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This paper’s working hypothesis is that the indigenous farming practices of Timorese farmers are those most suitable and adaptable with regard to these farmers’ circumstances. Intensive farming and the acceleration of land conversion in Java lead to a reduction in favorable cropland and the degradation of soil biology. To meet the demand for food production, unfavorable areas outside Java, including marginal semi-arid areas on Timor Island, East Nusa Tenggara province, have become an important option. Unfortunately, the national crop production policy has paid less attention to the specific biophysical characteristics of the region and how local people have adapted to the diverse marginal environment. We review the literature in the areas of soil nutrition retention and soil biology, vegetation/crop diversity, and farming practices/management, including local wisdom on soil management. This paper highlights that the values of the chemical parameters of the soils in question are varied, but generally range from low to high. The existence of beneficial micro-organisms is important both for improving soil fertility and due to their association with local vegetation/crops. Traditional farming practices, such as the local agroforestry of Mamar, have effectively preserved the existence of micro-organisms that promote conservation practices, crop/vegetation diversity, and sustainable agriculture. We recommend that the expansion of croplands and crop production into marginal semi-arid areas needs to be considered and adapted while taking into consideration sustainability and environmentally sound traditional practices.

Context Increasing demand for livestock products in developing countries provides opportunities for smallholder farmers to increase and diversify their income through increased livestock production. However, livestock production in these systems is often limited by inadequate animal nutrition, and farmers need ways to increase the availability and quality of livestock feed without compromising yields of food crops or increasing the area of land planted to forages. Aim Using eastern Indonesia as a case study, we explore the potential for herbaceous legumes, integrated into existing mixed crop–livestock systems, to address specific production issues in smallholder beef systems. Methods Through a series of in-village feeding demonstrations, we tested three opportunities to increase livestock production through the use of herbaceous legumes: (i) increasing reproduction rates of cows by maintaining their liveweight (LW) and body condition score during the dry season; (ii) increasing the survival and LW gain of unweaned calves; and (iii) increasing LW gain of growing bulls. Key results Small amounts of legume (~10 g DM/kg LW) were enough to maintain LW of cows grazing poor-quality grasses and crop residues during the dry season. At higher levels of inclusion in the diet (~20 g DM/kg LW), feeding legumes increased the LW gain of growing cattle and survival of unweaned calves, providing benefits similar to a purchased concentrate, but at lower cost. Conclusions Our results demonstrate how strategic use of herbaceous legumes can increase beef production from low-input systems by maintaining LW of cows, and increasing survival of unweaned calves and LW gain of growing bulls. Implications Integration of herbaceous legumes into existing cropping systems removes many of the barriers to supplementary feeding. Improved livestock nutrition does not need to be based on purchased concentrates or increases in land used for forage production. The results are applicable to many other mixed crop–livestock systems throughout Southeast Asia.

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