Burkina Faso

Progress and Activities

Preliminary SRI trials carried out in Burkina Faso

Timothy J. Krupnik, PhD student in the Department of Environmental Studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) reports that very preliminary SRI trials were carried out during the 2006 rainy season in Burkina Faso, West Africa. The 6 volunteer SRI farmers have previously participated in the FAO Farmer Field School Integrated Pest and Production Management program in the Valée du Kou irrigation scheme and are accustomed to experimenting with new production methods.

Conventional farmers¹ practices (FPs) in the study area, currently give a reported average yield of 3.5 t/ha. In the Valée du Kou, typical FPs include applying up to 300 kg of mineral fertilizers per ha; transplanting at 2-3 weeks after nursery seeding, with up to 5 seedlings/hill and around 15 cm spacing. Conventional methods also include ample use of herbicides and pesticides and maintaining at least 5 cm of water throughout the cropping season, when available.

The SRI trials included application of about 3.6 tons of cattle manure/ha, transplanting single seedlings at 10-12 days, with 25 cm spacing in a grid pattern, and intermittent irrigation. Push weeders are readily available in the study area and were employed to manage weeds at least twice during the cropping season.

If you are interested in the results of this prelim SRI trial, please contact Timothy Krupnik at the address below. For more information, contact Tim Krupnik by e-mail, Skype instant messaging (timothy_krupnik); or Skype phone and voice mail (831-706-2652).

This research was supported by the Department of Environmental Studies at UCSC, the FAO Farmer Field School Integrated Pest and Production Management program in Burkina Faso, and the Burkanabé Institut de l¹Environnement et de Recherches Agricoles.

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