INTRODUCTION
Traditional farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) depend primarily on mining soil nutrients (Vanlauwe et al., 2010). These practices, coupled with other environmental factors, have gradually reduced the productive potentials of SSA soils despite the increase in land area for crop cultivation. The need for sound agronomic practices is therefore important for addressing the food security challenges that confront the region. The conceptual framework of the Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) as proposed by Van