Can smallholder farmers buffer rainfall variability through conservation agriculture? On-farm practices and maize yields in Kenya and Malawi
Reduced tillage, permanent ground cover and crop diversification are the three core pillars of Conservation Agriculture (CA).We assess and compare on-farm effects of different practices related to the three pillars ofCA on maize yields under ENSO-driven rainfall variability in Kenya and Malawi. Redu...
| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Formato: | Journal Article |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
IOP Publishing
2019
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/106008 |
| _version_ | 1855542246833651712 |
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| author | Boillat, Sébastien Jew, Eleanor KK Steward, Peter R. Speranza, Chinwe Ifejika Whitfield, Stephen Mkwambisi, David Kiteme, Boniface Wambugu, Grace Burdekin, Oliver J Dougill, Andrew J. |
| author_browse | Boillat, Sébastien Burdekin, Oliver J Dougill, Andrew J. Jew, Eleanor KK Kiteme, Boniface Mkwambisi, David Speranza, Chinwe Ifejika Steward, Peter R. Wambugu, Grace Whitfield, Stephen |
| author_facet | Boillat, Sébastien Jew, Eleanor KK Steward, Peter R. Speranza, Chinwe Ifejika Whitfield, Stephen Mkwambisi, David Kiteme, Boniface Wambugu, Grace Burdekin, Oliver J Dougill, Andrew J. |
| author_sort | Boillat, Sébastien |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | Reduced tillage, permanent ground cover and crop diversification are the three core pillars of Conservation Agriculture (CA).We assess and compare on-farm effects of different practices related to the three pillars ofCA on maize yields under ENSO-driven rainfall variability in Kenya and Malawi. Reduced tillage practices increased yields per hectare by 250 kg on average in Malawi under belowaverage rainfall conditions and by 700 kg in Kenya under above-average rainfall, but did not have any significant effect on yields under below-average rainfall conditions in Kenya. Ground cover had a positive impact on yields in Malawi (dry conditions) but not in Kenya (both dry and wet conditions), where mixed crop and livestock systems limited this practice. Crop diversification had positive impacts in Kenya (both dry and wet conditions), where maize-legume crop rotation is practiced, but
not in Malawi where landholdings are too small to allow rotation. Our findings suggest that isolated CAtechniques can have positive effects on yields even after only a few years of practice under variable rainfall conditions. This strengthens empirical evidence supporting the value ofCA in resilience building of agricultural systems, and suggests that both full and partial adoption ofCApractices should be supported in areas where climate change is leading to more variable rainfall conditions. |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | CGSpace106008 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| publishDateRange | 2019 |
| publishDateSort | 2019 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| publisherStr | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1060082025-02-19T14:32:42Z Can smallholder farmers buffer rainfall variability through conservation agriculture? On-farm practices and maize yields in Kenya and Malawi Boillat, Sébastien Jew, Eleanor KK Steward, Peter R. Speranza, Chinwe Ifejika Whitfield, Stephen Mkwambisi, David Kiteme, Boniface Wambugu, Grace Burdekin, Oliver J Dougill, Andrew J. agriculture food security climate change Reduced tillage, permanent ground cover and crop diversification are the three core pillars of Conservation Agriculture (CA).We assess and compare on-farm effects of different practices related to the three pillars ofCA on maize yields under ENSO-driven rainfall variability in Kenya and Malawi. Reduced tillage practices increased yields per hectare by 250 kg on average in Malawi under belowaverage rainfall conditions and by 700 kg in Kenya under above-average rainfall, but did not have any significant effect on yields under below-average rainfall conditions in Kenya. Ground cover had a positive impact on yields in Malawi (dry conditions) but not in Kenya (both dry and wet conditions), where mixed crop and livestock systems limited this practice. Crop diversification had positive impacts in Kenya (both dry and wet conditions), where maize-legume crop rotation is practiced, but not in Malawi where landholdings are too small to allow rotation. Our findings suggest that isolated CAtechniques can have positive effects on yields even after only a few years of practice under variable rainfall conditions. This strengthens empirical evidence supporting the value ofCA in resilience building of agricultural systems, and suggests that both full and partial adoption ofCApractices should be supported in areas where climate change is leading to more variable rainfall conditions. 2019-11-01 2019-12-03T20:35:26Z 2019-12-03T20:35:26Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/106008 en Open Access IOP Publishing Boillat S, Jew EKK, Steward PR, Speranza CI, Whitfield S, Mkwambisi D, Kiteme B, Wambugu G, Burdekin OJ, Dougill AJ. 2019. Can smallholder farmers buffer rainfall variability through conservation agriculture? On-farm practices and maize yields in Kenya and Malawi. Environmental Research Letters 14(11):115007. |
| spellingShingle | agriculture food security climate change Boillat, Sébastien Jew, Eleanor KK Steward, Peter R. Speranza, Chinwe Ifejika Whitfield, Stephen Mkwambisi, David Kiteme, Boniface Wambugu, Grace Burdekin, Oliver J Dougill, Andrew J. Can smallholder farmers buffer rainfall variability through conservation agriculture? On-farm practices and maize yields in Kenya and Malawi |
| title | Can smallholder farmers buffer rainfall variability through conservation agriculture? On-farm practices and maize yields in Kenya and Malawi |
| title_full | Can smallholder farmers buffer rainfall variability through conservation agriculture? On-farm practices and maize yields in Kenya and Malawi |
| title_fullStr | Can smallholder farmers buffer rainfall variability through conservation agriculture? On-farm practices and maize yields in Kenya and Malawi |
| title_full_unstemmed | Can smallholder farmers buffer rainfall variability through conservation agriculture? On-farm practices and maize yields in Kenya and Malawi |
| title_short | Can smallholder farmers buffer rainfall variability through conservation agriculture? On-farm practices and maize yields in Kenya and Malawi |
| title_sort | can smallholder farmers buffer rainfall variability through conservation agriculture on farm practices and maize yields in kenya and malawi |
| topic | agriculture food security climate change |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/106008 |
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