Effect of tillage, fertilizer and sorghum/desmodium intercrop cultivation on soils quality and yield of sorghum in an alfisol of a Northern Guinea Savanna of Nigeria

Soil quality protection under intensive land use and fast economic development has become a major challenge for sustainable resource use in the developing countries such as Nigeria. Conventional tillage practice is commonly practiced at land preparation and effect of this on soil quality for sustainable productivity was investigated in this study, in comparison with No Till, Conservation tillage, and split old ridge practices in combination with four nitrogen and three phosphorus fertilizer rates. Sorghum was the test crop. Results show that the soils were initially acid (pH 5.0 to 6.0), had low organic carbon (2.3 to 2.5gkg -1 ), total nitrogen (0.05gkg -1 ) and low to moderate available phosphorus (6.7 to 8.5mgkg -1 ) and needed restoration to support sustainable agricultural production. Tillage, sorghum/ Desmodium and N and P fertilizer managements imposed showed that No Till practice (SDNT) sequestered significantly (P<0.05) higher organic carbon value (6.9 gkg -1 ), followed by Conservation tillage with incorporated and relayed D. Uncinatum