Reduced soil fertility and damage from pests and diseases have contributed to a decline in productivity of cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) smallholdings in Sulawesi, Indonesia over the last decade. In a trial on a marginal, acidic soil in South Sulawesi, young PBC123 cocoa trees were supplied with compost, mineral fertiliser (NPK fertiliser and urea) or dolomite, alone and in combination. After 20 months, the trees supplied with compost were taller, flowered more profusely and had a five-fold higher dry bean yield than other treatments. Treatments had no impact on incidence of cocoa pod borer, Phytophthora pod rot and vascular streak dieback. All of the trees supplied with compost survived, while the control, mineral-fertiliser- and dolomite-treated trees had a mortality rate of 22–45% and symptoms of interveinal necrosis. Leaf concentrations of N, P and K were within the normal range in all treatments. In the control and mineral fertiliser treatments, leaf concentrations of Ca (0.28–0.30%) and Mg (0.11–0.15%) were deficient, but were higher in trees supplied with compost (0.78–1.21% and 0.26–0.29%, respectively). The Mg/K ratio in soil-exchangeable cations and leaves was increased three-fold by the combined compost/dolomite treatment. Supplying mineral fertiliser alone resulted in 3.3 cmol kg−1 exchangeable Al, compared to 2.2 cmol kg−1 in control soils. Since 10 kg tree−1 year−1 compost was supplied, a rate that is not practical on most cocoa smallholder farms, further investigation of cost-effective applications of organic matter in conjunction with appropriate formulations of inorganic fertilisers is recommended.

In response to the current needs of humanity with regard to food production, environmental disasters and climate change, it is important to define (livestock) production systems and management practices that are both productive and ecologically sustainable. We qualitatively assessed advanced silvopastoral experiences in five ecologically and culturally distinct regions in Chiapas, Mexico, given their ability to provide key services: internal (productivity and productive resiliency) and external (climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation). We propose 20 indicators that reflect management, resources, use of external inputs, availability of food, commercial products and animal feed and trees in grazing and forest areas. Sets of some indicators form criteria for dependence on external inputs, productive diversification with emphasis on food security, soil conservation, tree cover and landscape connectivity, among others. Indicators and thresholds were adjusted to critical (traffic light) levels, based on field data. Comparing the levels reached by the studied experiences, we found that most of the resulting services go hand in hand; so ‘win–win’ situations are possible to be achieved. The elements and practices that affect both internal and external services were explored. The red light critical points in each production unit were identified so that they could be attended. Experiences that presented higher levels in assessment criteria could serve as examples to enable the improvement of livestock systems under similar conditions. We propose this assessment as a tool for rapid intervention that can be widely applied to livestock systems, from conventional to organic or diversified, because of the criteria used. However, it can be more flexible, as new criteria can be added and thresholds can be adjusted for other types of production systems, always reflecting local and desired conditions. The proposed indicators can be also used as a basis for a quantitative agroecosystem assessment.

Berseem clover (Trifolium alexandrinum L.) is an important forage legume and is the primary winter forage crop in Pakistan. There are significant gaps in yield potential among varieties of berseem clover, as well as yields obtained at research stations and on-farm. To address this problem a survey of farmers was undertaken in the districts of Kasur and Okara, Punjab, Pakistan to determine the level of knowledge and understanding of berseem forage cultivation and seed production. The study comprised 44% smallholder (<3 ha), 26% medium (3–5 ha) and 30% large farmers (>5 ha) with average age of 42 years. Most farmers had little or no knowledge of the role of seed quality, inoculation with rhizobium, pollination, fertiliser use, irrigation management and the importance of forage nutritional value in improving livestock productivity. Most farmers (56%) had received no input from the government or private sector to improve forage production, relying instead on traditional knowledge. Knowledge of the importance of land preparation (95%), sowing rate (98%) and insect and pest management (75%) was higher than seed selection and fertilisation. Adoption of improved varieties (3%) and production technologies (14%) was low due to various constraints including ignorance, high cost of inputs, lack of availability of inputs in the market and a perceived high level of financial risk. Almost 100% of the respondents agreed that seed of improved varieties was a pre-requisite for higher forage and seed production as well as essential to start village-based forage seed enterprises.

When the agricultural value chain involves profit making, it results in changes in the production and distribution relationships among men and women in terms of access to and control of markets, resources and benefits emanating from product value chain participation. This affects not only individual incomes but also gender equality. This study examined gender relationships in the cassava value chain in the Kigoma region of Tanzania. The aim was to assess gender participation in the cassava value chain. Multi-stage sampling was used to select the respondents in four districts. A structured questionnaire was administered to 384 randomly selected household heads. A chi-square test was used to test for significant relationships among the variables. Results indicated that gender was significantly related to socio-economic characteristics. About 34% of the women participating in the cassava value chain were young, some below 17 years of age. There were significant relationships between gender and access to resources (land, extension services and markets), control over resources (land, house and household assets) and benefits (revenue) generated from cassava value chains. Overall, there was gender disparity in participation along the cassava value chain. These results suggest that any intervention in the cassava value chain should consider gender relations to benefit men and women and alleviate household poverty.

Field studies were conducted during the 2014 and 2015 wet seasons at Zaria in the northern Guinea savanna and at Iburu in the southern Guinea savanna of Nigeria to determine the productivity of maize–soybean intercropping system. There were four treatment combinations in the experiment: sole maize; sole soybean; maize spaced at 50 cm and intercropped with soybean; and maize spaced at 65 cm and intercropped with soybean. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The results showed that sole cropped maize and soybean generally outperformed the intercropped component crops. Land Equivalent Ratio (LER) was greater than 1 for all the intercrop treatments, indicating that it is advantageous to grow maize and soybean in association than in pure stands. Except for 2014 in Zaria, LER for intercropped maize spaced at 50 cm was higher than that for maize spaced at 65 cm. Gross Monetary Value (GMV) was generally higher for intercrops than sole crops except in Iburu in 2015 where GMV for intercropped maize spaced at 65 cm was similar to those of sole maize and soybean. Monetary Advantage Index (MAI) was positive for all intercrop treatments in both locations and years, which shows definite yield and economic advantages compared to the sole cropping systems. This suggests that farmers can intercrop soybean and maize with maize spaced at 50 cm and 65 cm.

Weed management in rice depends on establishment method and proper selection of herbicide. A field experiment was conducted during dry seasons of 2013 and 2014 to develop a robust strategy for effective weed management in aerobic rice system for tropical rice belts. The efficacy of post-emergent herbicides bispyribac-sodium, azimsulfuron and flucetosulfuron were evaluated under different rice establishment methods (row sowing, spot seeding and broadcasting). Grass weed species constituted 58–68% of the total weed density across the establishment methods in the weedy check treatment. The total weed density and weed biomass were lowest in spot seeding with azimsulfuron (35 g active ingredient (a.i.) ha−1) 30 and 60 days after sowing. Among herbicides, use of azimsulfuron caused the highest grain yield (5.2 Mg ha−1), realizing 72% increase in grain yield over the weedy check. Yields in row sowing and spot seeding were similar and the same was verified when comparing yields in plots treated with bispyribac-sodium and azimsulfuron. Based on our findings and considering both weed presence and grain yield, azimsulfuron in spot seeding can be recommended in aerobic rice.

More than 10 Sub1 rice varieties carrying the submergence-tolerance gene have been released for flood-prone environments in tropical Asia. Improved management practices have been shown to enhance yields of these varieties. The objective of this study was to dissect the growth response of IR64-Sub1 to integrated crop management in a flash flood at the late vegetative stage. Field experiments were conducted at the International Rice Research Institute, Philippines in the dry and wet seasons of 2013. Complete submergence was imposed for 14 days starting at 37 days after transplanting. Integrated management practice (IMP) consisting of: (i) application of fertilizer (compared with no fertilizer use in conventional practice), (ii) use of lower seeding rate (400 vs. 800 kg ha−1) in the nursery bed, (iii) use of slightly older seedling for transplanting (30 vs. 18 day-old), and (iv) higher planting density (33.3 vs. 25.0 hills m−2) gave yields higher by 8–87% compared with the conventional practice (1.3–2.4 t ha−1) in both seasons. This was attributable to higher shoot biomass after water recession, more tillers m−2, greater leaf area expansion and shoot biomass accumulation during the recovery period, and higher filled-grain percentage at maturity. The improved management had no positive effect on panicle formation, spikelets panicle−1, and harvest index since stress was imposed at the transition period between vegetative and reproductive phases. Our results suggest the appropriate nursery management, for submergence-resilient seedlings to further alleviate damage caused by flash floods and increase the yield of Sub1 varieties in flood-prone rainfed lowlands.

Competition from weeds is one of the major biophysical constraints to rice (Oryza spp.) production in sub-Saharan Africa. Smallholder rice farmers require efficient, affordable and labour-saving weed management technologies. Mechanical weeders have shown to fit this profile. Several mechanical weeder types exist but little is known about locally specific differences in performance and farmer preference between these types. Three to six different weeder types were evaluated at 10 different sites across seven countries – i.e., Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, Rwanda and Togo. A total of 310 farmers (173 male, 137 female) tested the weeders, scored them for their preference, and compared them with their own weed management practices. In a follow-up study, 186 farmers from Benin and Nigeria received the ring hoe, which was the most preferred in these two countries, to use it during the entire crop growing season. Farmers were surveyed on their experiences. The probability of the ring hoe having the highest score among the tested weeders was 71%. The probability of farmers’ preference of the ring hoe over their usual practices – i.e., herbicide, traditional hoe and hand weeding – was 52, 95 and 91%, respectively. The preference of this weeder was not related to gender, years of experience with rice cultivation, rice field size, weed infestation level, water status or soil texture. In the follow-up study, 80% of farmers who used the ring hoe indicated that weeding time was reduced by at least 31%. Of the farmers testing the ring hoe in the follow-up study, 35% used it also for other crops such as vegetables, maize, sorghum, cassava and millet. These results suggest that the ring hoe offers a gender-neutral solution for reducing labour for weeding in rice as well as other crops and that it is compatible with a wide range of environments. The implications of our findings and challenges for out-scaling of mechanical weeders are discussed.

Experiments were conducted across 2 years to determine the effect of harvesting methods – combine harvester and hand harvesting – and harvest time during ripening on milling quality of long grain rice grown in the rainfed lowland ecosystem in Cambodia. Head rice yield (HRY) was highest when rice was harvested 25 days after flowering and decreased with delay in harvesting at 35 and 45 days after flowering. This was accompanied by a general decline in grain moisture content at harvest, although it was still high at 24–25% at 35 days after flowering. The decline in HRY was associated with increases in fissured grain percentage observed immediately after harvest. Hand harvesting produced 2–6% higher HRY than combine harvesting. Fissured grain in hand harvested crops was lower in year 1, but was similar to combine harvested crops in year 2. Both hand and combine harvested crops were sun-dried but rough rice harvested by combine was dried on plastic sheet and this may have contributed to reduction in HRY. Maximum HRY percentage was only about 44% and the factors contributing to this low HRY were discussed. Harvesting time and methods had no significant effect on grain yield, but the field grain loss during the harvesting operation was 2–5% higher in combine than hand harvesting.

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is an important staple crop in South Sudan. Current rice consumption in the country is approximately 23,000 mg year−1 of which more than 75% is imported. We investigated farmers’ perceived rice production and productivity constraints and choice of rice ideotypes across rainfed and irrigated rice agro-ecologies in South Sudan to guide breeding and policy interventions. Data were gathered through participatory rural approaches and a formal structured survey involving 136 rice farmers from major rice growing areas of South Sudan. Farmers generally cultivated old rice varieties with low yields varying from 0.4 to 1.6 mg ha−1. Pair-wise ranking based on respondents score indicated yield, early maturity, cooking and eating quality, nutritional importance and drought tolerance as the most desirable traits of rice ideotypes. Further, imported rice varieties were best ranked for their sweet and appealing taste, rich aroma, grain shape and size, swelling capacity and non-stickiness during cooking. Major perceived constraints to rice production were unreliable rainfall, poor access to credit facilities, poor soil and water management practices, poor rice storage facilities, inadequate and poor processing machines as well as limited technical skills in rice production. The results show a need for integration of farmers’ and stakeholders’ preferences in variety development process and the desirability of releasing site-specific rice cultivars given the differences in bio-physical, socio-cultural and farmers preferences across major rice growing areas of South Sudan.