International Journal of Agriculture and Agricultural Sciences (IJAAS), ISSN: 1712-3496, Vol. 6(1), pp. 164-175, March, 2021.  © Advanced Scholars  Journals

Full length Research paper

Soil-root interface (RLD), porosity and density of earthworms in crop profile, under young agroforestry fallow-grassland (Green Mat), in Kisangani (DR Congo)

Pyame MLD¹ *, Utshudi DJB², Haesaert G³ and Baert G³

*¹Faculté de Gestion de Ressources Renouvelables, Université de Kisangani, BP 2012, Kisangani, RD Congo.

²Instut Supérieur d’Etudes Agronomiques de Yatolema, RD Congo ;

³University of Gand, Belgium.

*Correspondingauthor’sEmail:[email protected]

Accepted 9^th Febuary , 2021

Abstract

An experiment was carried out in Kisangani (DR Congo) to examine,  faced to the Slash-and-burn system, to what extent and what degree the cropping system in "Plates under Green Mat" would favorably affect the soil-root interface (RLD), porosity and soil macro-invertebrates including earthworms. A device plan with 5 completely randomized blocks, divided into 2 plots each, was chosen to test the factor "production system (single-factor ANOVA x Duncan's test)". It emerges from this study the following performance points:

ü   An improvement in root density and soil-root interface (13.4 versus 5.2 g/100 cm3 of soil and 22.2 versus 8.9 cm/cm³ at 0-5cm), the effects ranging up to a depth of 20cm ;

ü   A dense and more compact rooting board, suitable for mineral recycling and for the complete redistribution of edaphic bioagents for fertility improvement, both microbial and faunal ;

ü   An improvement in structure and organicmatter rate of the upper soil strench (8 against 3.5% at 0-5cm and 4.5 against 1% at 5-20cm);

ü   An improvement in earthworm density of 200% (1693 against 581 /m²).

Cropping in Plates under Green Mat thus displays the essential features of Conservation Agriculture, being both ecological and sustainable.

Key words : Green Mat, Slash and Burn, rootingboards, morpho-edaphic charts, Soil-root Interface, Lombrics