2025, Vol. 6, Issue 1, Part D
Microbial dynamics in soil under continuous conservation agriculture practices in Western Burkina Faso
Author(s): Souleymane Diakité, Amina S Traoré and Moussa B Zongo
Abstract: Soil health plays a crucial role in agricultural productivity, particularly in semi-arid regions where soil degradation and water scarcity are significant challenges. This study investigates the long-term effects of continuous conservation agriculture (CA) practices on soil microbial dynamics in Western Burkina Faso, a region characterized by fragile agroecosystems. The primary objectives were to assess the impact of CA practices, including no-tillage, permanent soil cover, and crop rotation, on microbial biomass, activity, and diversity, compared to conventional tillage (CT) systems. Additionally, the study aimed to explore the relationship between microbial parameters and key soil physicochemical properties, such as organic carbon content, nitrogen availability, and water-holding capacity, and to evaluate their impact on maize productivity. Soil samples were collected from both conservation agriculture (CA) and conventional tillage (CT) plots at three time points over four years. and microbial communities were analyzed using next-generation sequencing (NGS) targeting bacterial 16S rRNA and fungal ITS regions. The results revealed that microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and basal respiration rates were significantly higher in CA plots compared to CT plots, indicating increased microbial activity. Furthermore, the diversity of microbial communities, as measured by the Shannon index, was significantly greater in CA plots. CA practices also showed a positive correlation with improved soil physicochemical properties and higher maize yields, suggesting enhanced soil fertility and productivity. The findings demonstrate that CA practices significantly improve soil microbial dynamics, enhance soil health, and increase maize productivity in Western Burkina Faso. These results underline the importance of promoting CA adoption as a sustainable agricultural practice to improve food security and resilience in semi-arid regions. Future research should focus on expanding these findings to other regions and scaling up CA practices to ensure long-term sustainability.
Pages: 316-322 | Views: 359 | Downloads: 62
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How to cite this article:
Souleymane Diakité, Amina S Traoré, Moussa B Zongo. Microbial dynamics in soil under continuous conservation agriculture practices in Western Burkina Faso. J Adv Microbiol Res 2025;6(1):316-322.
