Soil infertility is the major cpnstraint to agricultural production and food security in Ethiopian Highland farming systems. Farmers have very limited capacity to invest in fertilizers or soil conservation measures. As a result, yields are low and many farmers are forced to put fallow and marginal lands into production to meet their food needs. A potential solution for fertility maintenance is to use farm-generated resources such as crop residues, farmyard manure and legumes that are intercropped as green manure or used for biomass transfer. However, there are limitations to the amount of biomass these system can produce. There are also competing demands for these resources because they are used as livestock feed, cooking fuel and to generate income.
Publication year
2004
Authors
Language
English
Keywords
cover crops, fertilizers, green manures, guidelines, intercropping, legumes, soil fertility
Geographic
Ethiopia, Uganda
