Heavy rains disrupt conservation agriculture
Stakeholders in the agricultural sector have said heavy rains experienced in December and January have affected many husbandry practices, including conservation agriculture (CA), an approach that promotes improved and sustainable productivity.
However, speaking in Nkhotakota on Monday during International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) field visit, the organisation’s agricultural specialist Christian Thierfilder said farmers who adopted CA are in a better position to have high yields than those still engaged in conventional farming.
Said Thierfilder: “Things have been difficult because of very heavy rains that happened during the first week of planting. Everywhere, both conventional and conservation agriculture fields have been greatly affected. But it is better with CA fields because the soil is protected against erosion and nutrients losses and the maize don’t turn yellowish.”
He expressed satisfaction with the increase in the number of farmers adopting CA in the country.
CIMMYT is working with Total Land Care (TLC) and the Malawi Government to improve agricultural productivity by encouraging all farmers in the country to adopt CA.
TLC zonal manager Richard Museka encouraged the farmers to plant crops on time and apply all the principles of CA in order to overcome heavy rains and other climatic challenges.
One of the CA lead farmers, village head Kajaliza from Traditional Authority (T/A) Mwansambo’s area, admitted that his village has made tremendous improvements in the seven years the farmers have been practising CA.
