amended soils, compost improved plants nutrition which was correct in nitrogen and potassium for cotton and deficient in nitrogen and phosphorus for maize. Compared to control soil, compost combined to mineral fertilizers increased significantly yields with a better efficacy for the recommended mineral manure. The application of 2 t ha­1 of compost per year was as effective as high doses of compost in the second year, and more effective than the latter in the third year. An economy on the recommended dose of mineral fertilizer could be considered, with an annual input of 2 t ha­1 of compost to the mineral fertilizers necessary to maintain the productivity of the cotton­cereal cropping systems