The Aman crop is largely planted. As for Aus, the rainfall has not favored our farmers, although rains in the last couple of weeks have been very beneficial and the crops appear to be in good condition. Unfortunately, many farmers were required to irrigate in the early season and delays in planting resulted in older seedlings and more seedlings per hill being transplanted. These combined factors are pushing costs up; with rice prices as low as they are (Tk 400-500/maund), it is hard to see how the

farmers will make a profit. Still, this crop remains the family food crop, and for subsistence reasons alone, it is most important that it does not fail. Once again, the UDP technology is helping keep costs down and yields up.

At the end of last month (August 31), we were honored by a visit from the USAID assistant to the administrator for Food Security, Mr. Paul Weisenfeld, and senior deputy assistant administrator for USAID-Asia, Ms. Denise Rollins. Along with the mission director and others from

Notes from Chief of Party, AAPI Inside this issue:

A New Initiative: Guti Urea in Dibbled-Seeded Aus in Bhola

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Aus 2012 Season Block Survey 4

Guti Urea Use in Potato and Maize

4

Homestead Gardening Ushers in New Hope

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Activity Achievements August 28 to September 26, 2012

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AAPI Events in October 2012 8

Volume 19

Accelerating Agriculture Productivity Improvement (AAPI)

AAPI NEWS BULLETIN September 30, 2012 A project supported by USAID in collaboration with DAE

AAPI News Bulletin is a monthly publication of the AAPI project. Subscriptions are free. IFDC is a Public International Organization (PIO) based in Alabama, USA. IFDC focuses o n i n c r e a s i n g a n d sustaining food security and agricultural productivity in developing countries. Managing Editor: Ishrat Jahan Resident Representative IFDC Bangladesh Eurasia Division and Project Coordinator, AAPI Design and Layout: Syed Afzal Hossain Data Management Unit, AAPI

The views expressed in this bulletin do not necessarily reflect views of the United States Agency for International Development or the United States Government

Paul Weisenfeld, Assistant Administrator, Denise Rollins, Deputy Assistant Administrator of USAID and other officials visiting AAPI project sites at Churamankati, Jessore Sadar on August 31, 2012

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USAID-Bangladesh, they visited a urea deep placement (UDP) block in Churamonkati Village within Jessore Sadar, where they observed the deep placement of urea briquettes (Guti) using the latest model of the AAPI-IFDC UDP applicator. The dignitaries also participated in a group discussion with farmers (men and women) who were both UDP technology adopters and non-adopters, and visited a UDP briquetting shop where they saw the production of Guti urea and discussed the business with the woman shop owner. In this newsletter, we have articles by two of our senior staff. Agriculture Specialist Dr. Shaharuk Ahmed has written about the results of field trials in Bhola, where farmers practice dibble seeding of rice. Farming Systems Specialist Dr. Badirul Islam has prepared recommendations for UDP application in potato and maize. We also have an article on our model village in Bagherpara Upazila in the Jessore district. We also reported briefly on the Aus 2012 Block Survey.

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A New Initiative: Guti Urea in Dibble-Seeded Aus in Bhola

Agriculture is the life-blood of Bhola’s farmers. Eighty-five percent of the district’s cultivated area is utilized for rice. Bhola is an isolated island surrounded by two mighty rivers, the Meghna and Tetulia. The island is comprised of young alluvial soils adjoining the Meghna estuary. It belongs to Agro-Ecological Zone (AEZ)-18. Its soils become saline in the dry season and general fertility is medium; these soils are also low in nitrogen (N) and organic matter.

AAPI NEWS BULLETIN Volume 19

AAPI News Bulletin

Contact Persons: Ishrat Jahan Grahame D. Hunter

Address: Dhaka Office: Road No. 62, House No. 4B, Apt-B2 Gulshan - 2, Dhaka -1212 Bangladesh Tel: 880-2-9894288 880-2-8817391 Fax: 880-2-8826109 Website: www.aapi-ifdc.org www.ifdc.org

Barisal Office: “Zohora” 834 (New) Police Line Road, Barisal Tel: 0431-2176566

Jessore Office: 1351 Police Line Road Talikhola, Puraton Kasba Jessore Tel: 0421-60986

AAPI Management:

Ishrat Jahan, Project Coordinator; Grahame D. Hunter, Chief of Party; Md. Mofizul Islam, Sr. Agriculture Specialist; Dr. Shaharuk Ahmed, Md. Fozlul Hoque, Md. Iqbal Hossain, Dr. Badirul Islam, Agriculture Specialists; Md. Shamsul Alam, Abul Hossain Mollah, Mahmood Hussain, Dr. AKM Farhad Training Specialists; Dr. Md. Abdul Mazid Mia, Mainul Ahsan, Soil Scientists; Md. Nurul Islam, Market/Business Develop-ment Specialist; Ram Proshad Ghosh, Mechanical Engineer; Dr. Abdul Wohab, Agriculture Engineer; Rubina Islam, Gender Specialist; Syed Afzal Mahmood Hossain, Senior Data Management Specialist; Farin Islam, M&E Specialist; AFM Saleh Chowdhury, Chief Accountant; Bishnu Rup Chowdhury, Administrative and Procurement Officer

In 2012, out of 26,200 hectares (ha) of high-yielding variety (HYV) Aus, about 12,600 ha were cultivated by dibble seeding. Under this method, seven to eight seeds are dropped into a small hole made in the dry ground; they germinate upon the first rain in April. The varieties used are BR-1 (known locally as China IRRI) and some HYV varieties, but overall productivity is very low (2.0-3.0 metric tons per hectare (mt/ha). Sometimes prolonged drought or heavy rains just after dibbling will prohibit the application of fertilizer (particularly urea top-dressing). There is also a greater incidence of weeds with broadcast urea. Faced with such constraints, farmers and Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) officials of Bhola requested AAPI to conduct trials/research in dibble-seeded Aus combined with UDP technology. Considering the important

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need to find appropriate fertilizer solutions for dibbling, AAPI scale up activities to design a replicated field trial in farmers’ fields for the Aus crop in costal/saline soils of Bhola; the objective is to determine the effect of dibbling and the time of deep placement of urea briquettes [1.8 gram (g)]. The trial was seeded on May 8, 2012. The date of first emergence of seedlings was May 14, 2012.

A field day was held at the time of the crop cut with 135 farmers (27 women), DAE officials and local leaders attending. The yield data indicated that the deep placement of 1.8 g urea briquette at 30 days after seedling emergence (T4) with recommended doses of other fertilizers gave the highest yield among the treatments. It was found that a 642 kg/ha-higher grain yield was obtained from treatment T4 over treatment T1.

It is also clear that the deep placement of urea briquettes helps farmers to use fertilizer

(particularly prilled urea) under dibbling conditions. The opinions of the participating farmers and specialists are: Farmers’ Opinions Before this trial, some of the farmers had

used urea briquettes in dibbled Aus, but they did not know the proper methods and time of application.

The area for dibbling Aus each year depends on rainfall.

Total yield for dibbled Aus is similar to transplanted Aus, but the cost is less.

Moving forward, farmers will use urea briquettes after 30 days of seedling emergence to obtain better yields.

The use of UDP and dibbling requires less labor; they do not have to prepare a seedbed, care for it or uproot the seedlings.

Specialists’ Opinions

Farmers can use urea briquettes in dibbled Aus for higher yields.

Maximum yields from UDP are obtained by deep placement 30 days after seedling emergence.

UDP in combination with dibble-seeded rice will increase yields.

To confirm the data, more research/trials are needed.

Plants tend to lodge more because there are fewer root anchors.

In dibble seeding, more seeds are required (80-100 kg/ha) compared with transplanting method (40-50 kg/ha).

There is a perception that Bhola farmers are locked into their rice cropping system – rice cultivation under the traditional practice (dibbling Aus) with a subsistence lifestyle. However, the use of UDP in dibbled Aus is paving the way for a more productive system. The cost and returns become part of the farmers’ decision to follow the technology. This new innovation is consistent with the AAPI goals and objectives and allows better yields with ecologically friendly practices.

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Deep placement of Guti urea in dibble Aus

Treat-ment

Replication

R1 R2 R3 R4 Mean

T1 4,482 4,225 3,795 4,039 4,135

T2 3,980 4,776 4,325 3,840 4,230

T3 4,506 4,151 3,809 4,523 4,247

T4 5,150 5,090 4,924 3,945 4,777

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AAPI NEWS BULLETIN Volume 19

Aus 2012 Season Block Survey

AAPI runs a block survey every season. Every Sub Assistant Agriculture Officer (SAAO) of DAE completes a form to report number of farmers using Guti urea, area of coverage and application of both Guti urea and prilled urea within their blocks. This data, along with crop cuts in farmer fields, and special interest surveys, is used to measure our impact.

The table shows areas for UDP coverage and urea savings in each of our districts. As you will recall, Aus season was affected by drought. However, we still managed to get a good percentage of the crop using UDP. The most southern districts that started with us under Improved Livelihood for Sidr-Affected Rice Farmers (ILSAFARM), such as Bagerhat, Barguna, Barisal, Patuakhali and Pirojpur have shown UDP in 70-80 percent of the cropped area. This is a great result. The districts in the north and south–west were badly hampered by lack of rain. Across the board, urea savings are 29 percent.

* * * Source: Aus 2012 Block Survey, AAPI-IFDC

District

Total HYV/Hybrid Area

Aus 2012 (Ha)

Total UDP Area (Ha)

Urea Saving

Kg/Ha

%

A. FtF Districts Zone Bagerhat 4,532 3,243 56 34 Barguna 39,960 33,378 35 24 Barisal 12,682 8,482 40 27 Bhola 22,777 3,705 47 29 Chuadanga 17,785 4,632 52 32 Faridpur 310 112 39 26 Gopalganj 489 105 34 24 Jessore 28,018 8,571 39 26 Jhalokati 14,535 10,042 48 30 Jhenaidah 19,404 7,616 46 29 Khulna 451 233 38 25 Madaripur 220 54 48 30 Magura 6,495 2,130 41 27 Meherpur 5,965 1,822 88 44 Narail 911 453 35 24 Patuakhali 37,297 28,166 41 27 Pirojpur 19,845 14,029 44 28 Rajbari 176 80 39 26 Satkhira 10,011 3,512 48 30 Shariatpur 103 58 41 27 FtF Total: 241,965 130,423 47 30 B. M&S Zone Mymensingh 10,176 4,135 33 22 Sherpur 2,718 746 27 19 M&S Total 12,894 4,881 31 21

Grand Total 254,859 135,304 46 29

Guti Urea Use in Potato and Maize

Accelerating productivity of rice and some non-rice crops by using UDP technology, popularly known as Guti urea is nothing new in Bangladesh. This is an effective, sustainable, urea-saving and environmentally friendly technology. Farmers in many areas of the AAPI districts already use Guti urea for vegetables and fruit crops. While applying the technology, farmers use 10-20 percent less urea than that of broadcast prilled urea in vegetables and other corps in the winter season, but harvest 10-20 percent higher yields. We have already discussed how to apply Guti urea in cabbage, cauliflower, tomato, eggplant and banana in the AAPI news bulletins published in November 2011 and April 2012. Those who are interested can also use this technology in potato and maize cropping.

Potato

Plow and level the field at the appropriate time. During the last tilling, mix the recommended amounts of well-decomposed cowdung, triple superphosphate (TSP), muriate of potash (MOP), gypsum, zinc sulfate, and boric acid with the soil. Remember that in the coastal areas (southern districts) of the country, it is not necessary to apply boron in potato and maize.

Appropriate period for planting: November

Varieties: Cardinal, Diamant, Granula, Asterix and other suitable modern varieties

Seed rate: 1,500 kg/ha

Tuber weight: 40-50 g/tuber (size 28-45 mm)

Spacing (for whole tuber): Line to line - 60 cm (24 inches)

Tuber to tuber - 25 cm (10 inches)

Amounts of Fertilizers (Except Urea) to be Applied

Fertilizers/Manure Amounts

kg/ha g/decimal

TSP 150 600 MOP 270 1,100 Gypsum 100 400 Zinc Sulfate (Hepta) 17 70 Boric Acid 5 20 Cowdung 5,000 20 kg

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AAPI NEWS BULLETIN Volume 19

How Do You Apply Guti Urea? For each potato tuber, two urea briquettes of 2.70 g weight will be applied at a depth of 5-8 cm (2-3 inches) by making a furrow 5-8 cm (2-3 inches) from both sides of the potato row, then covering the furrow with soil after briquette placement. Intercultural Operation Earthen Up: In general, the first earthen up is

to be done at 15-20 days after planting. The second earthen up will be done at 35-40 days after planting. At this time, the stolon is formed, and it is very important for watering and earthen up. If the soil in the inter row is compact, then spading will be required for easy growth of the stolon.

Irrigation: Generally, irrigation depends on

the basis of moisture in the soil. However, irrigation will be necessary at 30-35 days after planting or immediately after the second earthen up. Additional irrigation can be done as required, but before 65 days after planting. After this time, irrigation should not be used, because it makes the field favorable for scab and hallow heart disease; consequently, the quality of the potato will deteriorate.

Rouging: To get better quality potatoes, any

off-type plants, alien plants and/or obsolete plants should be eradicated and laid under the soil. Those types of plants may harbor diseases and insects. Disease-affected and

virus-infected plants must be removed and consciously destroyed immediately upon their appearance. Care must be taken not to spread disease by hand, ooze or instrument. Keep clean around the crop.

Disease Management

Late Blight: It is the most prolific and

destructive disease around the world. Every part of the plant can be infected by this disease. Within a short period (2-3 days), it may break out. The disease can be found by the presence of watery lesion grey spots on the leaf and/or white powdery mycelium under the leaf. Deep brown spots are seen on the skin of the infected potato.

Control: Contact fungicide Dithane M 45/Hemancogeb/Indofil 2g/L of water sprayed after seven-day intervals. Systemic fungicide: Secure 2g/L; Acrobat MZ 2 g/L of water sprayed after seven-day intervals.

Bacterial Wilt: This can be controlled by incorporating stable bleaching powder into the soil at the final land preparation at 15 kg/ha. This disease is very sensitive to irrigation and irrigation should be stopped in the infected field. The potato tubers of the infected field should not be kept as seed for cultivation the following year.

Scab: Scab can be reduced with a 3.0 percent boric acid treatment before planting and by standard irrigation.

Virus Diseases: More than 30 viruses are the main cause of degeneration of the potato. Among the viruses, PLRV, PVX and PVY are conspicuous in the field. Infected plants can be eradicated by uprooting the plant and then burning. Secondary control can be undertaken by controlling aphid infestation.

Insect Pest Management Cutworm is the major insect pest of the

potato. It can be controlled by hand picking and/or using 5.0 kg Furadan per ha.

The picture shows Guti urea applied in diamant variety of Potato

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AAPI NEWS BULLETIN Volume 19

The Aphid is the carrier of viruses. It can be controlled by Admire 0.5 ml/L of water at seven-day intervals after 20-25 days of planting.

Haulm-Pulling The upper part of the plant is separated off at

75-80 days after planting to reduce diseases and gain better quality of potato/seed potato tuber. In 8-12 days after haulm-pulling, harvesting can begin.

Maize The land should be well ploughed and leveled at the appropriate time. During the last tilling, recommended amounts of fertilizers, except urea, must be mixed with soil. Appropriate period for planting: November to

mid-December Varieties: Pacific 11, Pacific 60, NK-40, NK-46,

900 M, 900 super M, BARI hybrid maize-5, BARI hybrid maize-7, BARI hybrid maize-9

Seed rate: 20 kg/ha Spacing: Line to line - 75 cm (30 inches) Seed to seed - 25 cm (10 inches) Amounts of Fertilizers (except Urea) to be Applied

How Do You Apply Guti Urea? For each maize plant, 30-35 days after

seedling emergence, four urea briquettes of 2.7 g weight, or six urea briquettes of 1.8 g weight, will be placed on both sides of the

furrow at 5-8 cm (2-3 inches) depth by making 8-10 cm (3-4 inches) furrow on both sides of the maize row, then covering with soil.

Intercultural Operation Earthen Up: After seed sowing, the seed

should be covered by earthen up. Irrigation: Generally, irrigation depends on

the basis of moisture in the soil. However, irrigation will be necessary at 30-35 days after planting. Additional irrigation can be applied as required, but before flowering (55-60 days after planting). If needed, a third irrigation should be given at grain formation (85-90 days after planting).

Weeding: Upto 40-45 days of seed sowing,

the field should be kept weed-free.

* * * Homestead Gardening Ushers in New Hope A small piece of land has now become Marzina Khatun’s source of inspiration and dreams. The 16-square meter piece of land at a corner of her homestead, which traditionally remained fallow, is now full of vegetables. The garden is producing brinjal (eggplant) and green chili that not only meet a portion of Marzina’s daily needs, but also provide her with income through commercial sales. “We did not need to buy vegetables and chili in the last couple of months. Other than these, we

Fertilizers/Manure Amounts

kg/ha g/decimal TSP 280 1,134

MOP 180 730

Gypsum 220 890

Zinc Sulfate (Hepta) 10 40

Boric Acid 7 28

Cowdung 4,500 18 kg

Guti urea applied in Maize

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also produced bottle gourds in another corner of our yard,” Marzina, 25, said at Sadullahpur village of Bagharpara, an AAPI model village in Jessore, a southwestern district of Bangladesh. Marzina is one of 16 women who were trained in homestead gardening by AAPI and the DAE following a participatory rural appraisal (PRA) conducted in February 2012. Twelve male farmers were also trained in modern farming technologies, and began cropping pattern demonstrations in the Aus season this year. AAPI’s objective is to assist farmers to diversify crops based on comparative advantages, ensure quality fertilizer and seeds and improve market linkages that allow fair prices for farm produce. The project is bringing farmers of the village out of subsistence, where most of the 155 households are farmers with small- and medium-size farms. The use of urea briquettes, or Guti urea, and the implementation of better cropping patterns are two crucial aspects of AAPI that are helping the farmers within the village. Farmers are already benefiting from the interventions, and Marzina is a prime example.

“I am extremely pleased that I planted the brinjal and chili and took every care. They are giving fruits,” she said with emotion. To prepare the land, she applied 162 grams of TSP, 194 grams of gypsum, 324 grams of potash, 12 grams of zinc and 14 grams of boron fertilizers.

She planted a total of 27 brinjal plants and a few chili plants in mid-April. Of the 27, Marzina used a total of 292 grams of Guti urea on 18 plants – the first application was 12 days after planting and the second was after 60 days. For the remaining nine plants, on the other hand, she applied 162 g of prilled urea to compare the difference. By September 12, Marzina harvested 21 kg of eggplants from the 18 plants that used Guti urea, and only 8.5 kg from the nine plants that used broadcast urea. This clearly demonstrated the 23 percent greater yield from deep-placing the urea briquettes. Of the total yield, she sold 10 kg at Tk 20 per kg and bought some utensils. According to recommendations during the orientation training provided by AAPI, Marzina said that she would begin planting cauliflower, cabbage and tomatoes in the same garden in early October. After harvesting those winter crops, she will again plant brinjals, and thus grow vegetables all year round. Marzina’s husband Nasir Haider, a small farmer and seasonal rice trader, is also happy with his wife’s entrepreneurship that is bringing extra benefits to the family. “While I produce enough paddy for our family and earn from the seasonal business, my wife takes care of the chickens that provide eggs, and the homestead garden is producing vegetables,” says Nasiruddin, 33, father of a daughter, Nadia Sultana. Such happiness is evident in many of the families practicing the modern farming technologies, including the use of Guti urea, in the model village of Sadullahpur. Sabina Yasmeen, another female farmer, said she bought four chicks with the money she earned from the sales of brinjals produced in her homestead garden. “I also bought some notebooks and pencils for my kids,” she said, adding that she wants to enhance her earnings by producing vegetables and rearing chickens in addition to her regular work as a tailor.

Marzina Khatun is working in her homestead garden

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AAPI NEWS BULLETIN Volume 19

“I dream of buying another piece of land and growing increased amounts of vegetables,” said Sabina, expressing her conviction and empowerment in a traditionally male-dominated society. Selina Begum said, “We also grew vegetables in the past, but we were not so organized. Yields are far better now than before.” She emphasized a crucial aspect of their homestead gardening, saying, “We don’t have to buy vegetables from the market place, which are often grown by using pesticides.”

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AAPI Events in October 2012

In the month of October 2012, AAPI is concentrating its activities for Aman and Boro paddy. In this month, the following activities will be carried out.

265 batches of training for Boro rice farmers

15 batches of training for vegetable farmers

2 batches of training for briquette producers

3 small business management trainings

92 motivational meeting with old farmers

Sale of 25 urea briquette machines

15 motivational field trips

16 stakeholders workshops for Boro

3 promotional shows

Indicator Unit Season Target

Achievement in September

2012

Season Total

% of Target

Aman season UDP coverage for Aman ha 503,275 207,142 563,501 112%

Farmer training Batches 2,752 162 2,954 107%

Extension staff meeting No. 10 12 24 240%

Orientation Training No. 26 - 26 100%

Rice field demonstration No. 422 55 552 131%

Rice Trials No. 36 1 28 78%

Motivational field trips Batches 10 2 10 100%

Stakeholder workshops Batches 8 4 35 438%

Sale of briquette machines Batches 90 43 125 139%

Briquette owner training Batches 7 4 11 157%

Aus crop cut - -

Rice demonstration harvest No. 129 89 182 141%

Rice trials cut No. 14 5 12 86%

Field days No. 15 14 22 147%

Crop cuts in farmers field No. 167 284 416 249%

Activity Achievements August 28 to September 26, 2012 From August 28 to September 26, 2012, AAPI successfully completed activities as shown in the following table.

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