volume 4 no.3 indi leis a · system of rice intensification gains momentum norman uphoff and erick...

1L E I S A I N D I A • S E P T E M B E R 2002

INDILEIS

Sep

tem

ber

20

02

vo

lum

e

4n

o.3

Magazine on Low External Input Sustainable Agriculture A

September 2002 volume 4 no. 3

LEISA India is published quarterly byAME Foundation in collaboration withILEIA

Address : AME FoundationPO Box 7836,Bangalore - 560 078, IndiaVisitors address : AME Foundation,No. 1583, 17th Main, 2nd Phase, J.P. Nagar, Bangalore - 560 078, IndiaTel: +91-080-2659 6780, +91-080-2658 2835Fax: +91-080-2658 3471E-mail: [email protected]

EDITORIAL TEAM

LEISA India

Managing Editor: K.V.S. Prasad

Assistant Editor : T.M. Radha

ADMINISTRATIONM Shobha Maiya

SUBSCRIPTIONSContact: KVS Prasad,AME FoundationNo. 1583, 17th Main, 2nd Phase, J.P. Nagar, Bangalore - 560 078, IndiaE-mail: [email protected]

DESIGN AND LAYOUTS Jayaraj, Chennai

PRINTINGNagaraj & Co. Pvt. Ltd., Chennai

COVER PHOTOCourtesy : AME FoundationPhoto : S Jayaraj

LEISA Magazine is produced in 5 editions

LEISA Magazine - Global editionLEISA Revista - Spanish editionSALAM Indonesia- Bahasan editionAGRIDAPE - French editionLEISA India

The editors have taken every care toensure that the contents of this magazineare as accurate as possible. The authorshave ultimate responsibility, however,for the content of individual articles.

The editors encourage readers tophotocopy and circulate magazinearticles.

AME Foundation promotes sustainable livelihoods through combining indigenousknowledge and innovative technologies for Low-External-Input natural resourcemanagement. Towards this objective, AME Foundation works with small and marginalfarmers in the semi arid areas of the Deccan Plateau through generating alternatives,enrichment of knowledge base, training, linkage development and sharing experiences.www.amefound.org

ILEIA is the Centre for Research and Information on Low-External-Input and SustainableAgriculture. It seeks to exchange information on LEISA by publishing a quarterlynewsletter, bibliographies, and books. ILEIADOC, the data base of ILEIA’sdocumentation centre, is available on diskette and on ILEIA’s Homepage:www.ileia.org. Back issues of the ILEIA Newsletter are also available on ILEIA’s website.

LEISA is about Low-External-Input and Sustainable Agriculture. It is about the technicaland social options open to farmers who seek to improve productivity and income inan ecologically sound way. LEISA is about the optimal use of local resources andnatural processes and, if necessary, the safe and efficient use of external inputs. It isabout the empowerment of male and female farmers and the communities who seekto build their future on the bases of their own knowledge, skills, values, culture andinstitutions. LEISA is also about participatory methodologies to strengthen the capacityof farmers and other actors, to improve agriculture and adapt it to changing needsand conditions. LEISA seeks to combine indigenous and scientific knowledge and toinfluence policy formulation to create a conducive environment for its furtherdevelopment. LEISA is a concept, an approach and a political message.

This issue of LEISA Magazine is focused on three important approaches in

agricultural development: Conservation Agriculture (CA), Integrated Soil Fertility

Management (ISFM) and System of

Rice Intensification (SRI). All three

approaches are deeply rooted in

‘ecological soil management’ and

move towards LEISA, agriculture

that makes optimal use of the ingenuity of nature. The articles prove that farmers,

who work with nature instead of against it, can produce high and sustainable

yields. The articles also demonstrate the creative and innovative force of farmer

experimentation and participatory development processes. Especially, the

development of Conservation Agriculture in Latin America by millions of large

and small farmers is a break-through in the development of agroecology / LEISA.

Part of the international issue has been produced in close collaboration with the

Conservation Agriculture Working group of FAO. Their support is very much

appreciated.

We are extremely grateful to International Development Research Center (IDRC),Canada for supporting the production and distribution of this Indian edition ofLEISA magazine.

The Editors

Dear Readers

ConservationAgriculture: plantingconcepts andharvesting good resultsJosé Benites, Sandrine Vanephand Alexandra Bot

Tillage is one of the main causes of soildegradation and low yields. ConservationAgriculture (CA): zero tillage, direct seeding,mulching, green manure/ cover cropproduction and crop rotation, with or withoutthe use of herbicides, has become anenormous success in the USA, Australia andLatin America in the past decade. It is nowbeing introduced in Africa and Central, Southand Southeast Asia with promising results.

Small and marginal farmers owning lessthan a hectare constitute the majority ofthe Indian farming community. Toaddress their needs and help them toadopt sustainable farming practices, afarming model has been developed. Thislow cost model integrates local farmingpractices with watershed concepts. Themodel enables a small farmer to meethis food and fodder requirements, getcash income regularly through one ortwo farm related enterprises.

A model of farmingsystems approach forsustainableagricultureM. Rudraradhya 13

The articles on Conservation Agriculture(p.6-12) discuss the concepts of andexperiences with this approach in LatinAmerica and Africa.

6

LEISINDIA

ContentsVol. 4 no.3, September 2002

Including Selections from International Edition

4 Living soil-basis for conservation agriculture

Editorial

6 Planting concepts and harvesting good results

José Benites, Sandrine Vaneph and Alexandra Bot

10 The Quesungual system in Honduras, an alternativeto slash-and-burn

Luis Alvarez Welches and Ian cherrett

11 Conservation agriculture and rural development:Experiences in EI Salvador

Marcos Vieira and Jon Van Wambeke

13 A model of farming systems approach forsustainable agriculture

M. Rudraradhya

15 Integrated soil fertility management, opportunitiesfor smallholders in West Africa

Henk Breman

16 Sustaining soil fertility: useful practices andmethods in hill agriculture

Sustainable soil management programme, Nepal

18 Mircobial tools – a key to sustainableproductivity

Dhananjaya P. Singh

19 Integrated nutrient management infodder-cowpea

Thomas Abraham and R.B. Lal

20 Wise lessons from Mother Nature

Ambarwati D. Rahayu and Rik Thijssen

22 System of Rice Intensificaitongains momentum

Norman Uphoff and Erick Fernandes

28 The Narayana Reddy Column:SRI method of paddy cultivation

L. Narayana Reddy

30 Websites

32 Sources

34 Books

36 Experiments with spiders, ants and otherindigenous practices

K.J.N. Gowtham shankar

Themes for the LEISA-India

Experiments with spiders,ants and other indigenouspracticesK.J.N. Gowtham Shankar

IDEA is working with tribal people in the northern Ghatsin India. During documentation of tribal indigenousknowledge they found that social spiders were used tocontrol stem borers in paddy. This practice, which was stillknown only to a few families, has now been disseminatedto many farmers in the region who are now using Bulu alsofor pest control in other crops. This is just one of the manyindigenous pest management practices documented andshared by IDEA. The tribal farmers in the region invite thereaders of LEISA Magazine to exchange experiences withthem.

36

System of RiceIntensification gains momentumNorman Uphoff and Erick Fernandes

The System of Rice Intensification, developed by small farmersin Madagascar, is spreading fast. The first InternationalConference on SRI took place in Sanya, China, in April 2002.Based on the experiences from 17 countries presented at thisconference, the authors have written a ‘state of the art’ on SRIfor LEISA Magazine. The article shows the impressive potentialof this ecological approach, irrespective of the use of hybrid ortraditional varieties, and discusses best practices. It also showsthe creative power of farmer innovation to adapt promisingtechnologies to local conditions.

22

3L E I S A I N D I A • S E P T E M B E R 2 0 0 2

L E I S A I N D I A • S E P T E M B E R 2 0 0 24

Editorial

Conservation Agriculturespreading fast

Thirty years ago it all started withherbicide-based Zero Tillage(ZT) for grain crops like maize

and soybean. Gradually a much broaderand ecologically sound approachevolved, which is now being calledConservation Agriculture (CA). CA isbased on reduced or no tillage, directseeding and crop rotation. The soil iscovered with a mulch layer of cropresidue, green manure or cover crop, andherbicides or mechanical or naturalmethods for weed control are used whenrequired.

Presently, many crops, e.g. sugarcane,banana, cassava, tobacco, rice, onion,tomato, cabbage and lettuce, can begrown in CA systems in humid, dry andtemperate climates. CA is practisedwidely: from commercial, large-scale,relatively simple mechanised systemsusing herbicides, pesticides andinorganic fertilisers to semi-subsistence,complex systems with integration oftrees and animals replacing slash andburn (p. 10). CA is challenging farmersto produce in a more integrated andecological way by following IntegratedPest Management (IPM), IntegratedWeed Management (IWM), IntegratedSoil Fertility Management (ISFM) orAgro-forestry, or even to go organic.

The potential benefits of CA - reductionof soil erosion, more efficient use ofinputs, important savings in labour, fossilenergy and total costs, and increase inproduction - are impressive. CA hasbecome one of the fastest spreadingapproaches in agriculture, not only in theUSA and Australia but also in LatinAmerica, where millions of farmers arepractising it (p.6). The CA movement inLatin America is an importantbreakthrough in the acceptance anddevelopment of agro-ecology / LEISA.However, in Africa and Asia, despitesome initial successes, practitioners arestill few and far apart.

Different actors working together

The past decade has witnessed importantadvances in herbicide technology and inthe designing of special equipment formulching, direct seeding and spraying.Also green manure/ cover crop (gm/cc)technology is developing fast. Largerand smaller farmers in Latin Americanow have a wide choice of herbicides,

equipment and gm/cc species, bothleguminous and non-leguminous.

In Latin America, development of CA isstrongly site and crop specific and drivenby farmers’ organisations withparticipatory support from research andextension. Private enterprise is playingan important role as well, especially indevelopment, production and sale ofherbicides, equipment and gm/cc seeds.FAO and many other internationaldevelopment organisations are stronglysupporting CA.

Also multinational companies likeMonsanto are investing in theintroduction of ZT approaches toincrease their sales of seeds andagrochemicals. They propagate high-external-input ZT based on directseeding, monocropping and hardly anymulching of crop residue. They seem tooffer an attractive opportunity to farmersbut not without hidden risks. NGOs anda small farmers’ organisation in thePhilippines point at the risk of uplandfarmers getting too dependent on thesecompanies and their costly and healthaffecting agrochemicals. It may alsomean that farmers lose their own localseeds and end up with the geneticallyengineered seeds propagated by thesemultinationals. It is not at all necessaryto take these risks when organic- andtraditional seed-based alternatives areavailable at low cost as in the Philippines(Biotechnology and DevelopmentMonitor No.46, June 2001, p.13). It istherefore important to establish a cleardistinction between low-external-inputbased Conservation Agriculture andhigh-external-input based Zero Tillage.

Traditional Conservation Tillage -entry point for CA

The practices applied in CA (zero tillage,mulching, direct seeding, crop rotation)are not new; many traditional systemshave similar characteristics. Someexamples have been published in LEISAIndia Vol. 2, No.3. TraditionalConservation Tillage is practised bymany small farmers in the humid as wellas the dryer parts of Africa, but is nowunder pressure. The immediate futurechallenge is to build productivityenhancing improvements into thesesystems without destroying their uniqueadvantages (Kayombo, Elis-Jones andMartin). These traditional practicescan be good starting points for thedevelopment of small farmer CAsystems (p. 10).

In the ILEIA Newsletter’s special issue‘LEISA in perspective’ Vol. 15, No. 2/3,p. 37-39, Hien reported on an interestingConservation Tillage/mulch farming casenow spreading on the Mossi plateau inBurkina Faso. Here, traditionalmulching is used in combination withother traditional water and nutrientmanagement strategies (planting holes,stone and grass contour bunds) andincreasingly with composting, treeplanting, production of fodder andintensification of animal husbandry.Recent studies (IFAD/GTZ-PATECORE)found that this ecological intensificationtrajectory is leading to resourceconservation, increased yield andincome, and improved social conditionsin the villages (Haramata No.41, June2002, p.9-10). Such cases may provideimportant learning points fordevelopment of CA for small farmers inAfrica.

Integrated Soil Fertility Managementa new chance

Breman (p.15) stresses the importance ofincreasing soil fertility, as a first amongother measures, in combatting poverty inAfrica. And, according to him, inorganicfertilisers have a key role to play in this.The International Fertiliser DevelopmentCentre (IFDC) has concluded that theconventional way of using inorganicfertilisers is not profitable in most placesin Africa. IFDC suggests that IntegratedSoil Fertility Management (ISFM), alsocalled Integrated Plant Nutrient Systems(IPNS) or Integrated NutrientManagement (INM)), combining locallyavailable natural nutrient resources andinorganic fertiliser, can change this.ISFM can double fertiliser use efficiencyand increase water use efficiency andfodder and cereal production 3-5 times.IFDC-Africa now follows a Farmer FieldSchool approach for participatorydevelopment of ISFM in strategic siteswhere benefits from inorganic fertilisersare highest. This is mainly on compoundfields, around cities with markets forcereals, fresh vegetables and fruits and inregions with intensive production of cashcrops like cotton or irrigated rice, orwhere intensification of animalhusbandry through intensive fodderproduction is profitable. ISFM and CAcan support each other very well.

However, in large parts of Africa, even aspart of an ISFM approach, inorganicfertilisers still may not be profitable.Only more efficient and creative use ofthe local natural resources and ecologicalprocesses can provide improvements insuch regions, for which there are stillmany opportunities. Hien’s case from

Living soil-basis for ConservationAgriculture


Phot

o : H

.M. P

rem

arat

hna

Soil life in good hands with SRI farmers

Burkina Faso mentioned above showsthat mulching alone increased sorghumyield by 50-75%. Researchers and smallfarmers in these regions can worktogether to improve traditional biologicalsoil management e.g. through enhancingthe activities of termites.

Farming System Approach for moreholistic development

It is being increasingly realised thatintegrating various farming systems on agiven piece of land will make farmingmore sustainable, as one system feedsinto the other. Based on this principle,Rudraradhya (p. 13) attempts a modelfarming system on an acre of land. Thismodel illustrates how the food, fodder,fuel and cash needs of a farm familycould be met by utilising the land in anoptimal way and also integrating variousfarming systems like livestock, poultry,fisheries etc. with crop production.

Soil micro-organisms increasinglypopular in Asia

Also in Nepal, farmers, researchers anddevelopment workers are workingclosely together in a Farmer Field Schoolapproach to develop IPNS (p.16).Farmers have identified severalpossibilities for improving soilmanagement such as improvement ofmanure quality, increasing fodderavailability, legume cropping, agro-forestry, growing high value crops andusing inorganic fertilisers. Liquid manureteas are becoming very popular and insome places are replacing urea on thelocal market. In Indonesia, farmers arediscovering that Mother Nature still hasmany wise lessons for them, amongothers, the effectiveness of creeping fernsand leguminous weeds to maintain soilfertility. Also here, liquid manures,biological extracts, effectivemicroorganisms and compost starters arebecoming popular. These are effectiveinnoculants and boosters of micro-organisms which can considerablyincrease the efficiency and effect oforganic fertilisers (p.18). However,Rahayu and Thijssen (p.20) also warnthat these technologies, on the long term,can break down soil organic matter if notenough organic fertiliser is returned tothe soil. Compost starters based onmicro-organisms (yeast) from the rootsof laos (Languas galanga) and otherplants or from over-ripe fruits haverevolutionised compost technology inIndonesia. A next step and challenge foragricultural development in Indonesiacould be to develop ConservationAgriculture.

Feeding the soil instead of the crop

The importance of soil micro-organisms(mycorrhiza, bacteria, yeast, fungi,termites, earthworms, etc) and the

potential benefits of technologies thatmake use of these micro-organisms isbeing better understood. One of themain learning points of CA is that forefficient, productive and sustainableagriculture, farmers should createfavourable soil conditions and feed thebiological community in the soil insteadof only the crop (FAO Soils Bulletin 78).FAO has an interesting web page on howsoil micro-organisms can and are beingused by farmers (see p.30).

Farmers and researchers should learn tothink in terms of ‘ecological soilmanagement’ instead conventionalnutrient management, which has provento be unsustainable.

Rice farmers eager to reduceinorganic fertilisers

The experiences with the System of RiceIntensification (SRI) (p.22) areconfirming this conclusion. Experimentsin many countries have proven that ricehas the potential to produce more tillersand grains than now observed, and thatearly transplanting, and optimal growthconditions (spacing, humidity,biologically active and healthy soil, andaerobic soil conditions during thevegetative phase) can fulfil this potential.The Indian farmers experience (p.28)shows that by adopting SRI, the paddyyield doubled while utilising only 50percent manuring, 35 percent water, 5percent seed material and 80 percent ofhuman labour as compared toconventional method of cultivation.

Researchers cannot explain how suchhigh yields can be obtained and sustainedwith modest amounts of (organic)nutrients. Further research on ecologicalsoil management is therefore stillneeded. Farmers in many countries areactively trying to adapt the basic SRI

practices to their conditions and aredeveloping innovations to makeapplication easier and more effective, Insome countries, farmers are evenexperimenting with no tillage-based SRI.

Time for governments to change theirpolicies

The adaptation, innovation and diffusionprocess of SRI could become verysimilar to the participatory developmentprocess of CA in Brazil. Also in SRI,participatory development of appropriatetools is very important. The active roleof farmers in the development of SRI andCA shows their eagerness to return tomore natural and less costly ways offarming. Now, organisations like theFAO and World Bank are stronglysupporting CA and are confirming theneed for ecological soiI management. Itmay be time for governments to changetheir policies as well. Countries likeBrazil and Costa Rica (CA), but alsoIndonesia and Sri Lanka (SRI) arealready leading the way.

The experiences with CA seem toconfirm what the famous Japaneseconservation agriculturist / naturalfarmer Masanobu Fukuoka stated in1975: “whether or not farmers spreadstraw over their fields may well decidethe fate of the agricultural land”.

■

References

- Kayombo R, Ellis-Jones J. and Martin HL.Indigenous conservation tillage systems inEast Africa with an example of theirevaluation from South West Tanzania.http://www.fao.org/ag/ags/AGSE/agse_e/3ero/Namibia1/c12.htm– Fukuoka M. 1978. The one-strawrevolution: an Introduction to NaturalFarming. Rodale Press, Emmaus, USA.


Conservation Agriculture

In large parts of Latin America, Asia,Eurasia and Africa soil tillage byplough or hoe is the main cause of

land degradation leading to stagnating oreven declining production levels andincreasing production costs. It causes thesoil to become more dense and com-pacted, the organic matter content to bereduced and water runoff and soilerosion to increase. It also leads todroughts becoming more severe and thesoil becoming less fertile and lessresponsive to fertiliser.

In the early seventies, farmers in Paraná,Southern Brazil, recognised thatcontinuing soil erosion and decliningcrop yields were forcing them toabandon their land and move into amarginal existence. Their first attempt atchanging this trend was to rigorouslyadopt conventional terracing systems.The mixed and often disappointingresults led them to tackle the problem oferosion at its source, considering thedirect impact of rainfall on the bare soil.They abandoned the plough, broke theircompacted soils, introduced cover crops,stopped the burning of crop residues anddeveloped cutting rollers to turn cropresidues and cover crops into mulch.This mulch layer eliminated rainfallimpact on the soil, reduced the speed andquantity of runoff and virtually elimi-nated soil erosion. It also significantlyincreased soil fertility and yields, andreduced the labour and cost of landpreparation (Hercilio de Freitas 2000,see also ILEIA Newsletter Vol.11, No.3,pp.16-17).

Planting concepts andharvesting good results

José Benites, Sandrine Vaneph and Alexandra Bot

This was in the early nineties, at thebeginning of the Zero-Tillage (ZT)movement in Latin America. At that time‘conservation’-, ‘reduced’-, ‘no’- or‘zero’-tillage or ‘direct planting’ incombination with herbicides was alreadybeing practised by commercial farmers,mainly in the USA. But it was only afterZT was combined with cover crops andcrop rotation, adapted to tropicalconditions, and improved herbicides andspecial equipment were developed, alsofor small farmers, that the tremendousbenefits of this approach were widelyappreciated and it spread faster.

At present, ZT is being practised onabout 60 million ha, mostly in Latin andNorth America. In Latin America,particularly in Brazil, Argentina andParaguay, some 25 million hectares havebeen converted to ZT in the past tenyears. As the approach has become farmore comprehensive than simply ZT, itis now being referred to as ConservationAgriculture (CA) by FAO and otherorganisations (see also LEISA MagazineVol.17, No.3, p.22).

In Latin America, farmers, theirorganisations and networks took the leadin the development of CA. Governmentsupport was initially limited as ZT wasnot an officially recognised technologyand researchers, extension agents,trainers and policy makers were reluctantto accept new ideas. Now, all this haschanged and CA is developing fast dueto effective collaboration betweenfarmers, private enterprise, research and

extension. CA has long passed the stagethat it was only suitable for grain crops,like maize, beans and soy. Now, cropslike sugarcane, cassava, tobacco, onion,tomato, cabbage and lettuce are allsuccessfully grown under CA.

CA also fits into an increasing number ofcropping conditions of large and smallfarmers in the humid and dry tropical,semi-tropical and temperate climatezones in Latin America, Africa, Eurasiaand Asia. The FAO is playing animportant facilitating role in promotingand further developing CA, amongothers, by its field projects, by activelysupporting regional CA networks and byproviding information on CA through itspublications and web site. This articleprovides an overview of principles,practices, potentials, constraints andmethodologies. The articles on p. 10 and11 present two FAO-supported cases ofCA in Honduras and El Salvador. Thearticle on p. 13 discusses the perspec-tives of CA in Africa. Previous issues ofLEISA Magazine have presentedapproaches similar to CA: New Kekulamzero tillage rice farming in Sri Lanka(Vol.13,No.3,pp.20-21); traditionalmulch farming in Burkina Faso (Vol.15,No.2&3, p 37), traditional shiftingcultivation and analog agroforestry(Vol.16, No.3); the Rice Wheat Consor-tium approach to CA in India andPakistan(Vol.16, No.4, pp.8-10). Othercases can be found in (García-Torres,Benites and Martínez-Vilela 2001).

General principles of CAThree technical principles are crucial inCA:

● No mechanical soil disturbance –direct seeding or planting

● Permanent soil cover – particularlywith the use of crop residues andcover crops

● Judicious choice of crop rotations –multiple cropping, agroforestry andanimal integration

The permanent soil cover provided bygrowing crops, crop residues or mulchnot only protects the soil from thephysical impact of rain and wind, butalso stabilises the soil moisture andtemperature in the surface layers. Thiszone thus becomes a favourable habitatfor a number of organisms, includingplant roots, worms, insects and microor-ganisms such as fungi and bacteria. Thissoil life uses the organic matter from thesoil cover, recycling it into humus andnutrients, and contributes to the physicalstabilisation of the soil structure,allowing air and water infiltration andstorage. This process, which can becalled “biological tillage”, strongly

Phot

o : S

ally

Bun

ning

Direct sowing through a cover of crop residues, avoiding ploughing and minimising soil disturbance”soyabean grown under CA in Brazil.



enhances soil and water conservationand soil fertility. Mechanical tillage isavoided in order to maintain soil life andsoil structure, and to reducemineralisation of soil organic matter. Avaried crop rotation is important to avoidpest and disease problems, improve soilconditions and make full use of theentire soil profile and the synergetic andcomplementary interactions betweendifferent plant species. Green manure/cover crop species (leguminous and non-leguminous) that are part of the croprotation are essential in building up thesoil organic matter content. The soilcover also provides new habitats for

natural enemies of pest and diseaseorganisms.

It provides a physical barrier to weedsand releases allelopathic substances thatreduce weed germination. Thus a healthysoil which offers optimal physical,chemical and biological conditions forthe growth and reproduction of plants iscreated.

Specific practicesMany traditional shifting cultivationsystems follow the above principles ofslash and mulch. Uncontrolled burning(slash and burn) and grazing, however,works against these principles. There areno blueprints for the development of newCA systems and the general principlesand key features (see box 1) have to beadapted to each specific agro-ecological,socio-economic and cultural context. Thesuccess of such a new system dependsentirely on the creativity and flexibilityof its practitioners in developingmanagement practices suited to theirparticular situation and needs. Tradi-tional practices and species, which areadapted to the local context, butabandoned due to reasons of lowproductivity, are often re-introduced withgood results. Agrochemicals are notexcluded, but low or decreasing

quantities are used efficiently. CA oftenincludes Integrated Soil FertilityManagement (ISFM), Integrated PestManagement (IPM), Integrated WeedManagement (IWM), agroforestry andcrop/livestock integration, for which thethree principles provide an excellentbasis. The integration of trees andlivestock into the system is especiallyimportant. CA can come close to or becompletely organic.

Benefits are manyPermanent vegetative soil cover stronglyprevents soil erosion and reduces theneed for other soil and water conserva-tion measures, bunding, terracing, etc.The increased soil organic matter contentallows more water and nutrients to bestored in the soil profile, so more soilmoisture and nutrients are available forplant growth. The excess water filtratesto deeper soil layers, recharginggroundwater supplies and reducingfloods and sedimentation of waterwaysdownstream. The water conserving effectof the soil cover and the increasedorganic matter result in aneconomisation of irrigation water, as isshown in table 1.

With time, the accumulation of soilorganic matter and the increased activityof soil micro-organisms lead to higherefficiency of organic and inorganicfertilisers and thus allow lower applica-tion rates. This saves costs and increasesthe profitability of in-organic fertilisers,thereby making them affordable to morefarmers.

Increased soil moisture and soil fertilityfavours root penetration and develop-ment, which in turn boosts biomassproduction and crop yields.

CA is a successful strategy for ecologi-cal intensification, among others ofshifting cultivation and slash and burnsystems, which can evolve into perma-nent agroforestry systems, while burningis abandoned.

CA allows early and timely planting dueto the absence of tiresome land prepara-tion activities. The effects of the soilcover result in an agricultural systemthat is less vulnerable to drought, heavyrainfalls or other natural disasters.

Also the risk, scale and frequency ofweed, pest and disease infestation arereduced considerably. Where chemicalpesticides or herbicides are applied inCA, the amount needed often decreaseswith time as farmers gain skills and newecological balances are established.Compared to conventional tillage, theuse of chemical pesticides and herbi-cides is less in CA.

The improved workability of the soil andless agronomic activities during theproduction cycle reduce the labourrequirement substantially (see table 4,p.12). This is especially important forthose who rely only on family labourand in areas where labour is becoming aconstraint because of deaths anddiseases. The reduction in the on-farmlabour requirement allows farmers todiversify their activities, includingprocessing of agricultural products, andthus improve their incomes. Besides thereduction in labour, the cost for landoperations and maintenance of toolsand equipment are also reduced. Evenwhere mechanical traction is used, CAleads to considerable savings in the useof fossil energy. As CA also stronglycontributes to carbon sequestration dueto the increase of biomass in and on thesoil, it could when applied at large scale,provide a major contribution incontrolling global warming.

All this contributes to increased andmore stable yields and revenues (up todouble or even triple) which build upduring a period of 2-6 years. Diversifica-tion of agricultural production also playsa role in improving the farmer’slivelihood: less risks, increased income,improved diet, etc.

Box 1. Key features of CA systems

• No ploughing, disking or seed bedpreparation

• Green manure / cover crops areintegrated into the cropping system

• Crop, weed and cover crop residuesapplied as mulch protect the soilpermanently

• Direct seeding or planting• No burning of crop residues or

fallow vegetation• No uncontrolled grazing• Nutrient cycling through the

biomass in and above the soil• Surface application of lime and

fertilisers• Specialised equipment for seeding

and mulch management• Continuous use of cropland• Crop rotations and cover crops are

used to maximise biologicalcontrols

Table 1. Economy of irrigation water through soil cover (Pereira, 2001).

Percentage of soil cover 0 50 75 100

Water requirement (m3 ha-1) 2660 2470 2090 1900

Reduction in water requirement (%) 0 7 21 29

Number of times irrigated during season 14 13 11 10

Number of days in between irrigation 6 6 8 9

Table 2. Increase in yield and farm income(in monetary units; CA=Conservation Agriculture)

Conventional CA CA CA Year 6 andAgriculture Year 1 Years 2-4 Years 4-6 Onwards

Gross output 2000 1800 2200 2300 2400

Total variable costs 1400 1300 1200 1100 1000

Gross Margin 600 500 1000 1200 1400

Total fixed costs 200 200 200 200 200

Net farm income 400 300 800 1000 1200

(FAO, in print. Conservation Agriculture. What you should know about... economicaspects of Conservation Agriculture. Training module. AGLL. FAO Rome.)


CA provides a truly sustainableproduction system, not only conservingbut also enhancing the natural resourcebase and increasing biodiversity withoutsacrificing yields at high productionlevels. Therefore CA is a major opportu-nity that can be exploited for achievingmany objectives of the internationalconventions on combatting desertifica-tion, on biodiversity and on climatechange.

Constraints and challengesConversion from conventional tillage toCA is not simple and poses manyconstraints that need to be resolved,demanding time, effort and money. Itmay include costs for purchasingspecialised equipment and agrochemi-cals, possible temporary incomedecreases until the new dynamics areestablished, and a learning process bythe farmer to acquire higher managementskills. For many (small) farmers, ageneral lack of financial resources andlack of access to equipment, chemicalinputs or green manure seeds can beserious limiting factors.

Tenure may also be a constraint insituations where most of the land iscollectively managed and where land isaccessible to multiple users often havingcontradictory interests in terms of landuse, for example pastoralists andfarmers. Farmers who have insecuretenure may be reluctant to adopt CAeven though they see the benefits,because improving the soil productivityincreases the risk of losing the land tomore powerful persons in the society.This is a major problem for landlesspersons and female heads of households.

Pest, disease, weed or soil fertilityproblems could occur in the transitionstage when the system has not yetstabilised ecologically. This may requirethe use of chemical pesticides, herbicidesor fertilisers for which money could be aconstraint. In moist areas for example, amajor issue raised by the permanent soilcover could be pest and diseasemanagement. The crop cover mayharbour small animals such as rats orsnakes. In drier areas, the lack ofbiomass due to water or nutrientshortages and other uses of the biomass(livestock feeding, cooking) is often amajor issue. Where population density islow and agriculture is marginal,availability and the cost of equipmentand agrochemicals is a constraint. Socialand cultural acceptability may also be aproblem where CA differs substantiallyfrom the indigenous or conventionalsystem.

Before starting with CA, it may benecessary to eliminate some major

effects of degradation, such as com-pacted soil layers, plant nutrientdeficiencies or heavy weed infestation.Subsoiling of compacted and degradedsoils can, due to higher water infiltration,result in immediate yield increases of upto 30%, but may be too costly for smallfarmers.

Conversion from conventional tillage toCA calls for a drastic change of thinking.CA is based on agro-ecological pro-cesses and systems which requirefarmers to think in terms of ecologicalconcepts such as soil as a living system,plant communities, nutrient flows, pest –predator and animal – crop – soilrelations, etc. If farmers are unable toradically change their thinking andvision on farming, they will not succeedin making CA work effectively. This isnot only true for farmers but also fortechnicians, extensionists and scientists.

Farmers who depend on their localresources may have a lot of traditional /indigenous knowledge that fits with CA.Often, extensionists and researchers findit difficult to accept indigenous knowl-edge and learn from and with farmers.

For them, shifting to the concept of CAand a participatory way of workingmeans a tremendous change. Theresistance to change of researchers,academics and advisors can be muchgreater than that of farmers.

Farmer groups crucial for CAAccess to information, cover crop seeds,equipment, training and technicalsupport is a prerequisite for successfulconversion to CA. In addition, financialsupport, especially for small farmers, isoften a major requirement to catalyse theconversion process. But, one of thelessons learned from Brazil is that newtechnologies spread fast only whenfarmers feel the need to change theirpractices and when they take the lead intechnology adaptation and innovation.Simple extension of the message, evencoupled with demonstration, usually willnot suffice. Also, successful improve-ment of land husbandry depends not juston the motivations, skills and knowledgeof individual farmers. The formation offarmer groups and associations or, evenbetter, building on existing and activegroups for testing and adaptation to localcontexts and learning from sharedexperiences is crucial for CA to take off.In Brazil such groups have becomeaction groups, transmitting the new ideasand technologies from farmer to farmer,stimulating and supporting members tomake the change (see Box 2). In additionthey have also become important localpressure groups, managing to obtainimprovements at institutional andpolitical level.

Strategies for conversion to CASpecific conversion strategies are neededto make conversion to CA attractive andaffordable to farmers. In Latin America,building up soil organic matter content inthe soil with intercropped green manure /cover crops (associated with the normalcash or subsistence crops) over a periodof one to three years before moving toZT is the strategy followed by mostfarmers. In this way the conversion takesplace without loss in productivity, whilecosts (for tillage and equipment) alreadydrop considerably (Rolando Bunch,Fallow Net email discussion on CA).

Farmers may have their own specificreasons for wanting to change theirfarming practices. These reasons canvary from community to community andfrom one social group to another withina community. This calls organisationsworking with farmers to offer specificentry points. Saving labour, increasingyield, reducing costs, drought proofing,improving health or the livelihoodsystem in general can be appropriateentry points to start CA. It must be thefarmers themselves who decide on trying

Box 2. “Friends of the Land”clubs in BrazilIn Brazil, the main obstacles for farmersin the adoption of Zero Tillage were thelack of knowledge, information andtechnical support. These obstacles wereovercome through the activities of“Clubes Amigos da Terra” (CATs), non-profit, non-commercial and non-political farmer organisations. Theoperational basisof the CATs is farmer-to-farmerexchanges of experiences on a monthlybasis and organisation of promotionalevents, such as field days and debates.CATs also organiseon-farm research and pilot projects withthe support of other organisations. Animportant factor for success has beenthe assistance which medium and largefarmers, through individual CATs andthe Brazilian Federation for DirectPlanting, have provided to smallfarmers wishing to adopt ZT. Privatesector supportwas fundamental to the expansion ofZT as well. In South Brazil, where ZTby small farmers is well developed,there are more than ten manufacturersspecialising in ZT machinery for smallfarmers. Both in South Brazil andParaguay, ZT systems that eliminate theneed for herbicides have beendeveloped, especially for small farmers.

Recently, the Landcare movement inSouth Africa adopted an approachsimilar to CAT in Brazil, advocating theestablishment of local Landcare Groupswhich would conduct situationanalysis, broaden their strategicunderstanding with a visioning processof CA, and then undertake participatoryland use planning.



out or transferring to CA and whichentry point is most important for them.They should also decide on the use ofexternal inputs: choosing betweenherbicides and mechanical weeding, andusing fertilisers and lime to correct initialsoil imbalances. Good information onpotential benefits, opportunities andconstraints is a prerequisite for farmersin making their choice.

Finding the right approach of facilitatinga farmer-driven participatory conversionand technology development processwhile ensuring the communication of avery straight-forward technical messageis challenging. It requires the support ofconvinced and capable extensionworkers and researchers. Often, low-costor ecological options can be found foradaptation to the local context andresolving conversion problems, forexample weed control with hand tools,cover crops and crop rotations; use ofmanure and biological nitrogen fixation;home-made “soups” for disease control;compost starters etc. (Barber 1999).Sometimes new innovations are needed.

CA started in many countries as afarmer-driven adaptation of a productionsystem. But researchers and extensionworkers from both public and privatesectors have played an importantfacilitating role in reaching a criticalmass of farmers and generating knowl-edge and adaptations to the system as awhole or to equipment in particular. Inaddition the process has drawn sectorstogether and allowed the development ofcoherent integrated strategies andapproaches (see Box 3) addressing crops,livestock, land and water resources, aswell as infrastructure, marketing,education etc.

Involving the private sectorThe large-scale shift to CA in Brazil andArgentina was possible among othersdue to close collaboration betweeninnovative farmers and the private sectorto develop and disseminate appropriateequipment. CA is challenging theexisting private sector companies andlocal craftsmen/ artisans to support the

Box 3. Principal mechanisms formass conversion to CA• farmer-to-farmer exchange• extension activities• commercial and NGO-sponsored

events• small farmer pilot projects• technical assistance/promotion

activities of private sector• private and co-operative technical

assistance• NGO/government/private-sector

publications• press and television reports• small financial inducements

transition to CA systems. In particular,the testing, manufacturing and provisionthrough local markets of required toolsand implements. The same applies forcover crop seeds and associatedherbicides plus spraying equipment, incase chemical weed management ischosen (see Box 4).

Exchange and networkingAccess to information is very importantin reaching a critical mass of CApractitioners, both within a country andbetween countries and organisations.Part of the information can be madeavailable in the form of selected casestudy material describing CA experi-ences under different conditions.Researchers can gather in-countryinformation on, for instance, validationof different cover crop species andtesting and adapting of hand and animaldrawn equipment.

The transfer of the concepts, principlesand technologies of CA needs networkinterchange within and betweencountries, so as to facilitate sharing ofknown solutions to problems identifiedduring the continual learning process.Such networks can accelerate theadvancement of knowledge andtechniques being steadily accumulatedby both national institutions andcommunity groups in their efforts toreverse land degradation on a globalscale. For this purpose several regionalnetworks -RELACO, ACT, SACAN andECAN- have been founded in LatinAmerica, Africa, South Asia and CentralAsia (see Websites p.30) respectively.

Policy supportCA will only spread rapidly and widelywhen and where government policies,

services and infrastructure facilitate theconversion to these systems. Policysupport is needed to adjust legislationand to provide an enabling environmentto meet the requirements and facilitatethe initiatives of local groups and landusers. This means an appropriate policyand institutional framework and theprovision of incentives (pricing, markets,land reform, security, etc.). Existingincentives and subsidies should notjeopardise the implementation of thesystem. New incentive measures may beneeded to encourage CA uptake,including the identification and multipli-cation of seeds and supply of equipmentthrough public and private sectorinvolvement. Financial support alonecannot boost a CA programme. It isessential to make the general public,decision and opinion makers aware ofthe social benefits of the adoption ofthese practices in order to gain thegovernment’s support for naturalresource management initiatives offarmers.

Finally, international organisations suchas World Bank and FAO, and OECDcountries in their own right, shouldencourage a vigorous international andregional media campaign emphasisingthe importance and relevance of CA asan entry point to the process of ruralpoverty alleviation, food security, andenvironmental protection. Developmentof CA can only be achieved by inte-grated action at farm, community,national and international levels.

■

- José Benites, Land and Water DevelopmentDivision, AGLL FAO, Via delle Terme diCaracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy. Phone: +39 (06)570-54825; Fax: +39 (06) 5705-6275; Email:[email protected] Sandrine Vaneph and Alexandra Bot, FAO.

References

- Barber R. 1999. Land and crop manage-ment in the hilly terrains of CentralAmerica. Lessons learned and farmer-to-farmer transfer of technologies. FAO Soils

Bulletin 76. FAO, Rome. ISBN 92-5-104318-3.

- FAO, 2001. Conservation Agriculture.Case studies from Latin America andAfrica. FAO Soils Bulletin 78. FAO, Rome.ISBN 92-5-104625-5.

- García-Torres L, Benites J. and Martínez-Vilela A. 2001. Conservation agriculture, aworldwide challenge. 1st World Congress onConservation Agriculture, Volume I and II.Life, FAO, ECAF. XUL, Córdoba, Spain.ISBN 84-932237-0-0

- Hercilio de Freitas V, 2000. Soil manage-ment and conservation for small farms.Strategies and methods of introduction,technologies and equipment. FAO SoilsBulletin 77. FAO, Rome. ISBN 92-5-104499-6.

- Pereira M. 2001. Personal Communication.IV Worldbank Study Tour.

Box 4. Development of equipmentfor CA in small farms

Even in 1990, there were few smallfarmers working with CA in Brazil.Although the general principles werebroadly applicable, the plantingtechnology for manual and animaltraction had not been developed. It waspioneer research and small manufactur-ing firms, which resolved the problemsof adapting the planting technology indirect collaboration with farmers.Equipment for direct seeding in mulch(e.g. jab planter or animal driven directseeders), management of vegetativecover (e.g. knife rollers and slashers),spraying of herbicides (e.g. adaptedknapsack sprayer) and mini-tractors werethus developed for small farmers (seeillustrations on cover, p.3,13,14).Collective purchase and use of suchequipment was stimulated, as CA allowsfor greater flexibility in the time ofsowing.


Slash-and-burn agriculture is anefficient system as long aspopulation pressure is low enough

to limit impact on the tropical forest. Asthe rural population grows the cycle ofland clearing becomes shorter, leavinglittle chance for the vegetation and soil torecover. The lack of fertile land pushessubsistence farmers onto steeper hillsidesand into the more humid forests. Thisleads to accelerated deforestation andenvironmental degradation and land usebecomes increasingly unsustainable.

In Central America, and especially inHonduras, slash-and-burn agriculture hasbeen ‘technified’. In an attempt tomodernise basic grain production bysmall farmers, projects and NGOs havepromoted credit, fertilisers and otherinputs without changing the productionsystem. The result has been even worsefor the small farmer and the environ-ment: the rural population has becomedebt-dependent and the process ofdeforestation and degradation of landand water resources has acceleratedfurther. This has increased the vulner-ability of the countryside to naturalphenomena such as hurricane Mitch in1998 when many died and rural incomesdropped dramatically (see LEISAMagazine Vol.17, No.1, p.18-20).

The Quesungual systemIn the department of Lempira, one of thepoorest and most isolated regions ofHonduras close to the border with ElSalvador, small farmers cultivate theirland (1-5 ha) on hilly terrain, 200 to 900meters above sea level. Supported by theLempira Sur collaborative projectinitiated by FAO, a massive shift to anew production system has taken placeover the past ten years. This system iscalled “Quesungual”, after the village inwhich it was first developed. It is aConservation Agriculture system with atree component which allows smallfarmers to cultivate their land onsteep slopes continuously whileregenerating it.

The Quesungual system is an adaptationof an indigenous agroforestry system,which can be found in the dry tropicalforest ecosystem (140-800 masl). Thissystem is characterised by three layers ofvegetation: mulch, crops, and dispersedshrubs and trees. It usually combinesgrain crops with naturally regeneratedtrees and shrubs with high-value/multipurpose timber and fruit trees. A

The Quesungual system in Honduras

An alternative to slash-and-burnLuis Alvarez Welches and Ian Cherrett

typical plot has numerous pollarded treesand shrubs and about 15-20 large trees:timber and fruit species. The diversity ofspecies in the system is high (see table 3).

Burning has been abandoned, vegetationand plant density are controlled by handand in addition some farmers useherbicides prior to sowing. Maize isintercropped with sorghum and beans,using zero-tillage, mulching and directsowing technologies. The naturalvegetation is used as a cover crop, inbetween the grain crops.

In the dry season, the trees and shrubsare pollarded at a height of 1.5-2 m, inorder to eliminate the branches andregrowth, and to provide light for thefuture crop. The pollarded material isused as mulch to cover the soil. Thebranches and trunks, which can be usedas firewood and poles, are removed fromthe plot. In general, high-value timbertrees and fruit trees are not pruned.Farmers achieve an ideal density throughthe management of the natural regenera-tion. Before sowing the second crop(often beans) the field is cleared a secondtime but trees and shrubs are notnecessarily pollarded. Mineral fertilisersare expensive and thus used only whenmaize and sorghum are both grown asfirst crop. Only once during the cropping

season, weeds are cleared eithermanually or by using a herbicide. Thecrops are harvested in the traditional way(FAO, 2001).

Impacts on resilience, naturalresource base and productionFor the farmers it is the moistureretention qualities of the system thatmakes it so attractive. The agroforestry

system retains 15% more water in thesoil in the driest month (April) than theslash-and-burn system (8% humidity in atraditional field and 23% in aQuesungual field). This difference isequivalent to 20mm of rainfall, whichmeans that crops can be sustained 20more days without rainfall. And it is thisdifference that counts for the success orfailure of a crop in a climatic regimewith irregular dry spells during the rainyseason.

Besides better infiltration of rainwaterinto the soil profile through the soilcover, the increase in soil moisture canbe explained by the increase in organicmatter content of the soil. The organicmatter content was monitored duringfour years, in three different places, andincreased from 2.4% to 4.5%. At thesame time soil erosion has been nearlystopped. The loss of nutrients througherosion has been estimated to be morethan 10 times lower in the Quesungualsystem than in the slash-and-burn.Taking into account only the nutrients,these losses represent US$34/ha underthe Quesungual system, instead ofUS$396/ha, in the slash-and-burnsystem.

The improved soil conditions make thesystem more resistant to climaticphenomena. Compared to farmers whoremained with the old system of slash-and-burn, the Quesungual farmers didn’texperience a total loss in maize produc-tion during the dry period of el Niño in1997. Even in the following year, whenhurricane Mitch passed over CentralAmerica resulting in excessive rainfalland many farmers losing their crop for asecond time, the Quesungual farmersproduced more or less the same quantityas the year before.

Table 3: List of tree and shrub species found in Quesungual plots

Timber species Fruit species

Common name Scientific name Common name Scientific name

Salmwood Cordia alliodora Guava Psidium guajavaGuacima Guazuma ulmifolia Nance Gyrsonima crassifoliaHonduras Cedar Cedrela odorata Plantain Musa sp.Guachipilin Diphisa robinioiles Cashew Anacardium oxidentalisMahogany Swietenia sp. Avocado Persea americanaParadise tree Simaruba glauca Papaya Carica papayaStinking toe Cassia grandis Mandarin Citrus sp.Orchid tree Bauhinea sp.Almond Andira inermisMother of cocoa Gliricidia sepium

Luhea seeamoiniiTrumpet tree Cecropia peltata

Lonchocarpus oficinalis (after Hellin, 1998)



Farmers are reporting increases in maizeyield of a minimum of 60%. Even moreimportant is that yields remain stable at ahigher level for longer periods. Thelongest period fields have been undercontinuous maize production is sevenyears. These fields, with a slope of 35%and poor soil have an average productionof 2.9 t/ha. Before, on the same fields,the best yield was 1.6 t/ha while the landhad to be left fallow for several yearsafter a two-crop cycle. Besides maizeand sorghum the plot is providing thefarmer with firewood and poles, whichgive an extra value to the production.Additionally, from the first year onwards,the farmer can rent his/her terrain forlivestock grazing, because of increased

stover production on the field. Usuallythis is done for two months. Efforts arestill needed to integrate livestockproduction better into the system.

Rural development enhancedThe Quesungual system not only meetsthe household subsistence needs for fruit,timber, firewood and grains, butgenerates a surplus, which when sold onthe market generates cash income. Thischange is just the beginning of a processof intensifying land use and increasingland and labour returns. Once the farmerfeels comfortable with the enhanced foodsecurity (maize and beans), (s)he starts todiversify into crops for the local marketor home consumption, soya, sugarcane,indigo, pumpkin etc., as well as smallanimals for the market such as pigs andchickens. Increased grain availability isaccompanied by the improvement of thehousehold post-harvest storage system.When basic grain security is assured,families begin to invest time in improv-ing their living conditions and education,and devote time also to communityorganisation. Women’s productioncooperatives are now making dairyproducts. Farmer and trade organisationshave also been established. The peoplethemselves are now taking full responsi-bility for planning improvements in theircommunities.

Obstacles to adoptionThis experience has generated greatinterest not only in Honduras but also inthe region. The south of Lempira is nowknown as the region where farmers nolonger burn - a label they are proud of.Nowadays, the Quesungual system is

Phot

o : A

lexa

ndra

Bot

A farmer in the steep lands of southern Hondurasusing a planting stick to sow his maize in a mulch

layer of fallow vegetation.

being adopted elsewhere in the countryand is being adapted by farmersaccording to local conditions. The majorobstacle to large-scale change fromslash-and-burn to agroforestry is not thesmall farmer. They are well aware of theproblems connected with slash-and-burnagriculture and respond rapidly tosustainable alternatives. It is theextensionists and their professionalsuperiors who clinch to their production-based, single-crop focus and oppose asystems approach. It is their lack oftraining in demand-driven participatoryextension and the still dominantparadigm of rural development projectswith their focus on physical, supply-driven indicators. Although much is saidabout collaboration between local andprofessional knowledge systems, thepractice is still in its infancy.

■- Luis Alvarez Welches, FAO, ProjectLempira Sur, Honduras

- Ian Cherrett, FAO, regional Office for LatinAmerica and the Caribbean, Av DagHammarskjold, 3241 Vitacura, Santiago, Chile

References

- Rego PG. 1998. Plantio direto. Economia egerência no manejo dos solos. FEBRAPDP.

- FAO, 2001. Conservation agriculture –Case studies in Latin America and Africa.FAO Soil Bulletin n°78. FAO, Rome, Italy.

- FAO, 2000. FOCUS: a rural developmentsuccess story. Honduras: people’sparticipation brings food security. http://www.fao.org/FOCUS/E/honduras/story-e.htm

- Hellin, J. 1998. El sistema Quesungual: unsistema agroforestal indígena de LempiraSur, Honduras. Versión borrador. ProyectoLempira Sur GCP/HON/018/NET.

Experiences in EI Salvador

Conservation Agricultureand rural development

Marcos Vieira and Jan Van Wambeke

Besides knowledge, technologiesand supplies, adoption ofConservation Agriculture (CA)

needs a favourable (policy) environment,motivation and participation of farmersand their communities. The presence ofleaders and/or farmers’ organisations isimportant for knowledge sharing andcapacity building. The combination of allthese parameters with CA at catchmentlevel results in sustainable ruraldevelopment based on the integratedmanagement of natural resources.

Productivity and conservationIn Guaymango (El Salvador), about 85%of the land area is used for agriculture,and consists of small hills and slopes

between 40 and 90%. Half of theagricultural land is used for pastures, theother half for crop production (mainlymaize and sorghum). Monoculture,overgrazing, burning of crop residuesand intensive tillage rapidly led to severeland degradation, low yields, poornutrition and increased poverty in theearly 1970s. Following the spread of theGreen Revolution in wheat and rice, thethinking on research and extension in ElSalvador was conditioned by traditionalextension methods, combined with a“package” approach. The packagedisseminated by the Ministry ofAgriculture, primarily during the late1960s and throughout the 1970s,consisted of the following technology,according to Sain and Barreto (1996):

• use of hybrid maize seed,• use of nitrogen and phosphate

fertilisers,• increased plant densities, through

reduced row distances,• application of herbicides and

insecticides.

During a diagnostic appraisal that washeld in the area of Guaymango in 1973,three major problems were identified:high poverty levels, food insecurity andrecurrent health problems in thecommunity. Based on this appraisal, itwas concluded that low productivity ofthe agricultural system was one of themain causes of the high poverty levelsfound in the area (Calderon, 1973).Furthermore, it was concluded that thelow quality of the soils caused by seriousdegradation in the area was the mainreason for the low productivity of theagricultural systems. Based on theseconclusions, an intensive programmewas launched by the Ministry ofAgriculture and several private andpublic institutions to increase maize and


sorghum productivity and to improve soilconservation practices. A number of soilconservation measures were added on tothe package mentioned above, based onzero tillage and improved crop residuemanagement, and included the followingcomponents:• no burning of crop residues,• uniform distribution of crop residues

over the field,• use of living and dead barriers, and• contour sowing.

The promotion of these measures was thestarting point of a new phase in landmanagement in the area, based onconservation tillage. Through thisprogramme and later through landreform, farmers improved agriculturalproduction, increased their net incomemore than 2.5 times and adopted“conservation” practices at the sametime. Close collaboration betweeninstitutions and organisations participat-ing in this programme was also animportant factor, which has contributedto the successful adoption of Conserva-tion Agriculture practices by farmers.

Integration of crop and livestockThe interaction of crop production andlivestock within the agriculturalproduction system is vitally important inunderstanding the adoption of conserva-tion tillage practices by farmers.Livestock in the farming system isprobably the most difficult challenge,particularly when there are other uses forcrop residues than cattle feed, likemulching and soil improvement.

At the end of every crop cycle, theimproved maize-sorghum system inGuaymango produces almost 10 tons ofcrop residue per hectare. At the end ofthe dry season, nearly 6-7 tons of cropresidue per hectare remains for use asmulch. Compared to similar regions (2.3tons per hectare) this is a substantiallygreater quantity and can be explained bythree main factors:

• farmers here value the use of cropresidue as soil cover more thanelsewhere;

• the high economic importance ofcattle in the farming system (numberof cattle and duration of grazingperiod);

• the high degree to which a foddermarket has been developed (trade ofgrazing rights).

The experience of Guaymango is one ofthe few that reports successful integra-tion of the crop and livestock compo-nents of the farming system, withoutcreating competition in the allocation ofcrop residues. The amount of residuesproduced by the system is enough toserve both the conservation purpose andas fodder for livestock (Choto and Saín,1993). This is precisely why farmers donot sow hybrid varieties of sorghum inGuaymango, but local varieties that havea high straw/grain ratio (Choto et al.,1995) instead.

Farmers’ perceptionsAccording to local farmers, the adoptionof conservation tillage practices and theimproved crop production technologieshave induced a considerable change intheir livelihoods. The most apparentdifferences are the increased yields - ithas doubled and in good years eventripled; and the labour required forsowing has been reduced by 75%, whichaccording to the farmers is because thesoil has become softer and easier to workwith. When residue burning was used toclear the fields, the soil was very hardand it took almost a day and 10 people tosow a hectare, compared to 5-6 peopleneeded now in half a day.

The mulch effect of crop residues hasadditional advantages. According to thesame farmers, it conserves more soilmoisture, which allows them to harvestin dry years. It also prevents seeds frombeing washed away by rain showers, justafter sowing, and facilitates rainwaterinfiltration. The decomposing mulchlayer gives the soil a darker colour,which is usually an indicator of bettersoil fertility. The presence of moreearthworms was mentioned as a positivechange because ‘their excrements arelike fertilisers’. “Tilling the soil at thisstage would mean destroying the existingfertility (residues and roots) and soillife”, said one of the farmers.

After 25 years of managing crop residuesoptimally, some farmers are evenapplying less fertilisers to their maizefields than when burning residues was acommon practice.

Pest and disease incidence has beenreduced. One of the insect species, whitegrub (‘gallina ciega’) (Phyllophaga sp.),which was formerly reported as a pest inmaize, is still present in the fields, but isno longer a problem. Farmers think thatthe larvae now feed on the roots andresidues of the previous crop, instead ofattacking the roots of the crops growingin the field. The mulch layer alsoprevents birds from feeding on recentlysown seeds. The birds, which still visitthe fields, are now a form of biologicalpest control, because they feed oncaterpillars and larvae found in the cropresidues or on the plants.

Full adoption after only ten yearsThe expectation of increased yields andthe increased awareness of the value ofappropriate crop residues management asa soil conservation measure are the mainreasons given by farmers for not burningcrop residues when preparing their fields.Although many farmers were initiallysceptical about changing from burningcrop residues to more conservation-oriented soil management, full adoptionof the technological package wasachieved in just 10 years. Both thesuccessful agricultural extensionprogramme and the link betweenpractical recommendations, incentivesand restrictions were key elements thatinduced this change in soil management.

■

Marcos Vieira, FAO, Km. 33 1/2 Carretera aSanta Ana, San Andrés, La Libertad, ElSalvador. Phone: +338-4503; Fax: +338-4278;Email: [email protected]

Jan Van Wambeke, FAO, regional Office forLatin America and the Caribbean, Av DagHammarskjold, 3241 Vitacura, Santiago,Chile, Phone: (562) 337-2221; Fax: (562) 337-2101; Email: [email protected]

References

- Calderón F. 1973. Programa de extensiónagropecuaria del Municipio deGuaymango. Centro de Tecnología Agrícola(CENTA), San Andrés, El Salvador.

- Choto C. and Saín G. 1993. Análisis delmercado de rastrojo y sus implicacionespara la adopción de la labranza deconservación en El Salvador. Síntesis deresultados experimentales del PRM 1992.Vol. 4, p.212-222.

- Choto C, Saín G. and Montenegro T. 1995.Productividad y rentabilidad del sistema deproducción maíz-sorgo bajo labranza deconservación en El Salvador.

- Mendoza V, Sosa H, Alvarado AG, Calderon F,Barreto H, Raun W. 1990. Experiencias conlabranza de conservación en laderas.Sistemas maíz-sorgo y maíz-frijol. Metalio-Guaymango. Centro de Tecnología Agrícola,Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería, ElSalvador.

- Saín GE and Barreto HJ. 1996. Theadoption of soil conservation technology inEl Salvador: Linking productivity andconservation. Journal of Soil and WaterConservation 51(4) 313-321.

Table 4. Increase of yield and farm income with CA (in monetary units)

Covered distances (km) by man (m/f) for the cultivation of one hectare of maize, usinganimal traction under conservation agriculture and conventional tillage (Melo, 2000).

Operation Conservation Agriculture Conventional Tillage

Ploughing – 40

Harrowing – 15Furrowing – 40

Planting 5 15Fertilisation 10 10

Knife roller 7.5 5Weeding – 10

Nitrogen application 10 –

Bending over of the cobs 10 30Harvest 15 15

Total distance (km) 57.5 145


Figure 1. Model farm layout

Design & Layout : Sri. M. Rudraradhya

A model of farming systems approachfor sustainable agriculture

M. Rudraradhya

More than 70% of the Indianfarming community own lessthan one hectare of land. They

belong to the small and marginalcategory. These farmers feel that, exceptgoing for a single cropping system, thereis hardly any possibility of trying newpractices or methods for farmimprovement. To address the needs ofsustainable farming of such small andmarginal farmers, a farming model hasbeen developed. This low cost modelintegrates local farming practices withwatershed concepts. This model has beentried out in the Agricultural Research

Station of Tarikere in Shimoga district ofKarnataka.

The main objective of developing thismodel is to enable a small farmer toproduce his family’s requirements offood and fodder on a sustainable basis,supplemented with a regular cashincome through one or two farm relatedenterprises.

Design of the model farm

This model has been developed on afarm size of one acre (100mX40m)

keeping in mind the small farmers ofwatershed area (See Figure 1).

The model farm area is fenced by treeslike casuarina and silver oak. They areplanted on the boundaries. Agave isplanted in between these trees resultingin live fencing of the farm. BesidesAgave, trees like bamboo, pongamia,neem, hibiscus etc., were also planted forfulfilling various farm family needs. Thearea has been divided into 5 parts orplots. To conserve water, these have beenseparated by field bunds across theslope. These bunds were planted withglyricedia.

Five plots of equal size were made onthe one-acre farm.The first plot wasplanted with fruit trees like mangoalternating with sapota, jackfruit,tamarind, pongamia, neem and jamuntrees in the ratio of 2:1 in a triangularpattern with 10mX10m dimension. Inbetween these trees, pulse crops likehorse gram, dolichos lablab, peas etc.were raised.

Four rows of ragi and one row ofsesamum were intercropped in thesecond plot.

In the third plot, 4 rows of ragi and 1row of dolichos lablab wereintercropped. In this plot, after ragi’sharvest, high yielding local variety ofdolichos lablab crop was raised.

8 rows of groundnut and two rows ofredgram were intercropped in the fourthplot.

In the fifth plot, there are five subcomponents - a small house for thefarmer to reside, housing for livestock,one sanitary latrine, a bio-fuel unit, 5units of organic manure production, onefarm pond, a poultry unit and a kitchengarden have been designed.

The farm house has been constructedwith locally available materials likebamboo. Climbers are raised on therooftops of farmhouse. Stoves usingbiofuels has been erected in the kitchen.Sanitary latrine is constructed usingbrick and cement. In the farm housesurroundings, floral plants, one or twococonut trees, medicinal plants etc., areraised. Wherever possible, banana plantsare raised.

In the cattle shed, space has beenprovided to house 3-4 cattle and 10-12sheep. The shed design enables enoughventilation and light. Special racks have


been made to store the feed. One light ispowered by using biofuel. Climbers areraised on the rooftop of cattle shed.

Five compost units (onevermicomposting unit, one phosphocompost, one NADEP model, one stonewalled compost unit and one compostunit made of glyricidea branches) are setup. A shade is provided over the pits.Vegetable climber crops like gourds areraised over the support.

Farm pond of size 5 sq.m X 8 sq.m with2 m depth is constructed. About 100fishes can be raised in this farm pondduring June to December. Each fishwould weigh around 0.5-0.75 kg. Abovethis, a poultry unit is set up wherein 20poultry birds can be raised. For this,white leg horn breed is the most suitableone and not the local breed. All aroundthe pond, a fence is erected andvegetable climbers are raised.

Kitchen garden is raised in an area offour guntas. Vegetables like brinjal,bhendi, beans, tomato etc., have beenraised. 12 plots are made and 12different types of green leaf vegetablesare grown.

Benefits from this model

This model has had its impact in twoways. Firstly, better conservation and useof on-farm natural resources, like the soilmoisture and soil fertility status.Secondly, this model has been able tomeet most of the family needs of food,fodder, fuel and cash income to a greatextent.

1) Conservation and utilisation of on-farm natural resources

Soil moisture conservation

Bunding done across the slope, both onthe boundaries and in between the plotsreduced the speed of water flow, thusenabling more moisture to be availableto plants. The vegetation on the bundshelped in stabilising the bunds, besidesproviding fodder and green manure.

The farm pond is situated at the lowestpoint on the field. The excess waterwhich would have otherwise gone waste,got collected in the pond. The harvestedwater was used for irrigating vegetablecrops.

Soil fertility

During the first year, fertilisers wereapplied. From second year onwards,there was a gradual shift towardsapplication of organic manure. The cropresidues of the five plots and the animalwastes have been the major source forcomposting manure. The five compostunits produced enough compost to meetthe requirements of the five plots.Moreover, the vegetation on the bunds

provides green manure based onavailability. Thus the soil fertility wasmanaged by lower external inputs andmore from the on-farm produce itself.

2) Meeting family needs

The model farm was able to meet thefollowing needs of the family, besidesgenerating income.

Food needs

During the previous year, the model plotwas able to produce 12 kg horsegram,69 kg dolichos lablab, 25 kg peas and10kg green gram from the first plot, 2bags of ragi and 20 kg of sesamum fromsecond plot, 2 bags of ragi and 30 kgdolichos lablab from third plot and 120kg groundnut and 123 kg redgram fromthe fourth. On the whole, the foodrequirements of cereals, pulses andoilseeds were largely met from theseplots.

In addition, 12 different types of greenleaf vegetables were grown in thekitchen garden. These provided greensfor the family for a period of 8 monthsand chilly crop provided green chilliesfor 3 months. The remaining chillieswere dried and stored which weighed 6kgs. Tomato grown based on theavailability of water in the farm pond isanother source of nutrition for thefamily. During the first year, vegetablesworth Rs.2500 were produced.

Household milk requirements were metby the Murrah buffalo.

Fodder needs

The bunds planted with Glyricedia,served as a regular source of foddersupply. To get a continous supply offodder plants, the crop was cut from onebund at a time. Thus, by the time thefourth bund is harvested, the first bund isonce again ready with vegetation forharvest. By this way, feed for livestockwas ensured for 8 months in a year.

Fuel needs

The bio-fuel unit, besides providing fuelfor cooking, also provided power forlighting bulbs, one in the cattle shed andone in front of the farmhouse. The lightin front of the house helped inidentifying the pests as they got attractedto the light and fell in the water tubarranged below. This helped the farmerto take adequate crop protectionmeasures.

The farm house in fact is being known asa “Hi-Tech Hut”. Here, no firewood isburnt for cooking, no soot is generated inthe kitchen, no usage of electric powerfor lighting purposes. Instead, bio-fuels

are used. Such a biofuel unit can be setup by majority of the small farmers asgovernment subsidises the cost ofinstallation.

Income generation

Livestock rearing started with oneMurrah breed buffalo and 4 sheep. TheMurrah breed buffalo produced 8 litresmilk per day. After meeting thehouseholds’ milk requirements, on anaverage, the daily income from sale ofmilk was Rs.40-50. Sheep rearing wasstarted with 4 sheep. The sheep numbershas increased to 10, of which 2 arerams. An additional income of Rs.8000-10000 was generated by selling 4-5 well-grown sheep.

Other farm enterprises

Pisciculture is one activity that has beenpossible because of the farm pond. Farmpond is constructed in such a way thatthe excess rain water gets in the pond.When the poultry shed is cleaned thedroppings fall into the farm pond. Thisserves as feed for the fishes. The lightnear the farm house also attracts theinsects. The insects falling into the farmpond offer a wonderful meal to thefishes.

Other benefits

Over a couple of years, besides theabove mentioned benefits, the farmfamily can benefit from production offruits from horticulture plants, flowers,fuel from trees etc. They can servenutritional needs and also provide somecash income. Ropes can be made fromagave which is a fibre plant, to be usedfor livestock. These types of enterprisesprovide labour for the family over theentire year.

Conclusion

The model depicts a fine blend of all thefarm enterprises where in each and everycomponent feeds into the other, thusmaking efficient utilisation of products,bye products and also wastes generatedon the farm. This model is thus beingrecognised as a useful one by smallfarmers for sustainable living.

■

M. RudraradhyaAssociate Professor,Agricultural Research Station,Bavikere, Tarikere – 577 144


Low soil fertility is the main reasonas to why West African farmersdeplete their soils. Integrated Soil

Fertility Management (ISFM) provides away to reverse this (LEISA MagazineVol.16, No.1, pp24-25). ISFM aims atprogressive improvement of soil qualityand nutrient, water and labour efficiencythrough the combined use of soilamendments and inorganic fertilisers.

ISFM in practiceExperience shows that ISFM is effectivein all climate zones having one or tworainy seasons, from the Sahel to Guineasavannah. In time, ISFM leads toimproved agronomic efficiency of in-organic fertiliser, especially of N, butalso of P. It usually takes 2 - 4 years orlonger before this becomes visible tofarmers in the form of increasing cropyields.

A three-fold increase of total milletbiomass has been obtained in the Sahel,where five-fold fodder yield increaseshave been obtained. Similar fodder yieldincreases have been obtained in theSoudanian savannah. Maize yieldincreases due to ISFM are reported fromthe Soudanian, the Guinea and theCoastal savannah. While average farmerproduction is in the order of 1000 kg/ha,grain yields up to 6000 kg/ha have beenregistered with ISFM. Other crops thathave reacted positively are sorghum andirrigated rice.

A whole series of soil amendments andrelated production systems in combina-tion with inorganic fertilisers has beentested already. It concerns crop residues,manure, compost and household wastes,legumes and phosphate rock,agroforestry and perennial grass-croprotations, leading to improved soilorganic matter status. Part of the testing

Integrated Soil Fertility ManagementOpportunities for smallholders in West Africa

Henk Breman

and validation is done in cooperationwith rural development projects. Anexample is the use of a leguminous covercrop (Mucuna) in combination with localphosphate rock, to improve fertiliser useon a maize-cassava relay croppingsystem. An IFAD-funded project forvillage organisation and agriculturaldevelopment in Southern Togo enabledIFDC to test and improve this ISFMoption in 60 villages during 4 successiveyears. Such opportunities are exploited todevelop and understand numerousoptions, to write and test technicaladvisory notes, and to develop a generalguide on ISFM.

Strategic site selectionThree zones are distinguished in thiscontext: 1 - zones where the use ofinorganic fertilisers is already economi-cally feasible; 2 - zones where the use ofinorganic fertilisers can become feasiblethanks to ISFM; 3 - zones where due topresent fertiliser and crop prices, evenISFM cannot result in favourable costbenefit ratios for the use of inorganicfertiliser. Large parts of Africa compriseof marginal lands falling into zone 3.

For effective introduction of ISFM inzone 2, strategic site selection is a must.IFDC-Africa has developed two types ofselection: Type I - for the choice ofzones and villages, and Type II - for thechoice of fields. Criteria for type I are theavailability of inputs, relatively goodproduction conditions, the accessibilityof markets, and serious overpopulationwith strong overexploitation of naturalresources. The last criterion selectsfarmers with growing difficulties to makea living out of their land. Furtherresource depletion may be just enoughfor bare survival, but insufficient forcourageous farmers seeking to improvetheir income and conditions. Suchfarmers are therefore very motivated totry new ways.

In West Africa, combinations offavourable conditions are found aroundcities with their market for cereals, freshvegetables and fruits, in regions withintensive production of cash crops likecotton, and in regions with irrigated rice.Another example is regions with crop-livestock integration where intensifica-tion of animal husbandry throughintensive fodder production is economi-cally feasible. The Soudanian savannah,in particular, has strong comparativeadvantages for ISFM based crop-livestock intensification.

The IFDC-Africa approach exploits theopportunities created by favourableconditions within strategic regions, andaims for progressive inclusion of moremarginal adjacent zones.

The second type of strategic siteselection concerns the choice of fields atvillage and farm level. Practice showsthat increasing cash income is the beststimulus for farmers to turn soil mininginto sustainable production. Therefore,fertilisers and other external inputs haveto be used on the best soils, not on thepoorest or most depleted ones. Com-pound fields often offer the best chanceof making fertilisers profitable. Farmersin Northern Togo succeeded in increas-ing maize production by almost 1000 kg/ha using 50 kg/ha of urea, while the samedose resulted in an increase of only 370kg/ha on bush fields.

Participatory and holistic ISFMintroductionIFDC-Africa is introducing ISFM in aparticipatory and holistic way, workingwith farmers through NGOs, extensionservices and national research institutes.The process approach is indispensable:ISFM development can only take placethrough a careful integration of outsidescientific knowledge and indigenousknowledge and experience, in particularwhere conditions are heterogeneous andthe technology options are diverse andflexible. It is only by working together,evaluating progress and failures, andassuring that cooperation adds capacityto farmers and other stakeholders thatprogress can be made.

Investments are required to increase thecapacities of farmers and other stake-holders, and to enable networking. Evenfor the relatively favourable strategicsites, ISFM can not be introducedwithout external financial support forcredit, training and networking.

■

Henk Breman, IFDC-Africa, PO Box 4483Lomé, Togo. E-mail: [email protected]

A full version of the article is available onwww.ileia.nl

Reference

- Schreurs MEA, Maatman A. andDangbégnon C, 2002. In for a penny in for apound. Strategic site-selection and on-farmclient-oriented research to triggersustainable agricultural intensification.In: B. Vanlauwe, J. Diels, N. Sanginga andR. Merckx (Eds.). Integrated plant nutrientmanagement in sub-Saharan Africa.CABI Publishing. pp. 63 -74.Ph

oto

: Hen

k B

rem

an

The effect of green manure is clear, but farmers have tofind a way to fit into their farming system


Farmers in the hills of Nepal have,over the past centuries, developedcomplex farming systems based on

a close integration of crop, livestock andforestry/grassland management. Manurederived from livestock is the main sourceof soil fertility management. About 32%of the fodder resources are derived fromcrop residues while the rest is derivedfrom terrace risers, bunds and forests.Although fodder is in short supply andmilk production is thereby reduced,farmers keep livestock partly for thepurpose of manure production.

Farmers have constantly changed andadapted their farming systems over thepast centuries as need and opportunitiesarose. New crops such as maize andpotato entered the hills centuries ago andare now staple food crops contributing tofood security. The expansion of fruitcrops and vegetables is a more recentphenomenon improving food quality andfarm income. At the same time, farmershave maintained traditional practicessuch as terracing, manure management,legume inter cropping, and mulchingwhere appropriate.

Searching for innovationThe rapid intensification of land use,reduced access to biomass from publicland, increasing access to input andoutput markets, new crops and croppingsystems have exposed farmers to newchallenges. Therefore, farmer-supportorganisations need to accelerate farmers’efforts to increase the productivity of thefarming system with new practices andknowledge while maintaining itsdiversity and sustainability.

This article summarises experiences onthe promotion of sustainable soilmanagement of more than 50 govern-mental and non-governmentalorganisations under the commonumbrella of the Sustainable SoilManagement Programme (SSMP). Morethan 14000 households in 10 hill districtsparticipated directly in project activitiessince 1999 through more than 1500 fieldtrials or demonstrations per year. About700 farmers participated in a recentevaluation of the programme. The majorlearning points so far are outlined below.

Sustainable Soil Management Programme

Sustaining soil fertility: usefulpractices and methods in hillagriculture

Technical opportunities for SSMVarious opportunities for improved soilmanagement have been identified andconfirmed with farmers over the past 3years. For instance:

• Farm yard manure quality can beincreased by better decompositionand the N-content can be increased byat least 2 to 3 times from about 0.5%N to 1.5% N through proper manage-ment of urine and manure. Inparticular, urine collection and theproper management of manure arenew to most farmers, as many haveinitiated stall-feeding only over thepast 1-2 decades. Previous recom-mendations for manure (use of starter,turning etc.) were derived fromcomposting and proved to be toolabour demanding and missed theimportance of urine collection andN-preservation.

• Liquid manure can be prepared fromurine and various plant extracts rich inminerals or secondary plant com-pounds. These “manure teas” wereshown to be effective liquid fertiliserson crops such as vegetables and alsofor organic pest and disease manage-ment. Local marketing systems forsuch “manure teas” are emerging insome areas. The use of urea fertiliserdeclined in several areas due to liquidmanure use.

• Increased fodder availability fromfodder trees and grasses on privateland has improved the fodder supplyand quality for livestock. The quantityand quality of manure has increased(remember: about 80% of N in fodderis excreted through urine). Addition-ally the workload for fodder collec-tion and transport, in particular forwomen, has been reduced.

• Legume cropping was not a success-ful intervention in many areas.However, it did expand considerablyif the legume species was selectedwith farmers and well targetted tolocal ecological conditions andmarketing opportunities. Groundnuthas attracted, for example, theattention of farmers as a cash cropwith local processing and marketing

potential for women. Farmers haveadopted Four-Season Bean, aclimbing variety of Phaseolusvulgaris, as a vegetable and food crop.

• Multistorey Agroforestry systemshave attracted farmers’ attention in thecase of inter cropping coffee (a newcash crop for most farmers), ginger,fruit trees, vegetable and fodder treesin the western and central region.Shade trees are essential for sustain-able management of coffee planta-tions in minimising damage bystemborers, drought stress and lowwinter temperatures.

• High value crops with SSM such asfresh vegetables in areas with marketaccess or ginger in more remote areashave stimulated farmers to care fortheir land and soil fertility. The initialdoubt was whether short-cycle cashcrops would contribute to anoverexploitation of the soil and to adecline in soil fertility. However, fieldstudies have confirmed that farmersincrease their investment into soilfertility, if the information on the cashcrop is delivered together withinformation on sustainable soilmanagement. Fodder and manureproduction, for example, increased onthese farms.

• Fertilisers may provide a response ofat least 25-30 kg of additional maizeyield per 1 kg of nitrogen applied ifthe fertiliser use is at low-moderaterates, correctly applied and wellsynchronised with crop demand.Farmers in accessible areas havestarted to complement manure withan inorganic fertiliser top-dressing.However, farmers’ experiences on thecorrect type, amount, timing andplacement of fertilisers in combina-tion with indigenous organic manuremanagement are still limited.

Technical challenges for SSMSome major challenges remain to beaddressed. We herewith invite readers toprovide ideas and experiences on how totackle the following challenges:

Phot

o : S

SMP

FFS farmer’s group discussing the quality of their soils


• Preventing the gradual acidificationof soils is the most difficult challengefor sustaining soil fertility in the hills.At least one third of the soils have aninherent low soil pH and these soilswill acidify further if inorganicfertiliser use expands and organicmatter applications are reduced.

• Increasing phosphorous availabilityis another major challenge for SSM inthe hills. Many soils have consider-able P-reserves. A large part of theavailable P is linked to organic matterdynamics (“organic P”) and themanagement of such P-pools, inparticular in acidic soils, needs to beexplored. Experiences with mycor-rhiza application or P-mobilizingcrops may be relevant.

• Organic pest and disease manage-ment, in particular of soil pests andsoil-borne diseases, is required tomanage soil fertility and soil health inan integrated approach. Experienceson the control of white grubs and redant, in particular, and organicvegetable management in general arewelcome.

Research over the past 5 years hasconfirmed the need for a combined useof different management practices tomaintain or improve soil fertility underan “Integrated Plant Nutrient Manage-ment System” (IPNS). A joint effortbetween staff from the Nepal Agricul-tural Research Council, the Departmentof Agriculture, the Ministry of Agricul-ture and Cooperatives and various NGOswas initiated in 2001 to design andimplement Farmer Field Schools onIPNS. Preliminary field trials indicatethat the use of external inputs can bereduced to at least one half or can evenbe eliminated (using urine instead ofurea) without yield reduction. More than20 Farmer Field Schools on IPNS areunder implementation in 2002.

Methodological opportunitiesThe promotion of SSM is not only basedon technical interventions but is also asocial process. Organisations workingwith SSMP use various approaches,methods and techniques in the promotionof SSM. Some have gone through a cycleof learning and improvements over thepast years. This process continues, whilethe following conclusions can be drawn:

• Indigenous and new knowledge:Women and men farmers haveconfidence in their indigenousknowledge. New knowledge comple-ments indigenous knowledge. Thus,methods of extension that build ondiscussion and interactive learningamong farmers are most appropriate.Commonly known visual tools for

soil characterisation (e.g. pH-paper,hydrogen peroxide, litter bags,erosion boxes) proved essential forstimulating discussion. The FarmerField School approach for IPNS iscentred around such a learningprocess.

• Soil fertility and land productivity:The farmers’ concept of soil fertilityis closely linked to land productivityas shown by various surveys.Farmers’ interest in SSM-practices ismuch higher, if these are closelylinked with complementary practicesfor increased soil productivity (e.g.vegetable plus better manure).

• Farmer-led experimentation:Farmers need to integrate newpractices into their highly heterog-enous hill farming systems. Methodsof farmer-led experimentation wereexplored in 2000/2001 by someorganisations. Simple experiments oninter cropping, crop arrangements,manure or urine use were mostcommon. This proved to be effectivein increasing farmers’ role andcommitment in the overall testing anddiffusion process. Experiences wereshared with others and over 30organisations have started supportingfarmer-led experimentation in 2002.

• SSM implications for women andmen: Slightly more than 50% of allfarmers participating in the fieldactivities were women. However, thisquantitative participation did notprove to be sufficient, particularly inmore traditional communities. Thus,efforts were initiated to assess withfarmers the implications of adoptingspecific SSM-practices for womenand men farmers. This resulted in theidentification of specific actions toaddress qualitative gender equity,which have become part of thestrategy in a technically-orientedprogramme.

Methodological challenges• Participatory planning, monitoring

and evaluation (PPME): Theintroduction of new SSM-practicesinto traditional and complex farmingsystems is a gradual process oftesting, adaptation and learning.Participatory surveys in project areasproved to be of a consultativecharacter and were mostly dominatedby staff of organisations. Additionally,surveys were quickly outdated bychanges in opportunities andproblems perceived by farmers. Thus,a regular process of PPME at the levelof the farming community isconsidered essential to adjust projectsto emerging needs and opportunities.

SSMP supports this through annualwork plans (Activity Proposals) andrespective budget allocations to eachproject. However, the overall processof learning with farmers needs to befurther strengthened. An exchange ofexperiences on PPME and on theintegration of constant learning intoproject cycles would be appreciated.

• Farmer-to-farmer diffusion: Asimprovements of local SSM are aresult of the integration of new andtraditional knowledge and practices,experienced farmers turned out to bethe best local promoters for SSM.Additionally, demand-led extensiontends to be more effective andefficient than mandated extension.Thus, a new approach of farmer-to-farmer diffusion is under testing since2001. The most experienced farmersreceived additional training so as toenable them to offer their services aslocal resource persons. A total of 400farmers groups are expected to hirethe service of these farmers withlimited financial support by theprojects. More needs to be learnedabout modalities to support demand-led farmer-to-farmer diffusion.

Governmental policiesRecent changes in governmental policieshave in general been supportive of SSM.The termination of fertiliser subsidies,the recognition of organic amendmentsas fertilisers and the incorporation ofIPNS into the Fertiliser Policy have set anew framework. The recognition andpromotion of partnership between publicand private organisations in agriculturaldevelopment under various policydocuments has set the stage for newinstitutional collaboration. Communityforestry has strengthened the confidencein local management mechanisms. Thesechanges were essential for creating asupportive environment. They coincidedand were partly a response to a growingstrength of civil society actors in thecountry. The gradual implementation andinternalisation of such changes, however,does require continuous efforts andsometimes struggle.

■

The paper summarises the work andexperiences of many persons andorganisations. For further information pleasecontact: STSS, Department of Agriculture,Harihar Bhawan, Lalitpur, Nepal; or PSU,SSMP, GPO Box 688, Kathmandu, Nepal.Email: [email protected].

SSMP is coordinated by Helvetas andIntercooperation with support from HisMajesty’s Government of Nepal and the SwissAgency for Development and Cooperation.


One of the dreams of humanendeavour is the sustainableincrease in the pace of

agricultural productivity to fulfill thedemands of rapidly growing humanpopulation. During the last few decades,use of modern technology resulted inincreased agricultural production.However, the need and greed for cropyield has resulted in over-exploitation ofthe soil ecosystem. The effects aremanifested in the form of degraded soilsin terms of soil nutrition and organicmatter.

In the Indian context, the seriousness ofthe issue can be understood from thefollowing facts. About one fourth of thenitrogen, more than half of phosphateand total potash are being importedeither in the form of raw material orfinished product. However, only aconsiderable portion of these nutrientsput into the soil remains available to theplant roots. A major part of it is lost dueto the physio-chemical as well asbiological activities. Long termexperiences have shown that neither theorganic manure nor the chemicalfertilizers alone can achieve sustainedhigh yields. Integrated use of organicmanures, bio-fertilizers and chemicalfertilizers, therefore, remain the onlypromising option in improving cropproductivity.

Microbes balance soil ecologyMicrobes are an integral part of everysoil ecosystem. Various kinds ofbiological activities are continuouslygoing on in the soil. Metabolic activitiesof the microbes such as bacteria (PlantGrowth Promoting Rhizobacteria –PGPR), fungal organisms (mycorrhiza,cyanobacteria) and soil fauna(nematodes, worms, protozoans etc.)promote soil health and cropproductivity.

Almost all the beneficial microbesessentially need carbon source for theirsurvival. This explains as to why thesoils poor in the organic matter contentare usually poor in microbial activities.In the past, application of huge chemicalinputs have made soils poor, or evenworse in terms of affecting microbialactivities. This led to decrease, or inmany areas, extinction of a number ofbeneficial soil biota such as PGPR,fungi, earthworms, actinomycetes etc.This situation prevails in almost all typesof soils across the country. For example,in Chandauli district of Uttar Pradeshstate, both qualitative and quantitativechange in the rice-wheat croppingsystem has been observed in the past 10years. The yield as well as the quality ofthe harvest declined drastically.

Emergence of high alkaline patches inthe field and crop failure due toincreased fertilizer doses are reported bythe farmers. Such a situation is commonin many parts of the Eastern U. P.

The Foundation for Agro-TechnologyDevelopment and Resource Managementworking in that area helped the farmersin the region to assess their situation andadopt remedial measures. The farmersadopted biofertiliser application in riceecosystem in a step-wise manner. Soilwas first mixed with FYM and SewageSludge Waste (SSW) in equal quantities(1: 1 ratio) at the time of fieldpreparation for rice cultivation followingflooding. This was followed by theapplication of mix culture ofcyanobacterial strains (originally isolatedfrom the field and then cultured undersimilar conditions) @ 15 kg per hectare,10 days prior to transplantation. Thisresulted in the improvement of bothquality and quantity of rice crop and alsoimproved soil conditions for the nextwheat crop.

Biological Nitrogen-Fixation (BNF):a nature’s giftNitrogen is one the most abundant gasesfound in the atmosphere but unusable bythe plants in its gaseous form. Manymicrobes, however, are capable ofconverting the gaseous nitrogen tonitrate. The nitrates can be easily utilizedby the plants. This process is called‘Biological Nitrogen Fixation’(BNF).

BNF has an assured place in agriculturemainly as a source of nitrogen forlegumes and other important crops. On aglobal scale, BNF provides the largestinput of nitrogen to agricultural soils.Inoculation of Rhizobium as biofertilizerin the crops such as groundnut,pigeonpea, soybean etc. provided 19-22kg of nitrogen per hectare whichincreased production by 17-33%.Similarly, use of non-symbiotic bacteriaAzotobactor in wheat, sorghum, tomato,cotton, sugarcane and Azospirillum inwheat, maize, rice, sorghum cropsaugmented nitrogen supply to crops toan extent of 20-30 kg per hectare. Thus,resulting in increased crop yield by 10%to 30%.

Blue-green algae (BGA orcyanobacteria) are phototropic organismsthat grow wherever water, sunlight andcarbon di-oxide are available. The riceecosystem is an ideal environment forthe growth and development of theseself-supporting organisms. A largevariety of nitrogen-fixing BGA such asAiiabaena, Nostoc, Aulosira, Calothrix,Tolyphothrix etc. colonize the rice fieldsoils. Upon application in the soil, blue-

green algal organisms compete well withthe native strains, grow profusely nearthe root zone in soil. Nitrogen fixed bythem is released either through exudationor through microbial decomposition afterthe alga dies. In paddy fields, the deathof algal biomass most frequently resultsin gradual build-up of soil fertility. Theresidual effects influence the succeedingcrops also. Apart from fixing N andadding organic matter to soil, BGA arealso known to produce and excrete plantpromoting substances like indole aceticacid. Also, continous use of the BGAbiofertilizers for 2-3 years adequatelybuilds up the population of theseorganisms in the soil.

The relative contribution of BGA as apercentage of total nitrogen-fixed inpaddy fields varies widely and isestimated to be 15-35 kg nitrogen perhectare in India. In areas wherechemical nitrogen is not used for variousreasons, algal inoculation enhances aminimum of 4% to a maximum of 32.8%crop yield with an overall average of16.1%. Even at the levels of chemical Nfertilizers being used in different states,the application of BGA biofertilizerresulted in an increased crop yield of8.85%.

PGPRS: Low-cost input from natureBesides nitrogen fixers, many bacteriacolonize plant roots. Some of thempromote plant growth significantly.They help in mobilization of the soilnutrients and production ofphytoharmones or growth regulatingsubstances. These phytohormoneproducing microbes have been classifiedas PGPR. Of the many such bacteriaidentified, the role of fluorescentPseudomonas and Bacillus species haveattracted much attention. The substancesproduced by them have naturalbiocontrol and plant growth promotingcapabilities. Increased amount ofnutrient uptake by plants inoculated byPseudomonas putida has been attributedto the production of growth regulators bythe bacterium at root surface whichstimulates root development.

Pseudomonad (group of Pseudomonasspecies) inoculants produce indole aceticacid-like substances (plant harmone) inthe rhizosphere of wheat grown in fieldconditions. Many PGPRS, for example,Pseudomonas fluorescence,Pseudomonas aerugnosa and Bacillussubtilis also produce substances such assiderophores and saponins, which areresponsible for the removal of heavymetal toxicity. These organisms are alsoresponsible for enhancement ofrhizospheric competitive ability byantagonistic effects on other harmfulbacteria, control of plant diseases thataffect root density, production ofchemicals that interfere with theorganisms infecting plant roots,enhancing the availability of nutrientsthat improve the efficacy of plants.PGPRs are therefore being widelyevaluated for their role in sustainableresource management as biocontrolagent and biofertilizer.

Microbial tools – a key tosustainable productivity

Dhananjaya P. Singh


An indigeneous method has beendeveloped by the Foundation for theproduction of biofertilizer rich inbacterial population at the farmers level.The idea is to use beneficial microbialpopulation, already acclimatized with thepH and other physiochemical conditionsof local soil. Roots of existing crops,grasses and weeds were cut from therhizospheric region along with theadhered soil and chopped into finepieces. The whole material was dipped(suspended) in a bucket of watercontaining 5% molasses solutionovernight. Further, this solution alongwith the chopped material is transferredto field at the time of transplanting. Bythis low cost, indigenous process, mixedpopulation of root-rhizospheric bacteriacan be increased manifold andmaintained by the local farmers as pertheir requirement. The process reducessynthetic fertilizer inputs. Farmers ofVaranasi and Ghazipur region, U.P.(Villages- Bhopapur and Ramna,Hansrajpur and Yusufpur, respectively)are being trained by the workers of theFoundation in such processes.

Mycorrhizal Fungi (VAM)Mycorrhizae play a dominant role inmaking unavailable soil nutrients

available to plant roots and increasingthe potential gain of available resources.These organisms ensure easy availabilityof organic carbon and complex organicnitrogen and phosphorus sources,increase phosphorus solubilization andavailability in clay soils. These fungiwork upon large volumes of soil. Theirhyphae extend outwardly from the rootsranging from a few centimeters toseveral meters in the soil. This results inincreasing the effective absorbingsurface of the host root by as much as 10times, resulting in enhanced absorptionof immobile nutrients such asphosphorus, zinc, copper etc. in the soilby 60 times. Mycorrhizal fungi alsotransport many other nutrients includingcalcium, magnesium, sodium, sulphur,iron, chlorine etc., all essential for plantgrowth and development. It has beenobserved that plants with mycorhizalassociation are more tolerant to heavymetal toxicity. These plants survive wellin drought and arid conditions asimproved water movement is facilitatedby mycorrhiza.

Theoretically, the most efficient level ofnutrients is the concentration of mineralelements in the plant tissue just abovethe ‘critical level’ necessary for optimum

growth. Further addition of chemicalfertilizers may be taken up by plants, as‘luxury concentration’. This adds verylittle to plant growth. Now, thesemicroorganisms help in constituting the‘optimum level’ of minerals in the planttissue even at low level of fertiliserinputs. They fix nitrogen, solubilizephosphorus and facilitate uptake ofminerals by roots. Thus, thesemicroorganisms in the form ofbiofertilizers are essential formaintaining good soil fertility, better soilconditions and sustainable agriculturalproductivity.

■

Dhananjaya .P. Singh, Ph.D(Biotechnology), Director, Foundation forAgro-Technology Development and ResourceManagement, 57, Lane No. 1, Om Nagar,Akatha, Pahariya Varanasi (U.P.),Ph. 0542-2373775,E-mail- [email protected] : F-165, NR, LahartaraColony, VARANASI – 221002

Integrated nutrient management in fodder-cowpeaThomas Abraham and R.B.Lal

Soil health care is fundamental to sustainable farming. Biological diversity has the potential for compensating among variouscomponents of the farming system. This brings in yield and economic stability. There is a need for buffer, both biological andeconomic, in the current farming systems. This needs to be in terms of alternatives, depending more on on-farm renewable resources.

Organic farming implies total abandonment of fertilizer and chemicals. This system in its strict sense is difficult to be adopted in the nearfuture, particularly by the small and marginal farmers in India. Hence, an effective blend of traditional practices with the modern sciencewould be the preferred choice. This in popular parlance is expressed as ‘ruminate the tradition, assimilate the recent advances andconstruct the future’.

The adoption of appropriate crop rotations that include legumes is one of the means to maintain soil fertility and productivity. The poorfarmers get higher returns by inclusion of legumes and fodder crops in the cropping system. Besides, soil fertility is maintained andproduction is sustained.

Fodder crop component, particularly, summer legumes find very insignificant position in most of the cropping systems of the eastern beltof Uttar Pradesh. This accentuates the overall socio-economic standard of the peasants. A study was therefore conducted to find out theinfluence of integrated nutrient management (INM) on legume fodder (cowpea) based cropping system. Different combinations of chemicalfertilisers, organic manure, bio-fertiliser and organic sprays were used to understand the impact.

There was a marked response in dry matter accumulation when only one third amount of recommended dose of fertilizer (6.66, 15.66 and6.66 kg/ha of N, P & K respectively) was applied. It was however interesting to note that accumulation of dry matter was higher whenorganic manure was used. Here, farm compost (mainly consisting of crop residues and cattle manure) was combined with poultry litterduring the early stages and with vermicompost during later stage. Both these combinations were found to be suitable nutrient carriers forsummer growing fodder cowpea.

Use of biofertilizer was found to be a viable alternative as a partial substitute for inorganic fertilizers. Phosphate Solubilizing Bacteria(PSB) was used along with Rhizobium. 33% cow’s urine was sprayed twice at 20 and 35 days after sowing. This resulted in highernodulation as compared to crop fertilised with zero or 1/3rd levels of nitrogen application.

Different combinations of nutrient sources had influence on different aspects of the crop. The crop applied with fertilisers (one-thirdrecommended dose) in combination with farm compost and vermicompost registered significantly higher yield than other combinations.Similarly, the carbohydrate content was higher in crop fertilised with chemical fertilizer (one-third of recommended dose) only. On theother hand, a combination of fertilisers (recommended dose), farm compost and poultry manure as well as the dual culture of PSB withRhizobium proved to be superior with regard to protein content of the herbage.

1. Dr.Thomas Abraham, Asst. Prof., Dept. of Agronomy, Allahabad Agricultural Institute (Deemed University), Allahabad – 211007;email: [email protected]

2. Prof.(Dr).R.B.Lal, Vice Chancellor, Allahabad Agricultural Institute (Deemed University), Allahabad – 211007; email: [email protected]


Characteristics and processes ofnatural ecosystems can be usedas the basis for designing

sustainable farm systems. This is,however, conditional to proper observa-tion and collection of information forlearning about the beneficial features ofnature, as well as in understanding thevarious natural processes. The interna-tional development organisation VECOcollaborates in Indonesia with more than40 local NGOs, spread over 7 provinces,on the development of sustainableagricultural systems that can help toalleviate food insecurity.

LEISA developmentsIn mountainous Indonesia, soil and waterconservation is an obvious preconditionfor sustainable agriculture. Frequentlosses by erosion not only oppose basicecological principles of LEISA(“optimising nutrient availability andcycling”) but also harm soil life and,therefore, affect the soil negatively, bothquantitatively and qualitatively. WhenVECO partner organisations start a newagricultural programme with ruralcommunities, soil and water conservationis, generally, a good starting point. Aftermaking an inventory of the localconditions during a PRA exercise,programme staff and farmers are ‘fresh’and eager to get going, while theprinciples of building erosion structuresare quite straightforward and, by now,understood by many. In this way somequick first results can be achieved whichhave an enormous impact on furtherLEISA developments.

Using the principles of agroforestry,shrubs and trees can be added to protectand stabilise man-made erosion controlstructures. However, in cases where soilsare not deep and slopes rather steep,experiences from natural forests showthat tall-growing trees can be a hazard,and are frequently the cause of landslidesduring the rainy season. Local farmers inthe district of Mamasa, on Sulawesi,

Wise lessons from Mother Nature

Ambarwati D. Rahayu and Rik Thijssen

recognise this danger and, therefore,plant only shrubs on such slopes andfrequently prune and lop the woodyspecies, which tend to grow tall.

Cover crops are in most agriculturaldevelopment programmes another meansof curbing erosion. The soil-creepers,mostly leguminous plants, can also serveas soil fertility improvers. But whatcould be done in situations where soilsare rather acidic and common covercrops do not grow well? Or in caseswhere cattle roam freely around andcould destroy the cover crop by tram-pling or browsing?

Learning from local insightsEthnobotanical surveys often provideimportant information and local insightswith which such issues could be tackled.During an ethnobotanical study in thearea of Balla Satanatean village inMamasa District, an answer wasdiscovered for the first question. Soilshere are acid and farmers use lime toincrease pH on their fields. The common,natural soil cover here is a creeping fern,paken (Gleichenia linearis), and largeareas on slopes have been colonised bythis “wire fern”. Local adat (customarylaw) demands great respect for thefunctions of this plant and people willthink twice before they do anything thatmight damage the protective ‘blanket’formed by this fern. The soil-holdingcapacities of paken are so well under-stood that most farmers plant this specieson dikes around their sawah (irrigatedrice fields).

Farmers in Ngada District on Floresappreciate, already for a long time, thenatural presence of the “weed” putrimalu (Mimosa diplotricha or giantsensitive plant). This fast-growingspecies can provide a quick cover onfields between cropping periods orduring a fallow. Covered with manysmall thorns, it is not a crop that invitesanimals, and people alike, to walkthrough. According to farmers it is noteasy to clear putri malu afterwards, butthey take that for granted since it is anexcellent soil improver, cover crop andsoil binder against erosion.

Another problem that many farmers onFlores face is very hard soils. Low inorganic matter after continuous use, soilcompaction makes it impossible toplough such soils. Women lament thatthey cannot grow vegetables or fruit trees

near the homes because the soil hasbecome as hard as a rock. Perhaps evenworse, because in rocky places there arestill some plants and trees that grow.

This last observation has been achallenge to the community. If plants cangrow in the wild in places where thereare only rocks, then why can plants notgrow in their hard soil?

Pits of 30x30x30 cm have now beenchiselled out and filled up with soil fromother places mixed with organic material.Vegetables and fruit trees have beenplanted in this olah lubang (pit planting)system. The first results are promisingand the hope is that by bringing backsome life to this hard soil, the soil willeventually become healthy.

Maintaining soil fertilityTo keep the soil in place is one thing. Tokeep soil fertility in pace with day-to-dayagricultural requirements is another.Farmers in Indonesia are searching foralternatives to the chemical fertilisersthey have been using since the GreenRevolution started. Convinced thatinorganic fertilisers have destroyed manyof the qualities of their soil, and stressedbecause of the high prices of thechemicals since subsidies were abol-ished, farmers in the VECO programmesare, for instance, experimenting withliquid manure. This manure is made byfermenting large amounts of leaves ofcertain shrubs and trees in containerswith water. After a few weeks, theconcentrated liquid is diluted with waterand used as a fertiliser on small ricefields, vegetable plots or young fruittrees. Reactions from farmers are all verypositive. They observe good growth andmore healthy plants. There is lessdamage by pests and products such asonions can be stored for a much longerperiod compared to produce from fieldstreated with chemical fertilisers.

Production of different crops using Urea(250 kg/ha) or compost (10 ton/ha)

Crop Yield with Yield withUrea compost

(kg/ha) (kg/ha)

Rice 1,200 2,680

Maize 800 1,460

Groundnuts 975 1,125


During technical monitoring andevaluation meetings, the important soilprocesses concerning mineralisation andnutrient availability are explained anddiscussed. The accelerating effect that Nand P fertilisers have on the decomposi-tion of soil organic matter is always a hotitem of discussion. Initially, a bonuseffect is created by increasing theavailability of macro and micro-nutrientsto plant roots. On the longer term, thispriming effect causes a larger fraction ofthe soil organic matter to be brokendown annually. Arguably, this is the mostimportant factor why the Green Revolu-tion scored its early successes but finallycaused serious problems for main soilqualities.

When confronted with this information,it is not so difficult for farmers to draw aparallel between the use of chemicalfertilisers and the use of their liquidmanure. Since the liquid fertilisercontains only water, nutrients andmicrobes, they can only agree thatchances are high that similar primingeffects could cause new problems,especially because of decreasing thecontent of soil organic matter.

Therefore, it becomes imperative thatorganic material of a certain quality isregularly added to the soil. The usualgreen manures are not applicable sinceresearch in alley cropping

sufficient. This leaves compost as thebetter option. Especially compost madeout of fibrous material such as rice strawand alang-alang grass (Imperatacylindrica) could provide the necessary,long-lasting organic supplement for soils.Crop yields are significantly higher withthe application of compost in comparisonto inorganic fertilisers as seen in thetable. Compost starters are popularamongst farmers and have become cheapand accessible due to farmer innovation(see box).

ConclusionIn order to imitate natural ecosystems inour pursuit of developing sustainableagricultural systems, we – developmentagents and the farming communities -should be prepared to observe well themany different components, andingenious arrangements betweencomponents, that make up such a naturalecosystem.

■

Ambarwati D. Rahayu (Programme Officer)and Rik Thijssen (Advisor SustainableAgriculture), VECO Indonesia, Jalan LetdaKajeng 22, 80234 Denpasar, Bali.Email: [email protected]

Farmer innovation in compost-starters

During a study visit in 1998, to an extension institute in Bogor, the use of a commercialcompost-starter EM4 (“effective microbes”) was demonstrated to farmers fromBandungrejo village in Malang District, East Java. This technology, developed by aJapanese biotechnology professor, was, of course, tried by the farmers once they gothome. The conclusion of the group was that the process of composting mixtures of ricestraw and other organic waste was indeed accelerated by using EM4. Where it wouldtake normally months for rice straw to degrade, the new technology took only fewweeks!

However, the expenses of buying the litre bottles of EM4 were relatively high (about25,000 Rupiah or US$ 2.80). One of the group members, Mr. Kusno, therefore decidedto try to develop his own compost-starter. From their visit to Bogor, it had becomeclear what natural processes and components were important for a more rapidcomposting process. Mr. Kusno, who had ample experience with the fermentation ofcassava roots to the local food product tape, reasoned that if the ragi (“yeast”) usedwas able to make the hard cassava root soft, than maybe it would even be able tobreak down the fibres of the rice straw.

Using the ragi for making tape from cassava roots, they found it is possible to producemature compost in only a matter of weeks. The compost was analysed by the SoilLaboratories of the Agricultural Department of Brawijaya University in Malang. A cost-benefit study was done and also proved very favourable - using compost could savealmost 50% of expenses on chemical fertilisers. While it could even be lucrative toproduce compost for selling, since production costs for 200 kg of compost was about10,000 Rupiah, while compost was sold for 200 Rupiah per kg.

The results of the experimentation by Mr. Kusno and his farmer group has triggered offa complete new thinking about composting. After extension officers had shown themhow to make the ragi themselves, farmers have also started experimenting withalternative ingredients to make effective compost-starters. While the ragi for cassavatape is based on micro-organisms from the roots of laos (Languas galanga), startershave now been developed using roots of other plants as well as over-ripe fruits.

Mr. Kusno died in 2000 at the age of 58 years. His work will always

be remembered by the many farmers in Indonesia who implement

‘his’ technology under the name pupuk ragi Kusno (fertiliser from Kusno’s ragi).

has shown that the easily decomposableleafy material from leguminous speciescontributes to a priming effect and doesnot add significantly to soil organicmatter. Animal manure would be fine,but not all farmers keep animals whilequantities of animal manure are often not

Phot

o : t

he a

utho

rs

Farmers plant the creeping fernpaken (Gleichenia linearis), a

natural soil cover by traditionallaw protected, on dikes around

their sawah (irrigated rice fields)


Since 1999, the System of RiceIntensification (SRI), developed inMadagascar by Fr. Henri de

Laulanié in association with the NGOAssociation Tefy Saina (ATS) and manysmall farmers in the 1980s, is spreadingto many countries. Various articles andpresentations on SRI at national andinternational fora, especially those by Dr.Norman Uphoff, Director of the CornellInternational Institute for Food, Agricul-ture and Development (CIIFAD) atCornell University in USA, havemotivated many people to experimentwith the approach and evaluate it forthemselves.

SRI is a ‘system’ rather than a ‘technol-ogy’. It is based on the insights that ricehas the potential to produce more tillers

System of Rice Intensification gains momentum

Norman Uphoff and Erick Fernandes

Phot

o : N

orm

an U

phof

f

Farmers develop new hand weeders in Sri Lanka to make SRI less labour intensive.

Figure 1 Comparative rice yields reported fromcases where data were available on both actual

SRI yield and comparison/control yield

and grains than now observed, and thatearly transplanting and optimal growthconditions (spacing, humidity, biologi-cally active and healthy soil, and aerobicsoil conditions during the vegetativephase) can fulfil this potential. Theseprinciples are translated into a set of‘baseline’ practices: transplanting ofyoung seedlings, carefully one per hill,with wide spacing; no standing waterduring the vegetative growth phase;application of compost; and early andfrequent weeding (see e.g. LEISAMagazine Vol.15, No.3/4, pp.48-49;Vol.16, No.4, p.12; Vol.17, No.4, pp.14-16). Practitioners of SRI are encouragedto vary and improve these practices, tosee which can best give effect to the SRIprinciples in their specific situation.

The SRI approach has been tried in atleast 17 countries under a range ofclimatic and other conditions. Farmershave worked with many differentvarieties (traditional, high yielding andhybrids) and soil fertility practices(organic, chemical, and a combination ofboth) and have developed severalvariants and improvements of the‘baseline’ practices.

First International ConferenceAs scientific validations of farmer andresearcher experimentation have becomeavailable, it was timely to hold aninternational conference on the Systemof Rice Intensification. This was

organised by CIIFAD and the ChinaNational Hybrid Rice Research andDevelopment Centre, with co-sponsor-ship by ATS and the China National RiceResearch Institute. It took place inSanya, China, April 1-4, 2002. Theobjective was to better understand thevariations in practices and the results thathave emerged, and to establish means forcommunication that would facilitateevaluation of innovations from varioussources and share them widely, so thatfarmers in many countries would have alonger “menu” of SRI practices tochoose from.

Reports from China, Indonesia, Philip-pines, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand,Myanmar, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, India,Nepal, The Gambia, Madagascar, SierraLeone, Cuba, Peru, and the U.S.A. werepresented at the conference. This articleis a compilation of the main findings andcomments.

AdvantagesNumerous benefits associated with SRIpractices were reported in the conferencepapers, the most important being anincrease in total factor productivity.Specific advantages included:

• Higher yields: increases of 50-200%, with yields of 4-8 tons/hacommon, but also yields above 10tons/ha frequently reported (seeFigure 1).

18

16

14

12

10

8

6

4

2

01 4 7 10 13 16 19 22 25 28 31 34 37 40 43 46

■ Control (t/ha)● SRI Yield (t/ha)

■

●

● ●

●●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●●

● ●

●

●●

●

● ● ●

●

●

● ●●

●

●

●●

●

● ●●

● ●

●

●●

●

●

● ●

●

●

●■ ■

■

■ ■

■

■

■

■

■

■■

■

■

■

■■

■

■ ■ ■ ■■

■■

■

■ ■ ■

■■■

■

■ ■

■

■■

■

■

■■

■■■ ■

Ric

e gra

in y

ield

(t/

ha)

Number of farmer and research fields


• Increased returns to labour withmore production per day invested.

• Water saving: up to 50%, withhigher productivity per unit of waterapplied.

• Improvement of soil quality andincreased efficiency of fertilisers,both organic and chemical.

• Reduced requirement of seed: 5-10kg/ha of seed is used, 5-10 times lessthan the quantity with the regularpractice; this makes the use ofimproved and hybrid seeds muchcheaper for farmers.

• Less requirement of purchasedinputs - water, fertiliser, seed andpesticides, and lower costs ofproduction contribute to higherincome for farmers.

• Higher seed quality: SRI methodsmake it possible to increase consider-ably the yields for traditional ricevarieties grown organically for whichhigher prices can be obtained; also,multiplication of ‘breeder seed’ canbe faster as many more grains can beproduced from a single seed.

• Diversification of production: lessland is needed to produce the sameamount of rice, freeing up land forproducing green manure or crops withhigher value.

• Environmental benefits, resultingfrom reduced demands for water andless or no use of agrochemicals.

The disadvantages reported included:

• Requirement of good water control,to be able to apply small amounts ofwater as and when needed to maintainsoil moisture without saturation,rather than flooding fields continu-ously. Farmers who do not have suchcontrol or reliable access to water willget less or little benefit from SRIpractices.

• Requirement of more labour, atleast in the first year or two, as skillsare learned for using the SRI practicesquickly and confidently (see Box 1).This can be a barrier to adoption, evenfor poor households which arerelatively more endowed with labour,if they need immediate returns fromtheir labour to meet subsistenceneeds. At the present stage ofdevelopment, SRI is mainly ofinterest to small farmers who havesufficient household labour. Thechallenge is to develop practices thatmake SRI suitable for situationswhere labour is more expensive andfor larger-scale mechanised farming.

• Drastic change of farmer practiceswhich is often not accepted byfarmers, their communities, research-ers and/or governments.

• Requirement of greater skill on thepart of farmers, expecting them toadapt SRI practices to their ownconditions based on their own trialsand evaluations. This can, of course,contribute to human resourcedevelopment, which is a benefit andnot just a cost.

Field experiences and observationsUsing young seedlings. This is probablythe single most important practice in SRIaccording to the factorial trial results inMadagascar, adding about 2.5 t/ha in thissituation, other conditions being equal(Table 1). Some farmers have triedseedlings as young as 5 days; others havepreferred older seedlings (3-4 weeks),e.g., because of slower growth in colderclimate. Two evaluations in Madagascarhave shown definite benefits from usingyounger seedlings. The advice to start byusing 8 to 12 day-old seedlings remainssound, but decisions about seedling ageneed to match varietal and climaticdifferences.

Effective tillering. There is widevariation in tillering and the effectivenessof tillers. Sometimes there are up to 50%unproductive tillers, which cannot beexplained very well. More often effectivetillering is in the range of 60-80%, withsome plots attaining 80-90%. How tooptimise effective tillering is animportant research question.

Quick and careful transplanting.Farmers have not found it difficult totransplant seedlings within 30 minutes,

Box 1. Gender division of labourin SRIWe do not know how much SRI affectsthe gender division of labour withinhouseholds, so this should be evaluatedas a matter of some priority. Since SRIrequires more labour per ha., at leastinitially, there is concern that this couldincrease the labour burden on women,who usually do the transplantingoperation. Labour savings in terms oftime spent on nursery construction andmanagement with SRI would accrueusually to men.However, conversations with womendoing SRI transplanting in Sri Lankaindicated that they found SRI methodseasier and quicker after the first year,once they became comfortable withhandling tiny seedlings. Because lighterand fewer seedlings are transplanted,they reported that SRI transplanting hadbecome quicker for them, and theyfound the technique more comfortable(“less backache”).In Madagascar, there are still complaintsabout the method taking extra time andeffort, but the spacing for transplanting isstill marked with ropes stretched acrossfields, rather than with a simple woodenrake that scores the surface of the fieldswith lines. With increased yield,women’s burden at harvest time isprobably increased, though a largerharvest helps maintain household foodsecurity, which is a major responsibilityand burden for women.

Table 1. Factorial trial results, comparing yield responses on clay and loamy soils, Anjomakely, Madagascar, 2001

CONTINUOUS FLOODING SRI WATER MANAGEMENT

20-day plants 8-day plants 20-day plants 8-day plants

3 per hill 1 per hill 3 per hill 1 per hill 3 per hill 1 per hill 3 per hill 1 per hill

CLAY SOILNo Fertilizer 2.26 2.78 3.09 3.75 4.82 5.42 5.65 6.25NPK 3.00 5.04 5.08 6.07 7.16 8.13 8.15 8.77Compost 3.71 4.50 6.72 7.45 6.86 7.70 9.32 10.35

LOAM SOILNPK 2.04 2.78 2.60 3.15 3.89 4.36 4.44 5.00Compost 2.03 2.44 3.41 4.10 3.61 4.07 5.17 6.39

The yield figures reported (tons/ha) are each averages from 6 replicated trial plots. The average yield with conventional practices isunderlined; that with all-SRI practices is bold faced. A traditional variety (riz rouge) was used for all trials, with soil type as one of thevariables evaluated. These trials (N=240) were conducted in a village 18 km south of Antananarivo on the high plateau. More completedata from factorial trials conducted by Rajaonarison in 2000 and Andriankaja in 2001 are reported in the conference proceedings.


or preferably 15 minutes or less, if theyestablish their nursery near the field.Farmers have found that using a trowelor other implement helps minimisetrauma to the tender seedlings when theyare uprooted from the nursery. Seedlingsare sometimes planted in wooden orbamboo frames that can be kept in ornear the house for protection and thencarried to the field, so that seedlings areuprooted only at the time of transplanting.

Trauma during transplanting can bereduced by paying attention to the soilmixes used in the nursery and byappropriate water management practices.In Sri Lanka, for example, a nurserymixture of one-third soil, one-third sand,and one-third (chicken) manure hasgiven very good results.

Traditional, improved or hybridvarieties. All varieties used so far havegiven higher yields with SRI practices,though not surprisingly, some varietiesrespond better than others, e.g., produc-ing more tillers or giving better grainfilling. It was observed that 120-140 dayvarieties responded most productively,but more evaluation is needed on this.The best SRI yields (up to 16 tons/hectare and higher) have been obtainedwith high-yielding or hybrid varieties,although traditional varieties, consideredlow-yielding, have also shown greatyield increases. Since the latter arecommonly preferred for taste and other

qualities, and command a higher marketprice, they may regain popularity withSRI methods that increase yields up to6-10 t/ha.

Seedlings per hill. 1 or 2 seedlings perhill can give good results depending onlocal conditions. Where soils are poor itmay be better to use 2 seedlings per hilluntil soil quality is improved. There isenough evidence that 3 or more seedlingsper hill retards growth due to plantcompetition below and above ground,and therefore does not need furtherexperimentation. On good soil, singleseedlings have been giving the bestresults.

Wide spacing. Some of the highestyields observed with SRI have come withvery wide spacing, 50 x 50 cm, when soilquality is excellent. But spacing betweenplants is something to be optimised, notmaximised, since one wants the largestnumber of grain-bearing tillers per sq.metre. This number is influenced byvarious factors (soil quality, variety) aswell as by SRI practices, of whichspacing is one. Most farmers are advisedto start with 25 x 25 cm. Often 35 x 35cm spacing has given the best results buton very poor soils20 x 20 cm may be better.

Techniques of spacing. Instead of usingstrings to achieve desired and exactspacing, some farmers in Madagascar

and Sri Lanka are now using woodenrakes with teeth (pegs) spaced at 25 cm,or wider, intervals to mark square gridlines on the muddy surface of theirpaddies. Farmers find that this speeds upthe transplanting considerably (see Box 2).

Water management. There is plenty ofevidence that in many conditions keepingthe soil moist but unsaturated during thevegetative growth period is best. The SRIrecommendation has been to add smallamounts of water to the field daily,preferably in the late afternoon orevening (unless there has been rainduring the day), and draining any excess(standing) water in the morning. Thisopens the soil to aeration and warmingduring the day. However, a large numberof farmers, seeking to reduce their labourrequirements, follow an irrigationschedule of alternate flooding and dryingof their field instead of careful wateringbut not flooding during the vegetativegrowth period. It is not clear if this givesa higher yield but it does economise onlabour. Certainly different practices areneeded for clay vs. other kinds of soil.Further research is also needed tounderstand the implications of suchchanges at large-scale for waterdistribution and the environment.

Weeding. When fields are not keptcontinuously flooded to combat weeds,farmers have to use other practices. WithSRI, early and frequent weeding is also

Box 2. Adaptation and innovation of SRI practices in Sri Lanka

One of the reasons for fast dissemination of SRI in Sri Lanka is theenthusiasm and creativity of farmers to adapt and innovate SRIpractices to resolve their field problems. The following arehighlights:

• Various soil-enrichment practices have become part of thesystem including green manure (e.g. sunhemp), rice straw,chicken dung, and mixtures of certain green leaf extracts withcow dung. In this way farmers are improving soils degraded byconventional rice production practices without needing totransport huge quantities of compost to their paddy fields.

• Practical problems encountered in using the rotary weederhave resulted in alternative weeder designs to suit the specificconditions of different fields. Weeders are manufactured andsold by several farmer companies and private sector entrepre-neurs. A motorised weeder is at the design stage in threelocations and will be tested soon.

• To make transplanting easier, a rake was produced to drawlines in a square grid pattern on the ground. Seedlings areplanted at the intersections of lines.

• A transplanter that can do careful planting of one seedling perhill in 6 rows at a time with required spacing has beendeveloped.

• A seeder, which can drop one or two germinated seeds at thedesired spacing has also been developed and is now in use.

• A foot-pedal water pump with sprinklers is being experimentedwith to ensure required moisture during the growth period andafter panicle initiation. This is especially useful in droughtperiods when surface water is scarce, and also to ensureproduction of high-value organic rice for the export market.

• Many farmers are using different combinations of plantextracts, with or without ‘effective micro-organisms’ (EM), toavoid the use of chemical pesticides. They experiment with

different plants available in highlands around the paddy fields.Some plant extracts are used not only as insect repellents butalso as a source of nutrients.

• Farmers have stopped plastering their bunds and leave thegrass cover on the bunds to protect the habitat of rice-pestpredators. In this way they support biological pest control andmicrobial activity in the soil to improve soil health andbiodiversity in the paddy fields. This saves money forplastering and pesticides and thus reduces production costs.

• SRI farmers experiment with different spacing and directseeding. They also do careful time planning to preventflowering during the full moon phase. They find that thisreduces damage by insect pests.

The benefits achieved by farmers from SRI and other improvedpractices are attractive. Farmers have been able to at least doublethe yield they got from conventional practices while alsoreducing their production costs, often by half. They have becomeproducers of quality rice earning a slightly higher income fromsale as seed paddy. Biocide-free SRI rice fetches a higher price inthe market, and the demand is increasing. Production of organicand traditional rice for export is increasing with one farmers’group already obtaining certification for production of organicrice. In this way SRI is becoming a viable alternative for farmerscultivating small plots obtaining average yields of 8.5 tons/ha,achieving higher returns from reduced inputs, while increasingthe productivity of land, water, labour and capital. Besides, SRIfarmers produce clean and healthy rice through eco-friendlypractices.

More information on the experiences in Sri Lanka can be found inBox 4 and in the Proceedings of the International Conference onSRI

Gamini Batuwitage, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, Govi Jana Mandiraya, Battaramulla, Sri Lanka. Email: [email protected]


important to aerate the surface of thesoil. SRI farmers could use hoes or weedby hand, but ‘rotary hoes’ or ‘cono-weeders’ are recommended. Access tomechanical hoes can be a bottleneck.Labour required for hand weeding can beas much as 20 – 25 days for one ha inMadagascar. Recently, SRI practitionersin Sri Lanka have developed a newdesign for a push weeder (see Box 2 andphoto on p.24) which makes it possibleto weed 1 ha in 3 to 5 days.

Soil and nutrient management. WithSRI, the highest yields have beenobtained with organic soil amendments,particularly compost. Research inMadagascar has shown that compostgives a considerable increase in yieldcompared to NPK fertiliser, especiallyfor traditional varieties (Table 1). But itwas also reported that most farmers areusing neither compost nor NPK on theircrop, and still getting yields with SRImethods that are twice as high as withstandard methods. Participants wonderedhow this is possible, and for how longfarmers can continue with such nutrient-depleting practices. At some point theremay be soil nutrient constraints, e.g., P,that have to be alleviated by addingsufficient soil amendments. Often thereare not enough organic nutrientsavailable and chemical fertilisers are tooinefficient to be profitable.

Better understanding of soil life andbiological soil processes are needed to

develop effective, efficient andsustainable soil fertility manage-ment strategies for SRI. Thereseems to be much scope for

Training material used in Madagascar showing the steps involved in planting SRI rice.

Box 3. SRI adaptation and diversification in Cambodia

After farmers gain confidence in SRI, they become interested in refining the ways ofincreasing rice production and diversifying rice-based farming systems. Thefollowing trends have been observed:

• Farmers modify the way that they transplant depending on their specificconditions, especially the age of seedlings and spacing. They are keen to assessappropriate practices in plant management for themselves through experimenta-tion.

• It is much easier to talk to SRI farmers about integrating green manure after andbefore the rice crop, and they are more ready to invest in growing green manure.

• Some farmers are developing simple tools for weeding, like small hoes andharrows. The concept of soil aeration through weeding, which contributes toimproved root growth, is now well understood by SRI farmers.

• This year, two farmers started with zero-tillage, and there are more farmersbecoming interested in the practice. Zero-tillage is possible since SRI makes thecultivation of traditional rice varieties that produce a lot of biomass for mulchingattractive again. So far, we observe that rice growing under zero-tillage is doingwell, even better than the normal practices.

• When farmers see that their rice yield is increasing, they are willing to use part oftheir rice fields for growing other crops and for raising fish. We call this a multi-purpose rice field, or the System of Intensification and Diversification (SID) ofrice production. Earlier, they would not consider diversification, as growing lessof the staple food, rice, was unaffordable.

• Some SRI farmers return to practices of mutual help in transplanting, becausethose they would normally hire do not have the skills to transplant as requiredby SRI. By pooling their labour they find they can get good and quick results.

Based on our experiences, the SRI approach contributes significantly to increasingfarmers’ innovative capacity, community learning and cooperation. Now, we seethat ecological intensification of rice production through the small farmer groupapproach is a very good entry point to sustainable agriculture and rural develop-ment in Cambodia.

More information on the experiences in Cambodia can be found in the conferenceproceedings.

Yang Saing Koma, CEDAC, Email: [email protected]

Integrated Soil Fertility Management(ISFM) practices. Green manure,composted rice straw, micro-nutrientsand sprays of soil micro-organisms and


plant extracts seem to be organicpractices with good potential.Incorporation of a green manure cropeither before rice (e.g., Sesbania rostrata,mung bean or bush bean) or after rice(e.g., jackbean) could work well withSRI. Researchers at the Tamil NaduAgriculture University in India havegood experience with sowing of greenmanure (S. rostrata) within rows of riceplants and incorporating it into the soilwith a cono-weeder, 30 days later. Theyhave developed a special drum-seeder forthis purpose.

With wide spacing of plants in SRI,broadcasting of fertiliser is less efficient.Application of chemical fertilisergranules (as successfully used inBangladesh) or compost near the plantscan be more efficient. Flooding andadding chemicals can have a strongnegative impact on soil life and mayaffect crop production, but a lot remainsto be understood. More ecologicallearning is needed to find the best soilmanagement practices. Researchpresented to the conference fromMadagascar indica-ted that cropresponses to compost are non-linear, i.e.,there may not be greater benefits fromapplying 4 or 6 t/ha compared to 1 or 2 t/ha, as the smaller amounts appearsufficient to “incite” the biological life ofthe soil and give good crop results.

Land preparation. Good land levelling isimportant for getting best results fromapplying small amounts of water. At thesame time, a proper drainage system forthe field should be established so thatalternate wetting and drying of the soilcan be done effectively. With SRI, landpreparation (puddling) does not differfrom standard practices. There could beconsiderable saving of labour and energyby combining zero-tillage with SRIpractice (both follow similaragroecological principles), butexperimentation and evaluation on thisremains to be done.

Raised beds, zero-tillage and directseeding. One of the most promisingadaptations of SRI appears to be the useof raised beds as being experimentedwith under the Rice-Wheat CroppingSystems Consortium in India andPakistan (see LEISA Magazine Vol.16,No.4, pp.8-10). These beds are elevated10-15 cm above the bottom of furrows inwhich irrigation water is intermittentlyissued. This can give water savings of25-30%, with positive effects on yielddue to soil aeration.

Some SRI farmers who have compareddirect seeding with early transplantingfound no difference in yield, but somesaving of labour. Zero-tillage withmulching and direct seeding is practisedwith very positive results by farmers in,for example, Japan (Fukuoka), Sri Lanka

(Nava Kekulama, LEISA MagazineVol.13, No.3, pp.20-21), Nepal (LEISAMagazine Vol.16, No.4, pp.11), andCambodia (Box 2). SRI was developedfor irrigated lowland production, butsome of its principles and practices couldbe extrapolated to rainfed areas. Someexperiments in Madagascar, of directseeding instead of transplanting, andusing leguminous shrub cuttings as amulch instead of mechanised handweeding, have given good results (4 t/ha)in upland rainfed cultivation. This is anew direction for SRI research.

Ratooning. Some farmers in Madagascarlet their SRI rice re-grow after harvestfor a second crop. The yields are not ashigh as the first crop, 60-70%, but this isprofitable since it saves labour otherwiserequired for land preparation, sowing andtransplanting. In Thailand, some farmersdo a second ratooning.

Pest management. With SRI, rice plantsare well developed and healthy due toorganic soil management, high soilquality and deep rooting, which makesthem more resistant to pest and diseaseattack and drought. Other traditional,organic or Integrated Pest Management(IPM) practices could help to make SRIrice production even more pest anddisease resistant.

Diversification, from monocropping tointegrated rice-based farming. SomeSRI farmers who have discovered thatthey can produce the same amount ofrice on less land have started to diversifytheir rice farming systems by growinggreen manure or higher-value crops andtrees on the land no longer needed forrice production. This provides a higherincome and has some advantages for pestand weed control and for soil fertilitymanagement. Integration of fodder cropsand improvement of animal productioncan be a next step. In fact, SRI can be animportant entry point for developingintegrated rice-based farming systemsthat combine high production andprofitability with high resilience andecological sustainability.

Adaptation and diffusion

SRI is a complex system, which impliesmany drastic changes of current farmerpractices. To train farmers in SRI is notso difficult, but there could be variousdifficulties in practising it. It is not just amatter of diffusing a few standardpractices but rather of spreading a moreholistic understanding of how rice plantscan be grown more effectively. Asadaptation to local conditions is needed,farmer experimentation is an essentialpart of any strategy for the disseminationof SRI.

From a scientific perspective, precise andwell-documented comparisons areneeded, both to convince scientists and togain a better understanding of thepotentials and limitations of SRI.

Standard systems of evaluation andstatistical analyses are necessary forscientific credibility. As this does notalways combine well with a process ofgroup-based farmer experimentation,effective methodologies forparticipatory technology developmentand assessment can be very helpful (seefor example LEISA Magazine Vol.15,No.1/2).

Adaptation and diffusion of SRI is a verystrategic process. It is important toconvince top-level government peopleof the efficacy of these new methods andwhere possible to get policy-levelpromotion. Political backing for SRIwill probably be gained most quickly andstrongly where there are enthusiasticfarmers who support the methods basedon their personal experience and who areable and willing to lobby on its behalf.Successful SRI farmers will certainly bemore effective in talking to politiciansthan researchers.

There should be special strategies toconvince professionals in agriculture,who often find it hard to accept this newmethodology. The mention of super-yields attained with SRI (e.g., 21 tons/hain Madagascar) is seldom believed byresearchers even when yield componentinformation is provided, so it may bebest to stress average yields, not thosethat can be attained with best SRIpractices.

As long as governments do not acceptSRI, there is a need for alternativestrategies of dissemination. Even wherethere is government acceptance, multipleavenues for evaluation and disseminationcan be complementary. So far, NGOshave been most active in takingadvantage of SRI potentials, particularlyattracted to SRI for its pro-poor,environmentally-friendly features.Farmer groups often are very interestedin experimenting with SRI and inproviding farmer-to farmer training totheir colleagues.

SRI could be combined well withCommunity IPM and Farmer FieldSchool (FFS) programmes on rice as thephilosophy of experimentation andhuman resource development iscommon. Credit facilities may beneeded for purchasing tools, in particularweeders. These can be very cheap, butfor poor farmers even small expenditureslike this may be a barrier. This, in fact, isthe only area in which SRI requirescredit.

Conclusions still provisional,further information on internetAs most of the knowledge about SRI isquite recent, conclusions about it mustremain provisional for now, pendingmore years of experience and widerutilisation of SRI in a greater variety ofcircumstances. Much research is stillneeded to understand the ecological


processes involved and to develop avariety of best practices. More insight isalso needed in the applicability andlimitations of the approach and thepossible risks involved. The initial resultsare, however, mostly very positive andgive reason to suggest that morecountries and more farmers should havean opportunity to evaluate SRI forthemselves.

The proceedings of the FirstInternational Conference on SRI,including all papers, contact addresses,training materials and illustrations areaccessible on an SRI internet homepage:http://ciifad.cornell.edu/sri/ Printedand CD-ROM copies are also availableon request. The internet will also be usedfor follow-up information anddiscussions. Please send experiences,both good and bad, and comments too!!SRI networks have been establishedalready in Bangladesh, Indonesia andPhilippines and are being set up inChina, Sri Lanka and elsewhere.

■

Phot

o : C

ore

Rei

jntje

s

Prof. L.P. Yuan of the Chinese NationalHybrid Rice Research and DevelopmentCentre explaining his experiments on SRIusing super hybrid rice varieties andinorganic fertilisers. Yield of 12 to 16tonnes are expected

Norman Uphoff and Erick Fernandes,CIIFAD, 31 Warren Hall, Cornell University,Ithaca, NY 14853. Email: [email protected]

References

- Uphoff N, Fernandes E, Yuan LP, Peng J,Rafaralahy S, and Rabenandrasana J (eds).,2002. Assessments of the System of RiceIntensification (SRI): Proceedings of anInternational Conference in Sanya, China, 1-4April 2002. CIIFAD, 2002, available on SRIhome page.

- Stoop AW, Uphoff N, and Kassam A, 2002.A review of agricultural research issuesraised by the System of Rice Intensification(SRI) from Madagascar: Opportunities forimproving farming systems for resource-poor farmers. Agricultural Systems,71, 249-274.

- Uphoff N, 1999. How to help rice plantsgrow better and produce more: teachyourself and others (drafts available inEnglish, French and Malagasy from CIIFAD).- Uphoff N, 1999. Agroecologicalimplications of the System of RiceIntensification (SRI) from Madagascar.Environment, Development and Sustainability,1, 297-313.

- Uphoff N, 2002. Opportunities for raisingyields by changing management practices:The System of Rice Intensification inMadagascar. In Agroecological Innovations:Increasing Food Production with ParticipatoryDevelopment, ed. N. Uphoff, 145-161.London: Earthscan.

Several participants reported on how the process of diffusion hasproceeded so far in their countries. These experiences differedconsiderably from one country to the next:

• In Madagascar, SRI was introduced first by an NGO, AssociationTefy Saina, through training and farmer-to-farmer extension,supplemented by booklets and radio. Subsequently there wasalso some involvement from the university and government. Butmost farmers have still been hesitant to try these radically newproduction methods, and the spread has been slow. No exactstatistics are available on the number of farmers using SRImethods. This is at least 20,000, but the Ministry of Agriculturehas estimated the number could be as high as 100,000 (10% ofrice cultivators). Use is accelerating now that a larger and better-equipped NGO, Catholic Relief Services, is involved in SRIdissemination, with donor support.

• In Indonesia, dissemination is just starting after three years ofevaluation by government researchers. SRI methods have beenincorporated into a new official strategy for raising rice produc-tion (Integrated Crop Management) that is being supported on anational basis, expecting to make appropriate local adaptations.This country’s IPM programme is also starting to work with SRI asthis is very consistent with the agroecological approach anddissemination strategy used in its Farmer Field Schools.

• In Sri Lanka, SRI is reported to be spreading fast. Disseminationstarted with an article on SRI experiences in Madagascar printedin the Ministry of Agriculture’s extension magazine in 2000(30,000 copies were distributed). A researcher from Madagascar,Joeli Barison, had visited Sri Lanka to share his knowledge on SRIin January the same year. Agricultural officers and extensionworkers who tried SRI on their own accord got good results. TVand radio became interested, creating a process of disseminationthat could not be stopped any more. Rotary weeders, since longforgotten, have been reintroduced, with fabrication instructionsspread among local blacksmiths. One ecological rice farmer, Mr.H.M. Premaratna, became the leading SRI farmer, trainer andpromoter, transforming his farm into a training ground (NatureFarming Centre) where more than 4,000 farmers have beentrained. Unfortunately, some researchers in Sri Lanka haveremained opposed to SRI, and official endorsement for dissemi-nation has not been obtained yet from the Ministry of Agricul-ture. The previous Deputy Minister has been very supportive andhas used SRI very successfully on his own farm (up to 17 t/hayield). The present Minister has declared SRI to be an importantcultivation practice especially suited for small farmers. A greenlight from the government is expected once there is moreresearch results to confirm existing findings. Opportunities to

Box 4. Experiences with diffusion of SRI

export organically-grown rice that uses SRI methods have alsohelped to raise interest in SRI among farmers.

• In Cambodia, the NGO CEDAC has been working with farmersto disseminate and innovate the SRI approach since 1999.CEDAC helps farmers to understand the principles of SRI and toanalyse the practices that keep rice from achieving its fullpotential. Now there are at least 2,000 farmers activelyexperimenting with SRI.

• In Laos, some small-scale NGO experimentation and evaluationwith farmers has begun. The International Rice Research Institute(IRRI) programme in Laos has now taken the initiative to launcha national evaluation starting in June 2002. It expects to do threeseasons of testing before making recommendations, but somefarmers are likely to start using it more quickly if the initial resultsare good.

• In Cuba, some top-level officials became convinced about SRI atan early stage as it meets the country’s needs to raise riceproduction without reliance on petrochemical inputs. Dissemi-nation can go very fast here because of farmers’ literacy and theirneed to find ways of raising rice production without expensiveinputs. The first sugar cooperative to try SRI methods on one haof land got a yield of 9.5 t/ha as opposed to the usual of 6.6 t.The next season, it got 11.2 t/ha from its SRI field, and is fullypersuaded of SRI’s merits, even though it was not yet usingyoung seedlings or doing any weeding to aerate the soil. Justchanging the regime of water management and using widerspacing with single seedlings made a big difference. In thecurrent season, when 12-day-old seedlings were tried on a smallplot, their superior growth after 40 days has persuaded farmers tostart utilising the full system next season.

• In China, SRI evaluations have been done at various riceresearch stations. Chinese rice scientists are very interested in SRImethods as they can increase the already very high yields ofsuper hybrid rice varieties. They have concluded that SRI is agood way to improve rice production in China, especially giventhe need to reduce water demands. But certain adaptations willbe needed to suit Chinese conditions, where labour costs arehigh and organic fertiliser material is in short supply. A next stepwill be to encourage farmers to try SRI methods for themselves.In Sichuan province, researchers have taken SRI already to sixdifferent locations (agroecological zones). Many innovationsbeing made in rice production, e.g. triangular planting system,seed inoculation, paper frames for transplanting, intercroppingwith glutinous varieties for pest control, could be useful outsideChina as well.


During 1980 – 1985 there was anacute scarcity for water inMadagascar (West Africa). Dr.

Henri-de-Laulani, a Ph.D. in AgriculturalSciences, who was working as a BaptistBishop, was in search of an alternativefor growing paddy with less water. Byutilizing only 35% of water, 50% ofmanuring and 5% of seed material, hewas able to double the yield of paddy onhis farm within 5 years by refining thepractices. The neighbouring farmerswere even able to increase the yield fourtimes. In some cases the yield levelincreased from 20 – 30 quintals perhectare to 150 to 200 quintals per hectare(even with very poor quality of soils with3.8 to 4.2 PH). This system has becomevery popular in many paddy-growingcountries especially in Cambodia and SriLanka. However, this system ifpopularised in India, can provide themuch needed relief to the stategovernments and the farmers, who arefighting for non existing river waters.

This system of rice cultivation, popularlyknown as System of Rice Intensification(SRI) or Madagascar method of paddycultivation was tried out on half an acreof land. This method involves managingplant, water and soil in a cordialrelationship rather than as a mere

SRI method of paddy cultivationtechnology. Probably the existingtechnology of paddy cultivation seems toignore the capacity and the characters ofthe paddy plant. A Japanese AgricultureScientist Katayama had proved by hisresearch earlier to Second World Warthat most of the seeds belonging togramineae family (paddy is among them)could produce more than 100 tillers fromone grain if they are provided with aconducive situation. Paddy has thecapacity of doubling its tillers 13 times(Phyllochrons) during its vegetativegrowth.

Unfortunately, improper cultivationpractices are being followed. Forinstance, raising paddy transplants in athickly sown nursery between 4 to 8weeks, transplanting densely in the mainfield in clumps (5 to 10 transplants inone clump) instead of single transplant ata spacing of 25 X 25 or 30 X 30 cms arebeing followed. Further, transplanting isdone like “J” making the roots pointupwards. This causes trauma as the rootsneed 12 to 14 days from transplanting toget the roots established to start growing.In such situations, 8 to 10 stages(Phyllochrons) of tillering is lost.Another practice is, submerging paddyfield with 4 to 6 cms of watercontinuously from the date of planting

till harvest. In fact, paddy is not anaquatic plant. It can survive and growduring stress compared to other cropsbelonging to gramineae family.

The practice of submerging the paddyfield came to existence to check weedgrowth. Let us first understand thedisadvantages caused by submerging.

1. The microbial population will beaffected due to absence of oxygenessential for their survival in the soilduring submergence. This in turn affectsthe conversion of soil organic matter intohumus, the ultimate source of plantnutrition.

2. The nutrients, whether from organicor chemical source, percolate into thesoil, much beyond the root zone (orrhizosphere) of paddy plant. Besidesleading to wastage of plant nutrition, itpollutes ground water source too.

3. Since seedlings are densely planted insubmerged conditions (55 to 60 clumpsin a square meter), roots do not growdeeper and wider. Thus, cannot absorbnutrients from deeper zones.

4. As roots do not get sufficient oxygen,about 78 % of the roots get degeneratedby the time of panicle initiation. Someof the existing roots even formaerenchyama (or air pockets). Pores in

The Narayana Reddy Column

Pho

to :

S J

ayar

aj

Narayana Reddy on his SRI paddy farm


the leaves (blades) and stem have toabsorb and supply oxygen to the roots.

Dense planting does not provide enoughlight and air for the growing plants. Theyare increasingly susceptible to pests anddiseases. Owing to prevalent practices,paddy plants do not grow healthily. Theygive very few tillers. The percentage ofeffective panicle eruption and grainfilling in the conventional system is verylittle compared with paddy cultivatedwith wet and dry system of irrigation.

My method of SRI cultivation ofpaddy

Looking at the advantages of SRI, a newway of transplanting was tried out. 10-12days old seedlings were transplanted toavoid trauma and also save labour. Thesewere planted at a distance of 30 X 30cms to provide additional opportunitiesfor tillering. Rat damage is also less, ifplanted at such a spacing.

Half-acre paddy field was ploughedtwice. 5 tonnes of good compost manurewas incorporated with the thirdploughing. The mud clumps were brokenand land was prepared to form fine tilthproviding 1 % slope for effectiveirrigation. Narrow strips of about 2.6meters wide with bunds of 10 X 8 cmsheight were made on each plot of paddyfield to speed up the flooding (as shownin the figure1). The field was marked todibble paddy at 30 X 30 cms spacing.Paddy soaked for 36 hours (24 hours inwater and 12 hours in gunny bag withoutwater) was dibbled. However, paddyneed not be soaked if one is not sure ofirrigating paddy field within 10 hours ofdibbling. In such cases, paddy can bedibbled without soaking and irrigatingeven after 2 to 3 days.

The paddy field was irrigated every 5days for 25 days without taking up anyother work on that land. On 28th dayfrom sowing, weeding was carried out.At this stage, the whole field may lookalmost vacant because of very fewseedlings compared to the regular denseplanting. But every week, the numbergets doubled. The 6th irrigation wasprovided on 30th day from sowing. Thereafter, every 3rd day of each irrigation, arotary weeder was used to avoid crackingof the soil, which would create problemin future irrigation and also cuts off theroots with wide cracking. This operationalso helps in checking weed growth andmost importantly churns the land to formfine tilth and provides plenty of air forthe roots. This activity was carried out 7times. By 80th day of sowing, on anaverage, 94 tillers were formed and by 90days, 65% of panicles had emerged.After 80 days from sowing irrigation wasprovided every 2 days instead of 5 daysas plants need more water during grain

filling stage. Now you can stop usingrotary weeder as the cracks do notdevelop because of excessive moisture.In most of the panicles there were 250 to260 grains.

The only problem faced with this systemof cultivation is root grub menace,cutting away many clumps of paddy.Because of very conducive situation ofwet and dry condition in the soil, about840 white grubs were dug out, by whichtime they had spoiled at least 15 clumpseach. However, these root grubs can becontrolled by the following ways:

1. Plant 10 or 12 neem branches (2metres high and 1 metre wide) drenchedwith high dosage of pesticides for 4 days,soon after the first monsoon rain, so thatmost of the adult beetles can be killedbefore laying eggs in the soil.

2. Submerge paddy field for 2 days with5 cms of water either before sowing orwithin 25 days after sowing so that rootgrubs are killed or eliminated from thepaddy field.

3. Apply Bivaneria brangniyarti, a virusat the rate of 4 kilograms per acre duringcooler period of the day. This virus isavailable with most of the sugar factoriesand is used to control root grubs in canecultivation.

Pho

to :

S J

ayar

aj

Tillers per plant in conventional method and in SRI

By conventional method, on an average,9 to 10 quintals of paddy was producedfrom half acre land during the monsoonseason. But, by SRI, the production was18.5 quintals from the same area,utilizing only 50% manuring, 35% waterand 5% seed material as compared to theconventional system of cultivation.Labour was saved to the extent of 20%.

If this system of cultivation could beadopted by farmers wherever possible,we could save water, protect soilproductivity, save environment bychecking methane gas from watersubmerged paddy cultivation practices,bring down the input cost besidesincreasing the paddy productionproviding food for the growingpopulation. Hence the AgricultureUniversities, Governments, NGOs andFarmers in particular should give moreimportance in popularising this usefulsystem as much as possible.

■

L. Narayana ReddySrinivasapura Via Maralenahalli,Hanabe P.O.,Doddaballapur Taluk – 561 203PH : 080 - 7651360.

Figure 1.

Information onsoil micro-organisms

FAO Soil Biodiversity Portalhttp://www.fao.org/ag/agl/agll/soilbiod/default.htm

This web page provides general concep-tions on the meaning and significance ofsoil biodiversity, stressing the need forintegrated biological soil management.It also provides a framework, underwhich soil biodiversity can be assessed,managed and conserved, showingexamples of successful and unsuccessfulpractices that have been used in variousregions of the world in managing soilbiodiversity. Finally, an assessment ofneeds for further work, research, capacitybuilding and policy and programmedevelopment is presented.

Worldwide portal to informationon Soil Healthhttp://mulch.mannlib.cornell.edu/TSHomepage.html

The Gateway to Tropical Soil HealthInformation currently offers an extensivedatabase of annotated resources on theWorld Wide Web, an on-line resourcereference service, and classified resourcelistings for products, services,organisations, databases, literature andelectronic discussion groups that havedirect or indirect links to tropical soilhealth issues.

Information onConservationAgriculture

FAO Conservation AgriculturePortalhttp://www.fao.org/ag/agl/agll/prtcons.stm

This web portal provides an entry to themain information page on CA: “Intensi-fying crop production with ConservationAgriculture”. Besides the introduction, itcontains extensive information on theconcepts and principles, on experiencesfrom Latin America, Africa and CentralAsia and on the environmental andeconomic impacts of CA. There are alsoweb linkages to the main networks (e.g.on ACT. and RELACO see below),databases (e.g. CATechnology databasesee below) and organisations on CA aswell as a report on the First WorldCongress on CA held in Madrid, October2001. The information is available inEnglish and Spanish.

Conservation Agriculture Technol-ogy databasehttp://www.fao.org/ag/catd/index.jsp

WEBSITES

The CAT database lists commerciallyavailable equipment, which is specifi-cally designed or is essential for thesuccessful introduction of ConservationAgriculture. Special importance is givento small-scale equipment. The databaseaddresses the needs of farmers, extensionstaff, technicians and others involved inConservation Agriculture projects andanybody else interested in equipment forConservation Agriculture, and where toobtain it.

ACT - African ConservationTillage Networkhttp://www.fao.org/act-network/contact.htm

ACT Secretariat, c/o IES University ofZimbabwe, PO Box MP 167, Harare,Zimbabwe. Phone: +263-4-334395, Fax:+263-4-332853, Email:[email protected]

The purpose of the network is to enhancethe dissemination of conservation tillagein smallholder agriculture. Its mainactivities are: support to nationalnetworks; maintenence of an informativewebsite and the ACT literature database;publication of an electronic newsletter“Act now” and a very good informationseries; organisation of topical workinggroups e.g. on green manure /covercrops, impact on soil quality, implements,dissemination approaches, curricula andtraining materials for farmers; workshopsand pilot activities.

RELACO – Latin AmericanConservation Agriculture Networkhttp://www.relaco.cjb.net

Secretariat, c/o EPAGRI, Santa Catarina,Brasil. Email: [email protected]

The network links up persons interestedin CA. It stimulates research and studieson CA and diffuses results. It organisesseminars and training courses, stimulatesactivities of national networks and haspublished a wide range of documents andmanuals on CA in Latin America. Its website contains information (in Portugueseand Spanish) on important CA events andpublications, and also its electroniccircular. Information on RELACO inEnglish can be found on the FAOConservation Agriculture Portal (seeabove).

CD-ROM# 18 - ConservationAgriculture

This CD-ROM contains detailedinformation and literature on Conserva-tion Agriculture that can help improvethe knowledge base of those interested inthis concept of sustainable agriculture.The CD-ROM provides technical staff aswell as policy- and decision -makers with

information and arguments for support-ing, promoting and introducing Conser-vation Agriculture. For more informationplease contact: FAO, Land and Water(AGLL): [email protected] or clickhttp://www.fao.org/landandwater/lwdms.stm#cd18

Information oncover crops

TropSCORE The consortium fortropical soil cover and organicresources exchange

http://ppathw3.cals.cornell.edu/mba_project/moist/TropSCORE.html

The current members of TropSCOREare:

CIDICCO The International CoverCrops Clearinghouse, an NGO located inTegucigalpa, Honduras. Operates inSpanish and English. http://rds.org.hn/miembros/cidicco

CIEPCA The Cover Crops Informationand Seed Exchange Centre for Africa, agroup hosted by IITA in Cotonou, Benin.Operates in French and English. http://ppathw3.cals.cornell.edu.mba_project/CIEPCA/home.html

CIIFAD / MOIST The CornellInternational Institute for Food, Agricul-ture and Development’s working groupon Management of Organic Inputs inSoils of the Tropics. http://ppathw3.cals.cornell.edu.mba_project/MOIST/home.html

ECHO, a non-profit interdenominationalChristian organisation that providesinternational agricultural developmentresources including publications and freeseed of underexploited food,agroforestry, and soil-improving cropvarieties. http://www.echonet.org

IDRC website on cover cropshttp://www.idrc.ca/cover_crops/

IFDC-Africa has developed a decisionsupport system for the use of legumes inWest Africa: Legumes, when and wherean option? Copies (in English andFrench) can be requested from theProgramme for Integrated Intensification,IFDC-Africa, BP 4483, Fax:(228)2217817; Email:[email protected]

Nitrogen fixation in tropical croppingsystems by KE Giller, 2nd edition, 2001.CABI Publishing, Wallingford OxonOX10 8DE, UK, Email: [email protected] ;425 pp. ISBN 0 85199 417 2GBP 60, Euro 97.10


through the development and transfer ofeffective, environmentally-sound plantnutrient technology and agriculturalmarketing expertise. Its web site providesinformation regarding IFDC’sprogrammes and projects, servicesavailable, publications, events, newsreleases, newsletters, training courses,events etc. For information on ISFM youhave to go the section on IFDC-Africa

FADINAP the United Nations Fertiliser Advisory,Development and Information Networkfor Asia and the Pacific. http://www.fadinap.org FADINAP providesassistance to developing countries intheir efforts to increase food productionby supporting the development of anefficient and effectively functioningfertiliser sector in Asia and the Pacificregion. Its web site provides informationon a wide range of fertiliser-relatedsubjects: services, electronic newsletter,country gateways, market informationand publications, among others onIntegrated Plant Nutrient Systems.

Guidelines and reference materialon Integrated Soil and NutrientManagement and Conservationfor Farmer Field Schools

by Nabhan H, Bot A. and Roy RN.Publication Series: AGL/Misc/27/2000.Downloadable fromhttp://www.fao.org/landandwater/agll/oldocsp.jsp

These guidelines provide a basicconceptual framework and supportingreference material for assisting in thedevelopment and implementation ofeffective FFS focused on Integrated Soiland Nutrient Management and Conserva-tion. They are intended for use by FFSfacilitators with a background inagricultural extension, agronomy, soilscience, plant nutrition, soil conservationor land husbandry and for the productionof country or local specific manuals andcurricula. These should be adapted to theagro-ecological environment, the

cropping/farming systems, and the socio-economic conditions and educationallevel of the farmers in the areas wherethe FFS are to be implemented.

On-farm composting methods

by Misra RV and Roy RN, 2002, 26 pp.Can be downloaded from http://www.fao.org/landandwater/ agll/compost/default.stm

This paper gives an overview of maincomposting methods used as a starter forthe electronic conference on OrganicRecycling conducted from May - August2002.

DEVECOL a web-based informa-tion system for sustainabledevelopment

Development Ecology InformationService, 619 Upland Place,

Alexandria VA 2301, USA /[email protected]://www.devecol.org

Devecol is an information system andresource designed for field workers insustainable development who want totake advantage of relevant experiences incomparable environments elsewhere inthe world. The information resourcesconsist of geo-referenced documents,base maps and thematic maps. Thedocuments are site specific case studies,evaluations, surveys and research reports,which are full text available as pdf files.The maps show the climatic zones andsoil conditions of the area where thestudies are located.

At the moment a useful information toolfor sub-Saharan Africa is under prepara-tion. This will have with information onprojects and case studies, which can beaccessed from their map locations. FAOmaps of soil associations and climate canbe displayed under these locations.

A fully updated and up-to-date standardwork on nitrogen fixation by leguminousplants.

LEXSYS Cover Crop Database onherbaceous legumeshttp://www.iita.org/research/lexsys.htm

Information Support Projectfor Soil Fertility andImproved FallowManagement

Institute of Biological Sciences, UP LosBaños, 4031 College, Laguna, Philip-pines.

ISP aims at providing an avenue forexchange of information on soil fertility,fallow management and shiftingcultivation in the upland areas ofSoutheast Asia and the tropics.

Major activities include:

• publication of Soil Fertility Matters,a newsletters on soil fertility andfallow management

• development of databases, e.g. oncontacts, fallow species, relatedreferences

• establishment and moderation of anelectronic discussion list forum(Fallow Net)

• networking

The newsletter is available in printed andelectronic forms. A free printed copy canbe requested [email protected] .The on-lineversion and the other information can befound on www.icraf.cgiar.org/sea/ifm

Information on Integrated SoilFertility Management

International Fertiliser Develop-ment Centerhttp://www.ifdc.org

IFDC’s goal is to increase agriculturalproductivity in a sustainable manner

Visit ourwebsite:www.ileia.org


Waste composting for urban and peri-urban agriculture : closing the rural-urban nutrient cycle in Sub SaharanAfrica by Drechsel P, Kunze D. 2001.229 p. ISBN 0 85199 548 9 GBP 45.-IWMI, FAO. CABI Publishing,Wallingford, Oxon OX10 8DE, UK /[email protected] ; www.cabi.org.

Urbanisation has created a majorchallenge with regard to waste manage-ment and environmental protection.However, the problem can be amelio-rated by turning organic waste intocompost for use as an agriculturalfertiliser in urban and peri-urban areas.This is especially significant in develop-ing countries, where food security is alsoa key issue. This book addresses thesesubjects and is mainly based on paperspresented at a workshop held in Ghanaby the International Board for SoilResearch and Management (part ofIWMI) and FAO. Special reference isgiven to sub-Saharan Africa, withacknowledgement to experiences fromother parts of the world. Contributingauthors are from several European andAfrican countries. This book provides anumber of case studies, technicalinformation and an analysis of con-straints for the use and production ofcomposted waste.(WR)

Vrkshayurveda : ayurveda for plantsby Sridhar S, [et al]. 2001. 47 p. Centrefor Indian Knowledge Systems (CIKS),No 30, Gandhi Mandapam Road,Kotturpuram, Chennai 600 085, India /[email protected] ; www.ciks.org. (User’sManual-1).

This user manual on Vrkshayurveda isfocused on certain aspects of plantnutrition and pest and disease manage-ment. Vrkshayurveda is an ancientIndian science dealing with all aspects ofplant life. This booklet begins with anintroduction to the subject. It lists certainimportant farmers’ practices and

L E I S A I N D I A • M A R C H 2 0 0 232

provides a rationale for these practicesbased on the theory of vrkshayurveda.One section is devoted to specific recipesfor disease treatment, for increasinggeneral resistance to diseases and pestsand seed treatments for increasing cropgrowth and yield. Use of specific growthregulators based on vrkshayurveda isalso recommended. The recipes that havebeen recommended are based on fieldtrials carried out by the Centre for IndianKnowledge Systems.(WR)

Participatory diagnosis of soil nutrientdepletion in semi-arid areas of Kenya

by Gachimbi LN, Jager A de, [et al].2002. 15 p. NUTNET programmeInternational Institute for Environmentand Development (IIED), DrylandsProgramme. (IIED Managing Africa’sSoils, ISSN 1560 3520 ; 26). DrylandsProgramme, IIED, 3 Endsleigh street,London WC1H ODD, UK /[email protected] / www.iied.org/drylands.

This paper describes the participatorydiagnostic process undertaken as part ofa 5-year research programme aimed atdeveloping improved land and watermanagement techniques in semi-aridareas of Kenya. The study indicates thatfarmers in the drylands of Machakos arewell aware of the precarious condition oftheir soil resources. Soil sampling andnutrient monitoring activities jointlyconducted by farmers, extension agentsand researchers have increased theirunderstanding of the causes of soilnutrient depletion, and farmers nowrecognise that soil quality is graduallydeclining because current farmingsystems do not use enough inputs toreplenish nutrient stores in their soils.The results of the described diagnosticphase have been incorporated into asecond programme in which the samegroup of participants test and evaluatenew techniques. We look forward to theresults of that project. (WR)

Nurturing the soil - feeding the people:an introduction to sustainable organicagriculture: revised, updated, andexpanded edition by Scheewe W. 2000.277 p. ISBN 971 23 2895 3. Rex BookStore, 856 Nicanor Reyes, Sr.St.,Manilla, Philipines.

This is an expanded edition of the book“Nurturing the soil”, which we reviewedin 1993 in the ILEIA Newsletter. It isnice that there is a renewed version ofthis book for all who are interested in anoverview of concepts and ideas on

sustainable agriculture. The book iswritten for extension workers andprovides background information on soilmanagement. The book helps tounderstand the important biologicalprocesses required in managing the soilsustainably. The author supposes thatprinciples observed in nature can instructfarmers in the quest to improve farmingpractices. The book also provides basicinformation on agricultural practices thatcan improve the land, like mulching,composting, cover cropping, integratedpest management etc. The appendicescontain important addresses andreferences for more detailed information.(WR)

An evaluation of strategies to useindigenous and imported sources ofphosphorus to improve soil fertilityand land productivity in Mali byHenao J, Baanante CA. 1999. 75 p.ISBN0 88090 120 9. International FertilizerDevelopment Center (IFDC), PO Box2040, Muscle Shoals, Alabama 35662,USA / [email protected] ;www.ifdc.org.

This report is the result of a fertilizerresearch project conducted over severalyears in Mali as a collaboration betweenthe government of Mali, through theInstitute D’Economie Rurale, and theIFCD. Findings indicate that phosphatefertilisers are indeed needed for theproduction of food and cash crops andthat Tilemsi phosphate rock is a suitableindigenous source of phosphorus for thesustainable production of importantcropping systems in Mali.The reportprovides clear figures and a lot of dataconcerning soil fertility throughout thecountry, including economic evaluations.(WR)

Soil conservation in organic farming :handbook 1 : green manure, green leafmanure, biofertilisers by JayashankarM, [et al]. 2002. 30 p. Centre for Indian

SOURCES

Research Institutions (APAARI), FAOOffice in India, 55 Max Mueller Marg,New Delhi 110 003 India, Rice-WheatConsortium for the Indo-Gangetic Plains,(RWC) Campus, Pusa, New Delhi 110012, India : [email protected],www.rwc.cgiar.org. (APAARIPublications 2002/1).

Rice and wheat are two major crops inthe Indo-Gangetic plains of South Asiacomprising of Bangladesh, India, Nepaland Pakistan. Following an eco-regionalapproach, the Rice-Wheat Consortium(RWC), convened by CIMMYT, hasbeen operating farmer participatoryresearch programmes from a perspectiveof system’s ecology. These research anddevelopment efforts with a focus onresource conserving technologies arebeing practiced by a larger number offarmers, and a tillage revolution isemerging in South Asia. This bookletprovides an account of useful andsuccessful research and extensioninitiatives. Farmers are practicing zero-and reduced tillage in more than 250thousand hectares at the moment. TheILEIA Newsletter 16.4 carries an articleon the Rice Wheat Consortium. (WR)

Manual on integrated soilmanagement and conservationpractices

2000. 220 p. ISBN 92 5 104417 1downloadable. FAO, Land and WaterDevelopment Division and Research,Extension and Training Division, Vialedelle Terme di Caracalla, Rome 00100,Italy / www.fao.org. (FAO Land andWater bulletin, ISSN 1024 6703 ; 8).

This manual serves as a guide fortechnicians and farmers to jointlydiscover ways to solve the problems andthe limitations posed by land degradationin Latin America and Africa. It has beenput together with the aim of assistingdiverse groups of people who areintervening in the conservation of thenatural resources, particularly soil andwater resources and in the context ofeach continent, country or zone. Thepublication brings together a collectionof concepts, experiences and practicalsuggestions that can be of use foridentifying problems and forformulating, executing and evaluatingactions so as to benefit and to improvethe productivity and conservation of soiland water resources. The manual is basedon the training course for soilmanagement and conservation, focusedon efficient tillage methods for soilconservation, held in Nigeria in 1997.

Available in English and in Spanish.(WR)

Agri-culture: reconnecting people,land and nature by Jules Pretty, 2002.Earthscan, London,[email protected] ;www.earthscan.co.uk .

‘Agri-Culture’ envisages the expansionof a new form of food production andconsumption founded on more ecologicalprinciples and in harmony with thecultures, knowledge and collectivecapacities of the producers themselves. Itdraws on many stories of successfulagricultural transformation in developingand industrialised countries, but with awarning that true prosperity will dependon the radical reform of the institutionsand policies that control global foodfutures, and fundamental changes in theway we think. The time has come for thenext agricultural revolution (author).

Knowledge Systems (CIKS), No 30,Gandhi Mandapam Road, Kotturpuram,Chennai 600 085, India / [email protected]; www.ciks.org.

During all stages, from seeds to harvest,agricultural crops take up a number ofnutrients from the soil. The nutrientstaken up by the plants during one seasonof cultivation should be replenishedbefore the next sowing season. Only thencan the nutrient level of the soil bemaintained without depletion. Severalpractices are being followed to replenishthese lost nutrients. This small manualgives an account of green manure, greenleaf manure and the ways in which theycould be used for increasing soil fertility.It also describes the different types ofbiofertilisers and their uses. The bookends with a list of Indian organisationssupplying biofertilizers.(WR)

Dynamics and diversity : soil fertilityand farming livelihoods in Africa :case studies from Ethiopia, Mali andZimbabwe by Scoones I, (ed.). 2001.256 p. ISBN 1 85383 820 9 GBP 16.95.Earthscan Publications Ltd, 120Pentonville Road, London NI 9JN /[email protected] /www.earthscan.co.uk.

Ian Scoones is a well known expert in thefield of soil fertility and small scalefarming in Africa. With this new book onthe subject he adds another importantwork to his list of publications. Thisbook is based on research carried out byteams of researchers from Africa andEurope over three years in a range ofcontrasting locations. The researchresults add up to a new approach forlooking at soil management issues inAfrica, with significant implications fordevelopment policy and practice. Theysuggest a more positive view of theprospects for sustainable agriculture insmall-scale farming systems in Africathan the overridingly negative views ofcrisis and collapse which have dominatedthe policy debate. The research alsopoints to the need for developing newtechnologies and management practiceswhich are suited to the diversity offarmer needs and settings, whenaddressing the challenges of naturalresource management. (WR)

Resource conserving technologies :transforming the rice-wheat systemsof the indo-Gangetic plains : rice -wheat consortium, a success story byGupta RK, et al. (eds). 2002. 42 p. Asia-Pacific Association of Agricultural


Agroforestry species and technologies: a compilation of the highlights andfactsheets published by NFTA andFACT Net 1985-1999

by Roshetko JM (ed.). 2001. 231 p.ISBN 1 57360 032 6. Winrock Interna-tional, 38 Winrock Drive, Morrilton, AR72110-9370, USA /[email protected]

Taiwan Forestry Research Institute.(TFRI Extension Series no.138).

This booklet assembles under one cover97 factsheets and highlights published bythe Forest, Farm, and Community Treenetwork (FACT Net) and its predecessorNFTA. These bulletins are concisesummaries of important information ontree species and agroforestry technolo-gies suitable for many environmentaland socioeconomic conditions. A largenumber of nitrogen fixing trees andactinorhizal trees is discussed inalphabetical order. The publicationprovides a species index but this isdisappointingly incomplete. Still thebooklet is a practical reference tool foreveryone involved in agroforestry.(WR)

Bridging human and ecologicallandscapes : participatory researchand sustainable development in anAndean frontier by Rhoades RE (ed.).2001. 368 p. ISBN 0 7872 8473 4 USD40.97. Sustainable Agriculture andNatural Resource Management(SANREM) / www.sanrem.uga.edu ;[email protected]. Kendall/HuntPublishing Company, 4050 WestmarkDrive, Dubuque, Iowa 52002, USA.

This book is a synthesis of the richresults of an interdisciplinary researchprogramme on sustainable agricultureand natural resource managementconducted in the mountainous landscapeof Nanegal Parish, Ecuador. The majorthemes of the book, and its individualchapters, aim to show how people andthe environment have engaged eachother over time to create the human andnatural landscape of Nanegal. Theauthors demonstrate that the landscapesare as much a medium of ideas andimagination of the people who live thereas they are physical realities. Thelandscape pervades almost every aspectof daily life, and its pervasive qualityderives not only from the natural lay ofthe land, but from the multiple waysfarmers have encountered, constructedand represented it over time. Byintegrating these visions of the land-scape, distinct but complementary, thisvolume provides a guide map to asustainable future for people living in themountains and hillsides of the world.Also available in Spanish,[email protected].

Reorientation of extension : a casestudy of participatory action researchwith a Non-Government Organisationin Northern Nigeria by Ehret W. 1997.

BOOKS

L E I S A I N D I A • M A R C H 2 0 0 234

275 p. ISBN 3 8236 1279 4.(Kommunikation und Beratung,Sozialwissenschaftliche Schriften zurLandnutzung und ländlichenEntwicklung 17). Margraf Verlag,Postfach 1205, 97985 Weikersheim,Germany / [email protected].

In this book, the author documents areorientation process of five years whichhe accompanied as a participative actionresearcher in a NGO in Nigeria. First themethodology of extension was changed,followed by a reorientation of the entireorganization. The introduction ofincreased participation effects all threelevels of extension services, thecommunity, extension workers andorganisation. In the communities thenumber of self-help activities, initiatedand accompanied by the extensionists,increased significantly during theresearch period. For the extensionworkers it was diffecult to applyparticipative methods successfully in thebeginning. It took at least three years ofintensive coaching to get them used tothese methods and to get them feel atease applying these methods. However,at organisational level it was observedthat the transformation towards participa-tive concepts was difficult and thatparticipative measures could only beintroduced to a certain limit. Thereorientation process revealed thatachieving participation at the extension/client interface is easier than establishingparticipative management within anorganisation. Also the specific situationof NGOs has been analyzed with theconclusion that NGOs lose theircomparative advantages as they becomebigger and, thus, more government-like.(WR)

The living plateau : changing lives ofherders in Qinghai : concludingseminar of the Qinghai livestockdevelopment project

by Wageningen N van, Wenjun S (eds).2001. 96 p. ISBN 92 9115 376 1.International Centre for IntegratedMountain Development (ICIMOD),G.P.O. 3226, Kathmandu, Nepal /[email protected] /www.icimod.org.

The living plateau is about interventionsby a development project for theimprovement of the livelihood of sheepand yak herders on the Quinghai-TibetanPlateau, China. The document takesstock of rangeland and livestockresources and describes the socioeco-nomic situation of herders. It summarisesthe outcome of field trials and technicalinterventions in the area of rangelandrehabilitation, the control of rodents,rangeland revegetation, seeded perennialforage and cereal fodders, the control ofparasites in yak and sheep, and thecontrol of young stock diseases. Itfurther addresses the experiences of

disseminating findings through extensionservices, and it reviews extension,including experiences with participatoryrural appraisals. This small but concen-trated document is a valuable informa-tion source because it contains thecritically reviewed findings and lessonslearnt from a large development project.(WR)

The real greenrevolution :organic andagroecologicalfarming in thesouth by ParrottN, Marsden T.2002. 147 p.ISBN 1 90390702 0 EURO 12.-or downloadable.GreenpeaceEnvironmental

Trust, Canonbury Villas, London N12PN, UK / www.greenpeace.org.uk/realgreenrev.htm.

Greenpeace has launched an advocacyreport for agroecological farmingtechniques, meant to contribute in thedebate on the future of agriculture. Theagricultural approach describedemphasises the importance of usinglocally available resources and buildingagro-biodiversity to create productiveand resilient agricultural systems. Thereport provides evidence from around theglobe of the successes of the agro-ecological method: increased yields,enhanced food security and inprovedincomes. Recommended for policymakers and organisations involved inadvocacy of sustainable agriculturaldevelopment. This report isdownloadable as html file from ourwebsite.(WR)

Ethnoagricultural development ;building on the strengths of indig-enous beliefs and practices by CootenDE van. 2001. 191 p. ISBN 1 876862 602 AUD 35.00. Kingdom KookasPublishing, P.O.Box 133, Sanderson0813, Northern Territory, Australia /[email protected] van Cooten has investigated theindigenous shifting, slash and burnagricultural systems in South EasternIndonesia from a development point ofview. In his book he concludes thatethnoagricultural development is theprocess of facilitating sustainable,agricultural development in the contextof indigenous beliefs and practices.Agricultural development needs toproceed through the traditional religiousleaders and bring about an indigenousenrichment movement. He sees the roleof outside organisations in supportingand strengthening indigenous leaders andtheir communities.

This book provides necessary informa-tion on the indigenous people of theregion and their sustainable, low externalinput agricultural systems. Agriculturaldevelopment efforts should be aimed atensuring sustainable production withinthe present systems. To make thispossible studies like this one are needed,but a more participatory approach is alsoneeded.(WR)

Securing tomorrow’s food : promotingthe sustainable use of farm animalgenetic resources : information foraction by Geerlings E, Mathias E,Köhler Rollefson I. 2002. 89 p. Leaguefor Pastoral Peoples, Pragelatostrasse 20,64372 Ober-Ramstadt, Germany /www.pastoralpeoples.org ; [email protected].

Farm animal diversity is vanishing at analarming rate. As industrial livestockproduction expands, it is relying onfewer and fewer breeds. We are comingto depend on a livestock population witha dangerously narrow genetic base.Locally adapted animal breeds carrygenetic material of immense value. Thesebreeds must be conserved. The onlyrealistic way to do so is by maintainingthe production systems they are part of,by supporting the small farmers andpastoralists who manage these animals.The goal of this dossier is to stimulatepolicy makers, project staff and membersof grassroots organisations to support, intheir policies and actions, the sustainableuse and community-based managementof farm animal breeds. Importantinformation, free available.(WR)

Good practicesand innovativeexperiences inthe south : vol 1economic,environmentaland sustainablelivelihoodinitiatives byKhor M, Li Lin L(eds). 2001. 260 p.ISBN 1 84277 1299 GBP 15.95.

Good practices and innovativeexperiences in the south : vol 2 Socialpolicies, indigenous knowledge andappropriate technology by Khor M, LiLin L (eds). 2001. 215 p. ISBN 1 84277131 0 GBP 15.95.

Good practices and innovativeexperiences in the south : vol 3 Citizeninitiatives in social services, populareducation and human rights by KhorM, Li Lin L (eds). 2001. 260 p. ISBN 184277 133 7 GBP 15.95.

Third World Network, UNDP. ZedBooks, 7 Cynthia Street, London N1 9JFUK / [email protected].

United Nations Development Programmehas collected a valuable number of casestudies from developing countries all

over the world. These case studies aregathered in three volumes of “BestPractices” for sustainable rural develop-ment. The aim of these books is tocontribute to the exchange of theseappropriate experiences between thedifferent countries.

The described practices and experienceshave been successful in solving environ-ment, social and development problems.They cover the governmental sector aswell as private and social institutions,NGO’s and local communities.

Each case study is extensively described,with detailed information on contactpersons and background, mentioning theresults and problems faced, andpossibilities for upscaling.

The topics cover a variety of issues inpolicy, agriculture, economic, livelihoodand gender. These books are recom-mended for everyone who is involved insustainable development.(WR)

Ber (Ziziphus mauretania) by PareekOP. 2001. 291 p. ISBN 854327525 GBP15.- free of charge for developingcountries. International Centre forUnderutilized Crops, University ofSouthampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ,UK / [email protected].

This monograph on the tropical fruittrees Ber and Chinese jujube, bothZiziphus species, provides thoroughinformation on production, processing,marketing and utilisation of thesespecies. Tropical fruit trees are importantcrops which can supplement and improvethe quality of diets. Ber is a multiplepurpose tree that produces non-foodproducts like fuel, timber and leaf foddertogether with a valuable fruit crop. Ber iscultivated all over the drier parts of theIndian subcontinent for its fresh fruits,which are rich in vitamins and minerals.It can be successfully cultivated even inthe most marginal ecosystems of thesubtropics and tropics. The tree propa-gates freely and greatly resists recurrentdrought. It is thus an important treesuitable for integration into agroforestrysystems of warm desert ecoregions. Thetree can help in economic sustenance andinsure against ecological degradation.Chinese jujube is cultivated in the drierparts of China; it can tolerate very lowtemperatures and is thus suitable forgrowing in colder regions.

This book is intended for researchers,students and NGO’s. It is written in arather scientific manner and completedwith a list of “ber” experts and a seedsuppliers directory. An extension manualfor dissemination to farmers, fieldworkers and policy makers is inpreparation.(WR)

Participatory communication andadult learning for rural developmentby Coldevin G. 2001. 36 p. Food andAgriculture Organization (FAO),

Sustainable Development Department,Extension, Education and Communica-tion Service, Viale delle Terme diCaracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy /[email protected].

Gary Coldvin has written this reviewpaper on participatory communicationand adult learning for rural development.The purpose of the publication is toprovide an overview of the FAOCommunication for DevelopmentGroup’s work as practitioner of appliedcommunication for agricultural develop-ment over the past thirty years. Duringthis period the role of communicationhas shifted from a one-way, top-downtransfer of messages to a social processwith a two-way sharing of informationamong communication equals, participa-tory communication. By seeking the

views of the ruralpeople them-selves andinvolving themfrom the start of aproject, participa-tory communica-tion has becomean important toolfor successfulimplementingdevelopmentinitiatives. This

paper provides a number of examplesand cases drawn from FAO’s fieldprogrammes and a lessons learnedsection.(WR)

Farmers and plant breeders inpartnership by Hanacziwskyj P (ed.).2001. 28 p. Department for InternationalDevelopment (DFID), Plant SciencesResearch Programme, University ofWales, Thoday Building, Bangor,Gwynedd LL57 2UW, UK /[email protected] ; www.dfid-psp.org.

Participation allows plant breeders andfarmers

to learn from each other. In this paper ofthe Plant Sciences Research programmeof DFID, advantages of the participatoryapproach are illustrated by examples ofsuccessful projects on participatoryvarietal selection and participatory plantbreeding in Ghana, India and Nepal. Inthis research programme, farmers indeveloping countries are involved in thebreeding, selecting and testing of newplant varieties. Such participatory cropimprovement identifies or createsvarieties to suit local needs, as well tomarginal as to high-potential productionsystems.(WR)



IDEA is a NGO working with tribalpeople in the northern Ghats in India.IDEA is a partner organisation in the

COMPAS Programme for EndogenousDevelopment (see LEISA Magazine Vol.17, No2, p15).

During documentation of tribal indig-enous knowledge in 1992, we found thatsome tribal people use spiders to controlstem borers in paddy fields. This wasinteresting but needed further analysis.We identified the spider as Stegodyphussarisinorium - a social spider. The spideris called differently in the local lan-guages - Patmakidi in Oriya, Salepuruguin Telugu, and we call it Bulu. We alsofound that using spiders for pest controlis an age-old practice of a specific tribalcommunity - Nooka Dora - of AndhraPradesh and Orissa, border villages inthe north eastern Ghats, India. However,the knowledge was almost dying out asonly 5-6 families were practising it in aremote village and that too only in paddyfields. We stimulated some young tribalfarmers and senior farmers to conductseveral small and simple experiments inthe research centre of IDEA, whichproved to be very effective. Based on theresults, we did further experimentstogether with farmers in differentvillages for validation by the community.These were also successful. Then, wedesigned a systematic process forparticipatory action research and startedstudying various aspects of this spider -its habitat, feeding habits, breedingbiology etc.

Simultaneously, we experimented withBulu on horticulture crops (guava andpomegranate), vegetable crops (brinjal,ladies finger, cabbage, cauliflower andchilli) and floriculture crops (roses). Wefound out that this spider can success-fully control fruit borers and mites inthese crops.

This study helped us to disseminate theknowledge gained among more tribalcommunities and farmers. We developedtraining material on the experimentationand propagation techniques of Bulu andprovided training to more than 500farmers for conducting further on-farmexperiments on different crops in theirvillages together with other farmerfamilies.

The knowledge vested with just 5-6families of a single community has nowspread to more than 2000 farmers of 6-7communities. It is spreading further toother areas due to regular farmer network

interactions and farmer-to-farmerknowledge exchange, which we arefacilitating through ongoing projects.

Control of black ants withdomestic red antsWe also found that some of the Kondadora tribal farmers control black antswith tiny domestic red ants in their Jaworfields. Mountain farmers face a severethreat from black ants, which eat awaythe tender Jawor grains and damage thecrop. Some of the senior farmers collectthese domestic red ants from their housesand drop them in the fields affected byblack ants. These red ants eat the eggs ofblack ants laid around the Jawor plantroots and attack the black ants. The blackants leave the fields within hours. Wefound this particularly simple techniqueof using red ants to control black antsvery effective.

IDEA’s research staff further tested thiswith other farmers for validation indifferent villages. The results weresuccessful. We have systematicallydocumented this knowledge and trained

farmers in promoting it widely in otherareas. Now, many farmers in themountain villages are using thistechnique to control black ants in theirJawor and maize fields.

Experiments with botanicalpesticidesWe also did several experiments withindigenous knowledge of tribals onbotanical pesticides. Thus, we haverevived the use of many of thesebotanical pesticides.

■

Our tribal farmers’ networks would like tointeract with farmers of other countries formutual exchange of information on indigenousknowledge and endogenous developmentapproaches. We will be happy if you send yourcomments and suggestions to the followingaddress

K.J.N. Gowtham Shankar, IDEA,Flat No.6A, Maharaja Towers,R.K. Mission Road, Visakhapatnam 530 003 Andra Pradesh, India. Email: [email protected]

Experiments withspiders, ants and otherindigenous practices

K.J.N. Gowtham Shankar

Phot

o : K

.J.N

. Gow

tham

Sha

nkar

Some tribal communities are using social spiders (Stegodyphus sarisinorium)to control stem borers in paddy fields.

Themes for the

LEISA-India

Vol. 6,2, June 2004

The next generation farmers?

Today rural communities are increasingly affected by external influence and rapidchange. These processess affect the economic situation, change traditionalcultures and particularly influence the younger generation. Are the communitiesstill able to transmit the knowledge and values needed to build a livelihood inagriculture? Or is agriculture and rural life under such pressure that the oldergeneration, perhaps even unconsciously, encourages their children to look outsidefarming for a future - even though this will deprive the community of one of itsmost valuable resources, its young people.

This issue of the LEISA Magazine will look at the situation and expriences ofchildren and young people growing up in small-scale farming communities in theSouth. What livelihood opportunities are available to the younger generation? Towhat extent does society at large, or formal institutions help young people todevelop the skills they need to tackle the problems of living? Do farmer trainingschemes and other development projects address the needs of the youngergeneration? What role do they play within their communities and what effect dotheir initiatives have on the natural resources, productivity and sustainability of theagricultural communities to which they belong?

We are interested in receiving contributions that describe initiatives andinterventions that encourage and support rural youth who wish to stay in the ruralareas and build their future in these surroundings.

Deadline for contributions is 30th April 2004

You are invited to contribute to these issues with articles(about 800, 1600 or 2400 words + 2-3 illustrations or photographs),

suggest possible authors and send us information about interesting publications,training courses, meeting and websites..

volume 4 no.3 indi leis a · system of rice intensification gains momentum norman uphoff and erick...

Documents