Utilization and management practices of animal manure for replenishing soil fertility among smallscale crop farmers in semi-arid farming districts of the North West Province,South Africa

Poor soil fertility is one of the most limiting biophysical factors to agricultural production among smallscale farmers in much of the sub-Saharan Africa, especially the semi-arid areas. In this study, a survey of 200 randomly selected farming households across four districts (Mafikeng, Ditsobotla, Ganyesa and Taung) located in a semi-arid environment of the North West Province in South Africa was conducted to establish the utilisation and management of animal manure for managing soil fertility. The results showed that 66% of the farmers across the districts used animal manure on their crops. The types of manure used were in the order cattle > sheep = goat > chicken. Cattle manure was readily available from farmers’ own kraal or neighbours. Despite its availability and advantages, chicken manure was seldom used. The rates of manure application were generally low (mean 2.5 tha⁻¹) although most farmers (71%) applied it annually. In the majority of cases, manure would be applied to about half (57.5%) of the cropped land every year (average farm size was 5.3 hectares). The manure was mostly broadcasted (76%) on the surface before being ploughed under followed by dollop (53%). The quality of most of the manure resources was relatively poor as it had low N and P but high soil content (mean 22.7%). The study found that farmers have developed local knowledge with regards to criteria for defining manure quality. The criterion, which used physical characteristics such as colour, moisture content and presence of moulds in the manure, was quite consistent across the study districts and points to the possibility of the indigenous knowledge being interfaced with scientific knowledge. The factors which positively influenced farmers’ decision to use manure were herd sizes, farming experience, training and availability of manure, extension services and labour. On the other hand, farm sizes negatively affected manure use. It was observed that housing, feeding, storage and handling practices of manure resources was not optimum in most of the study districts and this contributed to loss of nutrients and quality. It is recommended that improved strategies of manure production and handling be adopted by farmers in order to maximise the quality and efficiency of manure utilization. The potential that exists in using chicken manure to supply crop nutrients needs to be explored.