![]() ![]() ![]() On control plots, yield was negligible as expected on these degraded soils. The amendment compost + ashes strongly increased corn yield, which was multiplied by 4–5 in comparison with ashes or compost alone, reaching 1.5 t/ha compared to 0.25 and 0.35 t/ha for ashes and compost, respectively. Both corn growth and soil fertility parameters were monitored during the growing season 2015 up to final harvest. Furthermore, two tree cover treatments were applied: 0% tree cover (as in traditional slash‐and‐burn cultivation) and 50% tree cover (selective slash‐and‐burn). ![]() Corn plants ( Zea mays L.) were grown on four different types of soil amendments: no amendment (control), compost, ashes (as in traditional slash‐and‐burn cultivation), and compost + ashes additions. In the dry region of south‐western Madagascar, we tested, according to a split‐plot design, an alternative selective slash‐and‐burn cultivation technique coupled with compost amendment on 30–year‐old abandoned fields. We propose a reclamation strategy for abandoned fields allowing and sustaining re‐cultivation. Consequently, new surfaces are regularly cleared from the primary forest. However, the fields are abandoned after few years because of yield decrease and weed invasion. In many tropical regions, slash‐and‐burn agriculture is considered as a driver of deforestation the forest is converted into agricultural land by cutting and burning the trees. ![]()
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