OUR FELLOWS
As a soil scientist, Stella Asuming-Brempong is focused on empowering rural smallholders to improve their soil fertility practices for higher crop productivity, while sustainably building up soil phosphorus status.
She is studying nutrient problems in some of the soils in rice-growing regions in Ghana. Upland rice varieties, such as Nerica rice which is grown in many areas in Ghana, can yield 1.5-2.5 tons per hectare without inputs. This amounts to high uptake of N, P, and K every growing season from the already nutrientdepleted soil. Analysis of soils in the savannas showed that the nutrient status regarding N, P, and soil organic matter was declining, particularly in upland rice cropping systems.
I have isolated some phosphate solubilizing microorganisms (PSMs)—mainly bacteria, fungi, and actinomycetes—from some Ghanaian soils. In pot experiments, some of the PSMs were used to improve growth of Nerica rice. We found that they significantly influenced rice yield, as well as nitrogen and phosphorus uptake of the rice
Field of Research
Sustainable build-up of soil nitrogen and phosphorus in an upland rice-based cropping system through the use of leguminous crops and phosphate solubilising microorganisms.