Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 4.9 shows that the total crop production at Vea and Tono in the dry
season increased from the initial years in 1985 to 1999 but took a downward
trend from the year 2000 to 2007. The trend of crop production experienced
in both schemes is a product of the land production and crop yields shown in
Figures 4.6, 4.7 and 4.8. Figure 4.9 also shows that dry season food
production is generally higher than wet season food production contrary to
the fact that the cropped areas in the wet season are either higher or almost
equal to that of the dry season. This is due to the cultivation of tomatoes in
the dry season which has higher yields compared to the cereal crops
cultivated in the rainy season.
Figure 4.10: Rice yields recorded in both seasons a) Vea scheme; b) Tono
scheme
The impact of soil nutrients and water supply on the crop yields can be
deduced from the yields between the two seasons using rice production which
is a common crop in both seasons. Figure 4.10a shows a lower average rice
yield in the wet season of Vea compared to the dry season. The reason can
be due to lower fertilizer application in the wet season and/or inadequate
water supply due to lack of supplementary irrigation. Figure 4.10b shows
almost equal yields for rice from 1997 in both wet and dry seasons,
suggesting that the supplementary irrigation at Tono in the wet season
influences the yield while fertilizer application may be equal in both seasons.
Water Use Efficiency and Productivity
Both schemes use traditional irrigation technologies, being basin flooding
and furrow irrigation which relies on gravity to deliver water to crops. With
furrow irrigation, water is diverted from a lateral/canal, or other water
transport system, to flow down a furrow between rows of crops. With flood
irrigation, water is similarly diverted but in a sheet of water over a slightly
graded section of land between widely placed levies.
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