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  1. 2003-12-20 Little bugs, big problems Nitrogen fixation on a national scale From soil erosion to soil quality Healing the earth - an Ethiopian story Understanding traditional terracin Adoption of green manure and cover crops Kick-starting legumes Bioremediation: decontaminating polluted soils Using weed to...
  2. Cross-slope barriers are measures on sloping lands in the form of earth or soil bunds, stone lines, and / or vegetative strips for reducing runoff velocity and soil loss, thereby contributing to soil, water and nutrient conservation. This is achieved by reducing steepness and / or length of...
  3. Most farmers know very well that in a forest many plants grow all the time, but the soil never wears out. The soil in a forest also never gets so hard that someone has to plow it. Even more amazing, the plants in a forest do not suffer from droughts. In other words, forest soils stay productive,...
  4. This article is from ECHO Asia Note #3 Crotalaria juncea, or sunn hemp, is a member of the pea family (Fabaceae) grown in many countries as a green manure or forage crop. Originating in South Asia, but with a common cultivar developed in Hawaii, it is a fastgrowing, drought-tolerant and...
  5. 1985-01-01 Green manure crops are crops that are [often times in North America] grown to be turned under to increase soil fertility. Leguminous green manure crops ( i.e., those which can make nitrogen fertilizers from atmospheric nitrogen) can offer small-scale Third World farmers a tremendous number of...
  6. 2010-07-01 This article is from ECHO Asia Note #6 The arrival of a new crop No one seems to know whymembers of the Lisuhilltribe in northernThailand refer to a certain field crop with brilliantyellow flowers as Japanesesesame. The seeds of thiscrop yield quality cooking oil, but the plant looksnothing like...
  7. 1990-01-01 This report summarizes aspects of several experiments at the Centro de Pesquisa Agropecuaria do Cerrado at Planaltina, Brazil where green manure legumes were evaluated as sources of nitrogen for succeeding nonlegume crops. 50 pages, illustrations
  8. Key Resource
    2019-05-21 Now available through Amazon as well as the ECHO Bookstore Smallholder farmers around the world face some of the harshest growing conditions globally, yet they produce the majority of the world’s food. Soils in these areas often lack nutrient and water holding capacities, due to erosion or poor...
  9. Calliandra is a vigorous, nitrogen-fixing, bushy tree that can be fast-growing on poor soils. The tree responds well to coppicing, is a good fuelwood source and the leaves provide excellent fodder. Calliandra is used to enrich soil and provide stability on steep slopes.
  10. Session:The major factor in the increase in droughts across Africa has been caused mostly by the gradual death of fallowing, and the resulting decrease in rainwater infiltration from about 60% down to 20% in most areas. GM/CCs are the only feasible way to save Africa from the rapidly increasing...