Barbara Adolph, John Butterworth, Satheesh Periyapatna, G N S Reddy:
Soil Fertility Management in Semi-Arid India: Its Role in Agricultural Systems and the Livelihoods of Poor People

BARBARA ADOLPH¹, JOHN BUTTERWORTH¹, SATHEESH PERIYAPATNA², G N S REDDY^3
1University of Greenwich, Natural Resources Institute, United Kingdom
²Deccan Development Society, India
³Institute for Rural Development (BAIF), India

It is commonly assumed that rainfed areas face a soil fertility crisis. While there are concerns, a research study carried out in 2001/2002 in two districts of semi-arid India by the Natural Resources Institute, the Deccan Development Society and the BAIF Institute for Rural Development challenges the view that farmers are not managing soil fertility carefully, and that simply more external inputs will improve livelihood. It offers alternatives based on consultation with farmers and analysis of a wide range of case studies. The research findings have implications on development programmes, future research and policy.

The study focused on two poor groups: small and marginal farmers and how they are managing soil fertility and the soil-related problems on their farms, and (often landless) families engaged in the trade of organic fertilisers, such as farmyard manure (FYM) and vermicompost. The research included a combination of reviews and fieldwork using both quantitative and qualitative methods, such as farm resource flow mapping. Fieldwork covered four villages each in both Andhra Pradesh (Medak District) and Karnataka (Tumkur/ Hassan Districts).

Key findings are:

Keywords: Chemical fertilisers, farmyard manure, India, organic matter, rural livelihoods, semi-arid tropics, soil fertility management, vermicompost, video documentation

Footnotes

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Contact Address: Barbara Adolph, University of Greenwich, Natural Resources Institute, Central Avenue, ME4 4TB Chatham Maritime, United Kingdom, e-mail: b.adolphgre.ac.uk