COMBINED MICRODOSING OF NPK AND UREA: EFFECTS ON PRODUCTIVITY AND ECONOMIC PROFITABILITY OF SESAME (SESAMUM INDICUM L.) IN SEMI-ARID BURKINA FASO
Ouedraogo Jean, Sawadogo Achille, Nignan Iliassou, Ouedraogo Moctar, Serme Idriss
International Journal of Advanced Research August 31, 2026 DOI: 10.21474/ijar01/24066 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized complete block field trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Sesame crop grown at the Saria Research Station, North Sudanese zone of Burkina Faso, in 2019 and 2020 |
| Intervention | urea |
| Dose | 1 g NPK/hill, 1.5 g NPK/hill, 1 g NPK + 1 g urea/hill, 1.5 g NPK + 1 g urea/hill |
| Duration | Two growing seasons (2019 and 2020) |
| Topics | Microdosing |
| Key findings | Applying 1.5 g NPK plus 1 g urea per hill produced the highest sesame grain yield, averaging 1,114 kg per hectare, a 114.5% increase over the unfertilized control, and also improved straw yield. The authors report this treatment achieved the highest net margin (over 741 USD per hectare) and a benefit-cost ratio above 2.5, and contend it is a promising techno-economic option for sustainable intensification of smallholder sesame cultivation. |
Abstract
The combined microdose of NPK and urea could be a sustainable intensification strategy for sesame cultivation in semi-arid areas of West Africa.This study evaluated the effects of different NPK microdose treatments, both alone and in combination with urea, on sesame productivity and economic profitability in the North Sudanese zone of Burkina Faso.The trial was conducted in 2019 and 2020 at the Saria Research Station using a completely randomized block design with four replications. Five treatments were tested: T1 (unfertilized control), T2 (1 g NPK/hill), T3 (1.5 g NPK/hill), T4 (1 g NPK + 1 g urea/hill), and T5 (1.5 g NPK + 1 g urea/hill). Results showed that T5 recorded the highest grain yield (average 1,114 kg.ha-1), representing a 114.5% increase compared to the unfertilized control. This combination also significantly improved the straw yield.Economic analysis revealed that T5 achieved the highest net margin (on average >741 USD ha-1)) with a Benefit/Cost Ratio exceeding 2.5, confirming its profitability for smallholder producers.These findings demonstrate that the application of 1.5 g of NPK and 1 g of urea per microdose is a promising techno-economic option for the sustainable intensification of sesame cultivation in smallholder farming systems.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on microdosing, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Use of microdosing to predict pharmacokinetics at the therapeutic dose: Experience with 5 drugs Volunteers | 2006 | Crossover study | |
| Self-blinding citizen science to explore psychedelic microdosing. Participants who microdose psychedelics | 2021 | Self-blinding citizen science initiative with placebo control | n = 191 |
| Microdosing with psilocybin mushrooms: a double-blind placebo-controlled study Individuals starting to microdose with psilocybin mushrooms (Psilocybe cubensis) | 2022 | Double-blind placebo-controlled experimental design | n = 34 |
| Preliminary Report on the Effects of a Low Dose of LSD on Resting-State Amygdala Functional Connectivity. Healthy young adults, 18 to 35 years old | 2019 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 20 |
| Acute Mood-Elevating Properties of Microdosed Lysergic Acid Diethylamide in Healthy Volunteers: A Home-Administered Randomized Controlled Trial. Healthy male volunteers | 2023 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 80 |