| Autor: |
Oyama, Shuichi, Mammam, Ibrahim |
| Jazyk: |
angličtina |
| Rok vydání: |
2010 |
| Předmět: |
|
| Zdroj: |
Geographical Reports of Tokyo Metropolitan University. 45:31-44 |
| ISSN: |
0386-8710 |
| Popis: |
To develop the land rehabilitation methods in Sahel, it is important to examine the indigenous knowledge and daily practice against desertification. In order to avoid the land degradation and crop failure problems, the Hausa cultivators carry trash as manure from their homestead into the solid sedimentary layer of the millet fields in southern Niger. This degraded land produces no plants or crops. The content of homestead trash was mainly organic materials such as plant residue and livestock excreta. They put trash on the cemented ground of the degraded millet fields. We carried out in situ experiment and put homestead trash of 1.3 kg/m^2 and 12.5 kg/m^2 on the degraded solid sedimentary layer. According to the field observation, the termites drilled tunnels under the trash and carried up silt and clay from the underground for building the shelters. The rainwater percolated into the ground through the termite tunnels of the solid layer, in spite of flowing away on the solid sedimentary layer. The rises of the trash were able to catch the wind-blown sand as well as organic materials provided by sandstorm, and to disperse rainwater running off on the ground. These wind-blown sand, and clay and silt lifted up by the termites were important for improving soil property for the millet cultivation. The trash on the solid sedimentary layer prevented from soil erosion and exposure of the solid sedimentary layer. The Hausa cultivators improved the soil property and plant productivity by applying trash input and biological process of termites. |
| Databáze: |
OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
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