For further information contact: Reinhardt Howeler

FPR Erosion Control Trials

• In Thailand, six FPR erosion control trials were conducted at three sites, and most (622) farmers are adopting the planting of vetiver-grass contour hedgerows to control erosion, having so far planted 123 km, covering an area of 600 ha of cassava fields.

• In Vietnam, 30 farmers have been conducting erosion control trials and many have adopted the planting of Tephrosia candida, vetiver grass, pineapple, or Paspalum atratum as contour hedgerows to control erosion. Others have adopted intercropping and better fertilizer application practices to increase income and reduce erosion in their cassava fields.

Fertilizer and Manure Applications

• In Thailand, farmers are testing the use of animal and green manures to maintain soil fertility and improve the soil’s physical conditions, in addition to chemical fertilizers.

• In Vietnam, more farmers are applying chemical fertilizers high in N and K, in addition to pig manure, to their cassava crops, markedly increasing yields and net income.

Intercropping

• In Tran Phu commune, Ha Tay province, Vietnam, a women’s group, representing 66 households, have planted cassava intercropped with peanut. They have also planted 2 ha of peanut for seed increase so that next year all the commune’s farmers will be able to intercrop cassava with peanut.

New Varieties

• In Thailand, 87% (more than 1 million ha) of the country’s total cassava area is now planted with new high-yielding varieties.

• At five pilot sites in North Vietnam, the adoption of improved technologies, including new varieties, resulted in gross incomes that were 4 to 5 times higher than those reported in 1994/95, at the beginning of the Project.

Training in FPR

• In Thailand, 15 officials of the Land Development Department were trained in FPR methodologies and visited an FPR pilot site to become familiar with the use of the farmer participatory approach in technology development and dissemination.

• A 15-minute video on farmer participatory research with cassava was produced in Thai and English.

• In Vietnam, 60 local extension workers and key farmers from various pilot sites received training in participatory technology development with major emphasis on soil erosion control and fertility maintenance in cassava-based cropping systems.