GIS-aided crop suitability assessment and design of crop intensification and diversification models for major soil series in upland non-rice based farming systems in Batangas, Philippines as potent predictive tool for ensuring food resilience amidst climate change
2016
Labita, J.B. | Badayos, R.B. | Labita, J.B.
Comprehensive mechanisms on the ill-effects of climate change to food security are urgent agenda. Global paradigm shift occurred wherein holistic, localized approach is the dominant scheme in addressing resilience of food production. This approach can improve the soil ecosystem for higher crop yield as land use has integral role in the discourse of food sustainability considering that 95 percent of food is produced on soils and healthy soils are the foundation of the food system. Adopting the 1976, FAO framework, land evaluation was performed on upland land units in non-rice-based land utilization types (LUTs) in Batangas to characterize the upland soils; assess the suitability to crops, and design the farming system in agreement with the cropping intensification and diversification potential of the area using GIS. Results show that portion of soils in the area had moderate nutrient availability. Most of the crops were classified as moderately (S2) and marginally suitable (S3) due to limitations on topography (t), soil physical condition (s) and fertility (f). Coconut-banana intercrop and single corn system models can be intensified. For corn-sweet potato double crop, land use shift to pineapple cultivation (S2tfs rating and PhP 130,381/ha net benefit) is recommended due to limitations of Tagaytay sandy loam (8-16% slope) and unsuitability to corn production (U1fts). Sitao (S2tws) is socially-accepted and suitable to vegetable production. Green pepper (S2wsft) and goat integration in sugarcane farming is expected to gain a net benefit of PhP 393,976/ha. Farmers can therefore adopt the combination of specific component technologies.
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