Crop Production and Soil Management Techniques for the Tropics

The book is a compact and easy-to-use source of technical information on crop production and soil management. It is meant for use by students and teachers of agriculture at the college and the undergraduate levels; also farmers and agriculturists. It is presented in two parts (1 and 2).

Part 1 discusses the principles and factors that determine success in crop production, such as the roles of soil, climate and technology adoption. In discussing the nature and properties of soils, specific attention is given to examples in the calculations of quantities, especially in the aspects of soil physics and soil chemistry. The roles of fertilizers, manures and soil amendments in the sustenance of soil fertility are discussed and illustrated with field data. Methods of converting soil test values of fertilizers to quantities and rates per hectare are given; so also are the procedures for ameliorating the challenges posed by soil pollution. There is also a discussion on the recently approved World Reference Base (WRB) for soil resources as to how it has enabled correlations among similar soil Groups and Orders across the different national classification systems that are in use. The 32 Reference Soil Groups (RSG) of the WRB are listed to create awareness on this very useful report provided by the FAO and UNESCO.

Part 2 of the book deals with discussions on the nature, uses and cultivation processes for the wide range of crops produced in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. National production levels are given with the perspective that such information reveals the relative popularity of some crops in certain countries and also their economic importance. This section on crop production covers two-thirds of the book and provides very handy briefs for quick and easy sourcing of information on a wide array of crops.

The book ends with appendices that provide frequently required information on scientific values, constants, equations and terminologies. It is a handbook of general information on the issues of managing soils and producing relevant crops successfully in the face of a multiplicity of challenges.