As part of an agricultural intensification strategy to increase livestock feed productivity, an agronomic trial was set up in Central, Kenya. The agronomic trial followed a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replicate plots measuring 4 meters by 2 meters per treatment. The treatments comprised of NPK fertilizer, Farmyard Manure (FYM), Farm Yard Manure Biochar (FYM-BC), Bioslurry (all at 45 kg N·ha-1), Lablab intercropping (Biological Nitrogen Fixation), and Control treatment (no fertilizer). GenStat Statistical analysis of variance among the treatment means significantly influenced ammonium (NH4) and nitrate (NO3-) availability in the soil (p < 0.001). The highest NH4 concentration was recorded under NPK (21.20 ± 27.01 μg·g-1 dry matter (D.M.), while the lowest NH4 concentration was recorded under Lablab treatment (6.62 ± 8.02 μg·g-1 D.M.). Like NH4, significantly higher (61.41 ± 38.83 μg·g-1 D.M.) NO3- concentration was observed under NPK plots, while the lowest concentration (37.09 ± 25.15 μg·g-1 D.M.) was recorded under Lablab. These findings indicate that NPK releases plant-available mineral N faster than organic fertilizers, which could lead to faster plant growth and higher N leaching losses compared to the slow-release organic fertilizers.
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