Communal Areas Research Articles

Communal land conservation in northern Ethiopia: The relationship between urban area access and individual and social norms

AbstractSubSaharan Africa has experienced rapid market economy development in urban areas and in terms of road network systems connecting urban and rural areas. As the access to urban areas improves, the influence of economic development may alter local norms regarding the conservation of communal lands in rural areas. This study investigates how access from rural to urban areas affects individual and social norms regarding communal land conservation. We used interview data from 110 village leaders and 660 farmers' community group leaders in northern Ethiopia. Individual moral norms were estimated based on the respondents' willingness to participate in communal tree planting on communal lands as a means of halting and reversing land degradation. Social norms were estimated based on the proportion of exclosure in communal areas and the number of days a community member works without pay for communal land conservation. The relationships between the norms and urban access were investigated using probit and tobit regression models. The results reveal that access to urban areas positively affects the establishment of individual and social norms, suggesting that access to urban areas contributes to communal land conservation by facilitating intervention in rural areas, thus improving norms for natural resource management.

A retrospective cohort study of factors associated with severity of falls in hospital patients

Severity of falls in hospital patients are threat to patient safety which can result in a financial burden on the patient’s family and health care services. Both patient specific and environmental and organisational factors are associated with severity of falls in hospital. It is important to continuously analyse the factors associated with severity of fall which can inform the implementation of any fall preventive strategies. This study aims to identify factors associated with the severity of falls in hospitalised adult patients in Western Australia. This study involved a retrospective cohort analysis of inpatient falls records extracted from the hospital’s Clinical Incident Database from May 2014 to April 2019. Severity of falls were classified as three Severity Assessment Code (SAC): SAC 1 was “high” causing serious harm or death; SAC 2 was “medium” causing moderate or minor harm; and SAC 3 was “low” indicating no harm. Univariable and multivariable generalised ordinal logistic regression models were used to quantify the magnitude of effects of the potential risk factors on severity of falls at 5% level of significance and reported the crude odds and adjusted odds ratio of falling at a higher severity level. There were 3705 complete reported cases of falls with the average age of the patients was 68.5 ± 17.0 years, with 40.2% identified as female. The risk of falling at a higher level of severity increased by patient age over 50 years. Females were 15.1% more likely to fall at higher severity level compared to females. Fall incidents occurred during toileting and showering activities and incidents in a communal area were 14.5% and 26% more likely to occur at a higher severity respectively. Similarly, depression (167%), influence of alcohol or illicit drugs (more than 300%), use of medications (86%) and fragile skin (75%) significantly increased the odds of falling at higher level of severity. Identification of underlying risk factors associated with fall severity provides information which can guide nurses and clinicians to design and implement effective interventional strategies that mitigate the risk of serious fall injuries. The results suggest that fall prevention strategies should target patients with these risk factors to avoid severity of falls.

Land use effects on water quality, habitat, and macroinvertebrate and diatom communities in African highland streams

Anthropogenic activities have increasingly subjected freshwater ecosystems globally to various pressures. Increasing land use activities have been highly linked to deteriorating freshwater ecosystems and dwindling biodiversity. For sound management and conservation policies to be implemented, relations between land use, environmental, and biotic components need to be widely documented. To evaluate the impacts of land use on biotic components, this study analyzed the diatom and macroinvertebrate community composition of the Eastern Highlands (Zimbabwe) streams to assess the main spatial diatom and macroinvertebrate community variances and how environmental variables and spatial factors influence community composition. Diatom and macroinvertebrate sampling was done in 16 streams in protected areas (national parks) and impacted sites (timber plantation and communal areas). Water (pH, phosphorus, and ammonium) and sediment (nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, manganese, and zinc) and habitat (substrate embeddedness, and habitat) variables differed significantly with land use. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) showed that the protected area had the best water quality, particularly marked by high pH levels and low phosphorus concentrations among environment types. Heavy metals were high in the communal areas, although mercury was higher in the national park. Significant differences were observed in diatom metrics, specifically dominance and evenness, with no significant differences observed in macroinvertebrate metrics across land uses. Diatoms differed in terms of composition in response to land use. Results provide an important scientific reference for land use optimization and guidance for the formulation of policies to protect freshwater resources in African Highland streams. Management and conservation initiatives in the Eastern Highlands are further recommended as this study detected high levels of mercury in the protected area, implying high levels of illegal mining.

Downstairs, Upstairs: The Division of Domestic Space Between Domestic Workers and Super-Rich Employers in London

London’s affluent neighborhoods are often reported as places where employers infringe migrant domestic workers’ rights. Much has been written on both the wealthy’s influence on cities and on domestic workers’ lack of rights, yet few have connected these literatures. In this article, I explore one of the UK’s most expensive addresses, Eaton Square, through contemporary and historical planning documents, to unearth a legacy of segregation masked by tactics to avoid public scrutiny. Through interviewing staff at Kalayaan, a charity that supports and advocates for domestic workers, and analyzing their survey data, I find that explicit segregation is being replaced by boundary erasure, with workers sleeping in communal areas and family members’ bedrooms, with little or no access to the city outside. The article questions the conflation of the physical house and social home that is regularly assumed, and argues for domestic workers’ human right to privacy to be enabled, rather than restricted, by spatial and legislative means.

The Agriculture and Society in the Yiluo River Basin: Archaeobotanical Evidence From the Suyang Site

The Yiluo River Basin is located in the Central plains of China, an area commonly known as the center of origin of ancient Chinese civilization. Agriculture lays the foundation for social and economic development and triggers societal change and archaeobotany can provide important clues on this issue. archaeobotanical study is an important perspective on the relationship between agriculture and society development. However, relatively few archaeobotanical studies have been conducted in the Yiluo River basin, and the paucity of data has hindered our understanding of the relationship between agriculture and society. Therefore, the archaeobotanical analysis at the Suyang site in the middle reach of the Luo River provides an opportunity to understand how and why agriculture and society developed. Our analytical results of carbonized plant remains and phytolith, coupled with radiocarbon dating, showed that millet was the main crop in the late Yangshao culture (5,500–5000 BP), followed by rice. However, rice cultivation in the area expanded during the Longshan culture (5,000–4000 BP), and its importance as a crop possibly exceeded millet at Suyang. From the late Yangshao to Longshan, rice was cultivated in wet fields by utilizing the Luo River floodplain on a large scale. The proportion of rice at Suyang is the highest among contemporary sites in the Central Plains. It may be related to many reasons such as suitable environmental and geomorphological conditions, advanced water management, the influence of the Qujialing culture, and population growth. In the late Yangshao culture, crop processing seemed to have been concentrated in communal areas. However, during the Longshan culture, different steps of crop processing were scattered throughout the site. This change is hypothesized as a change in the family structure and economic production. After the Yangshao period, the nuclear family became the fundamental unit for social, cultural, and economic production in the Central Plains.

Vegetation Composition, Forage Biomass and Soil Seed Bank of a Continuously Grazed Rangeland Site in Tropical Sub-Humid Environment, Tanzania

Most rangelands along the agro-pastoral villages of Tanzania are yearlong grazed and at various states of degradation. These rangelands contribute to over 60% of the meat and milk production in the country. An inventory was conducted to assess the status of grazing resources in a typical agro-pastoral village of Tanzania having communal rangelands. Systematic random sampling techniques were employed whereby line transects and quadrat frame were used following standard procedures to collect samples and undertake field measurements for both vegetation and soil parameters. The vegetation cover for desirable pasture species, undesirable pasture species and litter were 67.7%, 10.5% and 9.4%, respectively. The soil bare patches covered 12.3 % of the surveyed rangeland site. The most dominant grass species were Enteropogon macrostachyus, Bothriochloa insculpta and Heteropogon contortus. Forage dry matter (DM) yield was 806.8 kg DM/ha. Tree density was 1500 trees/ha and the total canopy cover was 63.49%. Combretum collinum was the most dominant tree species. Soil bulk density, pH, organic carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium were 1.4 g/cm3, 6.3%, 1.14%, 0.09%, 0.89 mg/kg and 0.33 g/kg, respectively. A total of 11 dicotyledonous species mainly forbs and 9 monocotyledonous species including two perennial grasses were revealed from the incubated soil samples. The findings of this study demonstrate that the communal grazing areas have low pasture productivity, poor soil seed-bank and high cover of woody plants mainly bushes. In order, to improve forage biomass at the study site and elsewhere with similar environments selective bush clearing and re-seeding should be considered.

Rural Smallholder Maize Farmers’ Adaptation and Coping Strategies to Climate Change in Thota-Moli, Maseru District, Lesotho

This paper examined factors that affect smallholder maize farmers’ coping and adaptation strategies to climate change in Thota-Moli communal area in Maseru District in Lesotho. The study surveyed 70 respondents who were selected randomly from five villages using a structured questionnaire. The adaptation strategy index, descriptive statistics and the binary logistic regression model were utilised to analyse the data. The farmers ranked crop diversification and use of drought resistant varieties as the most useful adaptation strategies. The binary logit model results revealed that access to weather information, distance to input market, access to extension services, level of education and financing on-farm activities affect farmers’ decision to cope with or adapt to effects of climate change. Hence, this study recommends that policy reforms should be guided by these socio-economic factors when developing strategies to expand the opportunities available for increased use of coping and adaptation strategies within rural farming communities.

Evaluating the Relevance of the CAMPFIRE Principles to Wildlife Utilization in Northern Zimbabwe

Problems of having poor, rural communities value, manage, and benefit from local natural resources has been an ongoing concern in the development literature. The Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE) is one attempt to deal with such problems. Our study evaluates the extent to which CAMPFIRE conforms to principles contained in the original CAMPFIRE Guidelines of 1991. These early principles were meant to guide the devolution of proprietorship over wildlife to Rural District Councils (RDCs) to manage wildlife with and on behalf of local communities. In so doing, these early principles are linked to the contemporary governance theory. Our evaluation is based on data collected in Chapoto Ward, Mbire District, in northern Zimbabwe, from January to March 2017 using in-depth interviews with heads of households, key informant interviews and a focus group discussion. These were complemented by document analysis. Our evaluation shows that the principles have not been fully followed because CAMPFIRE was implemented as a strategic compromise between communities and RDCs since devolved community rights were not legally supported at the time. We suggest that policy and legislation changes be made to redesign community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) into a more robust model that enhances the full devolution of rights over wildlife and benefits to promote democratic governance and ensure bottom-up accountability.

Bee species diversity and nesting sites in cultivated savannah, northern Zimbabwe

ABSTRACT Bees play key roles in savannah ecosystems but face myriad threats. A combination of flower sweep netting and visual observations was used to determine bee-species diversity and preferred nesting sites in five villages in Nyamakate communal area, northern Zimbabwe. Almost 2000 bees were collected comprising two bee families and five species with diversity of Shannon-Weiner index (H’) = 0.45 (0.19). Apis mellifera scutellata was widely distributed and the dominant bee species; it has a wide choice of nesting sites and high adaptation ability. Effective conservation of nesting habitats such as forest, woody vegetation, and riverine water sources is required to maintain bee-species diversity in an agro-based savannah ecosystem.

Cystic echinococcosis of ruminant livestock in Namibia.

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is widespread and locally frequent in southern Africa where it affects humans, livestock, and wild mammals. However, most data from the region are old and do not provide information on the causative Echinococcus species. For Namibian livestock only anecdotal records were available prior to this preliminary survey. Our retrospective analysis of slaughterhouse records of CE in cattle from the commercial farming area in central and southern Namibia resulted in 1.65% CE prevalence among 35,143 slaughtered cattle in the period 2015-2016. For comparison, carcasses of ruminant livestock were prospectively examined in the communal farming areas of northern Namibia, resulting in three CE cases among only 12 cattle, and no cases among nine goats. To determine the Echinococcus species affecting Namibian livestock, a total of 53 cysts were collected from all parts of the country and analysed for species and genotype by amplification and sequencing of the nad1 gene. All 50 cattle cysts (isolated from 40 cattle), both from the commercial and communal farming areas, were Echinococcus ortleppi (all fertile, and 42/50 from the lungs), while three opportunistically collected cysts from three sheep in southern Namibia were E. canadensis G7. Our data suggest that E. ortleppi is the only CE agent that is relevant for cattle infection in Namibia, and that low prevalence in the commercial farming areas contrasts with high CE burden in the northern traditional husbandry systems. The present data provide baseline information to stimulate epidemiological studies on the transmission pathways of various CE agents in livestock, wildlife, and humans in Namibia and neighbouring countries.

Nile Ward PICU Violence Reduction Quality Improvement Project - One Year on

AimsTo reduce incidents of inpatient violence and aggression at Nile Ward Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), St Charles Hospital by at least 30% between December 2019 and December 2021. Reducing inpatient violence is a major quality improvement (QI) priority for CNWL NHS Foundation Trust.MethodsNile Ward refined a number of their successful change ideas within this project and a number of new innovative ideas were tested and successfully implemented as part of the Violence Reduction QI Project: 1.Improved risk assessment tool: Risk assessment tool to predict/manage violence in the ward was further improved using evidence based observation and best practice recommendations over the course of 2021.2.Brand new Staff Photo Board: Regularly updated photoboard with non-hierachical list of all staff.3.Patient Feedback Board: Patient experience, comments and feedback displayed in common areas.4.Co-produced Mutual Expectations: A set of expectations created in co-production with patients displayed in the communal areas of the ward to be followed by both staff and patients.5.Gardening sessions: A safe socially distanced space for patients to be involved in growing and caring for the Nile Ward garden with our Activities Coordinator, including a brand new herb garden.6.Tailored Physical Fitness Programmes: Focus on physical activity through garden fitness sessions and 1–1 fitness sessions in the gym. Average weight gain for patients has declined from 4.4 kg to 2.8 kg (39% reduction) during hospital stay. Tailored physical fitness sessions created for patients who are frail, diabetic or have significant cardiometabolic risk factors.7.Celebrating Diversity: Special events hosted throughout the year to celebrate diversity and promote tolerance.8.Enhanced Clinical Reviews: Consultant led patient reviews every weekday to optimise treatment and enable quick recovery using a multidisciplinary, holistic, trauma informed approach.9.Weekly Cooking Sessions: Patient led cooking sessions using healthy ingredients every week. The food is eaten as a communal meal by patients and staff. A ‘Friday Fry-Up’ takes place monthly where patients and staff share a health fry-up in the ward's dining area.10.Mindfulness Meditation: A QI intervention introduced to embed mindfulness and meditation as core therapeutic intervention to improve emotional regulation and to reduce violence.11.Triangle of Care: Carers strongly encouraged to attend ward rounds and care planning from the very beginning of a patient's journey at Nile Ward using a triangle of care approach.ResultsBetween December 2019 - December 2020, Nile Ward reduced violence in the ward by 35% and the MDT continued to make further innovations to reduce violence further, as demonstrated in this poster.Between December 2020 - December 2021, Nile Ward reduced violence in the ward by 51%.Further details about the results will be published in the poster.ConclusionNile Ward has successfully implemented innovative interventions using a QI methodology to successfully reduce the level of violence and serious incidents in the ward by 51%. The number of rapid tranquillisations and use of restrictive interventions such as restraints has reduced significantly. Our patients are able to recover in a safe environment and their feedback is testament to their positive patient experience during their inpatient stay. Reduced verbal and physical assaults on staff have improved staff confidence, retention, well-being and overall satisfaction. Our work has been recognised internationally through the delivery of keynote presentations at conferences National Association of Intensive Care Unit (NAPICU) National Conference 2021 & the Royal College of Psychiatrists National QNPICU Conference 2021 to discuss their Violence Reduction best practices with mental health teams in the United Kingdom and abroad.

The impact of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) farming on the survival of honeybees (Apis mellifera) in Nyamakate Communal Area, northern Zimbabwe

ABSTRACT The impact of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) farming on the survival of honeybees (Apis mellifera) was investigated through the documentation of mortality of honeybees, the number of trees cut and planted, and agrochemicals used in tobacco farming in Nyamakate Communal Area, Hurungwe District, northern Zimbabwe. The study was conducted in the wet season, i.e. between December 2017 and March 2018 using a stratified random sampling design to sample tobacco farmers and apiculturists. Honeybee mortalities across five sampled villages were significantly different (Kruskal–Wallis χ2 test = 74.54, df = 4, p < 0.05). The survey recorded 14 different agrochemicals that tobacco farmers used in tobacco farming, although the local regulator banned five of them in the 2018 and 2019 agriculture season. All five villages recorded an estimated 5,220 indigenous trees that were cut to cure tobacco whereas 483 Eucalyptus trees were planted as part of ongoing reforestation efforts in the district within the study period. It was concluded that tobacco farming negatively impacts honeybees through reduced forage and nesting sites (resulting from deforestation) and increased mortalities from the use of toxic agro-chemicals. There is a need for legislative alignment to ensure effective law enforcement on compliance. Government and partners need to encourage tobacco farmers to plant fast-growing indigenous trees for afforestation and adopt modern technology such as the use of solar-powered tobacco curing barns.

Any alternatives to rice? Ethnobotanical insights into the dietary use of edible plants by the Higaonon tribe in Bukidnon Province, the Philippines

Though considered an agricultural country, the Philippines is the world’s largest importer of rice. The persistent problem of insufficient rice supply, however, has been exacerbated by economic crises and natural calamities. Yet, for the Higaonon tribe in Bukidnon Province, the Philippines, the rich agrobiodiversity and wild edible plants are vital for food security and resilience since the mountainous terrain in this province presents a challenge for rice cultivation. To gain insight from the indigenous edible plant knowledge of the Higaonon tribe, we conducted an ethnobotanical research to document the diversity, utilization, and biocultural refugia of both cultivated and wild edible plants. A total of 76 edible plant species belonging to 62 genera and 36 botanical families were documented. The most represented botanical families included the Fabaceae, Solanaceae, and Zingiberaceae. In terms of dietary usage, 3 species were categorized as cereals; 8 species were white roots, tubers, and plantains; 3 species were vitamin A-rich vegetables and tubers; 16 species were green leafy vegetables; 12 species were categorized as other vegetables; 2 species were vitamin A-rich fruits; 27 species were classified as other fruits; 7 species were legumes, nuts, and seeds; and 8 species were used as spices, condiments, and beverages. Using the statistical software R with ethnobotanyR package, we further calculated the ethnobotanical indices (use-report (UR), use-value (UV), number of use (NU), and fidelity level (FL)) from 1254 URs in all 9 food use-categories. The species with the highest UV and UR were from a variety of nutrient-rich edible plants such as Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam., Musa species, Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott, Zea mays L., and Manihot esculenta Crantz. The extensive utilization of root and tuber crops along with corn and plantain that contain a higher amount of energy and protein, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins were shown to be an important nutrient-rich alternatives to rice. Whilst males appeared to be more knowledgeable of edible plant species collected from the forests and communal areas, there were no significant differences between males and females in terms of knowledge of edible plants collected from homegardens, riverbanks, and farms. The various food collection sites of the Higaonon tribe may be considered as food biocultural refugia given their socio-ecological function in food security, biodiversity conservation, and preservation of indigenous knowledge.

Two sides of the stream: the politics of belonging between foreign ex-farm workers and A1 farmers on a fast track farm in Zimbabwe

ABSTRACT Zimbabwe’s Fast Track Land Reform Programme continues to attract scholarship on land and agrarian reform. The farm occupations by black Zimbabweans and subsequent displacements of white farmers and their labourers, which conditioned the emergence of fast track, impacted significantly the former farm workers, as they had to reinvent their lives thereafter. Issues focusing on livelihoods and belonging became pertinent to ex-farm workers, particularly those of foreign origin. Zimbabwean-by-origin ex-farm workers could relocate to their communal areas, but this was not an easy option for those of foreign origin. This article focuses on farm workers of foreign origin who remained on former white-owned commercial farms after fast track by examining their contested belonging with autochthonous occupiers and, later, new A1 fast track farmers. Fieldwork entailed ethnographic research on an A1 farm in Shamva District, Mashonaland Central Province. Those considering themselves as autochthones (A1 farmers) tried to impose hegemonic control over the ex-farm workers (labelled as allochthones). Despite the exclusionary stratagems imposed on them, ex-migrant workers also stamp their autonomy and belonging on fast track farms in Zimbabwe.

Assessing the Impact of Wildlife on Vegetation Cover Change, Northeast Namibia, Based on MODIS Satellite Imagery (2002-2021).

Human–wildlife conflict in the Zambezi region of northeast Namibia is well documented, but the impact of wildlife (e.g., elephants) on vegetation cover change has not been adequately addressed. Here, we assessed human–wildlife interaction and impact on vegetation cover change. We analyzed the 250 m MODIS and ERA5 0.25° × 0.25° drone and GPS-collar datasets. We used Time Series Segmented Residual Trends (TSS-RESTREND), Mann–Kendall Test Statistics, Sen’s Slope, ensemble, Kernel Density Estimation (KDE), and Pearson correlation methods. Our results revealed (i) widespread vegetation browning along elephant migration routes and within National Parks, (ii) Pearson correlation (p-value = 5.5 × 10−8) showed that vegetation browning areas do not sustain high population densities of elephants. Currently, the Zambezi has about 12,008 elephants while these numbers were 1468, 7950, and 5242 in 1989, 1994, and 2005, respectively, (iii) settlements and artificial barriers have a negative impact on wildlife movement, driving vegetation browning, and (iv) vegetation greening was found mostly within communal areas where intensive farming and cattle grazing is a common practice. The findings of this study will serve as a reference for policy and decision makers. Future studies should consider integrating higher resolution multi-platform datasets for detailed micro analysis and mapping of vegetation cover change.

Abandoned Croplands: Drivers and Secondary Succession Trajectories under Livestock Grazing in Communal Areas of South Africa

Cropland abandonment has been happening in different parts of the world and is being driven by socio-economic, ecological, edaphic, and environmental factors. Most of the research focusing on drivers of cropland abandonment, succession trajectories, and responses to active restoration initiatives has been conducted in the republic of Nepal and regions such as Europe and America. In South Africa, the impact of cropland abandonment on household livelihoods, changes in vegetation and soil properties, and soil seed bank statuses have been conducted mainly in the Eastern Cape Province. The drivers of cropland abandonment in South Africa are like those observed in other countries, except for a few, which are country-specific such as poor support of communal farmers compared to their counterparts in the highly mechanised commercial farming sector. There is also a shift from low input cropping in the distant fields to high input cultivation in homestead gardens. Research results elsewhere suggest a woody growth suppressive effect of grazing, particularly average grazing intensities, being crucial in suppressing woody proliferation while high grazing intensities are detrimental to herbaceous species’ richness and promote woody species’ encroachment. A combination of fire and grazing alters the natural succession trajectory by promoting fire-tolerant species and arresting woody species. Similar to other countries, cropland abandonment is associated with colonisation by alien invasive species which are favoured by cropping legacies, such as altered soil levels of pH, Nitrogen, and phosphorus. Furthermore, limited moisture in semi-arid areas promotes the encroachment of indigenous woody species. Secondary succession in abandoned croplands can be manipulated for the benefit of livestock production in communal areas by introducing management strategies that will discourage encroachment by both invasive and indigenous woody species which lowers the grazing capacity. Furthermore, active restorative practices, such as reseeding with indigenous mid succession perennial grasses and legumes, will improve forage quality in abandoned croplands. Our understanding of succession trajectories under various unique disturbance regimes experienced in South Africa, such as communal grazing of abandoned croplands, compared to situations in other parts of the world is limited. Furthermore, the influence of other factors such as fire, soil fertility, and moisture needs to be understood.

Potential suppressive effects of Mexican poppy weed residues on germination and early growth of maize and pearl millet crops

Argemone ochroleuca allelochemical properties have been reported but not empirically tested on economically important staple cereal crops. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine the potential Allelopathic effects of the alien weed’s residues on germination and early-growth of maize (Zea mays L.) and Pearl millet (Pennisertum glaucum). Allelopathic effects of A. ochroleuca on maize and millet seed germination were tested in a 2 (shoot and root) x 11 (0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 and 100g/L water) factorial treatment arrangement in CRD in an incubator placed in a laboratory. Whereas effects of the weed extracts on the same crops’ early-growth were tested in a 2 (shoot and roots) x 8 (0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 and 14g ground-powdered extracts) factorial arrangement in RCBD under laboratory conditions. Maize and millet germination percentage, germination speed, mean germination time, mean daily germination, plumule and radicle length were measured for germination test, whereas, plant height, stem diameter, root and shoot mass were used as indicators of A. ochroleuca suppression of early plant growth. Relative to untreated control, concentration equal to and greater than 10g/L aqueous extracts of A. ochroleuca reduced millet and maize seed germination variables by 10–100% and 28–56%, respectively, while early-growth variables were reduced by 66–100% and 4–37%, respectively. Argemone ochroleuca shoot extracts were more suppressive than root extracts on germination and early growth of the two crops. In conclusion, A. ochroleuca Allelopathic effects were concentration and plant-part dependent, inhibitory effects increased with concentrations, with extracts from shoots being more Allelopathic on measured variables when compared to root extracts. As A. ochroleuca continues to spread yearly without any control strategies in place, a threat exist on maize and Pearl millet production especially in communal farming areas where improved management strategies are non- existent. Key words: Allelopathic, Argemone ochroleuca, germination, growth, millet, maize, plumule, radicle

Factors influencing adoption, innovation of new technology and decision-making by small-scale resource-constrained farmers: The perspective of farmers in lower Gweru, Zimbabwe

A study was conducted in Lower Gweru Communal area of Zimbabwe to determine factors affecting small-scale resource-constrained farmers’ technology adoption and innovation processes. Specific objectives included determining circumstances when farmers consider learning about and adopting new technologies; documenting challenges faced by farmers in technology adoption; and determining the kind of support farmers require in adopting technologies or innovating. Multistage stratified random sampling was used to select a study sample of 256 farmers who participated in focus group discussions (FGDs). Additionally, semi-structured interviews (SSIs) with 200 farmers, selected from within the 256 FGD participants, were conducted to corroborate data collected in FGDs and participant observation. The study found that farmers were ready to learn and adopt new technologies when proposed technologies were (i) cheaper to acquire and use than their current technologies, (ii) easier and simpler to use, (iii) reduced labor requirements, and (iv) increased crop yields and/or animal productivity. Specifically, the study found high adoption rates of new technologies with traits similar to the farmers’ traditional practices such as conservation agriculture (with a 90% adoption rate) and thermal composts (with a 78% adoption rate). In terms of challenges, farmers were hampered mainly by lack of capital to acquire new technologies and lack of access to information, credit facilities and markets. In terms of support, in addition to capital and issues of access, farmers preferred to be actively involved in defining problems and developing solutions, technologies and innovations. Rather than being mere beneficiaries of new technologies developed by others, they want to be included in processes such as field-based participatory learning extension and innovation projects. In keeping with their self-perception as businessmen and women, perhaps most significantly, this study has reaffirmed that small-scale farmers, despite their educational limitations, their age, their constrained circumstances, and their risk profiles – are conscious and deliberate decision-makers. They are rational in their approach to adoption of technology, but are dominated by factors of cost, impact on income, and, of greatest influence, risk. Key words: extension, innovation, indigenous technologies, learning, perception, small-scale farmers, technology adoption

Effects of the invasive Hedychium gardnerianum on the diversity of native vegetation species in Bvumba Mountains, Zimbabwe

ABSTRACT Wild ginger (Hedychium gardnerianum) poses a threat to biodiversity conservation because of its high competition for nutrients, water and light. This study aimed at assessing the effects of the H. gardnerianum on native vegetation species in the Bvumba Mountains, Zimbabwe. A purposive random sampling technique was adopted to sample 24 sites. The results show that there was a significant difference between plant species diversity in uninvaded compared to invaded sites with (P < 0.05). The study concluded that there is a need to develop and implement an invasive species management programme for H. gardnerianum for both protected and communal areas before high species losses occur.

Implementation of Green Infrastructure in Existing Urban Structures: Tracking Changes in Ferencváros, Budapest

Understanding the resilience of urban forms as a latent force that drives a place’s physical characterization and social cohesion is essential for defining successful adaptive processes of pre-existing urban fabrics. Budapest’s ninth district (Ferencváros) is an outstanding example of transforming a complex historical urban context, which underwent renovation strategies guided by maintaining and enhancing essential morphological elements. Courtyards have great relevance in conditioning the well-being in areas of high occupational density, especially in terms of accessibility to urban green infrastructure. In the case of Ferencváros, they were reframed to add new layers of use and to improve territorial integration by unifying smaller private courtyard unities into more extensive communal areas, creating a comprehensive urban green network, preserving urban heritage, and increasing green coverage. This study assesses how this recent re-urbanization phenomenon is related to political changes in a post-socialist city. The conjuncture found in Ferencváros is unique, yet it can be applied in other similar contexts. The methodology applied to this study is supervised classification for the quantitative analysis of remote-sensing image data with GIS software assistance—a procedure rarely applied in medium-scale urban analysis. However, it was verified to be precise and effective in tracking morphological changes. The preliminary results indicate a significant intensification in greenery in the urban pattern, especially in the core areas of the blocks: the courtyards. After the intervention, green areas became more predominant, cohesive, and articulated.