scholarly journals Characterisation of rainfall at a semi-arid ecotope in the Limpopo Province (South Africa) and its implications for sustainable crop production

Water SA ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
J Mzezewa ◽  
T Misi ◽  
L Van Rensburg
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
Sustainable Crop Production ◽  
Semi Arid

scholarly journals Smallholder farmer’s perceived effects of climate change on crop production and household livelihoods in rural Limpopo province, South Africa

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nomcebo R. Ubisi ◽  
Paramu L. Mafongoya ◽  
Unathi Kolanisi ◽  
Obert Jiri
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
Crop Failure ◽  
Perceived Effects ◽  
Household Livelihoods ◽  
The Government

AbstractThis study investigated the perceived effects of climate change on crop production and household livelihoods of smallholder farmers in Mopani and Vhembe district, South Africa. Data was collected through a questionnaire administered to 150 smallholder farmers. The questionnaires were complemented by 8 focus group discussions and secondary data. Multinomial logit regression model was used to analyse the factors influencing smallholder farmers’ choice of climate change adaptation strategies. The study findings revealed that subsistence farmers perceived prolonged droughts (56.4%) as the main shock stressing crop production. Droughts often lead to low crop yield and high crop failure (73.3%). In response to the prevailing climatic conditions different gender adopted different strategies, 41% of female farmers adapted by changing planting dates, while male farmers employed crop variety and diversification (35%) and mixed cropping (15%). The smallholder farmers were vulnerable with limited adaptive capacity to withstand climate change due to compromised social, human, physical, natural and financial assets. The results showed that smallholder farmers tend to adapt better when they have access to extension officers (P<0.01). Therefore, it is important for the government to strengthen the relationship between smallholder farmers and extension officers for better climate change adaptation.

scholarly journals Impact of nano-chelated micronutrients and biological fertilizers on growth performance and grain yield of maize under deficit irrigation condition

Biologija ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohsen Janmohammadi ◽  
Azra Navid ◽  
Asghar Ebadi Segherloo ◽  
Naser Sabaghnia
Keyword(s):  
Grain Yield ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Arid Regions ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Field Capacity ◽  
Plant Performance ◽  
Vegetative Period ◽  
Sustainable Crop Production ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Semi Arid

Sustainable crop production is required for the semi-arid areas, and it will be achieved by the wise use of several production inputs which must be tailored to the unique conditions of each district. Effective nutrient management and irrigation are just two parts of the  crop production puzzle. It seems that nano-fertilizers may have high potential for achieving sustainable crop production. A field experiment was carried out to investigate the effect of adding different fertilizers on maize (S.C 704 Hybrid) growth under various irrigation regimes in Moghan, northwest of Iran. The experiment included three irrigation levels (up to ~100, ~50, and ~25% field capacity) which were applied from the beginning of the reproductive period. During the vegetative period, all plants were fully irrigated. Fertilizer treatments included control (no-fertilizer application), N  biofertilizer, P  biofertilizer, nano-chelated  B, nano-chelated  Zn, complete nanofertilizer, and bulk NPK fertilizer. Investigation of morphophysiological traits such as leaf area, ear length, ear diameter, relative water content, and chlorophyll content revealed that application of complete micronutrients, bulk NPK, and nano-chelated Zn significantly improved these traits over the control. A similar status was recorded for grain yield and yield components. Results indicated that although irrigation up to ~25% of field capacity (FC) reduced the grain yield compared to the control, there was not observed any significant difference between normal irrigation and ~50% FC. The best plant performance was recorded for plants grown by complete nanofertilizer under optimum or ~50% FC. Deficient irrigation up to ~50% FC could be assigned as an appropriate water management strategy in semi-arid regions to minimize water losses through evaporation and achieve higher water use efficiency. In conclusion, a combination of precision deficient irrigation and application of nanofertilizers play a critical role for enhancing the efficient use of water and improving the productivity of maize production systems in Mediterranean semi-arid regions.

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