| dc.description.abstract | Soil exhaustion due to degradation and poor farming methods mostly amongst smallholder farmers leads to low crop yields, productivity and affects household incomes. This increases the food insecurity problem for the growing human population in the Sub Saharan Africa region. Therefore, there is need to adopt measures that are aimed at improving the soil biological, physical and chemical soil properties to enhance the restoration and conservation of soil fertility and productivity. The use of local conservation methods to conserve soil fertility is a common practice amongst smallholder farmers in the Sub Saharan African region. These methods include mulching, crop rotation, mixed cropping systems, compositing, shifting cultivation, terracing among others. However, due to the varying factors and several social-economic conditions, topography and soil conditions amongst countries, societies and communities, the awareness and adoption rates of local soil conservation methods and practices are expected to be different. Therefore, this study investigated the determinants for the awareness of local soil conservation knowledge, examined the different local soil conservation farming methods and evaluated the factors influencing the adoption of local soil conservation practices amongst the smallholder farmers in Ngogwe Sub County Buikwe District. The study used a mixed research design approach in which both qualitative and quantitative methods were applied. Questionnaires, interviews and key informant design tools were used to collect data from thirty two (32) households undertaking in smallholder farming activities. The data was analyzed using Microsoft Excel software; the results were summarized in tables, bar charts, pie charts, and descriptive statistics like percentages, totals were produced.
The study findings revealed that age, level of education, gender, household size and nature of the slope are the major determinants for awareness of local soil conservation knowledge. Older farmers, with above secondary level of education and a household size of more than 5 members tend to be aware of local soil conservation practices. The findings also indicate that composting, mulching and terracing were reported by 43%, 39% and 19% of the farmers respectively as the commonest and major methods of soil conservation methods used. Farmers cited availability of local materials, less skills required, readily available family labour and sustainability as the major reasons for using certain local methods and practices of soil conservation. | en_US |
