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Browsing by Author "Dalton, Timothy J."

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    Descriptive report on cropping systems in Upper West Region, Ghana
    Yahaya, Iddrisu; Hashim, Ibrahim; Naab, Jesse B.; Dalton, Timothy J. (Blacksburg, VA: Office of International Research, Education, and Development, Virginia Tech, 2011-04)
    The challenges one faces in trying to increase improving ecosystem services, improve yields and increase farm level profitability in West African countries largely revolve around the environmental and economic constraints. Improving ecosystem services with a focus on maintaining soil quantity, quality and moisture in West Africa will require the adoption of conservation agricultural practices (CAPS) such as legumes to fix nitrogen, a focus on reduced tillage and practices that maintain as much residue in the system as possible and integrated nutrient, water and pest management practices.
  • Improving soil quality and crop productivity through conservation agriculture in Mali, West Africa
    Kone, M.; Doumbia, Mamadou D.; Traoré, S. H.; Samake, O.; Prasad, P. V. Vara; Dalton, Timothy J.; Naab, Jesse B. (2012)
    Declines in crop yields (21% for sorghum and millet) and soil fertility (29% for C) have made conservation (CA) a significant management option for selected cropping systems of Mali. Baseline assessments and rapid rural appraisals have indicated that the classical CA components need to be modified, not only to remove permanent soil cover, but also to include capturing rainwater. The improved conservation agriculture production systems (CAPS) account for 40 to 70% running off rainwater and feeding cover crops and crop residues to cattle, which is a key component of local production systems.
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    Knowledge of households, cropping systems, perceptions on conservation agricultural practices in Upper West region of Ghana
    Yahaya, Iddrisu; Hashim, Ibrahim; Naab, Jesse B.; Prasad, P. V. Vara; Dalton, Timothy J. (Blacksburg, VA: SANREM CRSP, 2011)
    This poster describes the recent findings of the SANREM CRSP's Long-Term Research Activity 8 in the Upper West region of Ghana. This research team interviewed 358 farmers in 12 communities of 3 districts in Ghana in order to collect baseline socioeconomic data as well as to estimate farmer knowledge and perceptions regarding conservation agriculture. In addition to revealing crop productivity and marketing data, research results indicated that farmers were aware of the importance of soil conservation and expressed interest in learning more about conservation agriculture practices and integrated pest management.
  • Perceptions and performance of conservation agriculture practices in northwestern Ghana
    Dalton, Timothy J.; Yahaya, Iddrisu; Naab, Jesse B. (2014)
    Conservation agriculture (CA) has been introduced to Ghana as a means to mitigate erosion while increasing yields, yet adoption remains low. This paper seeks to determine whether farmer knowledge or farm economics limits adoption of CA. To do so, the researchers compared knowledge evolution of farmers that attended a farmer field school, and those that did not. A baseline survey to evaluate farmer perception and knowledge of CA was conducted before implementation of the farmer field school project. Farmers could choose to participate in farmer field schools and on-farm adaptation studies. After two years, a second survey was conducted to compare the evolution of CA knowledge and perceptions of participating and non-participating farmers. Partial on-farm budgets were developed with participating farmers to compare the roles of economics and knowledge in influencing adoption. The authors conclude that farmer training and farmer-to-farmer communication are effective for CA knowledge diffusion.
  • Production costs and input substitution in Zimbabwe's smallholder agriculture
    Dalton, Timothy J.; Masters, W. A.; Foster, K. A. (1997)
    This article is based on an economic analysis on production costs for smallholders in Zimbabwe. The study tested production costs among socioeconomic groups. Although statistically insignificant, results show that costs are slightly higher for female-headed households. Prices are also higher for those who can only buy small quantities from local traders, who do not have their own transport, tools and equipment. Female-headed households present lower productivity due to sex discrimination seen in lack of resource access such as extension workers and lenders, and other unobservable variables like nutrition and health. Households without draft animals also show lower productivity. Statistically significant results show infrastructures, such as paved roads, as major factors determining production costs. Remote farmers have higher transaction costs.
  • Soil degradation and technical change in Southern Mali
    Dalton, Timothy J. (1996)
    Analyses of sustainability generally focus on sustaining a specific resource using a specific set of agricultural techniques. This study uses new analytical tools to address a broader set of questions concerned with the sustainability of income or wealth, in the context of a dynamic sequence of farm activities chosen in response to changing environmental, economic and social conditions. Long-term field trials conducted in the Sudano-Guinean ecoregion of Mali provide some evidence regarding the dynamics of soil nutrients and crop yields, but provide limited insight about soil degradation processes under actual farm conditions. To simulate the long term evolution of soils under a variety of more realistic farming practices, a detailed biophysical model of crop growth is employed to derive quantitative estimates of important factors controlling yields and dynamic yield trends. The model indicates that severe water and soil temperature stress limit crop growth and hence nutrient uptake, particularly at the low plant densities used by farmers in response to low levels of soil moisture. To assess how farmer practices might change over time, the results of the biophysical simulation exercise are integrated into a dynamic mathematical programming model of household behavior. The model identifies adjustments in production, consumption and investment behavior, and captures their impact on the soil. Several experiments are conducted to determine the long run impacts of introducing new techniques including an improved sorghum cultivar, improved methods of crop residue management, and organic fertilizer production. Results indicate that the adoption of an improved sorghum variety can increase the supply of surplus marketed cereals by more than 30 percent. The long term impacts of various policy alternatives also are simulated including taxes on livestock grazing in communal areas and integration of product markets leading to greater producer specialization.
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    Transient Health Shocks and Agricultural Labor Demand in Rice-producing Households in Mali
    Larochelle, Catherine; Dalton, Timothy J. (2005-11-01)