CA-CoP CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE

for sustainable production intensification

Alert No. 34 (15 April 2014)
 

1.     6th World Congress of Conservation Agriculture to be held June 22-26, 2014, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

 

The 6th World Congress of Conservation Agriculture will be held June 22-26, 2014, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Learn more at www.ctic.org/WCCA 


The 6th WCCA announces registration is now open at:

https://www.ctic.org/registration/22/step/0/  

 

Concurrent session tracks will explore the following areas of conservation agriculture:

 

Track 1:     Growing with less – the future of sustainable intensification

Track 2:     Weatherproofing agriculture – the adaptation of farming practices to address climate variability

Track 3:     Increasing conservation adoption – how innovative technology and approaches can drive greater adoption of conservation systems around the world.

 

Direct your inquiries to:

Karen A. Scanlon

Conservation Technology Information Center

3495 Kent Avenue, Suite J100

West Lafayette, IN 47906, USA

Tel: 765-494-2238765-494-2238

Fax: 765-463-4106765-463-4106

Email: [log in to unmask]

 

2.     Agroecology for Africa – AfA 2014, International Conference on Agroecology and Sustainability of Tropical Rainfed Cropping Systems,  03-04  November 2014, Antananarivo, Madagascar.

Conference Themes:
The conference seeks to improve both scientific and practical understanding of how agroecology is best integrated in the management of tropical rainfed agriculture for sustainability by African small-scale farmers. Specific themes include:

1- Exploring options for sustainable ecological processes and the development of the (agro) biodiversity of rainfed cropping systems.
2- Identifying bottlenecks and opportunities for implementation of Agroecology.

3- Building capacity in climate-smart agriculture through agroecology

More information at: http://www.cirad.mg/conference/AFA-2014/

 

3.     Regional Conference on Conservation Agriculture for Smallholders in Asia and Africa, Bangladesh, 7-11 December 2014.

 

Conference themes:

(i) Machinery: Design and development of CA-based crop establishment and herbicides spraying machinery, implements, tools for smallholders.
(ii) Weed management: Suitable weed management options (chemical, mechanical, crop rotation and biological).
(iii) Soil, water and agronomy.
(iv) Commercialization adoption and continuous improvement of CA-based technologies.
(v) Policy and institutional framework for the adoption of CA.

 

For more information, please visit:  http://www.scac2014.org/

Contact:
Dr. Md. Enamul Haque ([log in to unmask])
Dr Richard W Bell ([log in to unmask])

 

4.     Conservation Agriculture in Southern Africa: Advances in knowledge. By Christian Thierfelder et al. Renewable Energy and Food System 2014.
(http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1742170513000550)

 

5.     The impact of conservation agriculture on smallholder agriculture yields: A scoping review of the evidence. By Sylvie M. Boulder and Helena Gomez-Macpherson. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 2014.

(http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2013.08.010)

 

6.     Adoption and extent of conservation agriculture practices among smallholder farmers in Malawi. By A. Ngirwa et al. 2014. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. (http://dx.doi.org/10.2489/jswc.69.2.107)

 

7.     From adaption claims to understanding farmers and contexts: A literature review of Conservation Agriculture (CA) adoption among smallholder farmers in southern Africa. By Jens A. Andersson and Shereen D’Souza. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 2013. (http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2013.08.008)

 

8.     Soil enzymes in a changing environment: Current knowledge and future directions. By Richard G. Burns et al. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 2013.

(http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2012.11.009)

 

9.     Research achievements and adoption of no-till, dryland cropping in the semi-arid U.S. Great Plains. By Neil Hansen et al. Field Crops Research. 2012.
(
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fcr.2012.02.021)

 

10.             Up-dating Conservation Agriculture Data Base in AquaStat, FAO  

The CA land area data base is updated periodically based on the feedback received from our regular sources of information and is posted in AquaStat. The latest figures can be seen at the FAO CA-Website at (http://www.fao.org/ag/ca/6c.html).

 

We are updating the CA land area data base displayed in AquaStat (www.fao.org/ag/ca), and are contacting our regular sources of information in the next few weeks. However, anyone else who would like to provide information on the land area under CA systems at the national level would be most welcome.

 

Ideally, we would appreciate receiving from you the CA area information at the sub-national level (by state, province or region), together with any relevant historical information on adoption (such as when was CA introduced; duration under CA – x ha under 3 yrs, y ha between 3 and 6 yrs, z ha more than 6 yrs), cropping pattern, farm size, agro-ecology, constraints, etc.   

 

For the recording purpose please adhere to the reference quantification of the CA definition on the FAO-CA website (http://www.fao.org/ag/ca/6c.html):

 

1. Minimum Soil Disturbance: Minimum soil disturbance refers to low disturbance no-tillage and direct seeding. The disturbed area for seeding must be less than 15 cm wide or less than 25% of the cropped area (whichever is lower). There should be no periodic tillage that disturbs a greater area than the aforementioned limits. Area under strip tillage can be included only if the disturbed area is less than the above set limits.

 

2. Maintenance of organic soil cover: Three categories are distinguished: 30-60%, >60-90% and >90% ground cover, measured immediately after the direct seeding/planting operation. For this data base, area with less than 30% cover is not considered as being under CA.

 

3. Crop rotation/association: Rotation/association should involve at least 3 different crops. However, repetitive wheat or maize or rice cropping that meets requirements 1 and 2 above is not an exclusion factor for the purpose of this data collection, but rotation/association is recorded where practiced.

We would further like to stress that the database counts actual land area under annual crops with CA (permanent no-till). No-till area by crop will not be recorded to avoid double recording of the same land area.

Area under perennial crop systems including orchards and permanent pastures will be recorded separately. If there is CA land area under perennial crop systems in the country, please include the information as separate categories at the sub-national level (by state, province or region), together with any relevant historical information on adoption (such as when was CA introduced; duration under CA – x ha under 3 yrs, y ha between 3 to 6 yrs, z ha more than 6 yrs), cropping pattern, farm size, agro-ecology, constraints, etc.

Amir Kassam

Moderator

 

Plant Production and Protection Division

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Viale delle Terme di Caracalla
00153 Rome
Italy
e-mail:
[log in to unmask]

URL: www.fao.org/ag/ca

Save and Grow

Sustainable Crop Production Intensification

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