A Field Day on Conservation Agriculture

Murewa District, Zimbabwe - Mr. & Mrs. Mugarire have worked hard over the last few months, since the first rains have hit the country. Preparing the land, seeding, weeding, mulching, ... . This middle-aged couple have been thorough in applying the principles of conservation agriculture, a farming method widely promoted in Zimbabwe.

Conservation agriculture (commonly known as CA) is a concept for resource-saving agricultural crop production that strives to achieve acceptable profits together with high and sustained production levels while concurrently conserving the environment” (FAO, 2007 - see also Wikipedia). CA offers an alternative to expensive fertiliser and input based agriculture, which is much welcomed in the current economic environment.

CA focuses on three key principles:
- minimum mechanical soil disturbance which is essential to maintaining minerals within the soil, stopping erosion, and preventing water loss from occurring within the soil
- top soil management to create a permanent organic soil that cover can allow for growth of organisms within the soil structure. These organisms will break down the mulch that is left on the soil surface. The breaking down of this mulch will produce a high organic matter level which will act as a fertilizer for the soil surface.
- crop rotation with more than two crop species. Rotational crops will act as a natural insecticide and herbicide against specific crops. Not allowing insects or weeds to establish a pattern within fields will help to eliminate problems with yield reduction and infestations within fields.

Mr. and Mrs. Mugarire have been elected best CA farmers in their community and were rewarded with 50 kg of fertiliser and 20kg of maize seeds, for the next planting season.

For the occasion, a field day was organised with the help of CTDT. About 150 community members turned up to visit Mr. and Mrs. Mugarire’s homestead and field. They eagerly answered their visitors’ questions about conservation agriculture, its benefits and its challenges.

The field day included speeches by local dignitaries and entertainment by local schoolchildren, and ended with a lunch offered by the community and CTDT.