Access Agriculture

Seed sorting by flotation (Summary)

Why not try the technique of seed flotation before sowing your seed. By using this technique any poor seeds which have been attacked by insects will float to the top, leaving the good seed on the bottom.

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Rice transplanting (Summary)

Yields are much higher when rice is transplanted. Compared to broadcasting, yields are two or three times higher. So why not watch this video and find out how and why.

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Rice seed preservation (Summary)

Based on hard real-life experience, the women of Maria village have devised some very effective techniques for seed preservation. So why not learn from some of these innovative women.

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Let’s talk money (Summary)

The economic analysis allows farmers to know how much money they earn or how much they will lose by changing from one technology to another, or from one practice to another. This helps them make a decision for the following year as to which practice they want to try out in their own fields.

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Land preparation for rice (Summary)

How do land preparation and water management affect crop establishment, weed management and rice yields? And why does a field need to be perfectly levelled to make best use of fertilizers? In this audio podcast you can learn the answers to these and other questions.

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Joining hands against striga (Summary)

It is important to pull striga weeds with your hands before the time it produces seeds and spreads. As it is laborious, better reduce the number of striga plants by applying compost or manure, and by rotating or intercropping with non-cereal crops, such as cowpea. In combination with these practices, hand pulling becomes less laborious. Farmers in Tanzania and Mali join hands to reduce the drudgery of hand pulling. Their community effort also helps them avoid spreading striga seeds to neighbouring fields.

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Integrated approach against fruit flies (Summary)

Fruit flies inject their eggs in fruit. A single fruit fly can lay hundreds of eggs, which turn into white worms that eat the inside of fruit. If no action is taken, fruit flies quickly increase in numbers and can destroy your entire crop. Always combine different methods: • Place traps; • Use food baits; • Encourage weaver ants; and • Collect and destroy any fallen fruit.

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Improving Rice Quality (Summary)

What steps can be taken to make sure that locally grown rice can compete against imports? Improving quality which can lead to increased profits for farmers.

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Grow row by row (Summary)

Farmers in northern Nigeria are changing the way they intercrop their sorghum and millet with cowpea. By planting both crops at higher densities and in separate rows, and by applying some organic and mineral fertilizer, they harvest more and reduce damage by the parasitic weed striga. It is one of the strategies of integrated striga and soil fertility management.

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Food for fish (Summary)

What is plankton, and why does it matter to stimulate plankton growth? Experienced farmers in Bangladesh explain how they manage water quality in ponds, and why supplementary feeding is crucial to boost fish production.

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Composting to beat striga (Summary)

Compost is more powerful than manure. What is less known is that the micro-organisms in compost attack striga seeds in the soil. Compost also decreases the amount of striga that will sprout, and reduces its negative effect on cereal crops. Let us look at how farmers in northeast Mali make compost as one of the strategies of integrated striga and soil fertility management. 

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Cashing in with parboiled rice (Summary)

Although rice is highly nutritious, a lot of the quality is lost during processing. This results in poor-quality rice on the market, so consumers turn to imported rice. Parboiling, a way to improve the quality of rice by treating the paddy with warm water and steam. There are many good reasons for parboiling rice. The market for quality rice is growing.

Download the full audio podcast in different languages at :  www.AccessAgriculture.org