1. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
PENTECOSTAL ASSEMBLIES OF GOD- KATAKWI INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT
ORGANIZATION (P.A.G-KIDO)
FRB FOOD SECURITY
CONSERVATIONAGRICULTURETRAININGGUIDEFORTRAINING FARMERS IN THE
PROJECT AREA
FACILITATOR: OPIO GEOFREY
DATE 20TH
/01/2014
PREPARED BY: OPIO GEOFREY
DATE AND SIGN; ……………………………………………………
Program officer food security PAG/KIDO

2. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
He is dedicated to help communities a midlistall theups and downs causehe is ordained to do that God bless you
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
APPROVED BY; SIMON PATRICK OLUPOT.
DATE AND SIGN; ………………………………………………………..
Introduction
Asworld population numberstick ever higherin various partsof theworld“Uganda”in
specific, Ensuring thatfoodproductionkeeps Pace withthepopulationis one ofthebiggest
challenges facing humanity. Large-scale agriculture will provide partofthesolution, But
smallholder farmers (farmers indeveloping countries whooftenhave limited land andcapital,
are poorlylinked tomarkets andare vulnerable torisks). This isexpected toplaya negative role
in feedingthe nextgenerations in various partsof thecountry.
Millions ofsmallholder farmers around theworld however,are facing a serious soil fertility
crisis duetothepoorfarming practices theyexhibitlike mono-cropping,poorrotation
systems, tillage practices etc.This has caused most families tosuffer from foodinsecurity dueto
poordefiled ill harvests from acres ofland e.g. 400kgsofmaize from oneacre (notrealistic)
fating tomalnutrition in mosthouseholdsespecially among thevulnerable groupsi.e.
pregnant,oldandchildren. Hence maintaining andin many cases soil fertility
recovering/Recuperation, has become amajor challenge facing agricultural professionals and
farmers anda numberofinterventions havebeen triedbyvarious professionals andfarmers
buthaveproved less/least economical.
Therefore green manure/cover cropsare hopedtoprovidean effective, locally appropriate and
lowexternal- inputsolutiontothis crisis. This strategy will help improve livelihoods ofsome of
theworld’s mostfood-insecure people.Thiswill only bepossible if theinnovation is shared
withagriculture development workers andsmallholder farmers aroundthe world andmajorly
UgandaTeso.

3. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
He is dedicated to help communities a midlistall theups and downs causehe is ordained to do that God bless you
the user as the biblesays;blessed arethose who both pass and read his word. Best wishes from Geofrey Opio
eswapan itogoi program officer food security PAG/KIDO Amuria field office
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
Withthis objective inmind, PAG/KIDO PentecostalAssemblies ofGod-Katakwi Integrated
Development Organizationis workinghard inher twopolitical districts ofAmuria and
Katakwi whereher programs are localized tomake advocacy abouttheinnovation through
capacity buildingthroughfarmer field schools demonstrations andindividual household trials
byuse oflocally edible andnon-edible green manure cover crops.
Trainingtopics
 Making farmers understand whatsoil fertility is.
 Whatqualities a good &badsoil has.
 Understandingthemajor factor that pre-deposes thesoil toerosion (causes ofsoil erosion).
 Howhave wemost farmers tried toaddress thecauses.
 Making farmers understand whatgreenmanure cover cropsare.
 Helping farmers identify some ofthe commongreen manure cover crops.
 Qualities of agoodgreen manure cover crop.
 Advantagesof agreen manure cover crop.
 Decision making bythefarmers &setting demonstrations.
Trainingmethodologies.
 Brain storming.
Objective(s)ofthetrainingmanual/training.
 Create awareness abouttheuse ofgm./ccs approachtosoil
restoration
 Promotethe useof greenmanure/cover cropsas a wayforwardto
improving andrestoring soil fertility for enhancedfoodsecurity in
Amuria and Katakwidistricts.

4. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
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eswapan itogoi program officer food security PAG/KIDO Amuria field office
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
 Questionsand answers.
 Group work.
 Pastexperience sharing.
 Handon practice.
Trainingmaterialsrequired.
 Flip charts.
 Markers/ manilas
 Booksand pensfor participants.
1.0. Makingfarmerstounderstandwhatsoil fertilityis.
The trainershouldfaststartbyaskingtheparticipants whatsoilfertilityisandafterreceiving
theirideasthenechoonaprofounddefinitiontomakethelearningenvironmentinteractive.
Figure;1guide.
It’s theability ofa given soil toadequatelysupportplantgrowthsignificantly withoutanylack
using itsphysical, chemical andbiological characteristics. This shall beproven bytheyield,crop
phenotypicappearance, growthhabitsandtime frame ofitslife cycle in comparison withthe
pre-knownone. Take forexample maize. Itshouldbein positiontosproutandestablish in
time, havedeep greenleaves, reasonable and soundstalksize andbetterresistance and
tolerance toopportunisticenvironmental stresses like pestanddisease.
2.0. Whatqualitiesa good&badsoil has.

5. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
He is dedicated to help communities a midlistall theups and downs causehe is ordained to do that God bless you
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
This is relevant because thefarmers will beguidedtogettoknowthesituations oftheir soils
andintercept some ofthefeatures outlinedtomake themunderstand thatthereis need tostyle
upin themanagement practices relevant tocounteract theevil.
DivideparticipantsintotwogroupsA& B.Letthemselecttheirleaderwhowill laterpresent.
Onegroupshouldnarrowtoidentifyingthequalitiesofa goodsoilthenthe otherdiscussesthe
qualitiesofabadsoil.Laterthetrainershouldleveltheparticipant’sattentionbyechoingthe
qualitiesofagoodanda badsoil.
Qualitiesofagood/fertilesoil;
 Better/improvedwaterholdingcapacity.Soilswithenoughorganicmatterhave enough
water holdingcapacity because ithas enoughstorage forwater incomparison topoorsoils
withless storage space.This is seen whenit rains heavily, after a shorttime thewateris no
more tosupportcropgrowth.
 BalanceP.H.(Degreeofacidityandalkalinity.Soilswithenoughorganicmatterhave a
balance ofions bothnegative andpositive which are key inregulating soil PH.(thetrainer
shouldgive a comparison whenpaddyrice is plantedontheupland/or g/nutsisplanted on
a significantly water loggedsoil; askparticipants togive answers).
 Goodwaterinfiltrationability.Poorsoilsalwayshave poorporeswhich facilitate water
entryinto thedownerlayers; this is seen whenwaterroles a way whenitrains and vice-
versa for good/fertilesoils.
 Freedomfrompestsanddiseases. Soilsarealways referred relevant if theyare free from any
pestanddisease. Takefor example a soil canbe veryfertile butwithorsusceptible topests,
it’s referred toas poorsoils.

6. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
He is dedicated to help communities a midlistall theups and downs causehe is ordained to do that God bless you
the user as the biblesays;blessed arethose who both pass and read his word. Best wishes from Geofrey Opio
eswapan itogoi program officer food security PAG/KIDO Amuria field office
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
 Freedomfromweedinfestation.Likewitchweed(strigaspps),speargrass(imperata
cylindrical) etc.a soil isrefered notfertile as yield are always compromised bytheweeds
andalso productioncostsare always predictedhigherthan benefitsif cost benefitanalysis
are donebythefarmer.
 Balancepresenceofbothmicroandmacroorganisms. Thisisseenphysically as they
participate in thedecomposition exercise. This is possible because thesoil hasa balanced
PHwhich favors thereexistence andsurvival asthey always feast ontheavailable organic
matter.
3.0. Understandingthemajorfactorthatpre-deposesthesoiltofertilityloss.
Thisismajorlyattributedtoourevildeedsthatwehavedonetothesoilwhichshallbediscussedhere
oneatatime.
Alsounderthissectionthefacilitatormustfirstreceivesuggestionsfromtheparticipants.Plainlyask
themwhatactivitiesthat they majorlydothathaveseriouslypre-deposedtheirsoilstofertilitylosses.
Thenlevelthereunderstandingbystatingthemafewwhileoutliningtheadvantagesandthe
disadvantages.
Factorsthatpre-deposeoursoilstoerosionagentsarethoseactivitiesthatweperformeitherforour
benefitinashortrunbutendup turning illforthesoils.Thisshallincludesomeofthefollowing.
 Mono-cropping.Thisisseenlocallyasfarmers perceivethatifoneharvestedlastseason20bagsof
beansinagivenpieceoflandheisagainoptimistic thatinthesub-sequentseasonhewillgetthe
sameharvestormore.Thishasleadsoilfertilitylossasonecropthatcallsforthesamenutrients is
plantedyearlyendingupdepletingthesoilofthekeynutrients relevantforthedifferentspecies
crop.

7. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
He is dedicated to help communities a midlistall theups and downs causehe is ordained to do that God bless you
the user as the biblesays;blessed arethose who both pass and read his word. Best wishes from Geofrey Opio
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
 Continuoustillage. Thisalsocompromises fertilityasthesoil structureissignificantlyaffectedasits
disturbedyearly/ seasonally.Consequentlyalsothesoilmicroandmacroorganismsareexposedto
veryun-deliciousenvironmentthencetheredeathnotingthattheyarekeyintheweathering
process.Alsowhenthe soiltextureisdestroyed,thesoiltoobecomesveryandliterallysusceptible
to erosionagentslikewind,waterandanimalsuponexposure.
 Applicationofin-organicpesticides,herbicidesandfertilizers.Theseposeahighpercentageof
advantagesincomparisontodis-advantagesbutnonethelesstheredemeritsaremanifestedasthey
helpalterthesoilPHcreatingenvironmentstotallywildtosoilmicrobes.
 Burningofvegetation/cleanweeding.Whenthisiscleared,dearlythesoilremainsbareandnaked
renderingit99%vulnerabletoerosionagentsuponexposure.Ourfarmersare faithfultoburningas
abestwayoflandclearingbutproveslessrelevantasitposesanumberofdemeritslike, destroys
vegetationthatkeepssoilstructurefirm,makessoilsexposedtoerosionagents,thetoomuchheats
makesanumberofsoilmicrobesretirefromexistenceandfinallycauseslossofsomenutrients
through volatilization.
 Continuouscropping.ThishasreallyhappenedandstillhappeninginTesoandUgandaatlargedue
to theinfluenceofpopulationpressureaslandisnotincreasing.Thisforcesfarmerstocultivateland
almostyearlyor seasonally.Thefateisthedepletionofnutrientsrelevantinthesoilasnorestfor
regainingisofferedtothesoil(thetrainershouldbringinanexampleofawomanwhoproduces
yearlywithout restformorethan10 years,whatisherfate?).
 Ploughingat thesamedepthyearly.Thisresultsmajorlytothehardeningofthedownersoillayers
resultingintheformationof hardpanswhichfinallyimpedewhatinfiltrationandaeration
interferingwiththenormalexistenceofsoilmicrobes.Etc.thatthefarmersmaydiscuss.
4.0. Howhavewemostfarmerstriedtoaddressthecauses.
This are measures whichmostfarmers indigenously triedtoemploy torestore there soils from
thesorry states thattheyare now.
Herethefacilitatorshouldprompttheparticipantstodearlyexhaustsomeofthetechnologies
thattheyhaveornotemployedtorestore theresoils.Thisshallhelpyouidentifyill technologies

8. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
He is dedicated to help communities a midlistall theups and downs causehe is ordained to do that God bless you
the user as the biblesays;blessed arethose who both pass and read his word. Best wishes from Geofrey Opio
eswapan itogoi program officer food security PAG/KIDO Amuria field office
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
thattheyhavebeenemployingandalsohelpsyoutoalsolearnmorethatyouhavenot been
knowing.
Tothe bestofmyknowledgeandunderstandingsoilmanagementandrestorationhasbeenanissueand
isstillanissuetobothourfarmersandalsotoourextensiontechnicalstaff.Sofieldtrialsonsomeofthe
technologiesshallberelevantbutkeepingonexaminingtheirrelevance’sincomparisontooneanother
iskeybut notforgetting thecostimplication.
Accordingtomy assessmentonanumberoffarmerstheyhavetriedthefollowing.
A) -TheFirstAlternative:Purchasedinputslikefertilizersfromagro-suppliers.
The figureshowntriestoshowasinglefarmerwhose
landhadadecreasedfertilitylevelbuthopesto
counteractbyusinginorganic fertilizer; yesthishasa
significantimpactonyielddrasticallybutitcallsfor
moreandmoreinthesubsequentyearstosustain
productivity,thereforeafarmerislikelytobecaught
inadilemmawhentheproductioncosts becomes
equivalentorgreater totheoutput.Alsotherearealotofimplicationsattachedtotheirusebothon
humansandsoillife.
B) -ASecondAlternative:Compost. Preparationfromfarmrefuses.
Thisalsoistooofaadvantageousandthedemerits
accordingtosoilscientistsisveryminimalbuta
challengeisposedwhentheissuesconcerningits
application&preparationareconsideredinthe

9. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
He is dedicated to help communities a midlistall theups and downs causehe is ordained to do that God bless you
the user as the biblesays;blessed arethose who both pass and read his word. Best wishes from Geofrey Opio
eswapan itogoi program officer food security PAG/KIDO Amuria field office
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
productionschedule.Thishasanautomatic
implicationon theproductioncosttoafarmernoting
that ourkeyinterventionsarenarrowedattheopposite
ofthementioned.
C) -AThirdAlternative: AnimalManure.
This alsoistooof advantageousandthedemerits
accordingtosoilscientistsare veryminimalbuta
challengeisposedwhentheissuesconcerningits
application&preparationareconsideredinthe
productionschedule.Thishasanautomatic
implicationon theproductioncosttoafarmernoting
that ourkeyinterventionsarenarrowedatthe
oppositeofthementioned.
D) -OtherAlternatives: CoffeePulp, Sugarcane
Bagasse
Coffeepulpsareofrelevanceastheycontainanumberofbothmicroandmacronutrients keyforplant

10. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
He is dedicated to help communities a midlistall theups and downs causehe is ordained to do that God bless you
the user as the biblesays;blessed arethose who both pass and read his word. Best wishes from Geofrey Opio
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
growth. Butthistoo posseveryhighcostsasprocessingis tobedonebeforetheyaretobeused.Butthe
challengeisthatmostofthelocalfarmerslacktheimplements/equipment’skeyfortheprocessmaking
thisinevitablyimpossible.
E) - Butalltheabovecallforalotofinvestmentbeforeimpactisrealized(afarmerneeds subsequent
investmenttoachievegains).Thereforeformostsmallfarmers, greenmanure(gm.) andcovercrops(cc’s)
willbetheleastexpensivewaytoincreasesignificantlytheOrganic manurecontentoftheirsoil.
Makingfarmersunderstandwhatgreenmanure covercropsare.
Beforethetrainerproceeds,he shouldfirsthelpfarmersdifferentiate betweengreenmanuresand
greenmanure/covercropsasthiscan bringa lotofcontroversiesinthecourseofthe discussionfor
a fewinformedfarmers.
Weneedtodistinguishtheterm“greenmanure/covercrops” (gm./ccs) fromwhat aagronomistshave
traditionallycalled“greenmanures”.Thiscanbebrieflystatedbelow.
Greenmanurecovercrops Greenmanures
 Are plantedalone,gm/ccsareusually
plantedtogetherwithfarmers’
traditionalcropsandataboutthesame
time(intercropped), ortheyareplanted
amongthetraditionalcropsjustbefore
 Theyareplantsgrowninafieldorby
themselves (theyaremono-cropped)and
thenploughed intothe soil(asonedoeswith
“manure”) whentheyareintheflowering
stage,whiletheyarestill“green”.

11. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
He is dedicated to help communities a midlistall theups and downs causehe is ordained to do that God bless you
the user as the biblesays;blessed arethose who both pass and read his word. Best wishes from Geofrey Opio
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
thesecropsareharvested(“relayed”into
thetraditionalcrops).Occasionally
gm/ccspeciesareevenplantedundertree
crops. Intheseways,farmerscanfertilize
theirsoilwithoutdedicatinganyextra
landtofertilizers.
 Second,gm/ccsarealmost alwayscut
downaftertheyhaveproducedseeds.
This isdonebecausethefarmerswant to
eattheseeds,sell them,orfeedthemto
theiranimals.And,finally,theytypically
saveatleastsomeoftheseedstoplantthe
nextyear.
 Thisarealwayscutdownbeforeflowering.
Thisistonot letthecroptolosetherelevant
nutrientstofruitswhichalwayshappens
afterfruiting.
 Third, thegm/cc speciesarealmost
alwayscutdownandleftontopofthe
soil, rather thanbeingploughedordug
intothesoil. Thissavestheexpenseof
ploughingordiggingthemintothesoil,
andtheorganic matteronthesurface
protectsthesoilfromthehot tropicalsun
 Thisarecutandplougheddownintothesoil
to enhanceandinfluencequickaerobicand
anaerobicdecompositiontoeasily supply
organic manurecompositeofneeded
nutrients
Finallysmallholderfarmersalsowantthechosenspeciestodo alotmorethanjustfertilize theirsoils.
Oneofthemostimportant benefitssmallholderfarmerswantisforthe gm/ccstocontrolweeds.Infact,
mostfarmersinthetropicsareconsiderablymore interestedincontrollingweedsthantheyarein
improvingtheirsoilfertility.Thatis whywehavejoinedtheconceptof“covercrops” (whosejobisto
controlweeds) withthatof“greenmanures” (whosejobistofertilizethesoil).
Thereforea “greenmanure/covercrop”isaspeciesofplant,usually alegume,whetheritisatree, abush,a
vine,a crawlingplantor algae,whichisplantedbyfarmerstomaintainorimprovetheirsoilfertilityor
controlweeds,evenwhentheyhave manyotherreasonsforgrowingtheseplants likefoodforboth
livestockandhuman.

12. FRB Always promise what you can deliver 2014
He is dedicated to help communities a midlistall theups and downs causehe is ordained to do that God bless you
the user as the biblesays;blessed arethose who both pass and read his word. Best wishes from Geofrey Opio
eswapan itogoi program officer food security PAG/KIDO Amuria field office
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FRBAlwayspromisewhatyoucandeliver|1/1/2014
END.