Despite poor soil fertility and water scarcity, thousands of farmers in Kenya have increased their crop yields by 17-20% and saved 20% of their fertilizer costs thanks to climate-smart agricultural techniques. The techniques, introduced with the support of the IAEA, in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), help improve soil fertility and enable farmers to better manage the crops’ water requirements.
Isotopic techniques play a crucial role in assessing nutrient qualities of soil and water resources. A group of scientists from the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) used nuclear and isotopic techniques to measure changes in soil’s water and nutrients. This effort supports farming practices that keep the soil healthy, improve water and nutrient strategic use, optimize crop yields and increase soil resilience.
These techniques were used in the Kajiado-Central and Tharaka sub counties to assess crop nitrogen use efficiency and to calculate nutrient and water requirements using the stable isotope nitrogen-15 (N-15) and soil moisture sensors. N-15 isotopes, which have the same amount of proton and electron as “normal” nitrogen atoms, but with an extra neutron, are effective tracers that can be employed to understand the movement of nutrients between soil and plants. They also help to provide quantitative data on the efficiency of nutrients use by crops and this data enables experts to improve water and fertilizer application strategies.