Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Joint researchers and farmers evaluation
During implementation of the experiments, field days were organized, attended
by farmers participating in the project, neighbouring farmers, extension staff and
local leaders, enabling farmers to share their results and experiences with the
community. In a joint meeting of farmers and researchers the experimental results
were discussed and evaluated, using criteria such as crop yields, partial plot-level
nutrient balances, nutrient use efficiencies, partial gross margins and value cost
ratios.
Two consultative stakeholder' workshops were organized in 2002 and 2003 to brief
major stakeholders and policymakers on project activities and results, and to formulate
recommendations and action plans to address the problems in the ASAL in Kenya.
The study area comprised parts of Machakos, Mwingi, Makueni and Kajiado
Districts. The region is characterized by low, temporally highly variable rainfall,
varying on average from 600 to 800 mm annually, bi-modally distributed, and resulting
in two distinct growing seasons.
The soils are variable in depth, depending on parent material and slope, and are
generally low in organic matter and deficient in nitrogen and phosphorus, whereas
potassium levels are generally adequate except in Makueni. Low infiltration rates
and susceptibility to surface sealing make the soils vulnerable to erosion at the
beginning of the season when the land is bare. Major characteristics of the clusters
are summarized in Table 1.
D) General project outputs
Soil characteristics
Most farms show soil-N values below and soil-P values above an adequate soil
fertility threshold level. Moreover, the variability among farms is much higher for P
than for N. Soil potassium levels are, with the exception of those in Kasikeu, well
above the threshold on most farms in the research clusters. Organic carbon levels in
the soil are again variable and on the majority of the farms well below the level
considered 'adequate' from an agronomic point of view.
Soil nutrient management
Current soil fertility management practices in the farming systems in the semi-arid
areas in Kenya result in slightly negative nutrient balances (Table 2). The losses,
however, represent only a very small proportion of the total soil nutrient stocks,
especially for phosphorus and potassium.
Nutrient flows into and out of the farm are generally low (all clusters represent
low external input agricultural systems), but considerable variability exists among
the studied research clusters. Use of mineral fertilizers and import of organic materials
(animal feeds) correlated positively and significantly with crop yields, financial
returns and degree of market-orientation of the farm (marketed proportion of crop
products and distance to market). This indicates that because of the relatively high
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