Sumit Karn's interesting comments from Nepal stirred me up to write myself. He talks of "trying to integrate crop, livestock and nutrition for sunergistic effect" Very correct and crucially important for Nepal where livestock are really about the only resource for improving fertility. It is many years (unfortunately) since I have been in Nepal, but I hope the good work by H.R. Stennett on watershed management (Report FAO-FO-NEP/85/008) - for which he was received the B.R.Sen Award - has born fruit and not - as so often happens - been quietly forgotten. His work included underplanting of paddy with fodder species so as to get more forage in the stubble after the paddy had been harvested. The main problem was the cultural change and social discipline involved in getting all the famers to undertake the same practices and to share equitably the improve feed for their livestock.
Many thanks for an interesting discussion and comments,
Best regards, John Weatherhogg
Sr. John Weatherhogg