Ajausud|African Journal of Agriculture and Utilisation of Natural Resources for Sustainable Development

Timing fresh Azolla supplementation in improved indigenous chicken: growth cost tradeoffs under Kenyan production scenarios

2026-10-09T03:27:33-05:00

Fresh Azolla may reduce purchased-feed requirements, but its economic value depends on the balance between feed savings, production costs and live-weight losses. This scenario analysis compared commercial feeding throughout a 20-week cycle (T1) with partial grower-feed restriction and fresh Azolla supplementation after week 12 (T2) or week 8 (T3). Projected performance summaries were combined with an itemized enterprise budget and deterministic sensitivity analysis. Final body weights were 1,778, 1,746 and 1,689 g, respectively; commercial feed requirements were 7.01, 6.09 and 5.72 kg per bird placed. At an assumed fresh Azolla cost of KES 12/kg and sale price of KES 550/kg live weight, recalculated production costs were KES 455.8, 442.0 and 442.2 per kilogram sold. Budget surpluses were KES 154.1, 173.0 and 168.3 per bird placed. Feed constituted 67.8% of the control budget, while labour accounted for 54.9% of Azolla production expenditure. The modeled cost advantage disappeared above approximately KES 21.8/kg fresh Azolla for T2 and KES 19.2/kg for T3. Later supplementation retained more live weight with a similar unit production cost. These conditional projections identify priorities for field evaluation; they do not establish feeding efficacy, survival effects or an optimal switching age.

Early Soil Nitrogen and Greenhouse-Gas Responses to Reduced Tillage in Smallholder Maize-Bean Systems Across Contrasting Agro-ecological Zones of Western Kenya

2026-10-07T04:22:56-05:00

Reduced tillage is increasingly being promoted in sub-Saharan Africa, yet early changes in soil nitrogen (N) cycling and greenhouse-gas (GHG) exchange remain poorly resolved under smallholder maize–bean systems. This three-year field experiment evaluated conventional tillage (CT), minimum tillage (MT), and no-till (NT) at Bungoma (lower altitude, warmer, two annual cropping seasons) and Trans-Nzoia (higher altitude, cooler, one principal cropping season) in western Kenya. Treatments were arranged in randomized complete blocks with four replicates. Potentially mineralizable nitrogen (PMN), mineral nitrogen, soil moisture, and chamber-based CO₂, CH₄, and N₂O fluxes were measured during long-rain, short-rain, and fallow periods. Site and season strongly structured biogeochemical responses. PMN and GHG fluxes were generally greater at Bungoma than Trans-Nzoia, and short-rain periods produced the largest CO₂ and N₂O fluxes. Reduced soil disturbance consistently lowered CO₂ flux. Relative to CT, NT lowered mean CO₂ flux from 79.5 to 64.5 mg CO₂-C m⁻² h⁻¹ at Bungoma and from 61.3 to 52.0 mg CO₂-C m⁻² h⁻¹ at Trans-Nzoia. In contrast, mean N₂O differences among tillage treatments were not statistically significant, indicating that mitigation responses were air and context-specific. CH₄ exchange was small and predominantly represented net uptake. The results show that early transition to reduced tillage can suppress soil CO₂ losses, while N₂O responses remain strongly conditioned by season and agro-ecological setting. These findings support locally adapted conservation agriculture strategies and caution against assuming uniform GHG benefits from reduced tillage alone.

Strengthening Climate-Resilient Extension for Dairy, Poultry, Coffee and Tea Value Chains in Kericho County, Kenya

2026-10-09T03:29:29-05:00

Climate-resilient agricultural development requires extension services that integrate production risk management, environmental stewardship and enterprise viability. This study examined priorities for dairy, poultry, coffee and tea value chains in Kericho County, Kenya, using farmer-group discussions, a structured coffee questionnaire and key-informant interviews conducted within a wider regional field assessment. Analysis distinguished geographically identifiable Kericho observations from pooled regional frequencies. Feed conservation was recorded in all seven regional dairy-group submissions, while all three coffee submissions recorded coffee berry disease, leaf rust and organic-manure/soil-conservation practices; both datasets included a Kericho entry. These results describe participating groups rather than county-wide prevalence. Feed and water security, animal and crop health, input affordability and market coordination emerged as intervention priorities. Producer-level evidence was uneven across commodities, particularly for poultry and tea. Demonstrations, farmer field schools, seasonal advisories and staged investment provide an integrated extension framework. Subsequent evaluation should establish whether these interventions improve adoption, enterprise performance and environmental outcomes.

Integrating Meteorological Forecasts and Scenario Simulation to Support Smallholder Maize Farming Decisions in Kakamega County, Kenya

2026-10-07T04:25:20-05:00

Seasonal rainfall outlooks can support advance planning in rainfed maize systems, but farm operations depend not only on seasonal rainfall totals but also on rainfall timing, continuity and short dry periods. This study examined Kenya Meteorological Department (KMD) March-May seasonal outlooks for Kakamega County from 2021 to 2025 and used a transparent stochastic scenario model to explore rainfall indicators relevant to farm decision-making. Official outlook messages were reviewed separately from retrospective observations. Three illustrative rainfall scenarios, each comprising 10,000 synthetic 92-day sequences, represented sparse, intermediate and frequent rainfall conditions. A candidate planting trigger was defined as at least 20 mm of rainfall accumulated over three consecutive days and completed by day 30. Among sequences reaching the trigger, a subsequent seven-day dry spell within 21 days occurred in 54.6%, 11.0% and 0.7% of the sparse-, intermediate- and frequent-rain scenarios, respectively. A separate three-day dry run within 30 days occurred in 100.0%, 95.3% and 58.5% of the same scenarios. Sensitivity analysis showed that rainfall occurrence and persistence could substantially alter post-trigger dry-spell exposure even when expected seasonal rainfall was held constant. The results demonstrate that seasonal rainfall totals alone do not capture decision-relevant rainfall sequences. A practical climate-service approach should therefore combine seasonal contingency planning with short-range updates and field verification. The simulated proportions are illustrative and should not be interpreted as calibrated probabilities of crop failure, yield loss or other farm outcomes in Kakamega.