Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-g8jcs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T07:11:19.537Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Adoption of Improved Cultivars of Pearl Millet in an Arid Environment: Straw Yield and Quality Considerations in Western Rajasthan

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 October 2008

T. G. Kelley ,
P. Parthasarathy Rao ,
E. Weltzien R.  and
M. L. Purohit
T. G. Kelley
Affiliation:
lnternational Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) Patancheru, Andhra Pradesh, India
P. Parthasarathy Rao
Affiliation:
lnternational Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) Patancheru, Andhra Pradesh, India
E. Weltzien R.
Affiliation:
lnternational Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) Patancheru, Andhra Pradesh, India
M. L. Purohit
Affiliation:
Central Arid Zone Research Institute (CAZRI), Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

The role of straw yield and quality in farmers' decisions about the adoption of pearl millet cultivars in western Rajasthan was examined using farm household surveys. Information on the relative importance of grain versus straw yield, the perceived risks associated with the use of new cultivars under variable climatic conditions and perceptions of straw quality indicated that improved cultivars of pearl millet were not adopted primarily because of poor grain yield in years with low rainfall, though poor straw yield in such years was also important. These results are particularly pertinent in the light of farmers' perceptions of the likelihood of experiencing drought or low rainfall. If new cultivars of pearl millet are to replace the traditional ones, they must perform better under conditions of limited rainfall.

Type
Research Article
Information
Experimental Agriculture , Volume 32 , Issue 2 , April 1996 , pp. 161 - 171
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Almekinders, C. J. M., Louwaars, N. P. & de Bruijn, G. H. (1994). Local sccd systems and their importance for an improved seed supply in developing countries. Euphytica 78:207–216.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bhaskara Rao, G. (1994) Grazing pressure and degradation of common grazing land in Andhra Pradesh, India: Examinations of supply side ramification. New Delhi: Resource Economics Unit, Society for Promotion of Wastelands Development.Google Scholar
Bidinger, F. R., Weltzien, R. E., Mahalaskshmi, V. S. & Rao, K. P. (1994). Evaluation of landrace topcross hybrids of pearl millet for arid zone environments. Euphytica 76:215–226.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ceccarelli, S., Valkoun, J., Erskine, W., Weigand, S., Miller, R. & van Leur, J. A. G. (1992). Plant genetic resources and plant improvement as tools to develop sustainable agriculture. Experimental Agriculture 28:89–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ceccarelli, S. (1994). Specific adaptation and breeding for marginal areas. Euphytica 77:205–219.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fertilizer Association of India (1992). Fertilizer Statistics, 1991/92. New Delhi: Fertilizer Association of India.Google Scholar
Government of Rajasthan (1986). Jodphur District Census Handbook (Census of India 1981). Jaipur, Rajasthan: Office of Census Operations.Google Scholar
ICRISAT (1993). ICRISAT Report 1992. Patancheru, India: International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics.Google Scholar
Jansen, H. G. P. (1988). Adoption of Modern Cereal Cultivars in India: Determinates and Implications of Inter-regional Variation in the Spread and Ceiling of Diffusion. PhD Thesis, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.Google Scholar
Jodha, N. S. (1985). Population growth and the decline of common property resources in Rajasthan, India. Population and Development Review II, No. 2. 247–64.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kalla, J. C. & Goyal, D. (1987). Annual Report 1986: Impact of Livestock Productivity on Rural Economy in Arid Areas of Western Rajasthan. CAZRI, Jodhpur: Division of Agricultural Economics and Statistics.Google Scholar
Kelley, T. G., Parthasarathy Rao, P., & Walker, T. S. (1993). The relative value of cereal straw fodder in the semi-arid tropics of India: Implications for the cereal breeding program at ICRISAT. In Research for Agricullural Technology Development: Spatial and Temporal Dimensions. 88–105 (Ed. Karen Ann Dvorak). Wallingford, Oxfordshire: CAB International.Google Scholar
Kelley, T. G. & Parthasarathy Rao, P. (1994). Yield and quality characteristics of improved and traditional sorghum cultivars: Farmers' perceptions and preferences. In Variation in the Quantity and Quality of Fibrous Crop Residues: Proceedings of a National Seminar held at the BAIF Development Research Foundation, Pune, Maharashtra, 8–9 February 1994, 133–145 (Eds Joshi, A. L., Doyle, P. T. and Oosting, S. J.). Pune, India: BAIF Development Research Foundation.Google Scholar
Kshirsagar, K. G., Bhende, M. J., Pawar, M. N., Chopde, V. K., & Walker, T. S. (1987). Acceptance of an improved variety competing with hybrids: Farmers' perceptions and early adoption of WC–C75 pearl millet variety in western Maharashtra. Patancheru, India: Economics Program Report, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics.Google Scholar
Ludlow, M. M. & Muchow, R. C. (1988) Critical evaluation of the possibilities for modifying crops for high production per unit precipitation. In Drought Research Priorities for the Dryland Tropics, 179–211 (Eds Bidinger, F. R. and Johansen, C.). ICRISAT: Patancheru, India.Google Scholar
Nordblom, T. L. (1983). Livestock-crop interactions. The decision to harvest or to graze a mature grain crop. Discussion Paper No. 10, Aleppo, Syria: ICARDA.Google Scholar
Nygaard, D. (1983). Tests on farmer's fields: The ICARDA experience. In Proceedings of the First Farming Systems Research Symposium, 76–98. Manhattan, Kansas, USA: Kansas State University.Google Scholar
Rachie, K. O. & Majumdar, J. V. (1980). Pearl Millet. Pennsylvania, USA: State University.Google Scholar
Reed, J. D., Capper, B. S. & Neate, P. J. (1988). Plant Breeding and the Nutritive Value of Crop Residues. Proccedings of a Workshop held at ILCA, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 7–10 December 1987, 255. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: ILCA.Google Scholar
Siegel, S. & Castellan, N. J. (1988). Nonparametric Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences. New York: McGraw-Hill.Google Scholar
Weltzien, E. 1986. Anpassungsfähigkeit nahöstlicher Landgersten an marginale Wachstumsbedingungen. Dissertation, TU München, Freising-Weihenstephan.Google Scholar
Weltzien, E. & Witcombe, J. R. (1989) Pearl millet improvement for the Thar Desert, Rajasthan, India. Vortrage fur Pflanzenzuchtung 15:23–26.Google Scholar
Weltzien, R. E., Whitaker, M. L., Kshirsagar, K. G., Anders, M. M. & Voortman, U. (1984). Traits used by farmers in Rajasthan to differentiate pearl millet cultivars. In Cereal Program Annual Report 1993, 87–91. Patancheru, India: ICRISAT.Google Scholar