1.2 Detalles de contacto de las personas de referencia e instituciones involucradas en la evaluación y la documentación de la Tecnología

Nombre de la(s) institución(es) que facilitaron la documentación/ evaluación de la Tecnología (si fuera relevante)

Nombre de la(s) institución(es) que facilitaron la documentación/ evaluación de la Tecnología (si fuera relevante)

1.3 Condiciones referidas al uso de datos documentados mediante WOCAT

El compilador y la/s persona(s) de referencia claves aceptan las condiciones acerca del uso de los datos documentados mediante WOCAT:

Sí

2.1 Breve descripción de la Tecnología

Definición de la Tecnología:

Smallholder farmers can use polyhouses to produce high demand vegetables, such as tomatoes, and can earn a substantial income from even a relatively small plot of land in a short time.

2.2 Descripción detallada de la Tecnología

Descripción:

During the wet season (June–October), the monsoon rains severely limit the type of crops that can be grown in open fields and they also restrict the production of seedlings. Low-cost polyhouses can be used to protect crops from excessive rainfall and can provide a sheltered environment for the production of better quality crops over the rainy season cropping period. For example, smallholder farmers who produce high demand vegetables such as tomatoes can earn as much as USD 350–500 from a plot of land which measures only 100 m2 in area over the short time period from June to November. This is much more than they can earn by growing any traditional crop by conventional methods. The Sustainable Soil Management Programme (SSMP) is promoting this technology in several mid-hill districts of Nepal.

Establishment / maintenance activities and inputs: Polyhouses should be situated in well-drained areas where sunshine is abundant and there is no shade throughout the cropping period. The bamboo frame can be constructed earlier in the year but the plastic roofing is not added until after one or two rainfall events. The height of the polyhouse frame varies depending on the altitude. At higher elevations, the polyhouses are lower to help trap more heat and moisture, whereas at lower elevations the polyhouses are higher to allow more air to circulate and moisture to evaporate. The preparations, which take place mid-May to early June, consist of fertilizing the soil and planting the tomato seedlings. Throughout the growing season the tomato plants are staked, trained, and pruned and a top dressing of fertilizer is added to produce a higher quality product.

2.3 Fotografías de la Tecnología

2.5 País/ región/ lugares donde la Tecnología fue aplicada y que se hallan comprendidos por esta evaluación

2.7 Introducción de la Tecnología

Especifique cómo se introdujo la Tecnología:

• mediante proyectos/ intervenciones externas

3.1 Propósito(s) principal(es) de la Tecnología MST

• mejorar la producción
• crear impacto económico benéfico

3.2 Tipo(s) actuales de uso de la tierra donde se aplica la Tecnología

Tierras cultivadas

• Cosecha anual

• tomatoes

Número de temporadas de cultivo por año:

• 1

Especifique:

Longest growing period in days: 214; Longest growing period from month to month: May to November

Comentarios:

Major land use problems (compiler’s opinion): In the mid-hills of Nepal, the arable land of most farm households has been divided into very small plots. If this land is used to produce traditional crops such as maize, wheat, and millet using conventional farming methods, it cannot provide full employment for all of the householders and cannot yield sufficient cash income for the household. The risk of intense rainfall during the monsoon season, which can damage crops, has prevented these farmers from switching to more lucrative high value crops.

3.5 Grupo MST al que pertenece la Tecnología

• Greenhouses

3.6 Medidas MST que componen la Tecnología

medidas agronómicas

• A7: Otros

3.7 Principales tipos de degradación del suelo encarados con la Tecnología

erosión de suelos por agua

• Wt: pérdida de capa arable/ erosión de la superficie

Comentarios:

Main causes of degradation: Heavy / extreme rainfall (intensity/amounts) (During the summer monsoon (June-October), continuous or heavy rainfall can damage seedlings and erode the land; it is difficult to establish crops during this time.)

3.8 Prevención, reducción o restauración de la degradación del suelo

Especifique la meta de la Tecnología con relación a la degradación de la tierra:

• prevenir la degradación del suelo

4.1 Dibujo técnico de la Tecnología

Especificaciones técnicas (relacionadas al dibujo técnico):

Left: Sketch of a polyhouse. The optimum length is 20 m and the width 5 m. The height of the central and side poles varies depending on the elevation. Note that there should be a space of at least 1 m between polyhouses.

Right top: Cross sectional view of a planting bed showing row-to-row (RXR) and plant-to-plant (PXP) distances. Note that there should be a space of at least 90 cm between beds.

Right bottom: Inside the polyhouse, the tomatoes can be staked using bamboo poles; the plants are trained along these trellises.

Technical knowledge required for land users: moderate

Main technical functions: Increase Productivity, Introduce high value crop

Secondary technical functions: increase in nutrient availability (supply, recycling,…)

Autor:

AK Thaku

4.2 Información general sobre el cálculo de insumos y costos

Especifique cómo se calcularon los costos e insumos:

• por unidad de Tecnología

Especifique la moneda usada para calcular costos:

• USD

4.3 Actividades de establecimiento

Comentarios:

Details for the establishment of Poly house. Establishment activities 1. Construction of the polyhouse using bamboo poles, wooden posts, clear plastic sheet, nails, and rope. 2. How long it takes to construct the polyhouse and plant the crops depends on how much labour is available. Depending on their level of expertise, four to five people can construct the structure in one day; and two people can complete the soil preparation and planting in one day. Technical guidelines for erecting a polyhouse The optimum length of a polyhouse is 20 m, and the width is 5 m; 400–500 gauge plastic sheeting is used. The height of the polyhouse depends on the elevation: at 1200–1600 masl, the optimum height of the central pole is 3 m and the side poles are 2 m high; at 1600–2000 masl, the central pole is 2.5 m high and the side poles are 1.6 m high. There should be an open space of at least 1 m between polyhouses. Technical guidelines for preparing the soil and planting tomatoes Per plant, at least 3–4 kg of well-decomposed farmyard manure and compost are worked into the soil. Before transplanting the seedlings, the soil around each is dressed with 10 g of DAP (diammonium phosphate) and 6 g of MoP (muriate of potash). The seedlings are transplanted when they are 20–25 days old. In an open row system, the suggested row to row (RxR) spacing is 90 cm and the suggested plant to plant (PxP) spacing is 60 cm; in a closed row system the row to row and plant to plant spacing can both be 60 cm. At least two top dressings of DAP and MoP (10:10 g) are necessary 20–25 and 40–45 days after transplanting; 1 kg per 0.05 ha of borax is also added at the time of the first top dressing. Alternatively, these two top dressings can be substituted by a mixture of cattle urine (50 ml) and water (200 ml water) per plant. The dressing with this mixture can begin 20–25 days after transplanting, and is repeated every 10–12 days.

4.4 Costos e insumos necesarios para el establecimiento

4.5 Actividades de establecimiento/ recurrentes

4.6 Costos e insumos necesarios para actividades de mantenimiento/ recurrentes (por año)

4.7 Factores más determinantes que afectan los costos:

Describa los factores más determinantes que afectan los costos:

All costs and amounts are rough estimates by the technicians and authors. Exchange rate USD 1 = NPR 71 in April 2011

5.1 Clima

5.2 Topografía

Comentarios y especificaciones adicionales sobre topografía :

Slopes on average: Also moderate (6-10%), rolling (11-15%) and hilly (16-30%)

Landforms: Also footslopes

5.3 Suelos

Si se halla disponible, adjunte una descripción completa de los suelos o especifique la información disponible, por ej., tipo de suelo, pH/ acidez de suelo, capacidad de intercambio catiónico, nitrógeno, salinidad, etc. :

Soil fertility is medium - high

Soil water storage capacity is medium - high

5.6 Las características de los usuarios de la tierra que aplican la Tecnología

5.7 Área promedio de la tierra usada por usuarios de tierra que aplican la Tecnología

5.8 Tenencia de tierra, uso de tierra y derechos de uso de agua

Tenencia de tierra:

• individual, sin título
• individual, con título

Derechos de uso de tierra:

• individual

Derechos de uso de agua:

• comunitarios (organizado)

6.1 Impactos in situ demostrados por la Tecnología

Impactos socioeconómicos

Producción

Ingreso y costos

Otros impactos socioeconómicos

Impactos socioculturales

Impactos ecológicos

Suelo

Biodiversidad: vegetación, animales

Reducción de riesgos de desastres y riesgos climáticos

6.2 Impactos fuera del sitio demostrados por la Tecnología

6.3 Exposición y sensibilidad de la Tecnología al cambio climático gradual y a extremos relacionados al clima/ desastres (desde la percepción de los usuarios de tierras)

Cambio climático gradual

Cambio climático gradual

Extremos (desastres) relacionados al clima

Desastres climatológicos:

Otras consecuencias relacionadas al clima

Otras consecuencias relacionadas al clima

Comentarios:

optimize the plant density; train and prune plants often to avoid overcrowding; modify the structure to provide more ventilation (ventilated polyhouse) in especially hot areas

6.4 Análisis costo-beneficio

¿Cómo se comparan los beneficios con los costos de establecimiento (desde la perspectiva de los usuarios de tierra)?

¿Cómo se comparan los beneficios con los costos de mantenimiento/ recurrentes (desde la perspectiva de los usuarios de tierra)?

6.5 Adopción de la Tecnología

Comentarios:

There is a moderate trend towards spontaneous adoption of the Technology

Comments on adoption trend: Although the technology is only moderately expensive to implement and provides a higher rate of return than traditional crops, smallholder farmers often need technical support and encouragement to get started. This support can be in the form of improved seed varieties and plastic sheeting for the polyhouse.

Driver for adoption:
• relatively simple technology
• higher economic return
• provides on-farm employment
Constraints
• smallholder farmers and poorer households need initial support to establish the polyhouse
• farmers need technical support
• farmers need practical information and technical backstopping

6.7 Fuerzas/ ventajas/ oportunidades de la Tecnología

6.8 Debilidades/ desventajas/ riesgos de la Tecnología y formas de sobreponerse a ellos

7.1 Métodos/ fuentes de información

7.2 Vínculos a las publicaciones disponibles

Título, autor, año, ISBN:

Construction of polyhouse and rainy season tomato cultivation inside polyhouse (in Nepali). Kathmandu, Nepal: Sustainable Soil Management Programme, Helvetas Nepal, SSMP (2010)