Smallholder barley production practices and constraints
1996
Hailu Beyene | Chilot Yirga (IAR, Addis Abeba (Ethiopia)) | Asmare Yalew
In most areas barley is grown in the main season (meher). However, in Welo north Shewa and Bale barley is also grown in the short rainy season (belg). In Adet, Bahir Dar and Debre Tabor barley is sometimes double cropped when rainfall is conducive. In Debre Tabor, Dabat and Debark farmers grow mixtures of wheat and barley. Planting in the main season is usually done from mid May to end of July in areas where double cropping is practiced the second crop is planted during August through October. Farmers' weed management practice involves a number of operations: frequent plowing, use of high seed rates and hand pulling of the major weeds late in the season after the critical stage of weed competition. A number of barley cultivars are grown in the survey areas most of which are unimproved local varieties. In some of the survey areas about nine different barley varieties are being cultivated. The proportion of farmers applying fertilizer on barley ranges from zero in Debre Tabor to 100 percent around Kulumsa. The most common fertilizer used is di-amonium phospate. Urea is generally not applied on barley. Barley production constraints include low soil fertility weeds, diseases and pests, frost and hail, waterlogging, seasonal labor shortage, seasonal food shortage, shortage of arable land, shortage and late delivery of fertilizer, and shortage of draft power.
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This bibliographic record has been provided by Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research