Adarmi Tulu Mixed Farming Zone Diagnostic Survey

Abstract

The need for participation of farmers in the research process was felt when recommendation from research centers were not transferred to farmers. The purposes of this report are to understand and describe crop and animal production practices, prioritized major constraints and suggest possible technological intervention in Adami Tulu area. Secondary data and exploratory survey were conducted between August-October, 1988. About 50 farmers from 10 peasant Associations were interviewed and their fields were visited. The verification (formal) survey was conducted in March, 1990. A multistage sampling procedure was used toselectsample farmers. All non-accessible service cooperatives were omitted purposely. A questionnaire was designed and administered to 50 randomly selected farmers. The survey area is 130-150 km, south of Addis Abeba. The altitude ranges between 1600m to 1860m. The average annual maximum temperature is 25°C-27°C and the minimum is 12°C-16°C. The average annual rainfall is 736-782mm; July receiving the highest. The soil is sandy to clay loam and the pH is 6.5-9.1. The study area covers about 18200 households and the people are mostly muslim. There is one asphalt road that passes through Meki-Ziway and the feeder road network is fair. About 40% of the fanners do not receive intensive extension services. The average extension agent farmer ratio is 1:1658. Farmers grow many maize varieties to avoid risk and to meet different objectives. These include Limat, Katuinani, A-511 and Sheye. When ever there is delay of rainfall in March-April. Haricot bean and tef areas increase at the expense of maize. Early maturity is the major criteria used by 80% of maize growers. High yield and quality for making injera are also considered as important criteria. Farmers require early-maturing varieties for two reasons (1) unreliability of rainfall during early and late in the season and (2) to shorten food shortage period by using green cobs. Higher yield was considered the most important criteria in selecting sorghum varieties. Katumani among maize varieties and Gcbabe among sorghum varieties are most preferred. On average, a family has 3.4 ha of which 3 0 ha is cultivated, a family size of 8 persons with 1.6 persons working full time on farm, and 2.2 oxen. July-August is the most busy period. The most important crops grown in the area include maize, haricot bean and tef. Haricot bean is the major cash crop. Tef and maize are the second and the third. Other less important crops include Sorghum, Wheat, and Barley. Fanners allocate the most fertile land to maize. Tef, barley and wheat are grown on soils of medium fertility level due to lodging and weed problem. Haricot bean is grown on least fertile soils so that weed infestation will be low. Only 20% of the farmers followed a portion of their farm in 1989 cropping season. Land preparation for maize is started in March. On average, maize fields are plowed 4 times. The average seed rate is about 89 kg ha 1 which is much higher than the recommended seed rate (25-30 kg ha l) in order to reduce risk of poor seedling emergence that may arise due to moisture stress. Soil fertility, weed intensity and seed quality also affect seed rate. The main reason for not planting in rows is shortage of labor. Oxen cultivation — "Shilshallo" — is done 4-5 weeks after planting in July. About half of the farmers thin maize to get livestock feed and to reduce plant population. About 35% of the farmers weed maize once and 63% twice. Only 12% of the sample farmers used chemical fertilizer on maize in 1989 cropping season. Stalk borer is the major pest on maize. Maize is harvested in October-November and the average maize yield in normal years is about 1400 kg ha l. The most common haricot bean variety is mexican-142. Haricot bean fields are plowed 2-3 times. Haricot bean is planted from end of J une to mid-July. The average seeding rate is about 102 kg ha'1. This rate is higher than the recommended seeding rate (70 kg ha ‘) as a substitute for weeding. Haricot bean is not weeded due to labor shortage. It is harvested in October and the average yield in normal years is 900 kg ha'1. Red Tef variety is the most common and it is grown by 64% of the sample farmers and covers about 13% of the total cultivated land. Tef fields are plowed 3-4 times. The average seeding rate is 35 kg ha 1 and planting is done in July. Thirty percent of the sample farmers used fertilizer in 1989 cropping season. About 57% of the sample farmers weeded their tef once and 30% did not. Few farmers used herbicides on Tef. Tef is harvested in October-November and the average yield in good year is about 1100 kg ha'1. The most common sorghum variety grown n the survey area is Gababe. The average number o plowing sorghum field is 3 times. On average fanners use a seed rate of 17 kg ha'1. Oxen cultivation is done 5-6 weeks after planting and it is supplemented with hand weeding, 10-15 days later. Almost all of the farmers do not use fertilizer on sorghum fields. Quelea bird is reported as a pressing problem in sorghum production. Wheat is usually planted in early July with an average seed rate of 126 kg ha'1. Wheat is weeded once and about half of the sample farmers used fertilizer in 1989 cropping season. Barley is planted in late June with an average seeding rate of 188 kg ha'1. Only one-fifth of the sample farmers used fertilizer on barley. About 68% of the sample farmers have at least a pair of oxen and 84% at least own a cow. The survey area seems better support goats than sheep. Cows give birth in February-March when management of the dam is not convenient. Cows are milked twice a day for 6-8 months. Feed is commonly scarce from March to end of June. Some farmers are transhumans; "godantu Diseases and drought are serious problems of livestock production. Due to erratic nature of rain fall, long cycled crops and varieties are substituted by short cycled crops and varieties. Hararge and sheye varieties are being replaced by Katumani and Militia varieties. Relish crops such as field pea, lentil, and faba bean are decreasing in importance due to sever disease and pest attack. Livestock number is declining primarily due to drought and limited field availability. Goats are increasing since they can feed on shrubs.