Soil productivity improvement using a combination of technologies (ប្រទេសតង់សានី)

Use of compost basket pits, farm yard manure application, nutrient tapping sub soil agro-forestry, mulching application and productive vegetative stabilized cross slope barriers to improve soil health in Kibanja farming system.

The technology was documented based on experiences of field SLM specialist and from the perspectives of land users (especially FFS group members) supported by the Trans boundary Agro Ecosystem Management project. The dominant crop in the technology area is banana. In this technology banana is widely spacing to 4m x 4m for the purpose of providing enough space for annual or recurrent soil nutrient feeding using compost ditches or baskets. Compost basket pits of 0.6 m depth and 3x3m width are dug between 4 banana plants. Baskets pits are dug recurrently and filled with farm manure, compost (crop residuals), leguminous green manure (tithonia) and ash and later covered with soil to activate nutrient release though microbial disintegration and avoid volatilization of greenhouse gas through direct sunlight. The size of a hole dug for the purpose of planting banana is 0.6 m depth and 0.6 m height. During digging top soil is separated from subsoil. In initial manure application, 2 tin of manure are mixed with the top soil and the mixture is put in the bottom of the hole. The center of the hole is marked with a stick and waiting is done for 1 or 2 before planting. During planting of banana, only two third 0.24m cubic of the hole is filling with soil and one third 0.12m cubic of the hole is left to form a water retention/harvest pit. Tithonia diversifolia (leguminous shrubs) are planted within the Kibanja farm purposefully for improving soil nutrient recycling though nitrogen fixing and at the same time is incorporate in compost to improve its quality. Infiltration ditches of 0.6 m depth and 0.6 m width and varying lengths are constructed for the purpose of impeding, trapping and harvesting water runoff. Fruit trees are planted in sub soil zone within the water infiltration ditches. The aim is to control nutrient competition between trees and annual/ biennial in the top soil or annual root zone and at the same time fruit tree roots in the subsoil zone is used as nutrient pump i.e. return nutrient lost through leaching to the top soil in form of mulching and litter. Improved banana varieties (FIAH 23) and certified endogenous germ plasma, de-trashing and de-suckering to maintain optimal plant geometry is part and per se of recommended husbandry practice

Purpose of the Technology: Improved food productivity, improved soil moisture content and water holding capacity. Improve nutrient recycling, organic matter content and biomass cycle. Prevent unproductive evaporation of green water and improving soil micro-climate. Combating land degradation through soil erosion caused by water runoff, chemical degradation due to nutrient leaching, biological degradation due the deadly BXW and other diseases and water degradation due to unproductive evaporation of the green water. And also plays significant role in adaptation and mitigation to drought climate. Improved economic returns accrued from surplus food production. Improve year round accessibility of food, shock resistance availability of food and varied food utilization and hence poverty reduction and improved health.

Establishment / maintenance activities and inputs: Establishment activities: land tilling, harrowing, demarcation and spacing of holes for planting banana, digging holes, manure application before banana planting, planting bananas, to demarcate, level and space Fanya chini/infiltration ditches/trenches using A-frame and arm outstretched level, ditch/trench digging, vegetative stabilization of Fanya chini/infiltration ditches, planting of fruit trees within ditches. Maintenance activities: weeding to destroy noxious weeds, in between planting of maize, de-suckering to maintain optimal plant geometry, de-trashing, maintenance and replenishment of banana pits, harvest beans and maize, sediment removal and repairing of infiltration ditches/trenches.

Natural / human environment: Natural (bio-physical) environment: The technology area land use type is cropland with annual crops (maize and beans), perennial crops (banana and pineapples) and fruit tree (avocados and jackfruit “Artocarpus heterophyllus”). The technology involves a combination of the following measures: agronomic, vegetative and structural. Climatic zone is sub-humid with an average of 210 length of growing period (LGP). Average slope category is gentle lying between 2-5%. Soil texture classes range from combination of top loam to a red clayey subsoil with medium soil depth categories. Main criteria for a human (socioeconomic) environment: the level of mechanization is hand tools. Production system is mixed (both subsistence and market oriented or commercial). The average costs of inputs required is 1472,62 USD. Land ownership is largely individual not titled and partly communal.

ទីតាំង: Ngara District council, Kirushya ward, Kirushya Village., United Republic of Tanzania, Kagera Region, ប្រទេសតង់សានី

ចំនួនទីកន្លែងបច្ចេកទេស ដែលវិភាគ:

ការសាយភាយនៃបច្ចេកទេស: ត្រូវបានផ្សព្វផ្សាយត្រឹមតំបន់មួយ (approx. < 0.1 គម2 (10 ហិកតា))

តើស្ថិតក្នុងតំបន់ការពារអចិន្ត្រៃយ៍?:

កាលបរិច្ឆេទនៃការអនុវត្ត: តិចជាង 10ឆ្នាំមុន (ថ្មី)

• តាមរយៈការបង្កើតថ្មីរបស់អ្នកប្រើប្រាស់ដី
• ជាផ្នែកនៃប្រព័ន្ធប្រពៃណី (> 50 ឆ្នាំ)
• ពេលកំពុងពិសោធន៍
• តាមរយៈគម្រោង / អន្តរាគមន៍ពីខាងក្រៅ