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Since the early 2000s, the area under oil palm in Ghana expanded but average fruit bunch yields remained low at ~7 t ha-1 yr-1 in 2014, resulting in large yield gaps. Despite the pressing need to increase palm oil production and improve yields, knowledge of the underlying causes of poor yields in Ghana is lacking. The objective of this project, carried out by PhD candidate Tiemen Rhebergen as part of the IPNI project "Oil Palm Best Management Practices in Ghana" (in collaboration with Tropical Crop Consultants Limited and Solidaridad), was to analyse the factors that currently limit oil palm production on plantations and smallholder farms in Ghana and to assess opportunities to increase yields with improved agronomic practices. Using land suitability evaluation methods and yield gap analysis, a framework for yield intensification with ‘Best Management Practices’ (BMP) on existing mature oil palm plantings was developed. Data was acquired from online databases, farm surveys, a three-year trial established on three plantations and twenty smallholder farms across Ghana, and an irrigation and fertilizer experiment established on a large-scale oil palm plantation in Western region, Ghana. The project resulted in the publication of several articles and the PhD thesis of Tiemen, which he defended successfully in the Wageningen aula on 12/06/2019. Project output:
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Yield gap analysis in oil palm production systems in Ghana (2015-2019)
Begin
2015
End
2019
Crop
Oil palm
Description
