Institut de l’Environnement et de Recherches Agricoles (INERA), Département Gestion des Ressources Naturelles et Système de Production (GRN, SP), INERA-Farako-Bâ, Laboratoire Sol-Eau-Plante (SEP), 01 BP 910 Bobo-Dioulasso 01, Burkina Faso
Given the climatic variability of recent years, characterized by numerous pockets of drought in the western zone of Burkina Faso, the application of zaï technology could be an alternative to cope with rainfall deficits. With this in mind, a zaï trial was set up at the INERA station in Farako-Bâ in a completely randomized Fisher block design with seven (7) treatments, including T0 (no zaï+compost+MD), T1 (zaï 15 cm+compost), T2 (20 cm+ compost), T3 (zaï 30 cm+ compost), T4 (zaï 15 cm + compost +MD), T5 (zaï 20 cm + compost +MD), T6 (zaï 30 cm + compost +MD). The parameters observed were the size of the zaï holes and the maize yield. The results show that treatments T5 (zaï 20 cm + compost +MD) and T6 (zaï 30 cm + compost +MD) have respectively the best performances in terms of grain yield (2.69 t/ha and 2.68 t/ha) and straw yield (4.1 t/ha and 3.6 t/ha). The results of this study show that zai technology associated with micro-dosing of fertilizer can be adapted in the South Sudanian zone of Burkina Faso and can be a means of adaptation to increasingly difficult rainfall conditions marked by pockets of drought. zaï holes with diameters of 20 and 30 cm increase maize crop yields.