VALORIZING DEGRADED LANDS USING INNOVATIVE BIOFERTILISERSFOR TOMATO CROPPING: RESPONSE TO BOKASHI, EFFICIENT MICROORGANISMS AND COMPOST IN THE SUDANESE ZONE OF BURKINA FASO (BOBO-DIOULASSO)

In order to improvefood security and sustainable land management at relatively low cost, this study evaluates the effect of biofertilizers on soil chemical properties and on tomato yield in 2020 and 2022 in Bobo-Dioulasso (Burkina Faso). A Fisher randomized design compares six treatments: T1: compost at 30 kg ha-1, T2: Bokashi at 30 kg ha-1, T3: Effective Microorganisms at 500 l ha-1, T4: T1 + T3, T5: T2+T3, T6: mineral fertilizer at 300 kg ha-1 of compound fertilizer NPK (14-23-14) + 200 kg ha-1 of urea 46% N. Results show that compost and Bokashi have the potential to improve the availability of phosphorus and exchangeable bases in soil compared to mineral fertilizer. They enable the stabilization of pH value and nitrogen content, which decrease if only mineral fertilizer is applied. Bokashi increases tomato yield by 23-58% compared to mineral fertilizer. Effective microorganisms alone are less efficient than mineral fertilizer. Combining Bokashi, whether enriched or not with effectivemicroorganisms and a minimal amount of mineral fertilizer, could help optimize crop yields in the transitional phase of soil fertility recovery. This study suggests that biofertilizers can be used to improve food production while stabilizing soil quality.