In an interview with Sebastian during the National Agriculture farmer’s show at Dodoma, He said, "I fabricated these three frames for rippers, and the ripper/tine I sourced from somewhere where it had been thrown away as scrap. I started with two tines ripper. This year I will add one tine to each to have three rows/three tine ripper, for time effectiveness and cost’’
One of the reasons for low yields in the Kibaigwa area is the limited amount of moisture available to crop roots which has been caused by the hard pan resulting from plough pan, free livestock movement and unreliable rainfall. Farm experimentation using tractor ripper has shown that deep tillage (ripping) can help. Ripping or subsoiling can be beneficial, either to increase the porosity of the soil, or to break a pan which is reducing permeability. Ripping in Kibaigwa ward has been seen as major solutions to the hardpan, food insecurity and as an adaptation mechanism to climate change in the area.
Ripping is one of the important practices carried out in conservation agriculture technology, especially in areas with hard pan problem, it helps in rain water harvesting, conservation of moisture and reduces runoff. Farmers in Kibaigwa ward-Kongwa district central Tanzania, have had their yields increased with an average of 2 bags per acre from previous season to 7 bags of maize per acre in 2013. The sunflower crop got 10 bags in ripped field from 2 bags from non- ripped field in 2013 season.
In an interview with Sebastian during the National Agriculture farmer’s show at Dodoma, He said, "I fabricated this three frames for rippers and the ripper/tine, I sourced from somewhere where it had been thrown away as scrap. I started with two tines ripper, this year I will add one tine to each to have three rows/three tine ripper, for time effectiveness and cost’’
"Last year I managed to serve 12 villages in Kibaigwa ward with total number of 1426 farmers with my three 80Hp tractor. I managed to do ripping in my 80 acres and the yield was super good compared to my neighbors and to my yield the previous years. This year I got 10 bags of sunflower and 7 bags of maize per acres compared to last year where I got only 3 bags of maize and 2 bags of sunflower per acre." Farmers have confirmed that it is better to use conservation agriculture rather than traditional agriculture. In conservation agriculture I got more profit" he said. Adding that," apart from cutting down production costs, I have found this technology time saving and less rigorous".
"In addition to that, "last year I managed to make good profits and pay half price of one new tractor. I provide service to my fellow farmers and to me it’s a great business! I use less time, less fuel and wear and tear of my machines is less hence less cost for maintenance"
Ripper - a tool that causes minimum disturbance to the soil, helps increase water capture, protect water quality, and reduce soil erosion, especially in bare land which is susceptible to erosion. Stay clear of waterways, ditches, and clean water in dikes/dykes/lambos and also help to feed the aquifer below the ground. The optimum size of the root system is governed by climate and seasonal rainfall distribution, as well as nutrient supplying ability of the soil. In most of the cropping areas of Dodoma, rainfall quantity or distribution are less than ideal. In this situation ripping is required so that the soils can accept and store rainfall in the root zone, minimizing losses by runoff, evaporation and drainage.
For more information: Contact ACT- Tanzania. Info.tz@act-africa.org