Predicting spatial variation in soil nitrogen for sustainable agricultural management in Benin

Nitrogen plays an important role in plant nutrition and sustainable agriculture. The objective of this study was to assess the distribution pattern of nitrogen in arable land of Benin. A Bayesian Maximum Entropy (BME) method was used for spatial mapping. Hard data consisted of a total of 305 sampled locations of nitrogen collected at 20 cm depth across the country. Soft data were generated from environmental variables using geographical weight regression (GWR) technique. The study revealed very low (<0.03%) N concentrations across the country. The N concentrations ranged from 0 to 0.8.10-6 %, with higher concentrations in the north and low concentrations beginning from the centre toward the south. In general, low prediction errors (around 0.005) were observed across the country (0.005 to 0.04). The maximum values around 0.035 were due to low sampling density observed at the boundary. These results are important for rational management of nitrogen in fertilisation programmes in Benin

West African Cattle Farmers’ Perception of Tick-Borne Diseases

Worldwide, cattle production is struggling to face the negative impacts caused by ticks and Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus is one of the most harmful ticks for livestock. Most of the people in West Africa depend on cattle farming and subsistence agriculture. The presence of ticks on cattle is a major problem faced by smallholder farmers who fight for their livelihood. National and regional tick control programs could assist these rural communities in protecting their livelihoods against ticks and tick-borne diseases, but only if they take into account the targeted herders and their perception on cattle management and tick control. This paper aims to provide a better insight in the socio-economic characteristics of Beninese cattle farmers, and their perception on tick burden, as well as to document common tick control strategies. Different tick species and their seasonality are well understood by cattle herders. For tick control, many still use manual tick removal, especially in the north of the country. The high cost of acaricides, the lack of financial means of African farmers, and of the local stockbreeders in particular, limits the use of acaricides in livestock breeding in Benin. While aiming to increase the meat or milk production of their animals, stockbreeders who can afford it sometimes turn to an abusive use of acaricides, which might in time lead to an increase in tick resistance. This study remains one of the rare studies to report extensively on the perceptions of West African cattle herders

Traditional knowledge and cultural importance of Borassus aethiopum Mart. in Benin: interacting effects of socio-demographic attributes and multi-scale abundance

ResearchBackground: Eliciting factors affecting distribution of traditional knowledge (TK) and cultural importance of plant resources is central in ethnobiology. Socio-demographic attributes and ecological apparency hypothesis (EAH) have been widely documented as drivers of TK distribution, but their synergistic effect is poorly documented. Here, we focused on Borassus aethiopum, a socio-economic important agroforestry palm in Africa, analyzing relationships between the number of use-reports and cultural importance on one hand, and informant socio-demographic attributes (age category and gender) on the other hand, considering the EAH at multi-scale contexts. Our hypothesis is that effects of socio-demographic attributes on use-reports and cultural importance are shaped by both local (village level) and regional (chorological region level) apparency of study species. We expected so because distribution of knowledge on a resource in a community correlates to the versatility in the resource utilization but also connections among communities within a region. Methods: Nine hundred ninety-two face-to-face individual semi-structured interviews were conducted in six villages of low versus high local abundance of B. aethiopum spanning three chorological regions (humid, sub-humid and semiarid) also underlying a gradient of increasing distribution and abundance of B. aethiopum. Number of use-reports and score of importance of uses of B. aethiopum were recorded in six use-categories including medicine, food, handcraft, construction, firewood, and ceremonies and rituals. Data were analyzed using Poisson and ordered logistic modelsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Factors affecting Pterocarpus erinaceus Poir. seed germination and seedlings growth in the Republic of Benin

African rosewood (Pterocarpus erinaceus Poir.) is a multi-purpose woody species threatened by an insufficient natural regeneration in the wild. Seed pre-treatments are expected to improve seed germination, but their effect may vary according to seeds provenance. In the present study, differences in seed germination capacity and seedling growth among three provenances of pre-treated seeds of P. erinaceus were evaluated. Seeds were collected in the three biogeographical zones of Benin. Two seed treatments were tested: treatment 1, seed left in cool water (15°C) for 24 hours; treatment 2, scarified seed; and seed with no treatment (control). The treatments and provenances were combined in a randomized complete block design with three replicates. The germination dynamics, seedling growth in diameter, total height and number of leaves as well as parasitic pressure (the number of attack) of seedlings were analysed using linear mixed effects model. The highest germination rate was recorded for seeds from the Sudanian zone, up to 45% on day 39 resulting to the adaptability of this species to new environment. There was a significant (Prob < 0.05) effect of seed pre-treatment on diameter growth, seedling height and number of leaves. High parasitic pressure was observed on seedlings and further researches are needed for controlling parasite. Based on these observations Sudanian seeds must be proposed and strategies are required for the efficient ex situ conservation of P. erinaceus.Keywords:  P. erinaceus, seeds provenances, pre-treatment, germination capacity, seedling growt

Analyse des perceptions locales des aménagements forestiers participatifs au Bénin

The present study analyzed the perceptions of forest management by the surrounding populations of the forests reserves under management in Benin according to some criteria like patterns of the forests reserves considered, the sociocultural groups and the educational levels of the populations. The Factorial Correspondence Analysis (FCA) performed on surveyed data related to the perception of 690 informants randomly chosen in 23 surrounding villages of forest reserves helped to analyse the link between various patterns of people and their perceptions. Results revealed that, on the whole, forest management is perceived by the local populations of the forests as a project in activity emphasizing the reforestation, employment for local people and a new manner of managing forest reserves. The local populations of forest reserves managed under projects PAMF and PGRN have perceptions based overall on forest repression (repression of the lack of civic virtue in the forest domain) and more means to forest agents in protecting forest reserves, those which took part in forest management with PRRF Project consider forest management as project in activity and finally the beneficiary populations of UNSO Project consider forest management as a new way to managing forests reserve. By considering the educational levels of people, results showed that the illiterate people have a traditional idea of forest management (reforestation, forest police) whereas those educated have a modern design of forest management (participatory approach of the populations, dialogue). These perceptions are visual and empirical and express the contents of the speeches of sensitization delivered by the projects in charge of the management of forest reserves

Analyse des perceptions locales des aménagements forestiers participatifs au Bénin

The present study analyzed the perceptions of forest management by the surrounding populations of the forests reserves under management in Benin according to some criteria like patterns of the forests reserves considered, the sociocultural groups and the educational levels of the populations. The Factorial Correspondence Analysis (FCA) performed on surveyed data related to the perception of 690 informants randomly chosen in 23 surrounding villages of forest reserves helped to analyse the link between various patterns of people and their perceptions. Results revealed that, on the whole, forest management is perceived by the local populations of the forests as a project in activity emphasizing the reforestation, employment for local people and a new manner of managing forest reserves. The local populations of forest reserves managed under projects PAMF and PGRN have perceptions based overall on forest repression (repression of the lack of civic virtue in the forest domain) and more means to forest agents in protecting forest reserves, those which took part in forest management with PRRF Project consider forest management as project in activity and finally the beneficiary populations of UNSO Project consider forest management as a new way to managing forests reserve. By considering the educational levels of people, results showed that the illiterate people have a traditional idea of forest management (reforestation, forest police) whereas those educated have a modern design of forest management (participatory approach of the populations, dialogue). These perceptions are visual and empirical and express the contents of the speeches of sensitization delivered by the projects in charge of the management of forest reserves

Effet de l'ombrage du karité sur le rendement capsulaire du coton dans les agroécosystèmes coton karité du Nord Bénin

Shea Butter Trees Shadiness Effect on Cotton Capsular Output in Shea Butter Trees-Cotton Agroecosystems of Northern Benin. Influence of the shea butter trees shadiness on cotton culture was studied in shea butter treescotton agroecosystems in four villages of Northern Benin. Three classes of crown diameter of shea butter trees were distinguished after inventory phase and 2 individuals by class of crown diameter were chosen to shelter the experimentation. Circular plot of 7.06 m² were installed under shea butter trees crown at ½r and out shea butter trees crown at 2r (r= crown radius) in the four cardinal directions of each tree sample. In total 192 experimental units were installed in the four sites. Results of analysis of variance, fixed model revealed a very high significant difference of the variables considered (number of plant/m²; number of branches loaded of capsules/plant; number of capsules per plant) between plots under influence and out of the influence of the crown of shea trees (P< 0.001). The average number of plants/m² and the average number of branches laden with cotton bolls per plant were lower under Shea trees (24.07% and 27.26% respectively). The number of cotton bolls per plant decreased by 28.46% on average under the shea tree crown

Impacts of the conventional tillage tools and reduced tillage on the soil fertility preservation: critical review

Objective: The long-term impacts of conventional tillage through compaction, soil erosion and loss of soil fertility have led to evaluation of this system. To mitigate these problems, simplified cultivation techniques (SCT) are increasingly practiced. The objective of this review is to clarify the effects of conventional tillage and minimum tillage on soil fertility.Methodology and Results: The methodology is based on a documentary research through a synthesis and a confrontation of the researches results of different authors. It is found that, after 5 to 6 years, conventional tillage lowers the fertility of the soil and reduces its productivity. There is a diversity of SCT with convincing results. These techniques leave more agricultural residues and allow an improvement of the indicator of organic matter on the soil by reduction of the mineralization. The STC, such as zero tillage, increase soil fertility and have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Improving soil fertility increases yield with a saving in working time. Hydraulic conductivity increases when switching from conventional tillage to direct sowing. Compared to conventional tillage, SCT provide an ideal environment for soil fertility recovery. However, the adoption of SCT and no-till is subject to a constraint on the agricultural equipment used. The design of effective equipment remains the challenge to facilitate large-scale application of SCT.Conclusion and application of results: It is noticed that conventional tillage induce long-term disturbance of soil properties and reduce fertility. Simplified cultivation techniques and particularly a direct sowing have a positive effect on the amount of soil organic matter, its density and water retention, and final production. The specific direct seeder must be designed to accompany the mechanization of these techniques.Keywords: conventional tillage, direct sowing, soil fertility, conservation agriculture

Folk classification, perception, and preferences of baobab products in West Africa: consequences for species conservation and improvement

The present study is a component of a baobab (Adansonia digitata L.) domestication research program being undertaken in Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, and Senegal. Surveys conducted on a total of 129 women and 281 men of different ages included questions on perceptions and human/cultural meaning of morphological variation, use forms, preferences (desirable/undesirable traits), and links between traits. Local people in the four countries use 21 criteria to differentiate baobab individuals in situ. According to them, the easier the bark harvesting, the tastier the pulp and leaves; the slimier the pulp, the less tasty it is; the more closely longitudinally marked the fruit capsules, the tastier the pulp. This study shows that farmers are able to use preferred combinations of traits as a guide in collecting germplasm from trees. This can allow the selection of trees that would be candidates for propagation, and planning for a domestication program based on the indigenous knowledge