Bushfire in Madagascar: Natural Hazard, Useful Tool, and Change Agent

Kull, Christian A.

doi:10.1057/978-1-349-94857-4_6

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…4), with the nondecomposed remainder, corresponding to 39% of 15 N applied with stylo mulch, still on the soil (Table 4). We assume that this remainder contributes upon decomposition to the N input in soil from stylo mulch, though the extent may depend on the removal by soil macro fauna (Vanlauwe et al 1998) and the occurrence of bushfires during the dry season (Kull 2016).…”

Section: Stylo N Accumulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The contribution of Stylosanthes guianensis to the nitrogen cycle in a low input legume-rice rotation under conservation agriculture

et al. 2018

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Background and aims Legumes integrated in crop rotations are intended to improve crop nitrogen (N) supply and yield. In conservation agriculture (CA) systems under low input conditions on highly weathered tropical soils, experimental evidence for these benefits is lacking. To understand the mechanisms and evaluate the impact of the legume N on the subsequent crop, an in-depth study on N dynamics in the soil-plant system was conducted. Methods In Madagascar, a CA based crop rotation with the perennial forage legume Stylosanthes guianensis (stylo) and upland rice (rice/stylostylo -rice/stylo) was established under three fertilization regimes. In addition, rice was grown in a non-CA bare fallow rotation without fertilizer. Over the three years N 2 fixed in stylo shoots, the incorporation of stylo shoot (mulch) N into soil N pools and mulch N uptake by rice was quantified using 15 N techniques and mulch and stylo root residue decomposition was investigated in a litterbag study.Results N 2 fixed in stylo shoots ranged from 96 to 122 kg N ha −1 . Between 50 to 70% of stylo mulch and root residues decomposed during the third cropping season. Without fertilizer, grain yield of rice after the fallow with stylo was about 70% greater than after bare fallow, corresponding to 11 kg N ha −1 greater N uptake. Recoveries of stylo mulch N after rice harvest were on average 64% in soil, with about 3% in each of the microbial and mineral N pools, with 39% on the soil surface, and 6% in the rice crop. The N input via stylo seed, leaf litter and belowground N totalled about three times the amount of N contained in stylo mulch, which usually is considered as major rice N source. Conclusions Legumes, like stylo, can improve crop N supply and yield in low input CA cropping systems on highly weathered tropical soils. To explain the impact and mechanisms involved requires a consideration of all legume-N components beyond the mulch N present at the onset of the rice-cropping season. Keywords 15 N . Mulch . Symbiotic N 2 fixation . Madagascar . Litterbag study . Ferralsol . N recovery Abbreviations CA Conservation agriculture CA-NON CA based upland rice -stylo fallow rotation were rice received no fertilizer CA-FYM CA based upland rice -stylo fallow rotation were rice received farmyard manure CA-MIN CA based upland rice -stylo fallow rotation were rice received mineral fertilizer

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Section: Stylo N Accumulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The contribution of Stylosanthes guianensis to the nitrogen cycle in a low input legume-rice rotation under conservation agriculture

et al. 2018

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“…By perpetuating the narrative of "bush burning, " in which all types of anthropogenic or natural fire caused degradation, the intervention reinforced decades-old fire suppression policies rooted in colonial era science (Amanor 2002). Given the ecologically and politically complex role of fire in savannas, there are ultimately a plurality of perspectives regarding its utility for managing landscapes (Kull 2016).…”

Section: Who Frames Equity? Thinking On a Landscape Scalementioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing Social Equity in Farmer-Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) Interventions: Findings from Ghana

Kandel

Agaba

Alare³

et al. 2021

Ecological Rest.

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Achieving social equity in land and forest restoration is a key objective of major international frameworks and commitments, including the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. Meeting this objective requires consideration of key governance questions such as who makes decisions about what is restored, where, and how? And how do factors specific to local contexts influence which decisions are made, and, in turn, the distribution of benefits? Despite the demonstrated importance of social equity on project outcomes in many natural resource-based fields, there have to date been no assessments of social equity of farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR), an approach used mainly for restoring degraded agricultural land. Drawing on findings from community-based fieldwork in 2019-2020 in northeastern Ghana, this paper aims to fill this void. We address the following question: How do historical, socio-ecological, and political processes condition prospects for social equity in FMNR interventions? Key findings were: 1) Preexisting hierarchies in authority, control, and access over land and trees shaped decision-making in project design and the potential distribution of benefits from FMNR 2) FMNR, when implemented on farmland, generally aligned with local agroecological practices; but, when implemented to restore communal lands, it created tensions with local perceptions of equity as well as traditional land and natural resource management practices, and 3) The FMNR project reflected the continuing salience of dominant political and environmental discourses, which carry implications for restoring landscapes with FMNR. To support practitioners, we provide several recommendations for strengthening social equity of FMNR project designs.

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