Small-holder farmers knowledge and information on the impact of climate variability & extremes on livestock production in Limpopo & Mpumalanga Provinces

A study was carried out to investigate the level of awareness, knowledge and information of small-holder farmers (SHLF) on the impact of climatic change (CC) and extremes on livestock production in Limpopo and Mpumalanga Provinces. At least 366 smallholder farmers were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire to elicit responses on vulnerability. Almost all the farmers (96 %) have heard about CC only a few farmers (4 %) did not know CC. The medium for the conveyance of CC information was the main radio (94.32%). Newspapers and television were also efficient mediums in the conveyance of this information, each with the outreach of 16.76 and 32.67%, respectively. Central to the impact of CC was the fact that (90%) of the farmers confirmed that there was a change in grass availability; which contributed to major livestock fatalities of which over half of the farmers (55.19%) attested as the cause. The study found that 86.67% of SHLF who attended awareness meetings indicated that the discussions prioritized adapting to CC. However, SHLF (80.77%) did not have an early warning system. This was coupled with a lack of contingency plans by (84.36%) the farmers to deal with the impact of the said drought on their farms. SHLF (19%) who had facilitated contingency plans indicated that improved aspects of the plan should incorporate the support of their provision feeds, drilling of boreholes, and erection of dams. Based on SHLF perceptions there is a need for strategic shifts from grazing to small scale feed-lots.

Insecticidal potency of mixtures of plant powders and Actellic SuperTM (Pirimiphos-methyl + Permethrin) on Callosobruchus chinensis F. and Sitophilus zeamais Motch

Insect pests still cause substantial quantitative and qualitative grain loss ranging from 20 to 100% in small holder farming systems in tropical countries. Synthetic pesticides are recommended as stop gap measures for the management of stored product insect pests. However, their application has not been fully exploited in small scale farming due to environmental, health, and economic concerns. As a result, new researches have shifted focus to exploiting pesticidal plants as alternatives to synthetic pesticides. Therefore, the current study evaluated mixtures of plant powders and reduced amount of Actellic superTM (pirimiphos-methyl + permethrin) as alternative insecticide formulation against Callosobruchus chinensis and Sitophilus zeamais. Green grams and wheat grains were mixed with a mixture of plant powders in the ratios of 1:1, 1:3 and 1:9 to obtain four rates (0.0, 2.0, 6.0 and 10%w/w). Grains and plant powders were also mixed with reduced amount (10, 25, and 50 %) of recommended rate of Actellic SuperTM to obtain dosages as above. Twenty unsexed adults, 1-5 day old S. zeamais and C. chinensis were introduced into treated grains. The mixture of C. lusitanica: T. vogelii powders in the ratios of 1:1, 1:3 and 1:9 caused mortality in C. chinensis of 55, 95 and 85%, respectively. At the same ratio, E. saligna: L. camara mixture produced mortality in S. zeamais of 77, 82, and 85% respectively. In mixture of C. lusitanica and T. vogelii and reduced amount of Actellic SuperTM by 50% the mortality of C. chinensis was 85 and 80 % respectively. Similarly, E. saligna and L. camara and reduced amount of Actellic SuperTM by 50% caused a mortality of S. zeamais of 48 and 97% respectively. The application of plant powders and reduced amounts of synthetic insecticide has the potential to be applied in stored product pest control

Plant morphometry matches beetle diversity: effects of natural adjacent vegetation on grain Amaranth crop under small-holder conditions

Grain Amaranth, Amaranthus hypochondriacus L., is an emerging arable crop cultivated worldwide. One way to obtain resources from the crop, other than grain, is to grow Amaranths in the dry season and harvest only the leaves. In this environmental condition the response of an Amaranth agroecosystem to the presence of natural and semi-natural habitats or other crops has not been studied yet. We analysed the response of (1) Amaranth morphometry and (2) alpha and beta diversity of beetles to the nearness of adjacent vegetation and natural habitats (such as deciduous forest) at the small-holder conditions. Our results showed that A. hypochondriacus crop plants responded positively to the presence of an ecotone (adjacent vegetation) and the natural habitat (deciduous forest), i.e., A. hypochondriacus plants grew bigger in the section nearest to adjacent vegetation, which was a pattern consistent in time. Moreover, for beetles (considered as a bioindicator group), richness was different amongst the study areas and negatively followed the gradient of perturbation. These results suggest that Amaranth crop is sensitive to the presence of natural and semi-natural habitats but not to other crops in the dry season. In addition, beetles match the response of Amaranth plants. This is the first time that this type of data is recorded in grain Amaranth agroecosystem and it will help to understand the interaction amongst grain Amaranth agroecosystems, biodiversity, and natural adjacent vegetation to boost ecosystem services.

Socio-Economic Characterisation of Resettled Smallholder Farmers in Rural Zimbabwe

The socio-economic characterisation of resettled small-holder farmers under the Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP) in Zimbabwe has blind spots in relation to the emergent transformative social policy features such as ‘social cohesion’, ‘cooperation’, ‘protection’ and ‘accumulation’ which are equally important among land beneficiaries. Using the Sangwe farm, this article departs from the conventional use of the political economy, sustainable livelihoods, human rights-based and neo-patrimonial approaches to experiment with the transformative social policy approach. Using both quantitative and qualitative data in an exploratory research design, the article shows that viewed from the transformative social policy approach, the FTLRP was neither a resounding success nor a complete disaster. The programme actually produced mixed results. The article thus, recommends the use of in-depth, ideologically free and neutral approaches in its analysis so as to reveal its detailed outcomes. Additional studies in which existing land reform policies can be considered in the collective efforts of improving the transformative agenda of the FTLRP across the country are needed.

Influence of season on herd size and birth rate of small-holder goats in the Southern Guinea Savanna

The study aimed to evaluate the influence of season on herd size and the birth rate of goats in Southern Guinea Savanna, Nigeria. The study was carried out in Idah, Kogi State, Nigeria. A total of 54 households from 6 villages were used for the evaluation. Structured questionnaires on the socio-economic characteristics of the goat owners were administered. Data on the reproductive performance of goats were collected by visual appraisal. The data collected were on herd size, sex, number of pregnant goats, lactating goats and newly weaned kids. The result showed that more women (63.6%) were involved in goat rearing than males (36.4%), and about 91.6% of the respondents had a herd size of 1-20 goats, while only 8.4% had a herd size of 21-30. The goat herd distribution showed that the average herd size was 16.5goats, within the range of 7 to 30 goats. The herd structure was 391 females and 184 males. Three breeds of goats were identified, the West African Dwarf (WAD) goats being the dominant (397), followed by Maradi (Red Sokoto) breed (113), and the least was Pygmy breed (75). Season significantly influenced pregnancy and the number of lactating goats. There were more lactating goats during the cold-wet period and more pregnant goats during the hot-dry season. It was concluded that goat production is still at the peasant level, and goats were kept as a supplementary source of income. The conception rate was high during the cold-dry season, which was manifested in the hot-dry season. More awareness is still needed to increase the production of goats in the area. We recommend a reproduction program should be targeted during the cold-dry season where the conception rate is high.

Increasing productivity of mungbean (vigna radiata (l.) Wilczek) under subsistence farming in Eastern Indonesia

Mungbean is one of the major food legume and cash crops grown and consumed by small holder farmers under rain-fed conditions in Eastern Indonesia. However, the mungbean productivity has been low, less than 1 ton ha−1 due to a number of reasons including poor awareness about new varieties and skills of crop management. Two trials: varietal trial and management practices were conducted at Malaka District, East Nusa Tenggara during wet season 2008. The varietal trial in six sites resulted in identification of Sriti, Murai, Betet, and Vima 1 varieties had high productivity (1.1-1.5 t ha−1) with single harvest, shorter maturity, compared to the local varieties which were characterized by lower productivity (1.0-1.1 t ha−1), multiple harvests and longer maturity. The management practices found that selected varieties in combination with improved technology gave doubled seed yields compared to the yields when grown using local technology. These activities showed a reliable pathway to increase productivity of mungbean at small holder levels. The varietal and agronomic management trials demonstrated the impact of the technologies on mungbean productivity at small holder levels and identified future needs to sustain food productivity in remote regions on Eastern Indonesia.

Learning from the grassroots: The case for the consideration of community-based agrarian and food security reforms in South Africa

Studies of projected agro-climatic variability on the productivity of small-holding farming livelihoods have been evaluated by indirect methods using simulation models on country or regional basis but few have been done at the community level. This study explores direct observation of the impact of soil and climate factors on crop and livestock livelihood systems in the three major agro-ecological zones of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It also analyzed their influence on small farmers’ choices of agrarian livelihood activities and the lessons learned for the suitability of agro-ecologically integrated agriculture as part of agrarian and food security reforms needed among small farming households in rural communities of South Africa. The impact of soil and rainfall on the crop and livestock livelihood choices of small-holders in the three major agro-ecological zones were explored. A cross-sectional survey was carried out among 223 small-holding farming households during the harvesting period of rain-fed farming season. Data on household livelihood activities were processed in monetary terms and subjected to gross margin and cost/benefit analysis. Geographic information system (GIS) mapping and statistical analysis were used to determine the association of small-holder maize revenue with agro-climatic variation. The results indicated that crop-based activities performed better in the Grassland zone, while livestock activities performed better in the Savanna zone. Small farms in the Karoo can only productively engage in livestock production. The results also showed that farming activities that combined more vegetable crops yielded greater profits than other field crops. Furthermore, the results indicate that the mixed cropping method remains one of the strategies for breaking-even and risk-bearing effort used by the small-holder farmers considering its cost-sharing benefits. Geographical information system (GIS) mapping further indicates that small-holders’ farming activity was not only affected by soil-climatic factors but by their management skills as well. We recommend agro-ecologically adapted policies and incentives for agriculture-based livelihood activities and intensified mixing of cropping systems among the small-holder farming households in the study area.