Raising the productivity of smallholder farms under semi-arid conditions by use of small doses of manure and nitrogen: a case of participatory research
- Ncube, B
- Dimes, J P
- Twomlow, S J
- Mupangwa, W
- Giller, K E
DOIAbstract
Participatory on-farm trials were conducted for three seasons to assess the benefits of small rates of manure and nitrogen fertilizer on maize grain yield in semi-arid Tsholotsho, Zimbabwe. Two farmer resource groups conducted trials based on available amounts of manure, 3 t ha-1 (low resource group) and 6 t ha-1 (high resource group). Maize yields varied between 0.15 t ha-1 and 4.28 t ha-1 and both absolute yields and response to manure were strongly related to rainfall received across seasons (P<0.001). The first two seasons were dry while the third season received above average rainfall. Maize yields within the seasons were strongly related to N applied (R2=0.77 in season 1, and R2=0.88 and 0.83 in season 3) and other beneficial effects ...
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