Tillage is incompatible with sustainable agriculture. They are a great way for professionals and academics involved in conservation agriculture and soil health issues to meet up, network with other professionals, gain a new perspective, and learn some new information about the world of conservation agriculture today. Regional conservation agriculture symposium 810 february 2011 emperors hotel, johannesburg, south africa. It offers them a real chance to improve their lives.
Claims for the potential of ca in africa are based on widespread adoption in the americas, where the. Conservation agriculture programmes and projects in malawi. Conservation agriculture a manual for farmers and extension workers in africa conservation agriculture holds special promise for africa, where farming communities face the problems. Conservation agriculture aims to boost agricultural production by optimising the use of farm resources and helping to reduce widespread land degradation through the integrated management of available soil, water and biological resources combined with external inputs. The 11th congress of the european society of agronomy in montpellier, august 2010, included a discussion session on the topic of whether conservation agriculture is suitable for smallholder farmers in africa and attempted to draw out the main aspects of a research agenda.
Giller wageningen university verified email at wur. Conservation agriculture offers an opportunity for all farmers in all regions of zimbabwe to improve yields and income, food security and. The adaptive capacity of maizebased conservation agriculture systems to climate stress in tropical and subtropical environments. Conservation agriculture as a viable and feasible option to farm sustainability. Giller, use systems, giller ke, andersson ja, corbeels m, kirkegaard j, mortensen d, erenstein o, vanlauwe b. Contested agronomy the case of conservation agriculture 3. The benefits arising from the ease of crop management, energycosttime savings, and soil and water conservation led to widespread adoption of ca, particularly on large farms. Extended abstract doing more with less is a powerful framing for agriculture. Type region examples tillage mulch rotation farm type inpu t main issues references direct planting with hand tools subhumid subsaharan africa west, east, and southern africa. Analysis of conservation agriculture promotion and uptake in mufulira, zambia. The approach advocated to improve the soil fertility status of african soils is embedded.
Ken giller, zerihun kebebew, abebe nigussie, rahel eshetu, dereje mamo and abebe mengistu. Andersson and giller 2012 blanket salesmen read version. The interest of conservation agencies in agriculture has often focused on the promotion of low external input systems, some giving encouraging results pretty et al. Global support for conservation agriculture ca as a pathway to sustainable intensification is strong. The politics of agricultural technology interventions. Dec 01, 2009 the following comments have been made regarding the recent paper published by ken giller. How conservation agriculture works in different types of farms. I am disappointed with the suggestion by ken giller. Conservation agriculture employs all modern technologies that enhance the quality and ecological integrity of the soil, but the application of these is. Conservation agriculture is the integration of ecological management with modern, scientific, agricultural production. Giller plant production systems, wageningen university, po box 430, 6700ak wageningen, the netherlands, ken.
Conservation agriculture enables these people to grow more food with less work. On heretics and gods blanket salesmen contested claims for conservation agriculture. Andersson, 2 marc corbeels, 3 john kirkegaard, 4 david mortensen, 5 olaf erenstein, 6 and bernard vanlauwe 7. This learning also makes the link to governance issues and. When and where is conservation agriculture an appropriate. Conservation agriculture as a viable and feasible option to farm sustainability 11. Future challenges agronomy in context the development spotlight shifted 1990s the dark ages. Conservation agriculturebased technologies and the political economy. Conservation agriculture is being used increasingly around the world h. On the role of religion in the political agronomy of conservation. The three principles of conservation agriculture disturb the soil as little as possible, keep the soil covered as much as possible, and. Which principles of conservation agriculture contribute to the desired effects. Conservation agriculture ca can be defined by a statement given by the food and agriculture organization of the united nations as a concept for resourcesaving agricultural crop production that strives to achieve acceptable profits together with high and sustained production levels while concurrently conserving the environment fao 2007. Ca places emphasis on conservation and thereby implicitly the status quoin contrast to the.
It is one of the most costeffective ways to protect and improve soil a farmers most precious asset. Information about the openaccess article beyond conservation agriculture in doaj. Conservation agriculture and small holder farming in africa. Conservation agriculture should help you grow more, and will produce a greater variety of crops. Beyond conservation agriculture directory of open access.
National conservation agriculture task force secretariat land resources conservation department, lilongwe. Ken giller, professor, the wageningen centre for agroecology and systems analysis the big challenge for agriculture is that we need to further increase yields but greatly reduce our environmental impacts. The heretics view, field crops research on deepdyve, the largest online rental service for scholarly research with thousands of academic publications available at your fingertips. Oct 01, 2009 read conservation agriculture and smallholder farming in africa. Is maizecowpea intercropping a viable option for smallholder. The role of conservation agriculture and associated soil. Global support for conservation agriculture ca as a pathway to sustainable. Learning agricultures module 2 soil and water systems. The benefits arising from the ease of crop management, energycosttime savings, and soil and water conservation led to widespread adoption of ca, particularly on large farms in the. Conservation agriculture ca is a resourcesaving land management approach that optimizes and sustains the capacity of soils to produce food. Frontiers beyond conservation agriculture plant science. Ken giller, who heads the plant production systems group at wageningen university in the netherlands, is a technical advisor to the africa soil health consortium and chairman of the n2africa steering committee, a project that aims to boost the use of nitrogenfixing crops in smallholder agriculture. Ken giller plant production systems, wageningen university three issues 1. An analysis of smallholder farming practices in zimbabwes zambezi valley, reveals.
Beyond conservation agriculture plant science frontiers. The outcomes of these discussions are summarized in the paper by giller et al. Ploughs, conservation agriculture and the problem of agricultural intensi cation. Wageningen university, wageningen, the netherlands. Afnet is the single most important implementing agency of tropical soil biology and fertility institute of the international centre.
Read conservation agriculture and smallholder farming in africa. Conservation agriculture attempts to address these problems. There are a number of great conservation agriculture conferences that are coming up within the next few months. We then analyse experiences from two african landscapes of global importance for conservation.
It specifically aims to address the problems of soil degradation resulting from agricultural practices that deplete the. Andersson 2, marc corbeels 3, john kirkegaard 4, david mortensen 5, olaf erenstein 6 and bernard vanlauwe 7. Beyond conservation agriculture table 1 conservation agriculture takes many forms across the g lobe related to farm size and intensity of input use. Conservation agriculture 1 was introduced by the fao 2008b as a concept for resourceefficient agricultural crop production based on an integrated management of soil, water and biological resources combined with external inputs. Lafond gp, mcconkey bg, stumborg m 2009 conservation tillage models for small scale farming. The principles of conservation agriculture conservation agriculture takes advantage of natural ecological processes to conserve moisture, enhance soil fertility, and improve soil structure, and to reduce soil erosion and the presence of diseases and pests. Factors affecting adoption of conservation agriculture in malawi a case study of salima district. Effect of conservation agriculture on maize yield in the semiarid areas of zimbabwe volume 50 issue 2 j. His research is focused on smallholder farming systems in subsaharan africa, particularly soil fertility, nutrient flows, and the temporal and spatial dynamics of resources within croplivestock farming systems. The role of conservation agriculture and associated soilbased. The heretics view, author ken e giller and ernst witter and marc corbeels and pablo tittonell, year2009. When and where is conservation agriculture an appropriate option for smallholder farmers in southern africa. Ken giller plant production systems, wageningen university, netherlands conservation agriculture and smallholder farming in africa.
It is actively promoted by international research and development organisations, with such strong advocacy that critical debate is stifled. The african network for soil biology and fertility afnet. Ploughs, conservation agriculture and the problem of. This cited by count includes citations to the following articles in scholar. Beyond conservation agriculture pubmed central pmc. Although most biodiversity is found in production landscapes, conservation organisations engage little with agriculture. Giller, jens andersson, leonard rusinamhodzi, marc corbeels1 plant production systems, wageningen university, wageningen, the netherlands. No silver bullets for african soil problems nature. Corbeels m, kirkegaard j, mortensen d, erenstein o, vanlauwe b, ken e. Apr 25, 2012 millions of growers, large and small, are reaping the benefits of notillage farming. Kassam and brammers intervention in the continuing debates around.
Will you be able to harvest these crops, dry them, and store them in your grain store. The main focus of conservation agriculture has been on high management levels and good extension work, optimising all resources through best land and field practices. By eike luedeling, joseph sang, chris van kessel, ken e. Conservation agriculture enables crops to use the nutrients in the soil more effectively. Effect of handhoe based conservation agriculture on soil fertility and maize yield in selected smallholder areas in zimbabwe. We first explore the history of research on conservation tillage in zimbabwe, and show how the. Learning agricultures world overview of conservation approaches and. Download the programme download the conference programme pdf, 1mb the programme contains full details of presentations in. The african network for soil biology and fertility afnet was established in 1988 as a panafrican network of researchers in subsaharan africa.
Conservation agriculture conferences on the horizon. Conservation agriculture with trees world agroforestry centre. Giller a,b, ernst witter b,c, marc corbeels b,d, pablo tittonell a,d a plant production systems group. The benefits arising from the ease of crop management, energycosttime savings, and soil and water conservation led to widespread adoption of ca, particularly on large farms in the americas and australia, where farmers harness the tools of modern science. Conservation agriculture ca is proposed as a panacea to agricultural problems in smallholder farming systems in the tropics hebblethwaite et al. Opportunities and challenges bruce sosola1, sileshi gudeta1, festus akinnifesi1 and olu ajayi1 abstract conservation agriculture ca benefits include increased organic matter, improved water retention, improved soil fertility, reduced soil erosion, reduced weed infestation, crop productivity and. The choice between land sparing and land sharing should be sitespecific and evidencebased. The following comments have been made regarding the recent paper published by ken giller. From ispc chair, professor ken cassman, 17th april 2012 the independent science and partnership council ispc of the cgiar is launching an independent strategic. Land sparing and land sharing are both realistic options to manage the agriculturenature interface. Millions of growers, large and small, are reaping the benefits of notillage farming. We suggest that a recent commentary piece in the geographical journal on conservation agriculture ca and the. Evolution of conservation agriculture practice, from past conventional to notill, conservation tillage, to present conservation agriculture to future systems agronomy. The conference will begin in the afternoon of tuesday 23 february 2016, and run until lunchtime on 25 february.
There is a need to expand ca from past and present i. Giller, ernst witter, marc corbeels, pablo tittonell. Giller ke, witter e, corbllels m, tittonell p 2009 conservation agriculture and smallholder farming in africa. On the role of religion in the political agronomy of conservation agriculture, corne rademaker and henk jochemsen 4. Conservation agriculture is claimed to be a panacea for the problems of poor agricultural productivity and soil degradation in subsaharan africa ssa. Org february 2020 page 1 of 4 conservation agriculture references alcantara, viridiana, axel don, reinhard well, and rolf nieder. We suggest that a recent commentary piece in the geographical journal on conservation agriculture ca and the system of rice intensification sri kassam and brammer 2012 was misleading because it drew very selectively from the literature, and presented its conclusions as both widely accepted and uncontroversial. Conservation agriculture and smallholder farming in africa. Ploughs, conservation agriculture and the problem of agricultural intensification.
In ca, sustainability is linked to the ecological preservation of agricultural landscapes. Oct 28, 2015 global support for conservation agriculture ca as a pathway to sustainable intensification is strong. Ken e giller wageningen university jens a andersson international maize and wheat improvement center cimmyt marc ecorbeels french agricultural research centre for international. Integrated soil fertility management in africa 2 more productive and sustainable agriculture, improving household and regional food security and increasing incomes of smallscale farmers. Pdf global support for conservation agriculture ca as a pathway to. View enhanced pdf access article on wiley online library html view download pdf for offline.
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