Conservation agriculture: Minimal Tillage and Surface Mulching of Soils

Conservation Agriculture for Sustainable Farming

Conservation agriculture (CA) combines three fundamental principles: minimal soil disturbance through reduced tillage, maintaining biomass residues on the soil surface, and crop rotation with nitrogen-fixing legumes or cover crops. This approach has demonstrated its efficacy in dryland wheat farming systems, offering multiple advantages. CA enhances soil quality, improves water use efficiency, stabilizes yields, reduces input costs, and minimizes energy and time demands. Furthermore, it enriches soil biodiversity, mitigates emissions, and sequesters carbon, benefiting both farmers and the environment.

This technology is TAAT1 validated.

8•7

Scaling readiness: idea maturity 8/9; level of use 7/9

Project adoption4

Technology integrated in the CREW- Ethiopia, ENSURE- East Africa, SEWPP- Sudan, and TAISP- Tanzania projects.

Project	Beneficiaries	Budget	Duration	Key figures
CREW- Ethiopia Climate Resilient Wheat Value Chain Development Project	500,000 smallholder households.	94.30 million	2023–2028	4 t/ha in wheat productivity. 528 water pumps. 50,000 farmer groups. 528 water pumps.
ENSURE- East Africa Enabling Environments for Sustainable Regional Agriculture Extension	3,000,000 farmers.	13.14 million	2024–2027	149,940 farmer leaders & trained farmers. 9,996 trained. 2 → 3.5 t/ha.
SEWPP- Sudan Emergency Wheat Production Project	400,000 smallholder farming households (40% women).	73.81 million	2023–2025	891,000 tons. 45,000 tons of certified seeds.
TAISP- Tanzania Agricultural Inputs Support Project	1,200,000 smallholder households (40% women & young people).	84.07 million	2022–2028	7,200 tons of wheat seed. 600,000 tons of fertilizer. 1,200,000 farmers.

See project details ›

Adults 18 and over: Positive high

The poor: Positive high

Under 18: Positive low

Women: Positive high

Climate adaptability: Highly adaptable

Farmer climate change readiness: Significant improvement

Biodiversity: Positive impact on biodiversity

Carbon footprint: Much less carbon released

Environmental health: Greatly improves environmental health

Soil quality: Improves soil health and fertility

Water use: Much less water used

Problem

Declining Soil Fertility: Declining soil fertility in dry tropical and subtropical regions of Sub-Saharan Africa, primarily caused by excessive tillage and limited organic matter return to soils, leading to the degradation of nutrient exchange and water retention processes.
Water Stress: Increasing water stress due to the limited availability of water resources caused by drought spells, high-intensity rains, and overexploitation for agriculture.
Low Wheat Grain Yields: Low wheat grain yields and vulnerability to water shortages in dryland farming systems.
Environmental Impact: Environmental concerns, including emissions and carbon sequestration, in agriculture.
Weed Infestation: Weed infestation resulting from traditional tillage practices and lack of surface mulching, competing with wheat crops for resources and reducing overall yields.
Soil Erosion: Soil erosion due to intense tillage practices, leading to the loss of topsoil and degradation of soil structure, which further exacerbates soil fertility issues.
Soil Compaction: Soil compaction caused by heavy machinery and excessive tillage, hindering root penetration and water infiltration, thereby reducing crop productivity.
Pest and Disease Build-Up: Build-up of pests and diseases in conventional tillage systems, leading to increased reliance on chemical pesticides and fungicides, which pose environmental and health risks.
Labor Intensity: Labor-intensive weed management practices in conventional tillage systems, requiring significant time and resources, particularly in regions with limited access to labor.
Soil Salinization: Soil salinization resulting from improper irrigation practices and poor water management, leading to reduced crop yields and degradation of soil quality over time.

Solution

Conservation Agriculture (CA) Principles: CA involves minimal soil disturbance, retention of biomass residues on the soil surface, and rotation with N-fixing legumes or cover crops.
Improved Soil Quality: CA enhances soil quality, water use efficiency, and yield stability while diminishing expenditures on inputs, energy, and time.
Climate Change Adaptation: CA practices reduce drought and heat stress on crops, offering effective climate change adaptation in the food system.
Water and Herbicide Savings: CA slows down soil drying and weed growth, helping farmers save on irrigation water and herbicide applications.
Crop Rotation Benefits: Rotating between wheat and other crops like soybean, rice, cotton, or others offers advantages for managing soil nutrient supply and pest and disease build-up.
Broad Applicability: CA principles can be applied in various soil types and water regimes in Sub-Saharan Africa, benefiting both rainfed and irrigated production, as well as dry sub-humid and semi-arid regions.
Increased Crop Resilience: CA practices contribute to the resilience of crops against environmental stresses such as drought and extreme temperatures, ensuring more consistent yields even under challenging conditions.
Erosion Prevention: By minimizing soil disturbance and maintaining surface residues, CA helps prevent soil erosion, preserving soil structure and fertility.
Enhanced Biodiversity: The adoption of CA promotes soil biodiversity by creating a favorable habitat for beneficial organisms, improving overall ecosystem health.
Reduced Environmental Impact: CA practices contribute to reducing the environmental footprint of agriculture by minimizing soil erosion, pesticide runoff, and greenhouse gas emissions.
Improved Farm Economics: By reducing input costs, conserving soil moisture, and stabilizing yields, CA improves the economic viability of farming operations, leading to higher profitability for farmers.

Key points to design your program

Minimal Tillage and Surface Mulching improve soil health, water retention, and climate resilience while supporting sustainable wheat production. The technology can be integrated into food security, climate resilience, soil conservation, sustainable land management, and wheat development programs. Its adoption contributes to SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 13 (Climate Action), and SDG 15 (Life on Land).

To integrate this technology into your project, plan and budget for the following activities and prerequisites:

Assess soil fertility constraints, water availability, erosion risks, and wheat production challenges in target farming areas.
Facilitate access to conservation agriculture equipment, quality wheat seed, mulch materials, and appropriate soil fertility inputs adapted to local farming systems.
Support training for farmers, cooperatives, extension agents, women’s groups, and youth agripreneurs on minimal tillage, surface mulching, crop rotation, soil fertility management, and climate-smart agriculture practices.
Invest in demonstration plots, extension services, farmer field schools, and digital advisory tools to improve awareness and adoption of conservation agriculture practices.
Promote conservation agriculture practices to improve soil fertility, increase water retention, reduce erosion, stabilize wheat yields, and strengthen resilience to drought and heat stress.
Support the participation of women and youth in sustainable farming and mechanization services to strengthen livelihoods and increase adoption of climate-smart technologies.
Establish partnerships with ICARDA, Science for Resilient Livelihoods in Dry Areas, research institutes, extension services, cooperatives, mechanization providers, and private sector actors to support scaling and sustainability.
Track key indicators such as soil organic matter, soil erosion levels, water-use efficiency, wheat yields, production costs, and adoption of conservation agriculture practices.

15 - 22 %

Increase in yield

18 - 21 %

water use efficiency

20 %

increase in income

923 USD/ha

Increase in profit from wheat production

IP

Open source / open access

Scaling Readiness describes how complete a technology\’s development is and its ability to be scaled. It produces a score that measures a technology\’s readiness along two axes: the level of maturity of the idea itself, and the level to which the technology has been used so far.

Each axis goes from 0 to 9 where 9 is the “ready-to-scale” status. For each technology profile in the e-catalogs we have documented the scaling readiness status from evidence given by the technology providers. The e-catalogs only showcase technologies for which the scaling readiness score is at least 8 for maturity of the idea and 7 for the level of use.

The graph below represents visually the scaling readiness status for this technology, you can see the label of each level by hovering your mouse cursor on the number.

Scaling readiness score of this technology

Maturity of the idea 8 out of 9

Uncontrolled environment: tested

Level of use 8 out of 9

Common use by projects NOT connected to technology provider

Maturity of the idea										Level of use
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9

Project	Beneficiaries	Budget	Duration	Key figures
CREW- Ethiopia Climate Resilient Wheat Value Chain Development Project	500,000 smallholder households.	94.30 million	2023–2028	4 t/ha in wheat productivity. 528 water pumps. 50,000 farmer groups. 528 water pumps.
ENSURE- East Africa Enabling Environments for Sustainable Regional Agriculture Extension	3,000,000 farmers.	13.14 million	2024–2027	149,940 farmer leaders & trained farmers. 9,996 trained. 2 → 3.5 t/ha.
SEWPP- Sudan Emergency Wheat Production Project	400,000 smallholder farming households (40% women).	73.81 million	2023–2025	891,000 tons. 45,000 tons of certified seeds.
TAISP- Tanzania Agricultural Inputs Support Project	1,200,000 smallholder households (40% women & young people).	84.07 million	2022–2028	7,200 tons of wheat seed. 600,000 tons of fertilizer. 1,200,000 farmers.

Countries with a green colour: Tested & adopted
Countries with a bright green colour: Adopted
Countries with a yellow colour: Tested
Countries with a blue colour: Testing ongoing

Countries where the technology is being tested or has been tested and adopted
Country	Testing ongoing	Tested	Adopted
Burkina Faso	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Ethiopia	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Kenya	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Niger	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Nigeria	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
South Sudan	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Sudan	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Zambia	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Zimbabwe	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted

This technology can be used in the colored agro-ecological zones. Any zones shown in white are not suitable for this technology.

Agro-ecological zones where this technology can be used
AEZ	Subtropic - warm	Subtropic - cool	Tropic - warm	Tropic - cool
Arid
Semiarid
Subhumid	–	–	–	–
Humid	–	–	–	–

Source: HarvestChoice/IFPRI 2009

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that are applicable to this technology.

Goal 2: zero hunger

Goal 13: climate action

Goal 1: no poverty

Goal 12: responsible production and consumption

Select Quality Wheat Seed: Choose improved varieties of bread and durum wheat that offer high yield potential, heat tolerance, and resistance to pests. Quality seed is essential for satisfactory production.
Prepare Seeding Tools: Utilize tools designed for direct seeding with minimal soil disturbance. Options include disc seeders drawn by tractors or animals and dibble sticks or jab planters for manual operation.
Set Row Spacing and Seed Rate: Maintain the same row spacing and seed rate density as in conventional farming systems to ensure optimal plant distribution.
Apply Fertilizers: Follow recommended rates for inorganic fertilizers and animal manure. Apply them either in planting holes or through topdressing to promote high grain yields and water use efficiency.
Cover Soil Surface: Obtain materials for covering the soil surface. These materials can be sourced from stover residues of the previous crop on the field or from external sources.
Weed Control: Treat the soil under CA management with herbicides to control weed encroachment and maintain a weed-free environment.
Mulch Maintenance: Spraying insect-repelling agents on the mulch layer may be necessary to keep it in place for an extended duration, ensuring effective surface mulching.