Sustainable Harvesting of Soybean (Glycine max (l) merr.) by Using the Different Indigenous Mulching Materials in the Municipality of N'Dali in the North-East of Benin

Abstract

Aims: Declining soil fertility has rekindled a renewed interest in soybean cultivation, but low rainfall continues to limit the production of this important nitrogen-fixing crop. Methodology: This study aims to identify among three mulch materials, the best mulch type to improve soil water conservation as well as fertility, was conducted in N'Dali using a randomized complete block design with three replicates and four treatments, namely: no mulch (T0), wood chips (T1), couch grass (T2), and rice husks (T3). Result: At 63 days after sowing, rice husk mulch produced the best growth—65.60 cm plant height, 17.93 branches, and 10.79 mm collar diameter—followed by couch grass (52.9 cm plant height, 15 branches, 9.78 mm collar diameter). Rice husk also gave the highest yield (1000-grain weight being 220.93 g and a yield of 2.208 t/ha) compared to couch grass (186.63 g; 1.86 t/ha).  Conclusion: The results of the experiment revealed that rice husks and couch grass had a positive influence on soybean growth compared to wood chips. As for the yield parameters (t/ha) and 1000-grains weight (g/m²), rice husks induced a better yield, followed by couch grass straw. Further research is needed to investigate the effects of mulching on soybean nodulation and to evaluate different rice husk application rates for optimizing yield and productivity.