Climate Smart Agriculture in Ghana and Beyond Africa

Conservation agriculture (CA) can be defined by a statement given by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations as "Conservation Agriculture (CA) is a farming system that can prevent losses of arable land while regenerating degraded lands.It promotes minimum soil disturbance (i.e. no-till farming), maintenance of a permanent soil cover, and diversification of plant species. It enhances biodiversity and natural biological processes above and below the ground surface, which contribute to increased water and nutrient use efficiency and to improved and sustained crop production."[1]

Agriculture according to the New Standard Encyclopedia is "one of the most important sectors in the economies of most nations" (New Standard 1992). At the same time conservation is the use of resources in a manner that safely maintains a resource that can be used by humans. Conservation has become critical because the global population has increased over the years and more food needs to be produced every year (New Standard 1992). Sometimes referred to as "agricultural environmental management", conservation agriculture may be sanctioned and funded through conservation programs promulgated through agricultural legislation, such as the U.S. Farm Bill.

The first key principle in CA is practicing minimum soil disturbance which is essential to maintaining minerals within the soil, stopping erosion, and preventing water loss from occurring within the soil. In the past agriculture has looked at soil tillage as a main process in the introduction of new crops to an area. It was believed that tilling the soil would increase fertility within the soil through mineralization that takes place in the soil. Also tilling of soil can cause severe erosion and crusting which leads to a decrease in soil fertility. Today tillage is seen as destroying organic matter that can be found within the soil cover. No-till farming has caught on as a process that can save soil organic levels for a longer period and still allow the soil to be productive for longer periods (FAO 2007). Additionally, the process of tilling can increase time and labor for producing that crop. Minimum soil disturbance also reduce destruction of soil micro and macro-organism habitats that is common in conventional ploughing practices.[2]

When no-till practices are followed, the producer sees a reduction in production cost for a certain crop. Tillage of the ground requires more money in order to fuel tractors or to provide feed for the animals pulling the plough. The producer sees a reduction in labor because he or she does not have to be in the fields as long as a conventional farmer.
Key principles of CA
The second key principle in CA is much like the first in dealing with protecting the soil. The principle of managing the top soil to create a permanent organic soil cover can allow for growth of organisms within the soil structure. This growth will break down the mulch that is left on the soil surface.

1. AKOFRESH CLIMATE SMART AGRICULTURE TRAINING FOR OFFINSO NORTH DISTRICT FARMERS 3 RD JANUARY ,2023 BY MR. BRIGHT OPPONG

2. Food Security Dilemma in SSA Human population Increasing human population Increasing demand for food Increasing pressure on sustainable food security Arable land area Declining arable land area due to; - Desertification - Flooding - Surface mining - Accelerated urbanization - Unfavorable farming Practices

3. Unfavorable land preparation practices

4. Fields ready for planting

5. Which of these two fields when planted to maize will give you a better yield and why? Forest/fallow land Bare savannah land

6. Conservation Agriculture Concept: Under forest Production and recycling of foliage results in biological activity, humus formation and dark colored top soil with greater number of soil organisms. Soil is productively active. Continuously cropped fields Biomass is largely removed, soil may be tilled several times and soil is much drier. Soil may be productively dead. Traditionally, shifting cultivation has been used to simulate forest land conditions to maintain the productivity of cropped fields.

7. Traditionally shifting cultivation was used to bring back such lands to arable status Shifting cultivation is no more feasible because of increased pressure on land due to: - increased human population and related factors Q.How then can we improve and sustain the productivity of a field such as this one?

8. What is Conservation Agriculture? Ecosystem approach to regenerative sustainable agriculture and land use management. CA is based on the practical application of context-specific and locally adapted interlinked principles Implemented along with other complementary good agricultural and land management practices Key considerations Sustainability Environmental friendliness Profitability

9. Principles of CA Key principles Little or no soil disturbance Permanent soil cover Diversified cropping systems Crop-Livestock integration

10. Principles and practices. 1. Little or no soil disturbance No soil inversion, no incorporation of residue Direct seeding through crop/weed residue

11. Principles and practices. 2. Ensure Permanent soil cover Food/Cover crops Mu l ch No burning

12. Principles and practices. 3a. Practice Crop Rotations /associations Soyabean to be replaced with maize next season Maize to be replaced with soyabean next season

13. Principles of CA 3b. Crop associations (mixed cropping) Inter cropping Strip

14. 4. Crop-Livestock integration

15. Summary of key features of CA No ploughing, disking or soil cultivation (no turning over or mixing of the soil) Crop and cover crop residue stay on the surface No burning of crop residue Permanent crop and weed residue mulch protects the soil Crop rotations, intercropping and cover crops are used to maximize biological controls Carefully planned crop-livestock integration The closed-nutrient recycling of the forest is replicated

16. Paradigms of agricultural production Derpsch 1999 Old Soil tillage is necessary to produce a crop Crop residue is a waste product and must be buried with tillage implements Burning crop residue is allowed Bare soil is allowed for weeks and months Strong emphasis on soil chemical control N e w Tillage is not necessary for crop production Crop residue is a valuable product and must remain on the soil surface as mulch Burning of mulch is prohibited Permanent soil cover is essential Strong emphasis on biological soil processes and pest control Strong emphasis on crop-livestock integration

17. Benefits of CA Economic Agronomic Environmental

18. Disadvantages of CA Disadvantages mentioned by some farmers: Lower grain yield during the first year Higher incidence of pest in the first year Too much mulch cover Difficult to work through, impedes germination and emergence

19. Challenges of Introducing CA Change of mindset (tradition) Farmers, extension personnel, researchers, government officials and all others involved in agriculture Limited knowledge and capacity of farmers to implement CA at certain standards Lack of capacity to access print and on-line information due to limited formal education amongst smallholder farmers Lack of well established source of knowledge and evidence of CA Learning by doing and believing by seeing Competition for crop residue Livestock feed, building, fuel wood etc.

20. On the hill side Create contour lines using simple tools such as the A-Frame to guide where to Dig canals Establish vegetative barriers Align stones and trash lines Create contour bunds Plant across the slope in-between two contour lines ensuring Minimal soil disturbance Soil cover Diversified cropping system

21. Farming Practices for Soil Health Management Systems • Contour farming Crop rotation Cover crops No-tillage Mulching Multiple cropping Integrated pest, disease & nutrient management

22. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION 2023/1/2 22