Sustainable Climate-smart Cropping Combinations for Integrated Production of Crops and Livestock | Chapter 7 | Research Advances and Challenges in Agricultural Sciences Vol. 9

 

Aims: The present study investigated the sustainable climate-smart cropping combinations for the integrated production of crops and livestock.

Background: To improve the productivity of both crops and livestock on smallholder farms, there is a need for the development of integrated farming systems that promote the sustainable use of locally available resources. This can address impediments associated with increasing land degradation and poor productivity of livestock and rural farming enterprises as a result of climate change vulnerabilities.

Study Design: The mother-baby trial design was used, the mother trial being an on-station experiment and the on-farm being a baby trial. The experiment was arranged as a split-plot design. The main plots were 3 types of soil amendments; cattle manure, fertilizer and a control. The subplots were eight (8) crop combinations, arising from velvet bean, cowpea, Rhodes grass and ryegrass.

Place and Duration of Study: The on-station field experiment was located at the Liempe farm of the University of Zambia, in Chongwe district. The on-farm experiments were laid in the Mazabuka and Chibombo districts of Zambia for two consecutive seasons, 2016/17 and 2017/18 cropping seasons.

Methodology: The maize test crop's variable performance served as the basis for measuring the cropping combination responses. Analysis of variance was used to assess the performance of the "crop combination" and soil amendment type. Means were separated using Fisher-protected Least Significant Difference (LSD) at α = 0.05. Principal component analysis (PCA), was also undertaken to further understand responses among crop combinations. Farmers' reactions arising from experimental implementation were qualitatively analysed using content analysis.

Results: Significant differences (P< 0.05) across cropping combinations on measured variables (for maize test crop) were exhibited among soil amendment types at an on-station trial during the 2017/ 18 season. Fertilizer soil amendment type was the best performer followed by manure and the control. Significant differences (P< 0.05) were also obtained among crop combinations across soil amendment types in all experimental sites. Crop combinations with velvet beans performed better than others. Qualitative grass inspection showed that Rhodes grass was a better performer than ryegrass. The observation of fewer maize being attacked by termites in crop combinations with velvet may imply that soils in velvet bean plots were relatively wetter. The visual appearance of soils in velvet bean plots compared to other plots confirmed that they were indeed wet.

Conclusion: Maize grown in combination with legumes particularly velvet beans and Rhodes grass is a viable option as a smallholder farming practice in a changing climate. As a policy guide in sub-Saharan Africa, it’s advisable to recommend and promote the intercropping package of maize, velvet bean and Rhodes grass. This can cushion against or minimize maize yield losses in case of adverse weather conditions, in addition to providing animal feed from Rhodes grass and velvet bean.

 

Author(s)details:-

Langa Tembo
Department of Plant Science, University of Zambia, P.O. Box-32379, Lusaka, Zambia.

 

Lydia M. Chabala
Department of Soil Science, University of Zambia, P.O. Box-32379, Lusaka, Zambia.

 

Pharaoh C. Sianagama
Department of Animal Science, School of Agriculture and Natural Resource Management, Palabana University, P. O. Box-50199, Lusaka, 10101, Zambia.

 

Please See the book here :- https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/racas/v9/256

Weed Management in Conservation Agriculture | Chapter 12 | Emerging Issues in Agricultural Sciences Vol. 6

 Given the current shortage of natural resources and the changeable nature of the climate, preservation agriculture (CA) is a efficient alternative. As a result, it is increasingly being used in rainfed extents to conserve soil and water. Herbicide use or manual destroy is both effective habits to manage the grass problem in CA. In conservation farming, weed control is considerably influenced by farming, crop establishment methods, apparatus, agronomic practices, etc. Conservation cultivation places a strong priority on capital preservation and prohibits the use of chemical compound. Under conservation agriculture, weeds maybe reduced by utilizing crop rotation, compatible type collection with optimum seed rates, farming with sufficient soil destroying, cover crops, and appropriate water management. In CA, the use of herbicides has raised because of high labor costs and proper unavailability. The sustainability of preservation agriculture can be revised by implementing joined weed management, as a sole herbicide cannot efficiently control a wide variety of weeds.

Author(s) Details:

Koushik Sar,
Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India.

Ipsita Padhi,
Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India.

Please see the link here: https://stm.bookpi.org/EIAS-V6/article/view/11428

Recent Advancement on Understanding the Interaction of Crop-livestock Integrated Production System for Its Eco Friendly Sustainability in Bihar | Chapter 7 | Cutting-edge Research in Agricultural Sciences Vol. 4

 The production of crops and livestock is a method in which livestock husbandry and agriculture are practised together for sustainable production without any negative effects on the environment. The alarming human population has increased the spate of food insecurity and malnutrition worldwide and the deepest impact is on India, especially Bihar. There is therefore an urgent need for an effective and sustainable mode of production capable of supplying crops as well as animal products to a large human population. In Bihar, nearly 0.5 Mha regions in the state are affected by floods every year, while 2.4 Mha is affected by drought. Dependence on livestock for livelihood protection is strong under such circumstances. The crop-livestock interaction in the state is therefore very powerful. The main concern is the reduction of high input usage with a relative increase in crop yield. The best way to minimise the crop yield gap without environmental burdens, a major challenge for agriculture in this period, may be sustainable intensification. Crops and livestock interact in this integrated system to build synergies that allow ecosystem balance and sustainable intensification of production. We have discussed in this article the ways in which sustainable interventions for intensification can be carried out.

Author (s) Details

Birendra Kumar
Department of Agronomy, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur-813210, India.

Dr. Rakesh D. Ranjan
Department of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur-813210, India.

Dr. Awadhesh Kumar Pal
Department of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur-813210, India.

C. S. Azad
Department of Plant Pathology, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur-813210, India.

Dr. Sunil Kumar
Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur-813210, India.

Sudhir Kumar
Department of Breeding and Genetics, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur-813210, India.

Dr. Chandan Roy
Department of Breeding and Genetics, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur-813210, India.

View Book :- https://bp.bookpi.org/index.php/bpi/catalog/book/344