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Grow and Eat Nutritious Yams
In the Pacific, the yam is a popular and important food crop. In some places yams are eaten every day, particularly when they are in season. In other places yams are eaten only on special occasions. No matter how and when they are used, yams are recognised for their delicious flavour and cultural values. They…
Mulch Increases Yields at Sustenance Farm
Mulch has helped turn Sustenance Farm into one of the most productive farms in a hot, humid region of the southeastern United States. When Harvey and Nancy Harman moved to the farm a few years ago most of the topsoil had washed away and the soil was worn out. In less than two years they…
More with Mulch
Save and edit this resource as a Word document How can you increase crop yields, reduce erosion and improve the soil? By putting a layer of mulch on the soil around your plants. Most mulch is made from plant residues left behind after harvesting. Today we are talking about how mulch can benefit you, your…
Starting a Community Seed Bank: Part 4 – Planting and Restocking the Seed
In Part 3, we explained how to keep important information about the seeds and how to store the seeds in the bank. In this final script, we talk about ways to restock the bank when seed supplies are low. Over time the seed bank will probably give some of its seed to farmers with poor…
Participant Notes on Natural Pest Control, Onion Seed
Network participants find the following techniques work well. Although these articles have been edited, they have not been verified by DCFRN. Natural pest control Virgilio Quitorio Radio Broadcaster, Agriculture Communications Foundation of the Diocese of Borongan Radio DYVW-AM Borongan, Philippines There are natural ways of controlling yard and garden insects without resorting to dangerous chemicals…
The Comeback of Quinoa
Quinoa (pronounced KEEN WA) is an ancient food crop of the Inca civilization that lived in the Andes mountains of South America three hundred years ago. In the Andes today, many farmers still grow quinoa because it is nutritious and tolerates harsh growing conditions. Quinoa is again becoming important in the Andes and in other…
Combine Controls to Manage Striga
Striga Striga, or witchweed, is one of the most important parasitic weeds in agricultural crops. It occurs in many parts of Africa, the Arabian peninsula, India, Indonesia and the United States. Local names are buda (Arabic), isona or rooibloem (Southern Africa), ndokoum (West Africa), bilikasa, talap, and urimallige (India). The economically most important species are,…
Sweet Potatoes: Easy to Grow, Good to Eat
Think of sweet potatoes if you are looking for a crop that grows well in poor soils and fairly dry conditions, doesn’t need expensive fertilizers, and is tasty and nutritious. Sweet potatoes are an excellent crop for small scale farmers. You can eat the leaves and the tubers. Together, the leaves and tubers of sweet…
Participatory Experiments with Green Manure
Have you heard…? From Guatemala The Boca Costa of Sololá, Guatemala is located at the base of the Santo Tomas volcano. The main crops in the region are coffee and bananas (800 to 1400 metres), corn, and beans. The corn growing land is sloping, and soil erosion is a major problem. Maize yields in the…
Ethiopian farmer grows seeds of survival
Mohamad Abegaz Abuye is an Ethiopian farmer who has always known that the traditional, sometimes forgotten crop varieties of yesterday can help feed his family today. Mohamad farms two hectares of land with his only son. He uses almost everything he grows to feed his family. He grows sorghum, corn teff, wheat, fava beans, lentils,…