Agricultural soils represent a potentially significant low cost sink for carbon dioxide with mult... more Agricultural soils represent a potentially significant low cost sink for carbon dioxide with multiple potential co-benefits to farm productivity and profitability.Since agricultural soils can store more carbon, a modest increase in carbon stocks across the large land areas used for agriculture would represent a significant GHG mitigation. Sugarcane accompanied with good farming practices has the potential to sequester considerable amounts of carbon and so contribute to climate change mitigation.
Multimammate mice (Mastomys natalensis) are a key rodent pest species to cereal crop production i... more Multimammate mice (Mastomys natalensis) are a key rodent pest species to cereal crop production in Sub-Saharan Africa. This study aimed at generating information on the population fluctuation and breeding patterns of M. natalensis in a maize dominated agro-ecosystem in the Mayuge district, Eastern Uganda. The area is characterised by a bimodal rainfall pattern with rains in the periods March to May and August to November. A Capture–Mark–Recapture study was established in cultivated and fallow field habitats with, in each habitat, two plots of 60 m by 60 m with 49 evenly spaced trapping points. Trapping was conducted monthly for three consecutive nights, and the study extended from January 2016 to June 2018. A Generalised Linear Mixed Model analysis showed significantly higher population density estimates (β = 0.69, p < 0.0001) in fallow land compared to cultivated fields, and also significantly higher density estimates(β = 0.75, p = 0.006) in the first wet season and lowest in the first dry season. The percentage breeding females differed significantly across months (χ2 = 27.05, df = 11, p = 0.003) and seasons (χ2 = 17.64, p = 0.0003). Breeding females occurred throughout all the months of trapping, but with significantly higher percentages in the months of March to July (i.e. first wet season extending to second dry season) and generally lowest in the first dry months (i.e. January and February in 2017, and February 2018). The results of this study have important consequences for the timing of control efforts, and recommends that control should be initiated during the dry seasons prior to wet seasons to counteract potential damaging population build up in later wet seasons when crop planting is expected.
Résumé Research Application Summary Soil biodiversity research in Uganda: Gains, consolidation an... more Résumé Research Application Summary Soil biodiversity research in Uganda: Gains, consolidation and capacity needs Rwakaikara-Silver, M.C.1, Akol, A.1, Isabirye, B.2, Nkwiine, C.1, Isabirye, M.2, Serani, S.3, Mutumba, G.1 & Okwakol, M.J.4 1Department of Soil Science, Makerere University, P. O. Box 7062, Kampala, Uganda 2National Agricultural Research Organization, P. O. Box 7084, Kampala, Uganda 3Kyambogo University, Uganda, P. O. Box 1 Kampala, Uganda 4Busitema University, Uganda Corresponding author: marysilv@agric.mak.ac.ug We examined abundance and diversity of rhizobia, arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi, nematodes, collembolan, termites, earthworms, ants and beetles in forest, grassland, mixed cropping, fallow, sugar and tea plantation; encompassing Mabira forest and adjacent agro-systems. Belowground biodiversity (BGBD) sub-indicator was computed to predict the general soil quality (GISQ). Legume and earthworm inoculation for conservation and agricultural enhancement was also tested....
Background Rodents form the largest order among mammals in terms of species diversity, and home r... more Background Rodents form the largest order among mammals in terms of species diversity, and home range is the area where an individual normally moves during its normal daily activities. Information about rodent home ranges is paramount in the development of effective conservation and management strategies. This is because rodent home range varies within species and different habitats. In Uganda, tropical high altitude forests such as the Mabira Central Forest Reserve are experiencing continuous disturbance. However, information on rodent home range is lacking. Therefore, a two year Capture-Mark-Release (CMR) of rodents was conducted in the intact forest habitat: Wakisi, regenerating forest habitat: Namananga, and the depleted forest habitat: Namawanyi of Mabira Central Forest Reserve in order to determine the dominant rodent species, their home ranges, and factors affecting these home ranges. The home ranges were determined by calculating a minimum convex polygon with an added boundary strip of 5 m. (2023) 23:40 Conclusion The significant variation in home ranges of the dominant rodent species in Mabira Central Forest Reserve depending on the type of habitat presupposes that the rodent management strategies in disturbed forest reserves should focus on the type of habitat.
The Plan for Modernisation of Agriculture (PMA) recognizes the high contribution of the environme... more The Plan for Modernisation of Agriculture (PMA) recognizes the high contribution of the environment and natural resources (ENR) to Uganda’s gross domestic production and that sustainable use of the ENR provides the only cost effective and viable option for the rural poor. Soil productivity is a major factor in sustainable use of ENR. However, information on natural resources and soils in particular, have had limited use in agriculture and resource conservation activities. The existing soils information is not available in digital forms that can be manipulated to suit requirements of different stakeholders and this is one of the major causes of limited use of available natural resource information. The paper describes steps that have been taken to revise and update soils information; establish a soils geographic data base (SGDB) and its application in explaining the spatial distribution of coffee wilt disease in some parts of Uganda. Existing soils information has been updated and co...
East African Agricultural and Forestry Journal, 2003
ABSTRACT Soil erodibility is a property that determines the vulnerability of a soil to erosion pr... more ABSTRACT Soil erodibility is a property that determines the vulnerability of a soil to erosion processes. Interrill erodibility of 7 soil types, haplic Luvisols, haplic Acrisols, skeletic Luvisols, skeletic Acrisols, rhodic skelectic Acrisols, ferric Acrisols, ferri Rhodic Acrisols of Kakuuto micro-catchment of the Lake Victoria basin was measured, and its toposequence pattern investigated using a portable rainfall simulator in the field. Simulated rainfall of 7 mm/min was applied for 5 min on 0.25 by 0.25 m plots; 16 tests were run on each soil type, under 2 moisture regimes (dry and wet). Results indicated that there were 2 groups of no pairewise significant difference in interill erodibility: haplic Acrisols, haplic Luvisols, Rhodic skeletic Acrisols, and skeletic Acrisols, ferric Acrisols, ferri rhodic Acrisols and skeletic Luvisols (p=0.011) being the second. The first group was more eroded than the second. Significant differences (p=0.05) were observed along the toposequence on interrill erodibility with an increase towards the footslope. The footslope interrill erodibility was 4.13 × 106kg/m2s while values of 1.05 × 106/kgm4s and 1.74 × 106/kg/m2s were observed at the upper and the middle landscape position; respectively.
This study investigated smallholder farmers’ drought adaptation strategies in 246 randomly select... more This study investigated smallholder farmers’ drought adaptation strategies in 246 randomly selected households in Kumi and Amuria districts of Teso sub region of Uganda. Primary and secondary data were collected, the former through individual interviews, focus group discussions and key informant interview and the latter through document review. The results revealed that drought stress was above -4 kilo pascal within the period 2006–2016. The adaptation strategies appliedincluded cultivation of food crops that can be preserved and offering of labour on other people’s farms as a survival strategy. Promotion of early warning mechanisms; easy access to farm inputs; group formation and consolidation; and affordable irrigation technology are recommended to enhance farmers’ resilience
Agricultural soils represent a potentially significant low cost sink for carbon dioxide with mult... more Agricultural soils represent a potentially significant low cost sink for carbon dioxide with multiple potential co-benefits to farm productivity and profitability.Since agricultural soils can store more carbon, a modest increase in carbon stocks across the large land areas used for agriculture would represent a significant GHG mitigation. Sugarcane accompanied with good farming practices has the potential to sequester considerable amounts of carbon and so contribute to climate change mitigation.
Multimammate mice (Mastomys natalensis) are a key rodent pest species to cereal crop production i... more Multimammate mice (Mastomys natalensis) are a key rodent pest species to cereal crop production in Sub-Saharan Africa. This study aimed at generating information on the population fluctuation and breeding patterns of M. natalensis in a maize dominated agro-ecosystem in the Mayuge district, Eastern Uganda. The area is characterised by a bimodal rainfall pattern with rains in the periods March to May and August to November. A Capture–Mark–Recapture study was established in cultivated and fallow field habitats with, in each habitat, two plots of 60 m by 60 m with 49 evenly spaced trapping points. Trapping was conducted monthly for three consecutive nights, and the study extended from January 2016 to June 2018. A Generalised Linear Mixed Model analysis showed significantly higher population density estimates (β = 0.69, p < 0.0001) in fallow land compared to cultivated fields, and also significantly higher density estimates(β = 0.75, p = 0.006) in the first wet season and lowest in the first dry season. The percentage breeding females differed significantly across months (χ2 = 27.05, df = 11, p = 0.003) and seasons (χ2 = 17.64, p = 0.0003). Breeding females occurred throughout all the months of trapping, but with significantly higher percentages in the months of March to July (i.e. first wet season extending to second dry season) and generally lowest in the first dry months (i.e. January and February in 2017, and February 2018). The results of this study have important consequences for the timing of control efforts, and recommends that control should be initiated during the dry seasons prior to wet seasons to counteract potential damaging population build up in later wet seasons when crop planting is expected.
Résumé Research Application Summary Soil biodiversity research in Uganda: Gains, consolidation an... more Résumé Research Application Summary Soil biodiversity research in Uganda: Gains, consolidation and capacity needs Rwakaikara-Silver, M.C.1, Akol, A.1, Isabirye, B.2, Nkwiine, C.1, Isabirye, M.2, Serani, S.3, Mutumba, G.1 & Okwakol, M.J.4 1Department of Soil Science, Makerere University, P. O. Box 7062, Kampala, Uganda 2National Agricultural Research Organization, P. O. Box 7084, Kampala, Uganda 3Kyambogo University, Uganda, P. O. Box 1 Kampala, Uganda 4Busitema University, Uganda Corresponding author: marysilv@agric.mak.ac.ug We examined abundance and diversity of rhizobia, arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi, nematodes, collembolan, termites, earthworms, ants and beetles in forest, grassland, mixed cropping, fallow, sugar and tea plantation; encompassing Mabira forest and adjacent agro-systems. Belowground biodiversity (BGBD) sub-indicator was computed to predict the general soil quality (GISQ). Legume and earthworm inoculation for conservation and agricultural enhancement was also tested....
Background Rodents form the largest order among mammals in terms of species diversity, and home r... more Background Rodents form the largest order among mammals in terms of species diversity, and home range is the area where an individual normally moves during its normal daily activities. Information about rodent home ranges is paramount in the development of effective conservation and management strategies. This is because rodent home range varies within species and different habitats. In Uganda, tropical high altitude forests such as the Mabira Central Forest Reserve are experiencing continuous disturbance. However, information on rodent home range is lacking. Therefore, a two year Capture-Mark-Release (CMR) of rodents was conducted in the intact forest habitat: Wakisi, regenerating forest habitat: Namananga, and the depleted forest habitat: Namawanyi of Mabira Central Forest Reserve in order to determine the dominant rodent species, their home ranges, and factors affecting these home ranges. The home ranges were determined by calculating a minimum convex polygon with an added boundary strip of 5 m. (2023) 23:40 Conclusion The significant variation in home ranges of the dominant rodent species in Mabira Central Forest Reserve depending on the type of habitat presupposes that the rodent management strategies in disturbed forest reserves should focus on the type of habitat.
The Plan for Modernisation of Agriculture (PMA) recognizes the high contribution of the environme... more The Plan for Modernisation of Agriculture (PMA) recognizes the high contribution of the environment and natural resources (ENR) to Uganda’s gross domestic production and that sustainable use of the ENR provides the only cost effective and viable option for the rural poor. Soil productivity is a major factor in sustainable use of ENR. However, information on natural resources and soils in particular, have had limited use in agriculture and resource conservation activities. The existing soils information is not available in digital forms that can be manipulated to suit requirements of different stakeholders and this is one of the major causes of limited use of available natural resource information. The paper describes steps that have been taken to revise and update soils information; establish a soils geographic data base (SGDB) and its application in explaining the spatial distribution of coffee wilt disease in some parts of Uganda. Existing soils information has been updated and co...
East African Agricultural and Forestry Journal, 2003
ABSTRACT Soil erodibility is a property that determines the vulnerability of a soil to erosion pr... more ABSTRACT Soil erodibility is a property that determines the vulnerability of a soil to erosion processes. Interrill erodibility of 7 soil types, haplic Luvisols, haplic Acrisols, skeletic Luvisols, skeletic Acrisols, rhodic skelectic Acrisols, ferric Acrisols, ferri Rhodic Acrisols of Kakuuto micro-catchment of the Lake Victoria basin was measured, and its toposequence pattern investigated using a portable rainfall simulator in the field. Simulated rainfall of 7 mm/min was applied for 5 min on 0.25 by 0.25 m plots; 16 tests were run on each soil type, under 2 moisture regimes (dry and wet). Results indicated that there were 2 groups of no pairewise significant difference in interill erodibility: haplic Acrisols, haplic Luvisols, Rhodic skeletic Acrisols, and skeletic Acrisols, ferric Acrisols, ferri rhodic Acrisols and skeletic Luvisols (p=0.011) being the second. The first group was more eroded than the second. Significant differences (p=0.05) were observed along the toposequence on interrill erodibility with an increase towards the footslope. The footslope interrill erodibility was 4.13 × 106kg/m2s while values of 1.05 × 106/kgm4s and 1.74 × 106/kg/m2s were observed at the upper and the middle landscape position; respectively.
This study investigated smallholder farmers’ drought adaptation strategies in 246 randomly select... more This study investigated smallholder farmers’ drought adaptation strategies in 246 randomly selected households in Kumi and Amuria districts of Teso sub region of Uganda. Primary and secondary data were collected, the former through individual interviews, focus group discussions and key informant interview and the latter through document review. The results revealed that drought stress was above -4 kilo pascal within the period 2006–2016. The adaptation strategies appliedincluded cultivation of food crops that can be preserved and offering of labour on other people’s farms as a survival strategy. Promotion of early warning mechanisms; easy access to farm inputs; group formation and consolidation; and affordable irrigation technology are recommended to enhance farmers’ resilience
Amidst natural resource endowment, Uganda’s agricultural productivity has remained one of the low... more Amidst natural resource endowment, Uganda’s agricultural productivity has remained one of the lowest in the East African region and the World at large. With optimal resource use Uganda could feed seven times its current population or nearly twice the population of East Africa. A review of the agricultural sector policy of Uganda since 1986 to 2010 reveals several obstacles to Uganda’s agricultural development. Lack of an efficient and effective extension service; poor access to agricultural inputs like improved seeds, fertilizer and chemicals; rudimentary farming practices and technologies; limited access to market and financial services; lack of proper soil and water management practices and above all, lack of efficient rural enterprise development and business management programs. Revamping agricultural productivity requires, among others, an enhancement of governance structures that shield NAADs against political interference; increased access to inputs including reviving a subsidized tractor per county hiring scheme; Improve access to agricultural credit through the revival of farmer friendly banks like the Cooperative bank that existed before; revamp the regulatory role of MAAIF focusing on protecting farmers against fake inputs on the market; Revive and develop marketing infrastructure with special focus on reviving the railway system- seen as the cheapest option of marketing farmer’s produce; the establishment of irrigation infrastructure should go beyond the rehabilitation of existing communal irrigation facilities to establishment of new ones with foreseen future management by farmers.
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