This Soils Bulletin concentrates on the organic matter dynamics of cropping soils and discusses the circumstances that deplete organic matter and their negative outcomes. It then moves on to more proactive solutions. It reviews a “basket” of practices in order to show how they can increase organic matter content and...

"En los ecosistemas la energía solar es capturada por los vegetales y transformada, a través de la fotosíntesis, en biomasa. El hombre ha podido usar esta energía, transformándola en biomasa útil para su subsistencia y desarrollo, dando así origen a la agricultura. Para ello, los pequeños agricultores se han basado...

The rural movements that have developed in Europe over the last 30 years represent an organised approach to providing a network and voice for rural areas, their people and the many organisations working for rural development. Faced with many threats of rural decline, centralising policy, globalisation of markets and European...

All over the world, the pressure to conserve ecosystems and their resources has been steadily rising. This has, in turn, led to conflicts between conservation imperatives and the livelihoods’ needs of the communities that interact with these ecosystems. An example of the impasse that such a state of opposition can...

Since Sri Lanka’s independence in 1948, social welfare for the country’s fishing populations has been the responsibility of successive governments. During the latter half of the last millennium, the State has been channelling huge amounts of public funds into a number of social welfare and social security measures. However, the...

Le secteur agricole des pays du Maghreb est caractérisé par des petites et moyennes exploitations agricoles qui de part leur nombre (plus de 3 millions) et leur diversité (élevage, céréaliculture mais aussi légumes, fruits, oléiculture, phœnicoptéridé), constituent des acteurs importants dans le développement et le fonctionnement du secteur agricole. Cependant,...

Cet Agrodok se concentre sur la fabrication et l’utilisation du compost. Le Chapitre 8 décrit une recette pour la fabrication de fumier liquide et des extraits de compost. Il s’agit ici des engrais organiques facilement réalisés pour un apport rapide des substances nutritives aux plantes. Bokashi constitue un autre type...

Farming couple Anu and Esa Immonen run Esa's family estate in Nilsiä in the province of Savo, a good 400 km north of Helsinki. These are the northernmost farmed areas in the world. The crops that grow in these latitudes comprise a small selection of cereals, vegetables, berries and grass...

This is the 11th Dimitra newsletter. Our last edition was replaced by the distribution of the Dimitra CD-ROM. Many of you took time to return the short survey we enclosed with it and we would like to thank you for this valuable feedback. We have also received numerous messages telling...

Proceedings of the International Seminar “The role and importance of integrated soil and water management for orchard development” This publication discusses the role and importance of integrated soil and water management in orchards and it is intended to highlight the better use of resources. This publication will contribute to raising awareness...

Farming in Ireland in recent decades has not escaped the trend towards intensification. But despite this, a large proportion of Irish farmland is still managed in a way that works with nature and the landscape. This type of farmland is referred to as High Nature Value (NHV) farmland. What the...

The objective of this study, commissioned by the FAO Regional Office for Europe and SDRR, is to analyse the status of and future needs for information and communication systems of private and government organizations in the national agricultural research system and its relevant partners with respect to agro-ecological and organic...

Los autores describen el documento así: "Las experiencias que presentamos en esta publicación muestran que las TIC, si son integradas de manera adecuada a esfuerzos de desarrollo rural, pueden tener un impacto importante. Las experiencias y recomendaciones reflejan un resumen de varios años de trabajo en proyectos piloto TIC en...

Esta documentación es una colección de las ponencias centrales del seminario – que aquí se publican de forma resumida sin poder reflejar toda la riqueza de las contribuciones orales y el dinamismo de las discusiones. Sin embargo, ofrece muchísima información detallada e ilustrativa que puede estimular y enriquecer los próximos...

Biodiversity plays a key part in maintaining healthy and functioning ecosystems. However, in many instances, modern agricultural practices neglect the environmental aspect, prioritizing higher rates of production and economic benefits. This issue of AGRIDAPE looks at how agroecology can help maintain biodiversity while achieving satisfying yields.

Kyrgyz Republic is a landlocked country situated in the north-east part of Central Asia. Its territory occupies about 20,000,000 hectares of land and stretches from west to east for about 970 kilometers and from north to south for about 400 kilometers. The total area is about 198,000 square kilometers. About...

Following the request of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, in September 2003 the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) funded a technical assistance project for Croatia. The overall objective of this project was to improve rural income and food security through diversified production and specialty...

The objective of the Voluntary Guidelines is to provide practical guidance to States in their implementation of the progressive realization of the right to adequate food in the context of national food security, in order to achieve the goals of the World Food Summit Plan of Action. They provide an...

This publication describes progress in collaborative efforts to document, characterize, regenerate, and conserve (both in seed banks and on-farm in situ) maize seed collections from the Americas since 1998. Participants from North, Central, and South America took part in a workshop at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT)...

The research examines the status of adoption of improved rice varieties among small holder farmers in South-west Nigeria with a view to asses the impact of technology transfer on rice production in the region. A total of 157 rice farmers selected through multi-stage sampling technique were interviewed using structured questionnaires....