Your search found 3 records
1 Worqlul, A. W.; Dile, Y. T.; Schmitter, Petra; Jeong, J.; Meki, M. N.; Gerik, T. J.; Srinivasan, R.; Lefore, Nicole; Clarke, N. 2019. Water resource assessment, gaps, and constraints of vegetable production in Robit and Dangishta watersheds, Upper Blue Nile Basin, Ethiopia. Agricultural Water Management, 226:105767. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2019.105767]
Water resources ; Assessment ; Agricultural production ; Vegetables ; Crop yield ; Tomatoes ; Onions ; Irrigation water ; Rain ; Groundwater recharge ; Watersheds ; Water use efficiency ; Fertilizer application ; Farmers ; Farmer-led irrigation ; Models / Ethiopia / Upper Blue Nile Basin / Robit Watershed / Dangishta Watershed
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H049376)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377418314021/pdfft?md5=769bfc34b80853a9a6b06c0b86106dda&pid=1-s2.0-S0378377418314021-main.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H049376.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H049376.pdf
(2.00 MB) (2.00 MB)
The vast majority of farmers in sub-Saharan Africa depend on rainfed agriculture for food production and livelihood. Various factors including but not limited to rainfall variability, land degradation, and low soil fertility constrain agricultural productivity in the region. The objectives of this study were to 1) estimate the water resources potential to sustain small-scale irrigation (SSI) in Ethiopia during the dry season so as to expand food supply by growing vegetables, and 2) understand the gaps and constraints of vegetable production. The case studies were conducted in the Robit and Dangishta watersheds of the Upper Blue Nile Basin, Ethiopia. To document farmers’ cropping practices, field-level data were collected from 36 households who had been cultivating tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) and onion (Allium cepa L.) during the dry season (November – April). Two components of the Integrated Decision Support System (IDSS) - the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) and Agricultural Policy Environmental eXtender (APEX) – were respectively used to assess impacts of SSI at the watershed and field-scale levels. Results suggest that there is a substantial amount of surface runoff and shallow groundwater recharge at the watershed scale. The field-scale analysis in the Robit watershed indicated that optimal tomato yield could be obtained with 500 mm of water and 200 to 250 kg/ha of urea applied with 50 kg/ ha of diammonium phosphate (DAP). In Dangishta, optimum onion yield can be obtained with 400 mm of water and 120 to 180 kg/ha of urea applied with 50 kg/ha of DAP. The field-scale simulation indicated that the average shallow groundwater recharge (after accounting for other groundwater users such as household and livestock use) was not sufficient to meet tomato and onion water demand in the dry season (October to April). The fieldscale analysis also indicated that soil evaporation attributed a significant proportion of evapotranspiration (60% for onion and 40% for tomato). Use of mulching or other soil and water conservation interventions could optimize irrigation water for vegetable production by reducing soil evaporation and thereby increasing water availability in the crop root zone.
2 Worqlul, A. W.; Dile, Y. T.; Schmitter, Petra; Bezabih, M.; Adie, A.; Bizimana, J.-C.; Srinivasan, R.; Lefore, N.; Clarke, N. 2021. Constraints of small-scale irrigated fodder production and nutrition assessment for livestock feed, a case study in Ethiopia. Agricultural Water Management, 254:106973. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2021.106973]
Small scale farming ; Fodder ; Livestock feed ; Nutrition ; Assessment ; Irrigation ; Small scale systems ; Water use efficiency ; Fertilizer application ; Rain ; Runoff ; Groundwater ; Water stress ; Forage yield ; Pennisetum purpureum ; Lathyrus cicera ; Oats ; Farmers ; Watersheds / Africa South of Sahara / Ethiopia / Robit Watershed / Lemo Watershed
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050449)
(3.69 MB)
Livestock is an integral part of the agricultural system in sub-Saharan Africa, serving as a food source, income, fertilizer, and power for farming and transportation. However, the productivity of the livestock system has been hampered due to a lack of sufficient quantity and quality feed. This study evaluates the gaps and constraints of fodder and nutritional potential for livestock feed using small-scale irrigation (SSI). The study comprised of 30 randomly selected farmers from two different ecological zones in Ethiopia. Half of the farmers cultivated Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) in the Robit watershed in northern Ethiopia, and the other half cultivated mixed vetch (Lathyrus cicera) and oats (Avena sativa) in Lemo watershed in southern Ethiopia. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) and Agricultural Policy Environmental eXtender (APEX) were applied in an integrated manner to assess the impacts of SSI at the watershed and field-scale levels, respectively. The watershed-scale analysis showed that there is a substantial amount of surface runoff and shallow groundwater recharge that could be used for dry season fodder production using irrigation. Field data calibrated APEX model indicated that Napier yield could be maximized with 550 mm of water in Robit watershed. While in the Lemo watershed, maximum vetch and oats yield may be achieved with 250 mm of water. The major constraints for Napier and oats production in the study sites were soil fertility, especially nitrogen and phosphorus, and vetch production was limited by high temperature. Fodder samples were collected at the time of harvest to evaluate feed quality. The nutritional analysis indicated that Napier grass has a higher dry matter and ash (mineral) content compared to oats and vetch. However, vetch has higher crude protein content (18%) compared to Napier (10%) and oats (6%). Overall the study indicated that cultivating vetch provided superior performance in terms of providing quality feed and environmental services.
3 Hussein, M. A.; Riga, F. T.; Derseh, M. B.; Assefa, T. T.; Worqlul, A. W.; Haileslassie, Amare; Adie, A.; Jones, C. S.; Tilahun, Seifu A. 2024. Application of irrigation management and water-lifting technologies to enhance fodder productivity in smallholder farming communities: a case study in Robit Bata, Ethiopia. Agronomy, 14(5):1064. [doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14051064]
Irrigation management ; Water productivity ; Irrigation technology ; Smallholders ; Farmers ; Irrigation water ; Fodder ; Pennisetum purpureum ; Watersheds ; Labour productivity ; Dry matter ; Soil water content ; Livestock ; Case studies / Ethiopia / Robit Bata / Yinebo Watershed / Robit Watershed
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052854)
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/14/5/1064/pdf?version=1715935300
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H052854.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H052854.pdf
(2.91 MB) (2.90 MB)
Small-scale cultivation of irrigated fodder is emerging as a vital production system in mixed farming communities. Efficient water management plays a key role in enhancing forage production, especially in the face of changing climate. A field-scale experimental study was conducted in Robit Bata kebele, Ethiopia, with the following objectives: (1) to examine the effects of conventional farmers’ irrigation scheduling versus climate-based irrigation scheduling; and (2) to assess the influence of water-lifting technologies (manual pulley and solar Majipump) on dry matter yield (DMY), water productivity (WP), irrigation labor productivity (ILP), and water productivity in terms of crude protein and metabolizable energy (WP.CP and WP.ME) of Napier grass. The experiment used 10 farmers’ plots each with a size of 100 m2 . Half of the plots were treated using farmers’ scheduling while the other half were treated using climate-based irrigation scheduling. Monitoring of irrigation water use and crop yield took place over two irrigation seasons from November 2020 to June 2021. Results showed there was an interaction effect of irrigation management (p = 0.019) and water-lifting technologies (p = 0.016) with season on DMY. The highest DMY occurred in the first irrigation season with climate-based scheduling and solar Majipump use. The interaction effect of irrigation management and season affected WP (p = 0.047). Climate-based scheduling had a higher WP in the first season, while farmers’ scheduling had a higher WP during the second season. On average, the solar Majipump outperformed the pulley, achieving 5 kg m-3 WP compared to the pulley’s 4 kg m-3 (p = 0.018). Emphasizing the seasonal impact, it is recommended to promote full irrigation (climate-based) in the first season for maximum yield and WP. Conversely, in the second season, advocating only deficit irrigation is advised due to water scarcity and sustainability concerns. Statistical parity in DMY and lower WP with full irrigation in the second season supports this recommendation, addressing the challenge of optimizing water use in the context of a changing climate and ensuring sustainable smallholder agriculture practices. Therefore, implementing appropriate irrigation management alongside efficient water-lifting technologies holds the potential to enhance fodder productivity and bolster smallholder farmers’ livelihoods. Future research should explore the comparative benefits of irrigated fodder versus other crops and the overall advantages of investing in irrigated fodder over vegetables.
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