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In China, a major agricultural challenge is the inefficient use of fertilizer and the environmental effects associated with this overuse. China’s farmers use more fertilizer per hectare (more than 200 kg/ha) than farmers anywhere else in the world except for Japan, The Netherlands and South Korea. Existing studies have shown [...]

The Farmer Field School (FFS) approach has been very successful and witnessed a strong expansion in many areas beyond crop production. Notwithstanding this success, the adoption of FFS in national extension often remains problematic and FFS activities have often been implemented in the margin of national institutions with strong reliance [...]

Cassava is a major crop used for human consumption, animal feed and bioenergy production, with about 3 million smallholder farmers in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) deriving their livelihoods from the crop. In 2008, the cassava pink mealybug (CM) invaded Thailand, resulting in extensive crop damage. To combat it, the [...]

This study performed an economic impact analysis of the Farmer Field Schools (FFS) training program in three major cotton producing countries in Asia; namely China, India and Pakistan. The training program is based on the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach launched by the “FAO-EU IPM Program for Cotton in Asia”. In the three [...]

Effects of farmer field school (FFS) and the conventional (classroom lectures) training on acquisition of pest management knowledge and skills by small vegetable farmers were studied in Yunnan province, China from 2003 to 2007. There were significant gains of knowledge about vegetable pests, natural enemies, insect and disease ecology and [...]

Weaver ants are predatory insects which kill key pests of many tree crops effectively decreasing the need to use pesticides. Paul Van Mele and Jean-François Vayssières describe how these fascinating insects have been husbanded effectively in Asia to manage pests of citrus and cashew. Their use has recently been extended [...]

An Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Farmer Field School (FFS) is a field-based activity that lasts a full cropping season. A typical FFS meets once a week and 25-30 farmers participate in an FFS. In addition to group dynamics activity and a special topic session, an FFS emphasizes scientific learning through [...]

This paper describes a case study in small producer system in the Petri-urban areas of Kunming city, Yunnan province on an approach of farmer participatory vegetable community IPM development. The vegetable community IPM development was composted of farmer education, technological development, farmers’ self organization, alliance building and policy supporting. [...]

This paper, as a part of a report from an international learning workshop, describes how farmer field schools have been adopted in the nationally designated poverty county of Huoshan, Anhui, with the support of a bilateral poverty alleviation project to meet the needs of farmers and help them to help [...]