Improving rainwater-use in Cabo Verde drylands by reducing runoff and erosion

Assessing the Biophysical Impact and Financial Viability of Soil Management Technologies Under Variable Climate in Cabo Verde Drylands: The PESERA‐DESMICE Approach

“…Adapted from Baptista et al . (). This figure is available in colour online at wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/ldr.…”

“…Full details of the field study are presented in Baptista et al . (). The baseline scenario (T0) represented a traditional maize/bean intercropping system with no input or conservation measure.…”

Soil and Water Conservation Strategies in Cape Verde (Cabo Verde in Portuguese) and Their Impacts on Livelihoods: An Overview from the Ribeira Seca Watershed

“…Smolikowski [2] and colleagues showed the effectiveness and the importance of vegetation barriers and mulch against water erosion when compared with traditional cropping practices (maize and beans), while Querido [26] reported that the use of 1.5 ton/ha of mulch reduced soil erosion by up to 95% and significantly increased infiltration. Baptista [37] and colleagues also reported up to 100% reduction in soil loss from steep dryland hillsides with a combination of crop residue mulching, pigeon-pea hedges and organic amendments.…”

“…Several attempts have been made to quantify erosion in the RSW both at plot [2,26,37,38] and sub-watershed levels [39][40][41][42][43], with results indicating great spatial and temporal variability depending on slope, land-use, rainfall amount and intensity. Mean erosion rates (t·ha…”

“…Despite the low yields (300-700 kg maize grain per ha) and frequent crop failure, farmers routinely plant maize every year, regardless of the economic loss and environmental degradation arising from this agricultural activity. Land degradation has been widely associated with dryland farming practices [10,37] as the conventional maize cultivation is practiced on steep lands without SWC measures, is excessively hoe-weeded, has low soil cover and thus leads to high soil erosion rates.…”