Components

Component 1: Setting up and maintaining demonstration/training plots

Establishment of demonstration/training plots on small farms with farmer participation in order to develop and test technologies for introducing improved clones in traditional rubber agroforestry system. Smallholder farmer acceptability will be investigated. Demonstration/ training plots will be established to test different improvement pathways under a range of contexts that include: environment similar to jungle rubber; rubber intercropping with food crops, different fruit and timber trees; and rubber planting in grasslands using cover crops and fast growing tree species to control weeds. Results will be translated into technical recommendations for dissemination through regular extension services and/or by larger-scale projects.

Component 2: Budwood garden programme

Budwood Garden Programme for the production and dissemination of improved rubber planting material to farmers. Farmers will be trained in nursery management and grafting techniques, so that they can produce high quality planting material at an affordable price. Planting material of valuable fruit, timber and other useful species will be produced in the nurseries where appropriate. The main output of the budwood garden programme will be availability of improved material and local capacity to produce these for smallholder planting.

Component 3: Agronomic assessment

Agronomic aspects of rubber agroforestry will continue to be monitored to understand better the competition between tree species in rubber agroforestry systems. Available tree growth simulation models will adapted for improved rubber agroforest context. This will help in developing better recommendations for efficient crop combinations, optimum cropping densities, patterns and practices suitable for different socio-environmental contexts. The resulting recommendations will be linked to demonstration and information dissemination components.

Component 4: Biodiversity assessment

The well recognized value of biodiversity conservation in rubber agroforestry systems will be investigated to identify how this biodiversity and non-timber forest products can contribute to the productivity of traditional as well as improved rubber agroforestry systems. As other projects at ICRAF already cover the in-depth biodiversity studies, this component under the current project will focus specifically on rubber-based system is evaluation how such biodiversity can be managed to enhance productivity and householder income. The output of this component, linked through demonstration plots, will enhance the recognition of value of biodiversity conservation in traditional and improved rubber agroforestry systems.

Component 5: Farming systems characterization

Socio-economic surveys and evaluation of recommended technology on a regular basis will assess technology adoption by beneficiary farmers, their constraints and adoption behaviour. Available economic models will be adapted to assess cost-benefit of various management and practices in rubber agroforestry systems. The close monitoring and repeated evaluation will assist in fine-tuning the technology and approaches to ensure that these technologies actually benefit the smallholder farmers.

Component 6: Dissemination of project outputs

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Rubber Agroforestry System (RAS) Technologies

RAS 1. Productive jungle rubber

In RAS 1 Natural vegetation re-growth is promoted between rows of rubber trees for maintaining favorable conditions for rubber growth while keeping noxious weeds like Imperata cylindrica under control.

Technology package for RAS 1

•          Planting clonal plants grown in polybags

•          Weeding every 3 months on rubber rows

•          Limited inputs of rock phosphate and urea  applied in first two years only

RAS 2. Complex rubber agroforestry system

Farmers often prefer a mixture of rubber and other crops. In RAS 2, fruit trees and other crops can be grown between rubber rows with two cycles of upland rice, and then other crops such as chilly, maize and banana are planted in the first period. In this systems, high input on the soil were given since the food crops were planted in the first 2 years of rubber plantation.

Technology package for RAS 2

•          Planting clonal plants grew in polybags

•          Weeding every 3 months on rubber rows only

•          Limited inputs rock phosphate and urea  applied in first two years

•          Regular weeding around associated crops

RAS 3. Reclaiming Imperata grasslands

RAS 3 is developed for rehabilitating Imperata grasslands with clonal rubber. In this system, legumes and other cover crops or fast growing trees are planted between rubber rows to control Imperata weed.

Technology package for RAS 3

•          Planting clonal plants grew in polybags

•          Weeding every 3 months on rubber rows only

•          Limited inputs of rock phosphate and urea applied in first two years

•          Promotion of cover crops, fast growing trees, and shrubs to control Imperata weed

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