Lots of great background info on conservation agriculture including use of cover crops and carbon sequestration rates. Delivered to Project Breadbasket conservation agriculture field workshop in Parana State Brazil by Ademir Calegari, PhD, IAPAR, on July 12, 2011 in Pato Branco.

1. Ademir Calegari [email_address] Iapar, Brazil Conservation Agriculture the Brazilian Experience

2. Brazil: 8.513 Km 2 Brazil Savanna area: 210 Million hectares of Potential Agriculture Brasilia(DF) Amazonas Roraima North Northeast Center-West Southeast South

3. TERRIBLE EROSION IN PARANA STATE IN 1970s and 1980s

4. GOODBYE SOIL, GOODBYE LIVELIHOODS

6. Fonte: EMATER, PR, 2000 Potassium

7. The No-tillage System Permanent soil cover Control of weeds (Attention to crop rotation) Harvest Rolling down cover crop Cover crop

8. Peanuts pea potatoes rice

9. Water Oxigen

10. Crop residues effect (above ground) Active aggregation zone Active decomposition zone 0 - 5 cm New structure regrow

11. Let the roots and soil flora and fauna do the work

12. Soil temperature stuble 30 C Bare soil temperature 55 C

14. Black oat + vetch Mixing cover crops increases diversity of soil nutrients and fodder

16. Hairy Vetch – Equivalent to 120 kg N ha

17. Intercropping gives two chances for a harvest Sorghum and cowpea - Swaziland Maize and groundnut - Kenya

18. Cowpea and pineapple - Mozambique Crotalaria juncea intercropped with sorghum or maize. It is fast growing, suppresses weeds, reduces nematode populations and improves soil properties.

21. Corn intercropped with legume cover crop

22. Rice + Calopogonium mucunoides

23. Cover crop management using the knife roller

24. No-tillage for animal traction

25. No-Till System- 53 t/ha of Cassava Roots

26. Conservation agriculture brings higher levels of organic matter, retains moisture better Conventional systems lead to low organic matter & loss of water... 

27. Conventional No-till

28. What about the weeds? Conventional tillage Irrigated 3-4 times/week Weeding 8-10 times Labour input 45 days/ha Yield 23 tons of bulbs Conservation Agriculture Irrigated only once a week Weeding not necessary Labour input 7 days/ha Yield 39 tons of bulbs Austrian Cooperation Project in Mozambique – Sofala Province

29. CARBON SEQUESTRATION (0,00-0,20m) after 19 years – Pato Branco, PR. 0.00 + 0.25 + 0.50 + 0.75 + 1.00 SOC (Mg ha -1 year -1 ) + 1,24 t/ha/year No-Till

30. MUCUNA nodules fix nitrogen

33. Sesbania sp. indigenous legume – previously considered a weed by locals - is a great cover crop for rice in Estaquinha (Búzi) , Mozambique

34. Nature says Thanks!