This document summarizes conservation agriculture practices in Laikipia County, Kenya. It describes Laikipia's location, demographics, livelihoods and climate. Conservation agriculture has been promoted in Laikipia East since 2004 through various projects and focuses on minimum tillage and soil cover. Both small-scale and large-scale farmers have adopted conservation agriculture, increasing yields and reducing costs. Challenges include heavy rains that discourage equipment use, lack of cover crop options, weed issues, and wildlife damage. The conclusion states conservation agriculture can increase resilience if stakeholders work together to share the technology with farmers.

1. CONSERVATION
AGRICULTURE IN LAIKIPIA
KENYA
BY ANNE N KIMAITA
COUNTY DIRECTOR OF AGRICULTURE
LAIKIPIA KENYA
18th to 21st March 2014
LUSAKA--ZAMBIA

2. INTRODUCTION
Location
Laikipia County is one of the forty seven counties in
Kenya. It is located on the western side of Mt. Kenya
in the Rift Valley bordering central and eastern
regions. The county headquarters are in Nanyuki
town a major tourist destination due to its proximity
to Mt. Kenya and the many wild life conservancies.

3. INTRODUCTION
Demographics
The county has three administrative units namely Laikipia
East, Laikipia North and Laikipia West sub counties.
Laikipia East covers an area of 2310.9 km² and a
population of about 90,994 persons as per 2009 census. It
has a poverty index of 46% and a literacy level of 78%.
There are 10,675 farms with 14,466 farm families.

4. INTRODUCTION
Livelihoods
Locaton of Laikipia on the leeward side of Mt. Kenya and the
Aberdare Ranges makes it mainly an ASAL region. The main
livelihoods are pastoralist in Laikipia North and part of
Laikipia West, mixed farming in part of Laikipia West and
marginal mixed farming in parts of Laikipia East and parts of
Laikipia West. A few commercial horticultural farms using
irrigation are spread in the county along the river line.

5. INTRODUCTION
Climate
Laikipia East falls in the cool highlands semi arid
zone of Kenya with a mean annual rainfall range of
400mm to 700mm of rainfall being on the leeward
side of Mt. Kenya. This is the area where CA was
first extended to small and large scale farmers

6. CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE
• Conservation Agriculture in Laikipia is concentrated in Laikipia
East Sub County which was a pilot district and is practiced by both
large scale and small scale farmers. It has been promoted mainly by
the Ministry of Agriculture through
 FAO funded project CA-SARD I - 2004 to 2007
 FAO funded through KARI under CA-SARD II –2007 to 2010
 EU funded through ACT under ABACO Project - 2011 to 2014
• Other stakeholders in extension of conservation agriculture are
CETRAD and Olpajeta conservancy.

7. CA EXTENSION
• CA technology passed to farmers through Farmer field
schools, Crop demonstrations, Field days, staff and
farmers training, staff and farmers’ tours as well as
farmer to farmer interaction.
• Two on-farm research sites have been set up in Laikipia
East Sub County by the ABACO project from which
farmers have been able to learn CA.
• Organized tours to the privately owned large scale
Lengetia CA farm by farmers inside and outside
Laikipia County has always been of great impact to
those interested in CA especially from the sharing with
the farm owner.

8. CA ADOPTION
a) On small scale
• Over 30 farmer groups have been trained on CA with over 400
members practicing. Its estimated about 1000 small scale farmers put
3000 to 5000 acres annually under minimum tillage. This in return
saves them more than Kshs7.5 to 12.5 million (Us$ 135,000 to
225,000) on land preparation only and a reduction in use of diesel by 8-
15 litres per acre. Individual small scale farmers have been able to
increase crop yields per acre i.e maize yields increased from 1-5 bags to
10-18 bags and total production by increasing area under crop using the
same family labour where land was available.

9. CA ADOPTION
Case study
Njoroge of Mutirithia rainfall below 400mm pa – Cultivates
a two acre plot alone using CA and do casual jobs, from
which he is able to feed his family and takes care of his wife
who is a cancer patient. He was able to increase his yields
from total crop failure to 8 to 15 bags per acre with no use
of commercial fertilizers. The surplus harvest is processed
and sold to the neighbours who are mainly pastoralists.
Crop farmers have deserted the area due to constant crop
failures and wildlife menace.

10. CA ADOPTION
Case study
Maize plot prepared and
maize seeds germinating
1st crop of maize harvested
and plot seeded with pulsesMaize crop shallow weeded
Njoroge’s farm 2013

11. CA ADOPTION
Small scale
Mr Kamande of Muramati and his wife all above the
age of 60 yrs (rainfall about 500mm pa) has increases
the area under cultivation from the usual one acre to
three acres in three years after adopting CA and no
longer require extra labour. One acre used to give
him about 3bags of Maize in a year with no harvest in
severe drought. After adopting CA the maize yields
rose to an average of 15 bags per acre and is able to
grow assorted pulses as cover crops during the short
rains season

12. CA ADOPTION
Case study – small scale farmer Mr. Kamande s Farm 2013fm 2013
Mr. Kamande in the long rains
maize plot
Dolichos cover crop in maize
Chick pea crop in maize Short rains crop of maize
Local bean crop in maize

13. CA ADOPTION
Case study
Nancy Muthoni a single mother of Mazingira FFS
age above 55yrs had to visit the doctor due to
problems related to increased weight after adopting
CA. She resolved to use minimal herbicibes and more
shallow weeding. Her land is all under CA.

14. CA ADOPTION
Case study – small scale farmer
Susan Wangeci aged above 65yrs of Mazingira FFS has a
husband struggling with the effects of stroke which rendered
him unable to work or make decisions. Susan with a farm
about 4.5 acres was very quick to give the FFS one acre demo
plot in 2007. By then she was farming about half an acre.
Three years down the line after learning CA she was un will to
extended the group use of her land when she realized an acre
of her land could produce 20 bags per acre. Currently she is
farming about three acres.

15. CA ADOPTION
Susan and ABACO project office
in her maize plot
Susan shallow weeding
desmodium cover crop in maize Agricultural staff preparing for a
farmers field day at Susan’s farm
Case study – small scale farmer

16. CA ADOPTION
b)Case study large scale farmer
Mr. Sessions of Lengetia Farm, a large scale farmer with about 4500 acres
under CA has been able to change his fortune in farming from being a net
borrower to a net depositor in the banks. He has also been able to buy top
of the range modern equipments which has made CA farming easier and
cheaper. He has contributed greatly to adoption of CA by other large scale
farmers and small scale farmers through holding field days on his farm,
receiving visiting persons or teams interested in CA and personally talking
to them. He mainly plants wheat and sometimes contracted barley. He says
in convention farming he used to harvest 2 to 8 bags per acre and always in
debts. With CA he has achieved 10 to 18 bags per acre at a reduced
fertilizer use of 18-25kgs per acre and a much lower labour cost per acre.

17. CA ADOPTION
Case study - Lengatia Farm,
Mr. sessions with a direct seeder used
to promote CA with neighbouring
small scale farmers.
Good harvests prompted the
farmer to install grain stores in the
farm

18. Challenges
• Too much rains during planting made it difficult to
plant with draft animals and the Jab planters to water
logging discouraging adoption of CA tools and
equipments.
• Few service providers with CA equipments. Only two
have a set of basic CA equipments for draft animals.
Tractor drawn CA equipments with large scale farmers
are not available to small scale farmers either due to
costs or not on hire.
• Identification, Adoption, Utilization and
commercialization of cover crops. Current adopted
cover crops have poor germination percentage in most
cases leading to no soil cover.

19. Challenges
• Weeds are a challenge in situation of too much rain
and water logging common in the clay soils of
laikipia
• Dry plant material cover – In Laikipia farmers
practice mixed farming. Hence competition between
the soil cover, livestock feed and termite action.
• Experience in use of herbicides is limiting as they
have not been in common use. Consequently,
selection, timing of application and rates have been a
problem. Some weeds are resistant to herbicides.

20. Challenges
• Wildlife crop damage mainly by elephants. Mice and squirrels
common where there is heavy mulch contributing to low
germination of Maize which is the main crop
Nyumba ca demo plot at
an earlier stage of growth
Elephants waste on the ca
demo site.
Crops in the ca demo plot
destroyed by elephants
Crops in nyumba ffs ca demo plot destroyed by elephants in 2012

21. CONCLUSION
CA technology offers our farmers an opportunity to
mitigate adverse weather, increase yields, Reduce
production, reduce capital investment, save time for
other activities while mitigating climate change, as
well as conserving soil and water
Critical is to impact farmers with the technology who
in turn have to be patient with the learning process.
Its therefore important that there is concerted effort
thro stakeholder participation in the extension of CA
technology

22. THANK YOU