Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

The use of the marasha ard plough for conservation agriculture in Northern Ethiopia

  • Review Article
  • Published:
Agronomy for Sustainable Development Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Indigenous tillage systems are often undervalued in conservation agriculture (CA). In Ethiopia, since the 1970s there have been several attempts to develop and implement often major modifications to the marasha, the traditional ox-drawn ard plough, with the main aim of creating various types of surface depressions. The establishment of furrows and ridges increases soil moisture and grain yield and reduces soil loss. Dissemination of the modified tools, however, remains limited. Recent tendencies are towards testing relatively simple conservation agriculture tools. Major challenges remain, however; the need for capacity building and problems in marketing the tools. From experimental plots, often worked with exotic tools, there is a long road to real adoption by farmers. Rather than developing yet another CA tool, we investigate whether CA-based resource-conserving technologies might be achieved successfully with simple changes to the use of the marasha. On-farm observations on traditional conservation techniques were carried out throughout the northern Ethiopian highlands, and experiments were conducted involving resource-conserving technologies. Farmers traditionally use the marasha ard plough for various types of in situ soil and water conservation by creating surface depressions, either at the moment of sowing (terwah, derdero) or after crop emergence (shilshalo). Building upon this indigenous knowledge, we further developed resource-conserving technologies into a system named derdero+, whereby the traditional ard plough was found suitable for a “bed-and-furrow” system. From the socio-economic point of view, implementation of permanent beds and retention of stubble leads to decreased oxen (and straw) requirements, but also to an increased need for weeding in the first years. To overcome that problem, we introduced glyphosate herbicide into the tillage system. The decreased runoff (−51%) and soil loss (−81%) allow protection of the downslope areas from flooding, but soil nutrient build-up and soil structure improvement are slow processes, and hence the full benefit of the permanent bed system can only be expected after some years. Overall, this type of resource-conserving technology can be part of the ongoing intensification process which includes physical soil and water conservation, slope reforestation and irrigation development. It has, however, its own niche: the cropped land sensu stricto, i.e. the most important part of the land, both for the farmer and for a nation that is striving for long-term food security.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abiye A., Jabbar M., Mohamed Saleem M.A., Erkossa T. (2002) Technical and economic performance of animal-drawn implements for minimum tillage: experience on Vertisols in Ethiopia, Exp. Agric. 38, 185–196.

    Google Scholar 

  • Asefa T., Tanner D., Bennie A.T.P. (2004) Effects of stubble management, tillage and cropping sequence on wheat production in the southeastern highlands of Ethiopia, Soil Till. Res. 76, 69–82.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Audebeau C., Mosséri V. (1916) Le labourage en Egypte, Bull. Inst. Egyptien 10, 88–127.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aune J.B., Matewos T., Fenta G., Abyie A. (2001) The ox ploughing system in Ethiopia: can it be sustained? Outlook Agric. 30, 275–280.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bédoucha G. (1986) Une antique tradition chez les hommes de tribu des hauts plateaux yémenites: la culture du sorgho, Techniques et Culture 8, 1–68.

    Google Scholar 

  • Behnstedt P. (1987) Die Dialekte der Gegend von Sa’dah (Nord-Jemen), Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden.

  • Blum A. (2004) Sorghum physiology, in: Nguyen H.T., Blum A. (Eds.), Physiology and Biotechnology Integration for Plant Breeding, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA, pp. 141–224.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blum A., Arkin G.F., Jordan W.R. (1977) Sorghum root morphogenesis and growth. I. Effect of maturity genes, Crop Sci. 17, 149–153.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bradford J.M., Peterson G.A. (2000) Conservation Tillage, in: Sumner M.E. (Ed.), Handbook of soil science, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA, pp. G247–G269.

    Google Scholar 

  • Christoffoleti P.J., Galli A.J.B., Carvalho S.J.P., Moreira M.S., Nicolai M., Foloni L.L., Martins B.A.B., Ribeiro D.N. (2008) Glyphosate sustainability in South American cropping systems, Pest Manag. Sci. 64, 422–427.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Deckers J., Teshome Y., Negeri A., Seyfou K., (2001) Teff, in: Raemaekers R. (Ed.), Crop Production in Tropical Africa, Directorate General for International Cooperation, Brussels, pp. 96–101.

  • Descheemaeker K., Nyssen J., Rossi J., Poesen J., Mitiku H., Moeyersons J., Deckers J. (2006) Sediment deposition and pedogenesis in exclosures in the Tigray Highlands, Ethiopia, Geoderma 132, 291–314.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Desta G., Nyssen J., Poesen J., Deckers J., Mitiku H., Govers G., Moeyersons J. (2005) Effectiveness of stone bunds in controlling soil erosion on cropland in the Tigray highlands, Northern Ethiopia, Soil Use Manage. 21, 287–297.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ekboir J. (2002) CIMMYT 2000–2001 world wheat overview and outlook: developing no-till packages for small-scale farmers, Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maiz y Trigo (CIMMYT), México.

    Google Scholar 

  • Erkossa T., Stahr K., Gaiser T. (2005) Effect of different methods of land preparation on runoff, soil and nutrient losses from a Vertisol in the Ethiopian highlands, Soil Use Manage. 21, 253–259.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fekadu Getnet. (2006) Soil physical properties and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) yield under conservation agriculture in Mayzeg-zeg watershed — Dogu’a Tembien, Unpub. M.Sc. thesis, Tropical Land Resources Management, Mekelle University, Ethiopia.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gebreyesus B., Wortmann C.S., Martha M., Heluf G., Amare B. (2006) Micro-Basin Tillage for Grain Sorghum Production in Semiarid Areas of Northern Ethiopia, Agron. J. 98, 124–128.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hussein M.A., Bjornstad A., Aastveit A.H., Berg T., Haile G. (2000) The effect of plant population and water conservation methods on grain yield of early-maturing maize varieties in the moisture-stress areas of southern Ethiopia, Afr. Crop Sci. J. 8, 159–170.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ito M., Matsumoto T., Quinones M.A. (2007) Conservation tillage practice in sub-Saharan Africa: the experience of Sasakawa Global 2000, Crop Prot. 26, 417–423.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jutzi S., Anderson F., Abiye A. (1987) Low-cost modifications of the traditional Ethiopian tine plough for land shaping and surface drainage of heavy clay soil: preliminary results from on-farm verification trials, ILCA Bull. 27, 25–31.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leeuwis C., Van den Ban A. (2004) Communication for Rural Innovation, Rethinking Agricultural Extension, Blackwell Science, Oxford.

    Google Scholar 

  • McHugh O.V., Steenhuis T.S., Berihun A., Fernandes E. (2007) Performance of in situ rainwater conservation tillage techniques on dry spell mitigation and erosion control in the drought-prone North Wello zone of the Ethiopian highlands, Soil Till. Res. 97, 19–36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Medina G.G., Rumayor R.A., Cabañas C.B., Luna F.M., Ruiz C.J.A., Gallegos V.C., Madero T.J., Gutiérrez S.R., Rubio D.S., Bravo L.A.G. (2003) Potencial productivo de especies agrícolas en el estado de Zacatecas, Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales, Agrícolas y Pecuarias, Centro de Investigación Regional Norte Centro, Calera, Zacatecas, México.

    Google Scholar 

  • Melesse T., Hoogmoed W.B., Rockström J., Savenije H.H.G. (2009) Conservation tillage implements and systems for smallholder farmers in semi-arid Ethiopia, Soil Till. Res. 104, 185–191.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Melesse T., Rockström J., Savenije H.H.G., Hoogmoed W.B., Dawit A. (2008) Determinants of tillage frequency among smallholder farmers in two semi-arid areas in Ethiopia, Phys. Chem. Earth, Parts A/B/C 33, 183–191.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mitiku H., Herweg K., Stillhardt B. (2006) Sustainable Land Management — a new Approach to Soil and Water Conservation in Ethiopia, Mekelle University, Mekelle, Ethiopia, University of Berne, Berne, Switzerland.

    Google Scholar 

  • Muliokela S.W., Hoogmoed W.B., Stevens P., Dibbits H. (2001) Constraints and possibilities for conservation farming in Zambia, Conservation agriculture, a worldwide challenge, Proceedings 1st Wold congress on Conservation Agriculture, FAO, Madrid, pp. 61–65.

  • Nyssen J., Clymans W., Poesen J., Vandecasteele I., De Baets S., Nigussie H., Naudts J., Amanuel H., Moeyersons J., Mitiku H., Deckers J. (2009) How soil conservation affects the catchment sediment budget — a comprehensive study in the north Ethiopian highlands, Earth Surf. Proc. Landf. 34, 1216–1233.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nyssen J., Naudts J., De Geyndt K., Mitiku H., Poesen J., Moeyersons J., Deckers J. (2008) Soils and land use in the Tigray highlands (Northern Ethiopia), Land Degrad. Dev. 19, 257–274.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nyssen J., Poesen J., Mitiku H., Moeyersons J., Deckers J. (2000) Tillage erosion on slopes with soil conservation structures in the Ethiopian highlands, Soil Till. Res. 57, 115–127.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nyssen J., Poesen J., Moeyersons J., Deckers J., Haile M., Lang A. (2004) Human impact on the environment in the Ethiopian and Eritrean highlands — a state of the art, Earth-Sci. Rev. 64, 273–320.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nyssen J., Poesen J., Moeyersons J., Mitiku H., Deckers J. (2008) Dynamics of soil erosion rates and controlling factors in the Northern Ethiopian Highlands — towards a sediment budget, Earth Surf. Proc. Landf. 33, 695–711.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nyssen J., Vandenreyken H., Poesen J., Moeyersons J., Deckers J., Mitiku H., Salles C., Govers G. (2005) Rainfall erosivity and variability in the Northern Ethiopian Highlands, J. Hydrol. 311, 172–187.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rajaram G., Erbach D.C., Warren D.M. (1991) The role of indigenous tillage systems in sustainable food production, Agric. Human Values 8, 149–155.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rezene F., Woldeyesus S., Aliye H., Asfaw N. (1992) Weed control research on maize in Ethiopia: A review, in: Benti T., Ransom J.K. (Eds.), Proceedings of the First National Maize Workshop of Ethiopia. IAR/CIMMYT, Addis Ababa, pp. 62–73.

  • Rockström J., Kaumbutho P., Mwalley J., Nzabi A.W., Melesse T., Mawenya L., Barron J., Mutua J., Damgaard-Larsen S. (2009) Conservation farming strategies in East and Southern Africa: yields and rain water productivity from on-farm action research, Soil Till. Res. 103, 23–32.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sayre K. (2004) Raised-bed cultivation, in: Lal R. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Soil Science, Marcel Dekker, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simoons F.J. (1958) The agricultural implements and cutting tools of Begemder and Semyen, Ethiopia, Southwest. J. Anthropol. 14, 386–406, http://www.jstor.org/stable/3628933.

    Google Scholar 

  • Solomon G., Mouazen A.M., Van Brussel H., Ramon H., Nyssen J., Verplancke H., Mintesinot B., Deckers J., De Baerdemaeker J. (2006) Animal drawn tillage, the Ethiopian ard plough, maresha: a review, Soil Till. Res. 89, 129–143.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spaccini R., Mbagwu J.S.C., Conte P., Piccolo A. (2006) Changes of humic substances characteristics from forested to cultivated soils in Ethiopia, Geoderma 132, 9–19.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tadesse N., Ahmed S., Hulluka M. (1996) The effects of minimum tillage on weeds and yield of durum wheat in central Ethiopia, Trop. Agric. 73, 242–244.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tesfay A., Cornelis W.M., Nyssen J., Govaerts B., Tewodros G., Tigist O., Fekadu G., Raes D., Mitiku H., Deckers J., Sayre K.D. (2010) Effects of conservation agriculture on runoff, soil loss and crop yield under rain fed conditions in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia, Soil Use Manage., submitted.

  • Tewodros G., Nyssen J., Govaerts B., Getnet F., Behailu M., Haile M., Deckers J. (2009) Contour furrows for in situ soil and water conservation, Tigray, Northern Ethiopia, Soil Till. Res. 103, 257–264.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tigist O., Cornelis W., Verplancke H., Nyssen J., Deckers J., Mintesinot B., Mitiku H. (2010) Short-term effects of conservation agriculture on Vertisols under tef (Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter) in the northern Ethiopian highlands, Soil Till. Res., 106, 294–302.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tilahun T., Ayana G., Abebe F., Wegary D. (2002) Maize pathology in Ethiopia: a review, in: Mandefro N., Tanner D., Twumasi-Afriyie S. (Eds.), Enhancing the Contribution of Maize to Food Security in Ethiopia, Proceedings of the 2nd National Maize Workshop of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa; Ethiopia, 12–16 Nov., 2001, EARO/CIMMYT, pp. 97–105.

  • Vancampenhout K., Nyssen J., Desta G., Deckers J., Poesen J., Mitiku H., Moeyersons J. (2006) Stone bunds for soil conservation in the northern Ethiopian highlands: Impacts on soil fertility and crop yield, Soil Till. Res. 90, 1–15.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Varisco D.M. (1982) The ard in highland Yemeni agriculture, Tools Till. 4, 158–172.

    Google Scholar 

  • Varisco D.M. (2004) Terminology for plough cultivation in Yemeni Arabic, J. Semitic Stud. 49, 71–129.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Verhulst N., Govaerts B., Verachtert E., Castellanos-Navarrete A., Mezzalama M., Wall P.C., Chocobar A., Deckers J., Sayre K.D. (2010) Conservation agriculture, improving soil quality for sustainable production systems? in: Lal. R., Stewart B.A., Food security and soil quality, Boca Raton: CRC Press, Adv. Soil Sci., in press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wall P. (2007) Tailoring conservation agriculture to the needs of small farmers in developing countries: an analysis of issues, J. Crop Improv. 19, 137–155.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wolde M., Veldkamp E., Mitiku H., Nyssen J., Muys B., Kindeya G. (2007) Effectiveness of exclosures to restore degraded soils as a result of overgrazing in Tigray, Ethiopia, J. Arid Environ. 69, 270–284.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Woldeamlak B., Sterk G. (2003) Assessment of soil erosion in cultivated fields using a survey methodology for rills in the Chemoga watershed, Ethiopia, Agric. Ecosyst. Environ. 97, 81–93.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, Ghent University, 9000, Gent, Belgium

    Jan Nyssen

  2. International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT), México D.F., 06600, Mexico

    Bram Govaerts & Ken Sayre

  3. Department of Soil Management, Ghent University, 9000, Gent, Belgium

    Tesfay Araya & Wim M. Cornelis

  4. Department of Crop and Horticultural Science, Mekelle University, Mekelle, Ethiopia

    Tesfay Araya

  5. Department of Land Resources Management and Environmental Protection, Mekelle University, Mekelle, Ethiopia

    Hans Bauer & Mitiku Haile

  6. Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, K.U. Leuven, 3001, Heverlee, Belgium

    Hans Bauer & Jozef Deckers

Authors
  1. Jan Nyssen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Bram Govaerts
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Tesfay Araya
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Wim M. Cornelis
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Hans Bauer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Mitiku Haile
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Ken Sayre
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Jozef Deckers
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jan Nyssen.

About this article

Cite this article

Nyssen, J., Govaerts, B., Araya, T. et al. The use of the marasha ard plough for conservation agriculture in Northern Ethiopia. Agronomy Sust. Developm. 31, 287–297 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1051/agro/2010014

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1051/agro/2010014

Keywords

Search

Navigation