Use Of Conservation Agriculture Research Articles

Conservation agriculture layered with subsurface drip fertigation influences weed dynamics, weed indices and productivity of rice-wheat system

A three-year field study was conducted to explore the use of Conservation Agriculture (CA) as a cost-effective alternative to conventional tillage (CT) in rice-wheat (RW) systems. Therefore, to minimize the weed menace while sustaining the system productivity, a three-year field study was undertaken with different CA-based practices layered with flooded (FI) and subsurface drip irrigation (SDI). In rice, weed density (WD) in Sc8 {Zero tillage direct seeded rice with residue (+R) and SDI} recorded 72.9% lowered then Sc1 (CT-Puddled transplanted rice) after three years. However, maximum WD (162 m−2) and dry matter (WDM; 772.8 g m−2) were recorded in ZTDSR without residue (-R) with FI (Sc3) during third year which reduced rice yield by ∼37%. In wheat, the WD and WDM of Phalaris minor, Coronopus didymus, Melilotus indica and other species lowered in CA with SDI system (Sc5-Sc8) than CTRW system (Sc1 and Sc2). Lowest weed index (WI) observed with Sc8 during third year, while diversity indices (H’, R, E) increased by 10, 57 and 10% under SDI system than CTW-R scenario (Sc1). CA-system improved productivity by 7.40–37.11% over CTRW systems in weed free (WF) conditions, regardless of residue and irrigation management. Under weedy check (WC), Sc8 was top yielder with yield of 8.32 Mg ha−1. Moreover, sustainable intensification (Sc7-Sc8) improved productivity by 35.2 and ∼52% than CTRW systems in WF and WC plots, respectively. In conclusion, CA+SDI scenarios may be recommended for RW system owing to their system yield enhancement, resource savings and weed reduction advantages.

Influence of Mineralized Water Sources on the Properties of Calcisol and Yield of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

The use of conservation agriculture (SWC-soil and water conservation) technologies is now becoming more and more necessary. For the soils in arid ecosystems, the problem of irrigation deficiencies has always been relevant, and clean fresh water is always insufficient to irrigate these agricultural lands. This paper provides a brief historical overview of the use of mineralized water sources in agriculture and their impacts on soils and plants (Triticum aestivum L.). The experiment involving wheat cultivation in saline soils irrigated with mineralized water was set for 3 years. The main chemical and physical-chemical properties of the agro-transformed solonchaks and mineralized water sources were investigated. According to the contents of mobile forms of N, P, and K, the soils were poorly supplied; after a series of irrigation phases, they remained the same. There were signs of the growth of mobile phosphorus in the variants where mineralized water sources were applied. Our results showed that under conditions of irrigation with water sources with mineralization rates of up to 2.8-3.5 g/L, the wheat yield increased by 1.5 c/ha compared to the control. The use of mineralized water for irrigation purposes will reduce the use of clean river water.

Adapting to Climate Change Through Conservation Agriculture: A Gendered Analysis of Eastern Zambia

This study explored the use of conservation agriculture (CA) as a climate adaptation strategy among smallholder farmers in Eastern Zambia. Using 761 household interviews and 33 focus group discussions (FGDs) with smallholder farmers from six districts, data was collected on how smallholder farmers in the region experience climate change, what CA practices they had adopted, and benefits and challenges associated with CA practice. Results show that men and women farmers had similar experiences of climate change, namely late onset of a shortened rainy season, intra-seasonal drought and higher temperatures. Farmers' perceptions of gender-mediated effects of climate change had important nuances. The three most cited effects of climate change on women mentioned by women were lower crop yields, outbreaks of armyworms and reduced livestock fodder. The men thought women were most affected by increased hunger, lower crop yields and reduced domestic water sources. According to the women FGDs, men were most affected through reduced crop yields, increases in livestock diseases and increased hunger. The men self-reported reduced crop yields, reduced water for livestock and outbreaks of armyworms. Both men and women saw CA as having climate change adaptation benefits. For the women, men most benefitted from CA through the high moisture holding capacity of basins, higher crop yields and reduced labor requirements through use of oxen ripping. The men most appreciated the high crop yields, improved soil fertility and reduced costs as less fertilizer is used. The women cited the high moisture holding capacity of basins, high crop yields and improved soil fertility as benefits they most commonly derived from CA, while the men thought the women most benefitted from CA through the higher crop yields, improved soil fertility and crop tolerance to droughts. The study concludes that there is room for CA to serve as a climate smart agricultural system for both men and women smallholder farmers in Eastern Zambia. However, this will require addressing important challenges of high weed pressure, high labor demands, and low access to manure, and CA farming implements. The CA package for Zambia should include access to timely climate information and climate informed crop choices.

Conservation Tillage and Nutrient Strategies Enhances Crop-Water Productivity and Economic Profitability of Wheat (Triticum Aestivum L)

Decline in soil fertility is one of the major constraints to sustainable crop production and profitability. To meet the increasing demand for the growing population the issue of low soil fertility needs to be addressed moreover, excessive pumping of groundwater over the years to meet the high irrigation water requirement of rice-wheat system has resulted in over exploitation of groundwater in the Indo-Gangetic plains (IGP) of India. Replacement of traditional wheat cultivation practices under conservation agriculture (CA) based management (tillage, and crop establishment management) practices are required to promote sustainable agriculture. Furthermore, inefficient nutrient management practices are responsible for low crop yields and nutrient use efficiencies in wheat under rice-wheat cropping system (RWCS). A field experiment was conducted at Crop Research Centre of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel University of Agriculture & Technology, Meerut (U.P.), India to evaluate the effects of tillage and crop establishment (TCE) methods, and nutrient management practices on crop yields, water productivity and profitability of wheat under RWCS. The main plot treatments included four combinations of TCE [Furrow irrigated raised beds (FIRB), Roto tillage (RT), Reduced tillage (RTW) and conventional tillage (CT), with six nutrient management practices [N1 Control, N2 100% Recommend Dose of Fertilizer, N3 100% RDF + NPK consortia + Bio-stimulant, N4 75% RDF + NPK consortia + Bio-stimulant, N5 100% RDF + NPK consortia + Bio-stimulant + NPK (18:18:18) spray after II irrigation, and N6 and 75% RDF + NPK consortia + Bio-stimulant + NPK (18:18:18) spray after II irrigation]. Crop water productivity and net returns under FIRB were significantly increased by 11.7% and 13.8% compared to CT respectively, during year of experimentation. Study showed that conservation agriculture based sustainable practices (FIRB) and nutrient strategies 100% RDF + NPK consortia + Bio-stimulant + NPK (18:18:18) spray after II irrigation approach provided opportunities for enhancing crop and water productivity, and profitability of wheat crop in North-West IGP of India. Treatments with N and conservation agriculture were the most profitable. A combined use of conservation agriculture and organic and chemical fertilizers is the best bet for increasing, wheat crop yield and associated return on investment.

Nutrient management options for enhancing productivity and profitability of conservation agriculture under on-farm conditions in central highlands of Kenya

Decline in soil fertility is one of the major constraints to sustainable crop production and profitability. To meet the increasing demand for the growing population the issue of low soil fertility needs to be addressed. An on-farm experiment was established to evaluate the effect of interaction between NPK fertilizers and minimum tillage on soil fertility, maize crop yield and on farm profit margins. The field trials were set up in a split-plot design organized in a randomized complete block design in 28 farmers' fields. Application of all the three macronutrients i.e. NPK had the highest and significant (P < 0.0001) yields relative to treatments, where any of the three nutrients was omitted. Maize grain yield increased by over 150% with NPK, NP and NK application in all the three cropping seasons over the control. Grain losses with the omission of a single nutrient were highest with N (2.06, 2.40 & 2.42 t ha-1) followed by P (0.8, 0.59 & 0.43 t ha-1) in the short rain 2014 (SR2014), long rains 2015 (LR2015) and SR2015 seasons, respectively. Conservation agriculture recorded a significant (P < 0.0007) increase in P over the three seasons. There was significantly higher K in the soil within the NP and PK treatments and in the conservation agriculture compared to the conventional agriculture systems. Compared with conventional tillage, the benefit to cost ratio was higher by 3 and 5% under minimum tillage during the LR2015 and SR2015 seasons, respectively. Total variable cost was 4 and 2% higher under conventional tillage compared to minimum tillage during the LR2015 and SR2015 seasons, respectively. Treatments with N and conservation agriculture were the most profitable. A combined use of conservation agriculture and all the three macro-nutrients (NPK) is the best bet for increasing, maize crop yield and associated return on investment.

Farmers' Risk-Based Decision Making Under Pervasive Uncertainty: Cognitive Thresholds and Hazy Hedging.

Researchers in judgment and decision making have long debunked the idea that we are economically rational optimizers. However, problematic assumptions of rationality remain common in studies of agricultural economics and climate change adaptation, especially those that involve quantitative models. Recent movement toward more complex agent-based modeling provides an opportunity to reconsider the empirical basis for farmer decision making. Here, we reconceptualize farmer decision making from the ground up, using an in situ mental models approach to analyze weather and climate risk management. We assess how large-scale commercial grain farmers in South Africa (n = 90) coordinate decisions about weather, climate variability, and climate change with those around other environmental, agronomic, economic, political, and personal risks that they manage every day. Contrary to common simplifying assumptions, we show that these farmers tend to satisfice rather than optimize as they face intractable and multifaceted uncertainty; they make imperfect use of limited information; they are differently averse to different risks; they make decisions on multiple time horizons; they are cautious in responding to changing conditions; and their diverse risk perceptions contribute to important differences in individual behaviors. We find that they use two important nonoptimizing strategies, which we call cognitive thresholds and hazy hedging, to make practical decisions under pervasive uncertainty. These strategies, evident in farmers' simultaneous use of conservation agriculture and livestock to manage weather risks, are the messy in situ performance of naturalistic decision-making techniques. These results may inform continued research on such behavioral tendencies in narrower lab- and modeling-based studies.

Factors affecting adoption and intensity of conservation agriculture techniques applied by smallholders in Masvingo district, Zimbabwe

ABSTRACTThis study investigates factors influencing both the use of conservation agriculture (CA) and the intensity of its uptake amongst 237 smallholders sampled in the Masvingo district of Zimbabwe. The intensity of uptake was measured using an index that accounted for the number of CA components used, their relative importance, and the rate and extent of their application. Previous studies ignore some or all of these important aspects of uptake. The determinants of use and intensity were identified using a double hurdle model. Although most smallholders applied the reduced tillage or crop rotation components of CA, few combined these practices with mulching. Farm size and experience with CA technology impacted positively on the current use of CA, while distance from town (market) and ownership of an ox-drawn plough reduced the intensity of its uptake. Sensitivity analysis showed that these results change when partial measures of CA uptake are used, emphasising the importance of establishing a comprehensive measure of intensity. Policy implications include a need for institutional change to improve smallholder access to cropland, more participatory approaches to agricultural extension, and more convenient access to farm inputs.

Adoption of Conservation Agriculture in Zambia – The Case of Chongwe District

&lt;p&gt;The Zambian government and its cooperating partners have been trying to promote the use of conservation agriculture for improved food security and promotion of environmental sustainability. The methods used to promote conservation agriculture however are not adequately informed because no Zambia-specific studies have been done to explain adoption behaviour. This study aimed at explaining the factors that affect the adoption of conservation agriculture in Zambia using a case study.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;A cross section survey of 200 randomly selected small scale farmers in Chongwe district was conducted using a structured questionnaire. Information collected included demographic characteristics of participating households, economic, as well as social characteristics. Respondents also provided information on the farming practices they are currently using vis a vis conservation agriculture.&lt;/p&gt;A decision model was estimated using logistic regression and the results indicate that the adoption of conservation agriculture in the survey area is basically influenced by ownership of draft power, availability of labour, and the frequency of contact with the farmer support extension system. Potential to increase the adoption rate is plenty, but can only be tapped into if strategies and policies take into account the behavioural aspects of the adoption of the technology.

Conservation Agriculture and Household Wellbeing: A Non-Causal Comparison among Smallholder Farmers in Mozambique

This research examines the relationship between household wellbeing and the use of conservation agriculture (CA) by smallholder farmers in Mozambique. Wellbeing indicators are regressed on household demographic attributes, farm management practices, and a variable indicating farmer adoption of CA. Findings suggest that households using CA have higher wellbeing index scores related to farm tool and implement ownership and housing material quality, but lower index scores related to livestock ownership. The findings present an encouraging, baseline picture of the association between the use of CA technologies by farmers in Mozambique and household wellbeing.

The impacts of agricultural technology use on productivity and food security among smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe: The case of Makonde district

Zimbabwe’s semi-arid regions are characterized by high incidence of poverty, low rural incomes, low agricultural productivity, and food insecurity. These all lead to difficulties in sustaining rural livelihoods. Relatively little is known about the impacts of agricultural technologies on agricultural productivity and food security in the drier pockets of land located within the wetter regions of the country. This study explored the relationships between agricultural technology use (water harvesting, conservation agriculture, fertilizer/ manure application, and irrigation) and agricultural productivity and food security among households in Ward 15 of Makonde District in Mashonaland West Province. The methodology employed involved questionnaire interviews of 55 households selected using the stratified random sampling technique. Data analysis involved the use of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Hypothesis testing was done using the independent samples t-test and one-way between groups analysis of variance. Use of conservation agriculture resulted in significantly higher maize yields among smallholders. The t-test to measure the impact of using irrigation technology on crop yields indicated that there was a significant difference between mean yields of those practicing irrigation (Mean = 2.70 ton; SD = 2.30) and those not practicing it (Mean = 0.76 ton; SD = 1.19); t = 3.35 at the 0.2% level of significance. Therefore, development resources in semi-arid areas like Makonde District should be channeled towards agricultural technologies such as irrigation and conservation agriculture. Key words: Agricultural technologies, productivity, food security, smallholder, semi-arid, cropping patterns.

Conservation agriculture in Central Asia—What do we know and where do we go from here?

Rainfed and irrigated agricultural systems have supported livelihoods in the five Central Asian countries (CAC) for millennia, but concerns for sustainability and efficient use of land and water resources are long-standing. During the last 50 years, resource conserving technologies were introduced in large parts of the rainfed areas while the irrigated areas were expanded largely without considering resource conservation. In more recent years, the use of conservation agriculture (CA) practices has been reported for the different agricultural production (AP) zones in CAC, albeit centering on a single AP zone or on single factors such as crop yield, implements or selected soil properties. Moreover, conflicting information exists regarding whether the current practices that are referred to as ‘CA’ can indeed be defined as such. Overall information on an application of CA-based crop management in Central Asia is incomplete. This discussion paper evaluates experimental evidence on the performance of CA and other resource conserving technologies in the three main AP zones of CAC, provides an overview of farmer adoption of production practices related to CA, and outlines technical and non-technical challenges and opportunities for the future dissemination of CA practices in each zone. Agronomic (e.g. implements, crop yields, duration, and crop residues), institutional (e.g. land tenure) and economic (e.g. short vs. long-term profitability) perspectives are considered. At present, adoption of CA-based agronomic practices in the rainfed production zone is limited to partial crop residue retention on the soil surface or sporadically zero tillage for one crop out of the rotation, and hence the use of single CA components but not the full set of CA practices. In the irrigated AP zones, CA is not commonly practiced and many of the pre-conditions that typically encourage the rapid spread of CA practices appear to be absent or limiting. Further, our analysis suggests that given the diversity of institutional, socio-economic and agro-ecological contexts, a geographically differentiated approach to CA dissemination is required in the CAC. Immediate priorities should include a shift in research paradigms (e.g. towards more participatory approaches with farmers), development of commercially available reduced and no-till seeders suitable for smaller-scale farm enterprises, and advocacy so that decision makers understand how different policies may encourage or discourage innovations that lead towards more sustainable agricultural intensification in the CAC.

Fermentative conversion of cassava starch to total fatty acids for biodiesel production using Chlorella protothecoides

Food demand of the growing and increasingly affluent world population may necessitate additional food grains production by the year 2100 by 1 billion Mg and meat production by 200 million Mg. However, of the 3 billion Mg food grains produced globally, ∼30% are wasted through postharvest losses in developing countries and an inefficient supply chain system in developed nations. Rather than increasing the area under production, an appropriate strategy is to reduce food waste and enhance productivity of drylands through adoption of an efficient irrigation system or use of conservation agriculture based on no-till, residue mulch, cover cropping, and integrated nutrient management. Grain yield (GY) is affected by the product of four factors: evapotranspiration (ET), transpiration: ET ratio (T/ET), 1/TR, and the harvest index (HI) [GY = ET × 1/TR × HI]. TR or transpiration ratio is the kg of water required to produce 1 kg of the aboveground biomass. The most impact determinant of GY is ET. Thus, conserving water in the root zone is essential to improving agronomic productivity of dryland agriculture. By narrowing the yield gap and conserving water in the root zone, it is technically feasible to produce the cereals needed to meet the global demand by the year 2100 on 0.5 billion ha of cropland. However, the importance of judicious governance for translating science of water management into action cannot be overemphasized. After all, it's all about water. Its judicious management is critical to enhance ET, improve GY, and advance food and nutritional security.

Conservation agriculture as a sustainable option for the central Mexican highlands

Tropical highlands of the world are densely populated and intensively cropped. Agricultural sustainability problems resulting from soil erosion and fertility decline have arisen all over this agro-ecological zone. Based on selected soil quality indicators, i.e. time-to-pond, aggregate distribution and stability (expressed as the mean weight diameter (MWD) for dry and wet sieving, respectively) and soil moisture, from a representative long-term sustainability trial initiated in 1991 in Central Mexico (2240 masl; 19.31°N, 98.50°W; Cumulic Phaeozem), some insights into the feasibility of conservation agriculture (CA) as part of a sustainable production system in the tropical highlands are given. Zero tillage plots with crop residue removal showed low aggregate distribution (average MWD = 1.34 mm) and stability (average MWD = 0.99 mm) resulting in top layer slaking, increased erosion and low time-to-pond values. Retaining the residue in the field with zero tillage avoided the above-mentioned negative evolution for both aggregate distribution as stability (average MWD = 2.77 and 1.51 mm, respectively) and even improved the physical conditions of the soil as compared to conventional practice. Throughout the growing season the lowest soil moisture content was found in zero tillage without residue (average over the entire growing season = 20.5% volumetric moisture content), the highest in zero tillage with residue retention (average = 29.7%) while conventional tillage had intermediate soil moisture values (average = 27.4%). Zero tillage without residue retention had most days of soil moisture values under permanent wilting point, while zero tillage with residue retention had the least. Taking into account these results, zero tillage with residue retention can clearly be a part of an integrated watershed management scheme towards sustainable agriculture in the tropical highlands. It is clear that to develop new management practices to improve water use, reduce erosion and enhance human labor/animal power focus must be on the use of conservation agriculture both for rainfed as well as irrigated production systems and be fine tuned for each system.