1.2 Contact details of resource persons and institutions involved in the assessment and documentation of the Approach

Name of the institution(s) which facilitated the documentation/ evaluation of the Approach (if relevant)

General Directorate Combating Desertification and Erosion (General Directorate Combating Desertification and Erosion) - Türkiye

1.3 Conditions regarding the use of data documented through WOCAT

When were the data compiled (in the field)?

26/06/2021

The compiler and key resource person(s) accept the conditions regarding the use of data documented through WOCAT:

Yes

2.1 Short description of the Approach

Natural pastures have insufficient capacity to produce forage in the semi-arid rangelands of Central Anatolian Region. Therefore, a project has been initiated to plant forage shrubs which are drought and salinity tolerant in order to rehabilitate these pasturelands.

2.2 Detailed description of the Approach

Detailed description of the Approach:

Approximately 65% of Turkiye’s surface area (78 million hectares in total) consists of arid and semiarid areas, and this is where most of the pasturelands are located. These areas are deprived of vegetation and under threat of wind erosion. In addition, salinity is a serious problem on approximately 2 million hectares. In recent years, the General Directorate of Combating Desertification and Erosion has been implementing projects to improve pasture quality in arid and salty areas by planting adapted shrubs. Natural pastures have insufficient capacity to produce forage sustainably. Droughts, which are increasingly felt with global warming and climate change, have further limited forage production, especially in Central Anatolian Region’s rangelands. A project was initiated in the dry, nutrient-poor and heavy soils land within the borders of Kırsehir (Malya) and Ankara (Polatli) Agricultural Operations Directorate. Forage shrubs and herbaceous plants which are resistant to drought and overgrazing were selected: namely Atriplex canescens, Kochia prostrata, Agropyron elongatum and Agropyron intermedium. Atriplex canescens is, in particular, drought tolerant and rapidly increases the yield of animal feed in degraded pastures. No chemical fertilizer was applied to this species, which was given limited water only for the first two years after planting. Despite this, the plants grew successfully. It is thought that the continuity of the pasture established in this approach is possible in most of the arid areas. The management of the improved field will be provided by planned grazing. One year, part of the pasture will be opened for grazing in one season, while other parts will be opened for grazing in the second year. In this way, land degradation of the area will be prevented. One of the primary goals of this project is to contribute to the improvement of degraded pasture's biomass productivity. The project also support efforts to prevent wind erosion. Under the project, adaptation to drought, growth and biomass of the planted and cultivated species are monitored, and their contribution to the regional livestock's feed source capacity and soil fertility are recorded. Above all, the approach will help to provide sustainable land improvement, especially where livestock keepers face challenges with drought.

2.3 Photos of the Approach

2.5 Country/ region/ locations where the Approach has been applied

2.6 Dates of initiation and termination of the Approach

2.7 Type of Approach

• project/ programme based

2.8 Main aims/ objectives of the Approach

To summarize the objectives of the aproach:
- Creating wind protection strips by planting shrub species - that are adaptable to wind erosion, drought and barrenness, to protect the soil surface from wind erosion,
- Growing shrubs and herbaceous forage crops in the field in order to reduce the scarcity of feed resources in arid and semi-arid lands,
- Increase the income of the rural population from livestock keeping,
- Improve the soil health and soil physical quality in terms of providing important ecosystem services,
- Contribute to the transformation of arid and semi-arid areas into Carbon Sink Areas,
- Serve the objectives of Land Degradation Neutrality,

2.9 Conditions enabling or hindering implementation of the Technology/ Technologies applied under the Approach

3.1 Stakeholders involved in the Approach and their roles

3.2 Involvement of local land users/ local communities in the different phases of the Approach

	Involvement of local land users/ local communities	Specify who was involved and describe activities
initiation/ motivation	interactive	Meetings, seminars and others with the local land users
planning	interactive	Local land users (rural population) are included in the process of planning
implementation	interactive
monitoring/ evaluation	interactive

3.4 Decision-making on the selection of SLM Technology/ Technologies

Specify who decided on the selection of the Technology/ Technologies to be implemented:

• mainly SLM specialists, following consultation with land users

Specify on what basis decisions were made:

• evaluation of well-documented SLM knowledge (evidence-based decision-making)

4.1 Capacity building/ training

Was training provided to land users/ other stakeholders?

Yes

Specify who was trained:

• land users
• field staff/ advisers

Form of training:

• on-the-job
• public meetings

Subjects covered:

The Characteristics of Dry Land Ecology, Deficit Irrigation on Plants, Pasturelands in Arid and Semiarid Lands, improvement of biomass for livestock in pasture areas where located in dry lands...

4.2 Advisory service

Do land users have access to an advisory service?

No

4.3 Institution strengthening (organizational development)

Have institutions been established or strengthened through the Approach?

• yes, moderately

Specify the level(s) at which institutions have been strengthened or established:

• national

4.4 Monitoring and evaluation

Is monitoring and evaluation part of the Approach?

Yes

Comments:

The yields of forage plants are measured annually. Physical measurements (forage yield, forage quality, grazing capacity, soil quality) together with field photographs are used for measurement and evaluation. Sampling and measuring works are done by engineers. The evaluation part is discussed by the experts.

If yes, is this documentation intended to be used for monitoring and evaluation?

Yes

Comments:

All documentation made on the field will be used for monitoring and evaluation. According to the results obtained, our study will be expanded to other arid areas.

4.5 Research

Was research part of the Approach?

Yes

Specify topics:

• ecology

Give further details and indicate who did the research:

The General Directorate of Combating Desertification and Erosion and Agricultural Enterprises carry out the research together. In addition, the faculties of agriculture of the relevant universities are included in the research. It is thought that the research will contribute to both other agricultural workers and the next generation of scientists.

5.1 Annual budget for the SLM component of the Approach

If precise annual budget is not known, indicate range:

• 10,000-100,000

5.2 Financial/ material support provided to land users

Did land users receive financial/ material support for implementing the Technology/ Technologies?

No

5.4 Credit

Was credit provided under the Approach for SLM activities?

No

5.5 Other incentives or instruments

Were other incentives or instruments used to promote implementation of SLM Technologies?

No

6.1 Impacts of the Approach

6.2 Main motivation of land users to implement SLM

6.3 Sustainability of Approach activities

Can the land users sustain what has been implemented through the Approach (without external support)?

• uncertain

If no or uncertain, specify and comment:

Since land users are new to this type of study, they may not be able to implement this study alone at this time. However, in the next few years, land users will also have the knowledge and skills to practice on their own. For example, controlled grazing is required for the plants in the pasture area to maintain their development. The studies, which started with understanding the importance of controlled grazing and the characteristics of arid areas, will continue with plant production and application works.

6.4 Strengths/ advantages of the Approach

Strengths/ advantages/ opportunities in the land user’s view
Land users consider the approach applied to be very beneficial and sustainable. The first reason is that the applied species can grow in extreme droughts because their water requirements are very low. The second reason is that the applied plants can be used as animal feed.

6.5 Weaknesses/ disadvantages of the Approach and ways of overcoming them

Weaknesses/ disadvantages/ risks in the land user’s view	How can they be overcome?
Although land users consider the approach to be very beneficial and sustainable, they suspect that shepherds will deviate from the proposed grazing plan. Another issue is that the lands are generally hard to reach and as a result of sudden changes in climatic conditions, it is thought that the plants may not stay in the area for many years.

7.2 References to available publications

Title, author, year, ISBN:

Bilgi Sarihan (bilgi.sarihan@csb.gov.tr)

7.3 Links to relevant information which is available online

URL:

https://qcat.wocat.net/en/wocat/approaches/edit/approaches_6321/app__7/