Conservation agriculture Tanzania_casestudy.pdf - Sokoine ...

Conservation agriculture technology promoted by TARP II SUAInitiatives under TARP II SUA in 2001 considered soil and water conservingstructures with no cover crops but did away with herbicides. The new villagestargeted by the intervention were Kisilo and Mayale in Njombe District, and Matai,Nkundi and Sandulula in Sumbawanga District in Rukwa.Conservation agriculture technology introduced by SFIWhen the Soil Fertility Initiative (SFI) was introduced in 2001, new villages and newfarmer groups were added in Wanging’ombe village to evaluate ‘new and improved’conservation agriculture using cover crops, agroforestry and amelioration of hardpans(table 4). The trials were initiated by ARI Uyole but were implemented with closeinvolvement of socio-economic researchers and the village extension agents.Of the two new farmer research groups in Wanging’ombe, the first with five farmersincluding two women, evaluated hardpan amelioration techniques:• deep ripping, two passes on the same furrow, with ripper• cover crop 1, Cajanus cajan (pigeon pea)• cover crop 2, Lablab purpureus (lablab)• ox ploughing, conventional shallow (13–16 cm deep)Plots measured 9.75 m by 30 m. All farmers tested all four techniques. All farmersintercropped maize with pigeon pea and with lablab. Time and labour, cover croproot development in a 0.5-m 2 quadrant, soil moisture in a 14-day interval, andmaize yield were measured.The second farmer research group had six participants, including three women.They evaluated zero and reduced tillage implements, cover crops, crop rotationsand maximum soil cover:• jab planter, followed by two hand hoe weedings• ripping, first weeding by ox cultivator, sowing pigeon pea under crop, secondweeding by hand pulling and hoeing• direct seeder, first weeding by ox cultivator, sowing lablab under crop, secondweeding by hand pulling and hoeing• conventional ox ploughing, followed by planting with rope and hand hoe,two weedings by hand hoeFarmers could choose from mucuna, labbab, canavalia and Crotalaria ochroleuca forcover crops. Treatment plots were 9.75 x 30 m. Maize was chosen as the test crop.Farmers contributed oxen, land, labour and time for training sessions. Researcherssupplied test implements, cover crop, and maize seeds and fertilizers, while extensionpersonnel provided crop husbandry and group cohesion advice.At Kanamalenga village, three farmers evaluated the ameliorations of hardpans.Eight other farmers participated in the tillage technique and cover crop trial. Thefarmer group in Mapogoro village had 8 participants and Njelenje village had 10in the tillage and cover crop trial.146 Mkomwa et al.