| dc.description.abstract | In Senegal, the peri-urban Niayes region has biophysical and socio-economic potential to contribute to
national food security. Peri-urban agriculture highly contributes to the local food supply, but one
potential constraint to expansion is soil suitability for new crops. We examined the suitability of soils for
the cultivation of upland rice (Oryza sativa L.), cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), and groundnut (Arachis
hypogaea L.) in a peri-urban wetland outside of Dakar. The selected crops are central to local diets. Study
sites were located along a toposequence. We evaluated soil suitability metrics for these three crops based
on physical and chemical characteristics. The results show that soil texture varied from sandy to sandy
loam. The organic matter concentration varied between 0 g kg 1 and 2 g kg 1
. Total nitrogen and organic
carbon had low values in all sites except in S4 while macronutrients (Ca, Mg, Na, and K) varied across
sites. Calcium was the most abundant cation in the soils; followed by Mg, Na, and K. Based on these
factors, we found that there is high suitability for groundnut production in peri-urban Dakar, slight
potential for cassava, and marginal or poor suitability for rice production. It attempts to fillthe knowledge
gap with new data for soil suitability in research development (R&D) in Senegalese agriculture. The same
approach could be applied in other areas when introducing new crops for diversification. | en_US |
