Sloping Agricultural Land Technology (SALT): a sustainable agroforestry scheme for the uplands

Soil erosion due to deforestation and heavy rains presents an extremely serious problem in many parts of Southeast Asia, particularly in the upland Philippines. The Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center (MBRLC), a non-government organization based in the southern part, has developed and spread an agroforestry scheme called Sloping Agricultural Land Technology (SALT) to help control soil erosion and increase crop yields. Basically, SALT utilizes nitrogen-fixing trees as soil binder, fertilizer generator, and livestock feed source. The system also includes annual and perennial diversified food crops grown in the spaces between the hedgerows. The SALT model has been tested both in demonstration plots and farmers' fields, and has proven to be appropriate for use by typical hilly-land farmers. The system can reduce soil erosion and restore moderately degraded hilly lands to a profitable farming system.     

Effectiveness of sloping agricultural land technology on soil fertility status of mid-hills in Nepal

Hedgerows with intercropping systems were established at the ICIMOD test and demonstration site at Godawari to assess the effective-ness of Sloping Agricultural Land Technology (SALT) in reducing run-o...     

Effects of shifting cultivation on biological and biochemical characteristics of soil microorganisms in Khagrachari hill district,Bangladesh

We collected soil samples from two representative sites at Aatmile of Khagarachari hill district in Chittagong Hill Tracts. One of the sites was under shifting cultivation and the other an adjacent 13-year old teak plantation. Both sites were in the same physiographic condition and same aspect with parable soil type, which enabled us to measure the effects of shifting cultivation on soil micro-flora. We studied soil physico-chemical properties and the biochemical and biological properties of soil microbes. Moisture and organic matter content as well as fungi and bacterial populations, both in surface and subsurface soils, were significantly(p ≤0.001) lower in shifting cultivated soils compared to soils not under shifting cultivation, i.e. the teak plantation site. The most abundant bacteria in surface(0-10 cm) and sub-surface(10-20 cm) soils under shifting cultivation were Pseudomonas diminuta and Shigella, respectively, while in corresponding soil layers of teak plantation, predominant microbes were Bacillus firmus(0-10 cm) and Xanthomonas(10-20 cm). The microbial population differences cannot be explained by soil texture differences because of the textural similarity in soils from the two sites but could be related to the significantly lower moisture and organic matter contents in soils under shifting cultivation.     

Effect of shifting cultivation on soil physical and chemical properties in Bandarban hill district, Bangladesh

This study reports the effects of shifting cultivation at slashing stage on soil physicochemical properties at Bandarban Sadar Upazila in Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh. At this initial stage of ...     

轮换种植对孟加拉国吉大港山区土壤中真菌和细菌群落的影响

在孟加拉国吉大港山区选择两块研究地,研究轮换种植对土壤中真菌和细菌群落的影响。两块研究地均包含轮换种植和本地社区管理的乡村森林,第一块研究地点选择在兰加马蒂地区,第二块研究地点选择在吉大港的班多尔班地区。在两个地点和不同用途的地块中,其表面土（0-10cm）和地表下土（10-20cm）的土壤质地不同,分别为砂壤和粘土。轮作地的土壤pH和含水量比乡村森林的低。研究结果表明：在兰加马蒂和班多尔班地区,大多数情况下,轮作地的表面土和地表下土壤中的真菌和细菌群落数量比乡村森林的低。在兰加马蒂和班多尔班地区的轮作地中,炭疽菌属（CoHetrotrichum）和镰孢菌属（Fusarium）真菌稀少,而两个地方的不同用途地块中均有细菌球菌属（Coccus）,芽孢杆菌属（Bacillus）和链球菌属（Streptococcus）。在两个地方的不同用途地块中常见的真菌有曲霉属（Aspergillus）、根霉属（Rhizopus）、木霉属（Trichoderma）和青霉菌属（Penicillium）。在其它的土壤区系中,由于轮换种植导致土壤环境退化的程度还需要进一步的研究。     

Shifting cultivation systems practised in Bhutan

In the highlands of Bhutan shifting cultivation remains an important land use practice, covering an area of approximately 200,000 ha. Two systems, bush fallow and grass fallow, are described and discussed. The traditional methods used in the two systems are well adapted to available resources. The systems differ in fallow vegetation, altitude range, major crops, fallow period, farming tools, clearing method, labour inputs, and erosion risks. Soils used for the grass fallow system are low in P and N. Major limitations for the bush fallow system are weed competition and the steep terrain. Returns from labour wereapproximately 10.6 and 4.2 kg grain per day for the bush fallow and the grass fallow system, respectively. Access to market through a recently built road system provides some cultivators with lucrative alternatives in the form of timber, livestock and potato production. Alternative options are more limited in the bush fallow system.This work was supported by the Department of Agriculture, Royal Government of Bhutan and the Swiss Association for Technical Assistance     

Using a Logistic Regression Model to Analyze Alley Farming Adoption Factors in Sierra Leone

Slash-and-burn shifting cultivation is the conventional farming practice in Sierra Leone, where communal land tenure is by far the most common form of land use. Alley farming, the alternative agricultural system, has been introduced as a technical option to increase yield, reduce or eliminate fallow and conserve soil water. This study uses a logistic regression model to determine the factors influencing the adoption of alley farming in Sierra Leone. Data for the study were collected from a total of 160 farmers in 16 farming communities across 4 ecotones in the Freetown Peninsula through a survey, interactive discussion and personal observation. It is found that although most of these communities are aware of alley farming, female farmers are less likely than males to adopt this farming technology. Also membership of farmers’ associations and access to extension services positively influences adoption of alley farming, but limited land availability hinders adoption in the region. Most of the farmers practicing or trying out alley farming prefer this farming system over slash-and-burn shifting cultivation. High demand for fuelwood, short or no fallow periods and replenishment of soil fertility are among the attributes driving farmers to switch to alley farming. Despite its merits, alley farming is not perceived as a complete substitute for slash-and-burn shifting cultivation in the study area. For wider adoption, there is the need to develop demonstration farms to show the feasibility of incorporating farmer-specific biophysical, hydro-climatic and socio-economic conditions into alley farming system in the region.     

Adoption of rubber-integrated farm-livelihood systems: contrasting empirical evidence from the Indian context

This paper examines the influence of important socio-economic, institutional/policy level factors in determining the adoption/non-adoption of rubber-integrated farming systems in traditional and non-traditional rubber-growing regions in India. The empirical analysis is based on a survey of rubber growers in the traditional rubber regions of Kerala (south India) and the non-traditional rubber regions of Assam, Meghalaya, and Tripura (north east India). In sharp contrast to Kerala, where smallholder responses toward adoption of rubber-integrated farming systems have been lukewarm, the emerging rubber economies (most of which are tribal communities) of north east (NE) India have shown interest in adopting rubber as an integrated farming system along with pre-existing land-use livelihood activities. The study clearly demonstrates contrasting empirical evidence of adoption of rubber-integrated farm-livelihood systems in the rubber-growing regions in Kerala and the NE states in India. The contrasting scenarios of adoption of rubber-integrated farming systems are mostly explained by region-specific factors dominated by socio-economic, institutional variables, and policy-level constraints, as also revealed by multivariate analysis. By and large, the findings of the study have significant bearing on the socio-economic outcomes and the existing institutional development paradigm underlying the rubber-development programmes introduced in India since independence. The study shows that the existing institutional arrangements and policies, which evolved historically to facilitate rubber area expansion in the traditional regions (including Kerala), have been highly instrumental in perpetuating rubber farming as a monoculture system. However, such an institutional mechanism proves to be highly redundant in the context of the NE states which are otherwise diverse in terms of integrated farm-livelihood systems and shifting cultivation.     

Revitalizing Mountain Ginseng Cultivation in North Jeolla Province,South Korea

A study was made of measures to revitalize mountain ginseng cultivation in the eastern mountainous area of Muju, Jinan and Jangsu municipalities of North Jeolla province, South Korea. The targeted area is typical forested land and is utilized for the cultivation of ginseng. Access to seeds and seedlings for mountain ginseng cultivation is relatively easy in North Jeolla province, and the species is cultivated widely (on 63 % of the area of the province and by 74 % of farmers). This study investigated the current state of mountain ginseng cultivation and business management, including production costs and subsidy, sales and distribution system, and other business management concerns. A survey was conducted on 86 mountain ginseng-cultivating farming households living in the targeted area in 2013. It is concluded that to achieve greater production an aggressive government policy promoting the renting out of suitable sites for mountain ginseng cultivation in national and public production forestland to individual farms and farming cooperatives is necessary. Further research on increasing the survival rate of cultivated mountain ginseng (CMG) until harvesting and preventing damage by wild animals is also deemed necessary. More effective use of related municipal budget subsidy needs to be supported selectively to the enterprising farmers who aggressively pursue mountain ginseng cultivation and business management. Opening CMG retail stores to realize sustainable income growth and developing various processed products will increase farm income. The government needs to introduce policies to sustain consumer trust in CMG through initiatives such as establishing a CMG quality management system for growers, distributing government-approved seeds, and implementing a government-based CMG purchase system.     

Introducing Cash Crops in Shifting Cultivation Regions – The Experience with Cardamom in Laos

Farmers are often blamed for destroying the tropical forest, especially in Laos. Converting shifting cultivation into cash crop based agriculture is frequently presented as the solution for merging forest protection and poverty alleviation, but many attempts have ended in failure. A rural development project has attempted to introduce medicinal cardamom (Amomum villosum) cultivation in the notably remote region of Phongsaly (northern Laos), for export to China. With nearly 300 ha planted, the crop now involves about 75% of the farmers in the region. Farmers fitted cardamom into their farming system, to suit their needs for sustainability with a crop compatible with existing practices. Results indicate that introducing a cash crop into a shifting cultivation region is possible if a greater attention is paid to: (i) appraise how the new crop fits into the farming systems; (ii) prioritise economic issues over agronomic matters, in particular identify markets, traders or commercial risks.