Use of the Amazonian tree species Inga edulis for soil regeneration and weed control
- Author
- Bohdan Lojka, Daniel Preininger, Patrick Van Damme (UGent) , A Rollo and Jan Banout
- Organization
- Abstract
- Land for agriculture in the tropics is often cleared through slash and burn, which is a shifting cultivation system. However, shortening of fallow periods led to soil degradation, decreased yields and increased weed pressure. Our objective was to evaluate the effects of short-term tree fallow of Inga edulis on weeds and soil fertility. We compared four treatments, namely, (1) natural fallow, (2) planted fallow with I. Midis, (3) planted fallow with I. edulis herbaceous cover crop kudzu (Pueraria phaseoloides) and (4) continuous cropping of cassava (Manihol esculenta). Tree and weed biomass amount and composition were determined at 3, 6, 9, 13, 17, 20, 24, 28 and 33 months after establishment, while soil samples at 17 and 25 months. The growth rate of I. edulis was slow when compared with other studies. However, improved fallows were able to significantly decrease aboveground weed biomass. Total biomass of improved fallows increased more rapidly than that of natural fallow and cassava cropping. There were no significant soil fertility differences between treatments and all fallows increased the organic matter in topsoil over time. Available P declined in all treatments but stocks of aboveground N, P and K increased more rapidly under improved fallows. Planted fallows using trees such as I. Mulls have the potential to reduce growth of weed species and improve some soil fertility parameters but, on highly degraded soil, a longer time and possibly P fertilisation may be needed to achieve these increases.
- Keywords
- TROPICAL FALLOWS, NUTRIENT STOCKS, MAIZE, PRODUCTIVITY, HUMID TROPICS, Peruvian Amazon, slash and burn farming, FERTILITY, GROWTH, improved fallow, Agroforestry, Imperata brasiliensis
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Citation
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication: http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-2051252
- MLA
- Lojka, Bohdan, et al. “Use of the Amazonian Tree Species Inga Edulis for Soil Regeneration and Weed Control.” JOURNAL OF TROPICAL FOREST SCIENCE, vol. 24, no. 1, 2012, pp. 89–101.
- APA
- Lojka, B., Preininger, D., Van Damme, P., Rollo, A., & Banout, J. (2012). Use of the Amazonian tree species Inga edulis for soil regeneration and weed control. JOURNAL OF TROPICAL FOREST SCIENCE, 24(1), 89–101.
- Chicago author-date
- Lojka, Bohdan, Daniel Preininger, Patrick Van Damme, A Rollo, and Jan Banout. 2012. “Use of the Amazonian Tree Species Inga Edulis for Soil Regeneration and Weed Control.” JOURNAL OF TROPICAL FOREST SCIENCE 24 (1): 89–101.
- Chicago author-date (all authors)
- Lojka, Bohdan, Daniel Preininger, Patrick Van Damme, A Rollo, and Jan Banout. 2012. “Use of the Amazonian Tree Species Inga Edulis for Soil Regeneration and Weed Control.” JOURNAL OF TROPICAL FOREST SCIENCE 24 (1): 89–101.
- Vancouver
- 1.Lojka B, Preininger D, Van Damme P, Rollo A, Banout J. Use of the Amazonian tree species Inga edulis for soil regeneration and weed control. JOURNAL OF TROPICAL FOREST SCIENCE. 2012;24(1):89–101.
- IEEE
- [1]B. Lojka, D. Preininger, P. Van Damme, A. Rollo, and J. Banout, “Use of the Amazonian tree species Inga edulis for soil regeneration and weed control,” JOURNAL OF TROPICAL FOREST SCIENCE, vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 89–101, 2012.
@article{2051252,
abstract = {{Land for agriculture in the tropics is often cleared through slash and burn, which is a shifting cultivation system. However, shortening of fallow periods led to soil degradation, decreased yields and increased weed pressure. Our objective was to evaluate the effects of short-term tree fallow of Inga edulis on weeds and soil fertility. We compared four treatments, namely, (1) natural fallow, (2) planted fallow with I. Midis, (3) planted fallow with I. edulis herbaceous cover crop kudzu (Pueraria phaseoloides) and (4) continuous cropping of cassava (Manihol esculenta). Tree and weed biomass amount and composition were determined at 3, 6, 9, 13, 17, 20, 24, 28 and 33 months after establishment, while soil samples at 17 and 25 months. The growth rate of I. edulis was slow when compared with other studies. However, improved fallows were able to significantly decrease aboveground weed biomass. Total biomass of improved fallows increased more rapidly than that of natural fallow and cassava cropping. There were no significant soil fertility differences between treatments and all fallows increased the organic matter in topsoil over time. Available P declined in all treatments but stocks of aboveground N, P and K increased more rapidly under improved fallows. Planted fallows using trees such as I. Mulls have the potential to reduce growth of weed species and improve some soil fertility parameters but, on highly degraded soil, a longer time and possibly P fertilisation may be needed to achieve these increases.}},
author = {{Lojka, Bohdan and Preininger, Daniel and Van Damme, Patrick and Rollo, A and Banout, Jan}},
issn = {{0128-1283}},
journal = {{JOURNAL OF TROPICAL FOREST SCIENCE}},
keywords = {{TROPICAL FALLOWS,NUTRIENT STOCKS,MAIZE,PRODUCTIVITY,HUMID TROPICS,Peruvian Amazon,slash and burn farming,FERTILITY,GROWTH,improved fallow,Agroforestry,Imperata brasiliensis}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{1}},
pages = {{89--101}},
title = {{Use of the Amazonian tree species Inga edulis for soil regeneration and weed control}},
volume = {{24}},
year = {{2012}},
}