| Sumario: | Smallholder maize and wheat production systems are characterized by high drudgery.
On-farm trials were run for three seasons in Ethiopia. The study assessed the effect of 2 WT direct
seeding and growing season on (1) soil quality, and (2) maize and wheat productivity, energy and
protein gains, and gross margins, on smallholder farms in Ethiopia. For the wheat crop, the effect
of different soil types and agroecological conditions on productivity was assessed. The treatments
in paired plots were (i) conventional ploughing practice and (ii) no-till (NT). Soil properties, crop
yield, nutrition gains and gross margins were determined. No-till improved soil properties in the
short term. No-till produced 1210–1559 kg ha1 grain, 18–29 GJ ha1 energy and 121–194 kg ha1
proteins, and generated 358–385 US$ ha1 more than the conventional practice in the maize system.
In the wheat system, no-till treatment had 341–1107 kg ha1 grain, 5–16 GJ ha1 energy and
43–137 kg ha1 proteins, and generated 230–453 US$ ha1 more than conventional practice. No-till
can be more productive and profitable in the Ethiopian maize and wheat-based cropping systems.
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