Theme 3-2: Livestock Production Systems--Poster Sessions
Description
There is an urgent need to increase grain yields and animal products due to increasing human population in Africa. Push-pull technology (PPT) is a conservation agriculture intercrop technology which protects and enhances natural resources productivity and ecosystem services in mixed farming systems. The technology involves growing of a cereal crop with a repellent intercrop, Desmodium genus (silverleaf, D. uncinatum and greenleaf, D. intortum) with grass such as Pennisetum purpureum or Brachiaria spp. planted as a border around the cereal-legume intercrop. The plants accompanying the cereal crop are typically valuable high quality fodder thus integrating crop-livestock production. The PPT was initially developed in the high altitude areas which were mainly suitable for optimal growth of Desmodium sp. In contrast, Clitoria ternatea (Blue pea) is the recommended herbaceous forage legume crop for the low altitude areas. In addition, clitoria and dolichos demonstrated their ability to effectively repel stem-borer pests in push pull technology systems within the coastal lowlands. The experiments were established in four sites representing diverse coastal lowlands (CL) agro-ecological zones (CL3, CL4, and CL5). The species used in the system were: maize (cereal crop, the main target by Spodoptera pests); climate-smart brachiaria grass (as a pull crop) and blue pea (as a push crop). It was demonstrated that the push-pull technology can also control FAW and that this system be promoted for provision of high quality fodder for livestock in smallholder mixed farms.
Included in
Fodder Crop Adoption through Push-Pull Technology (PPT) for Fall Armyworm (FAW) Control in Cereals Cropping Systems
There is an urgent need to increase grain yields and animal products due to increasing human population in Africa. Push-pull technology (PPT) is a conservation agriculture intercrop technology which protects and enhances natural resources productivity and ecosystem services in mixed farming systems. The technology involves growing of a cereal crop with a repellent intercrop, Desmodium genus (silverleaf, D. uncinatum and greenleaf, D. intortum) with grass such as Pennisetum purpureum or Brachiaria spp. planted as a border around the cereal-legume intercrop. The plants accompanying the cereal crop are typically valuable high quality fodder thus integrating crop-livestock production. The PPT was initially developed in the high altitude areas which were mainly suitable for optimal growth of Desmodium sp. In contrast, Clitoria ternatea (Blue pea) is the recommended herbaceous forage legume crop for the low altitude areas. In addition, clitoria and dolichos demonstrated their ability to effectively repel stem-borer pests in push pull technology systems within the coastal lowlands. The experiments were established in four sites representing diverse coastal lowlands (CL) agro-ecological zones (CL3, CL4, and CL5). The species used in the system were: maize (cereal crop, the main target by Spodoptera pests); climate-smart brachiaria grass (as a pull crop) and blue pea (as a push crop). It was demonstrated that the push-pull technology can also control FAW and that this system be promoted for provision of high quality fodder for livestock in smallholder mixed farms.
