Challenges Faced in using Legume Intercrop as a Climate Smart Agriculture Practice to Enhance Coffee Production among Smallholder Coffee Farmers’ in Kisozi Sub County

Abstract

The study's goal was to identify the barriers to using legume intercropping as a climate-smart agricultural strategy to increase coffee
production among Kisozi Sub County's smallholder coffee growers. The study employed a variety of research methods, including a set of wellstructured questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with Kisozi Sub County agricultural extension staff heads. A sample of 345 smallholder farmers was interviewed using a descriptive research approach. The findings showed that climate change has had a  significant impact on flowering, coffee bean falling, and leaf scorching. The most significant obstacles to legume intercropping were a  lack of a suitable legume selection, aged coffee plants, and a lack of access to extension services. According to this study, climate change  has a variety of effects on coffee output, including an increase in the occurrence of drought conditions and, in some cases, an increase in  rainfall. The study also discovered that legume intercrops promote profit maximization because smallholder farmers can harvest multiple  crops at once and provide nitrogen to the soil, which coffee bushes require to feed themselves and produce high-quality beans.  It was determined that the most significant barrier to legume intercrops for high-quality coffee production is elderly coffee plants. This  study advocates for the promotion of legume intercropping as an appropriate smart agriculture strategy in coffee production. Keywords:  Legume Intercrop, coffee production, Kisozi Sub County, smallholder coffee farmers.