Technical note on local adaptations to soil erosion and low soil moisture in the semiarid Tharaka District, Kenya

Abstract

This study explored the local adaptations to soil erosion and low soil water status in the semi arid Tharaka area in Kenya. Personal interviews and non-participant observations were used to solicit information from 137 small-scale farmers. A workshop was held in each of the three village clusters at the beginning and at the end of each rainy (crop) season involving the researchers, farmers, local opinion leaders and agricultural extension agents. The study found out that farmers had developed ingenious indigenous soil and water conservation practices in response to soil erosion and low soil moisture. The main indigenous methods used were intercropping, trash lines, stone bunds, minimum tillage, grass strips, ''fanya juu" terraces and their combinations. The farmers' decision to adapt a particular technique was influenced by the technique's ability to control runoff, associated crop yield increment, farming system, availability of the raw material, and the labour requirement.

Keywords: Soil erosion, soil moisture, soil and water conservation, indigenous knowledge, Tharaka

Tanzania J. Agric. Sc. (2000) Vol. 3 No.1, 75-80