Technical efficiency of cocoa farms at varying elevation levels in Davao City, Philippines: implications to sustainable upland farming systems

Elevation is one of many components that influence agriculture, and this in turn affects the level of both inputs and outputs of farmers. This article focuses on the productivity and technical efficiency of 100 cocoa farms using cross-sectional data from areas ranging from 190 to 1021 m above sea level which were classified as low, medium, and high elevation in Davao City, considered as the chocolate capital of the Philippines. Using stochastic frontier analysis, the results showed that the cost of inputs per ha and the number of cocoa trees per ha significantly increase yield. Farms at high elevations were less technically efficient, as this entails lower temperatures and increased rainfall, and cocoa farming in those areas and conditions can be more challenging, especially with changes in farming practices, terrain, and distance to markets. Other significant variables were age of cocoa farms, married farmers, and age of the farmers. Older farms may be more developed, farmers who are married benefit from their spouses being able to readily contribute as farm labor, and lastly, older farmers' inefficiency may likely stem from nonadaptation of newer farming practices. With an average technical efficiency of 0.61, 0.63, and 0.26 in low, medium, and high elevation areas, respectively, farmers therefore have an incentive to improve farm practices and consider topographical variations found in high elevation areas. Recommendations for the improvement of technical efficiency of cocoa farms are better connectivity to markets, enhancing farm practices, and continuation and improvement of government programs on cocoa with an added emphasis on research. For farmers in high elevation areas, mitigating solutions such as sustainable agriculture practices and ecolabelling are key to improving efficiency and minimizing the potential negative impact on upland farming systems. Moreover, such adaptation measures may also contribute to sustainability of cocoa farming in high elevation areas.

Analysis on Development Potential of Agricultural Resources of Farming System in Shandong Province

Based on the characteristics of agricultural resources and social resources in Shandong Province, the approaches of developing farming system potential were discussed, which provide important references for sustainable development of modern farming system.

Long Term Effects of Farming System on Soil Water Content and Dry Soil Layer in Deep Loess Profile of Loess Tableland in China

Soil water is strongly affected by land use/cover in the Loess Plateau in China. Water stored in thick loessal soils is one of the most important resources regulating vegetation growth. However, soil water in the deep loess proifle, which is critical for maintaining the function of the“soil water pool”is rarely studied because deep proifle soil samples are dififcult to collect. In this study, four experimental plots were established in 2005 to represent different farming systems on the Changwu Tableland：fallow land, fertilized cropland, unfertilized cropland, and continuous alfalfa. The soil water content in the 15-m-deep loess proifles was monitored continuously from 2007 to 2012 with the neutron probe technique. The results showed that temporal variations in soil water proifles differed among the four farming systems. Under fallow land, the soil water content increased gradually over time, ifrst in the surface layers and later in the deep soil layers. In contrast, the soil water content decreased gradually under continuous alfalfa. The distributions of soil water in deep soil layers under both fertilized and unfertilized cropland were relatively stable over time. Thus farming system signiifcantly affected soil water content. Seven years after the start of the experiment, the soil water contents in the 15-m-deep proifles averaged 23.4%under fallow land, 20.3%under fertilized cropland, 21.6%under unfertilized cropland, and 16.0%under continuous alfalfa. Compared to measurements at the start of the experiment, both fallow land and unfertilized cropland increased soil water storage in the 15-m loess proifles. In contrast, continuous alfalfa reduced soil water storage. Fertilized cropland has no signiifcant effect on soil water storage. These results suggest that deep soil water can be replenished under the fallow and unfertilized farming systems. Dry soil layers （i.e., those which have soil water content less than the stable ifeld water capacity） in the subsoil of the Changwu Tableland region can be classiifed as either temporary dry soil layers or persistent dry soil layers. Temporary dry soil layers, which typically form under annual crops, often disappear during wet years. Persistent dry soil layers generally develop under perennial vegetation. Even after removing the vegetation, persistent dry soil layers remain for several decades. This study provides information useful for the conservation and utilization of soil water resources in the Loess Tableland.

The Evolution of Organic Carbon in Chinese Mollisol Under Different Farming Systems: Validation and Prediction by Using Century Model

Soil organic carbon （SOC） is an important indicator of soil degradation process. In this study, the long-term SOC evolution in Chinese mollisol farmland was simulated and predicted by validating, analyzing, processing and assorting concerning data, based on clarifying parameters of Century model need, combined with best use of recorded data of field management, observed data of long-term experiments, climate, soil, and biology, and achieved results from Hailun Agro-Ecological Experimental Station, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The results were showed as follows： Before reclamation, SOC content was around 58.00 g kg^-1, SOC content dropped quickly in early years, and then decreased slowly after reclamation. SOC content was around 34.00 g kg^-1 with a yearly average rate of 8.91‰ decrease before long-term experiments was established. After a long-term experiment, SOC would change under different farming systems. Shift farming system changed as follows： By 20-year model simulation, SOC content decreased from 34.03 to 30.19 g kg^-1, with a yearly average rate of 5.97‰; by 100-year model simulation, SOC content decreased to 24.31 g kg^-1, with a yearly average rate of 3.36‰. Organic farming system changed as follows： By 20-year model simulation, SOC content decreased slowly from 34.03 to 33.39 g kg^-1, with a yearly average rate of 0.95‰, 5‰ less than that of shift farming system; by 100-year model simulation, SOC content decreased to 32.21 g kg^-1, with a yearly average rate of 0.55‰. ＂Petroleum＂ farming system changed as follows： By 20-year model simulation, SOC content decreased from 34.03 to 32.88 g kg^-1, with a yearly average rate of 1.72‰, much more than that of organic farming system; by 100-year model simulation, SOC content decreased to 30.89 g kg^-1, with a yearly average rate of 0.96‰. Combined ＂petroleum＂-organic farming system changed as follows： By 20-year model simulation, SOC content was increased slightly; by 100-year model simulation, SOC content increased from 34.03 to 34.41g kg^-1, with a yearly average rate of 0.11‰. The above results provided an optimal way for maintaining SOC in Chinese mollisol farmland： To increase, as much as possible within agro-ecosystem, soil organic matter returns such as crop stubble, crop litter, crop straw or stalk, and manure, besides applying chemical nitrogen and phosphorous, which increased system productivity and maintained SOC content as well. Also, the results provided a valuable methodology both for a study of CO2 sequestration capacity and for a target fertility determination in Chinese mollisol.

Sustainability Evaluation of Different Systems for Sea Cucumber(Apostichopus japonicus) Farming Based on Emergy Theory

Emergy analysis is effective for analyzing ecological economic systems. However, the accuracy of the approach is af- fected by the diversity of economic level, meteorological and hydrological parameters in different regions. The present study evalu- ated the economic benefits, environmental impact, and sustainability of indoor, semi-intensive and extensive farming systems of sea cucumber （Apostichopus japonicus） in the same region. The results showed that A. japonicus indoor farming system was high in input and output （yield） whereas pond extensive farming system was low in input and output. The output/input ratio of indoor fann- ing system was lower than that of pond extensive farming system, and the output/input ratio of semi-intensive farming system fell in between them. The environmental loading ratio of A.japonicus extensive fanning system was lower than that of indoor farming sys- tem. In addition, the emergy yield and emergy exchange ratios, and emergy sustainability and emergy indexes for sustainable devel- opment were higher in extensive farming system than those in indoor farming system. These results indicated that the current exten- sive farming system exerted fewer negative influences on the environment, made more efficient use of available resources, and met more sustainable development requirements than the indoor farming system. A. japonicus farming systems showed more emergy benefits than fish fanning systems. The pond fanning systems ofA. japonicus exploited more free local environmental resources for production, caused less potential pressure on the local environment, and achieved higher sustainability than indoor farming system.

The Effect of Land Degradation on Farm Size Dynamics and Crop-Livestock Farming System in Ethiopia: A Review

Ethiopia is among the poorest countries in which poverty, land and resource degradation appear to feed off each other. The irony is that Ethiopia is a country with high biodiversity and distinctive ecosystems and the natural resource base is critical to the economy and the livelihood of a high percentage of the population. Being the owner of varying agro ecology, the country’s agricultural production system had practiced for decades with a maximum potential. However, because of the presence of interrelated problems, the productivity had not sustained as its potential. From the interrelated problems, land degradation takes the first and challengeable problem in many countries. Land degradation refers to a temporary or permanent decline in the productive capacity of the land, or its potential for environmental management as a result;the long-term biological and environmental potential of the land has been compromised. Land degradation in the Ethiopian highlands (i.e. areas above 1500 m.a.s.l.) has been a concern for many years and is a great threat for the future that requires great effort and resources to ameliorate. It had adverse effect on lowering of livestock production by shrinking grazing land, the fertile soil types were washed and the grazing land was dominantly covered by unpalatable pastures and grasses which had low nutritive value and fertility for crop-livestock production system. In other cases, degradation induces farmers to convert land to lower-value uses;for instance, cropland converted to grazing land, or grazing lands converted to shrubs or forests. Equitable and secure access to land is a critical factor for the rural poor, especially livestock owners, who depend on agriculture and animal-related activities for their livelihood. Having secure access to land for agriculture and pastoral activities reduces their vulnerability and enhances their opportunities to invest in land for agriculture and livestock activities. Historical patterns of feudal ownership of land followed by government ownership and despite policy change uncertain status of land ownership. These land distribution and ownership patterns coupled with continuous fragmentations and degradation disrupt the balance between crop, livestock, and forest production. These things nowadays enforce Ethiopian farmers to put more land into crop production than working on livestock sector. Livelihoods are complex, dependent on animal and crop production based on land and water resources, with emerging market opportunities. And from year to year, the size of farms is getting minimized because of land degradation and segmentations, and these make a change in farm size dynamics and farming shift. Currently, there is a great scenario towards the land policy pattern and agricultural production system, which is the backbone of the country’s economy. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to review the effect of land degradation on farm size dynamics and crop-livestock production since the impact of these things is not well measured.

Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation in Rainfed Farming Systems: A Modeling Framework for Scaling-Out Climate Smart Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa

Improving agricultural water productivity, under rainfed or irrigated conditions, holds significant scope for addressing climate change vulnerability. It also offers adaptation capacity needs as well as water and food security in the southern African region. In this study, evidence for climate change impacts and adaptation strategies in rainfed agricultural systems is explored through modeling predictions of crop yield, soil moisture and excess water for potential harvesting. The study specifically presents the results of climate change impacts under rainfed conditions for maize, sorghum and sunflower using soil-water-crop model simulations, integrated based on daily inputs of rainfall and evapotranspiration disaggregated from GCM scenarios. The research targets a vast farming region dominated by heavy clay soils where rainfed agriculture is a dominant practice. The potential for improving soil water productivity and improved water harvesting have been explored as ways of climate change mitigation and adaptation measures. This can be utilized to explore and design appropriate conservation agriculture and adaptation practices in similar agro-ecological environments, and create opportunities for outscaling for much wider areas. The results of this study can suggest the need for possible policy refinements towards reducing vulnerability and adaptation to climate change in rainfed farming systems.

Systems of Agriculture Farming in the Uttranchal Himalaya, India

Agricultural practices are the main stay of the people of Uttranchal. Out of the total population, more than 75% people are engaged either with the main occupation of agriculture or its allied practices, dominated by traditional subsistence cereal farming. Among them, the main crops are rice, wheat, millet, barley, all types of pulses, all types of oilseeds and almost all types of fruits. The crops, vegetables and fruits of all varieties are grown in the different climatic zones such as tropical, temperate, and cold because, the region is characterized by the different altitudinal zones elevated from 200 m to more than 8000m. As a result, different climates are found from hot tropical to sub temperate and chilly cold. Pulses varieties are grown extensively. Among vegetables, potato, onion, carrot, all types of green leaf vegetables, brinzal, pumpkin, ladyfinger, pea, gram, radish, ginger, garlic, etc, are grown widely. All fruit varieties are grown in the different altitudinal zones. The main fruits are orange, malta (a big size of orange), elephant citrus, lemon and all other types of citrus, apple, stone fruits including peach and pears, many kinds of nuts, and the fruits which are grown in the low lying areas. In spite of feasible climatic conditions, agricultural dominant society, and availability of all types of crops, the production and productivity of these crops are very low, even they are unable to meet the grain-need of the people in Uttaranchal. Agricultural crops are grown almost in all the altitudinal zones — from the low-lying areas, which are called ‘Gangarh’, to the highly elevated region, where the legendary term is given as ‘Danda’. The growing seasons vary according to the heights. The present paper aims to discuss the agricultural practices including cropping season, cropping pattern, land use, production of crops and ecological aspect of agricultural system in this Himalayan state and suggest some measures for developing farming system, which could lead the sustainability, in terms of meeting the food grain needs of the people on the one hand and restoring the ecological balance on the other.

Transitioning from paternalism to empowerment of farmers in lowincome countries: Farming components to systems

Reasons for the initiation of farming systems/participatory approaches in non-Green Revolution（i.e., in more heterogeneous and less favourable production environments） areas in low-income countries is followed by a discussion of their evolution.Four phases are described along, with a brief description of some of the significant methods in which farmer participation has been sought, accessed and evaluated.They enabled/facilitated the evolutionary process.Although, over the last 40 years there has been a progress in making small-scale farmers much more visible in driving the agricultural research/development agenda through using the four basic stages embodied in the farming systems approach（i.e., descriptive, diagnosis, testing/evaluation and finally dissemination）, much still needs to be done.This leads on to a discussion as to some of the barriers still inhibiting true farmer empowerment and why further, such empowerment is imperative, if the agricultural challenges of this century are to be addressed successfully, namely substantially increasing agricultural productivity in an ecologically sustainable manner.Given the heterogeneity of the production environments and that many identified improvements are likely to be incremental rather than revolutionary in nature, this will require farmers＇ intimate involvement in their identification, evaluation and dissemination.Discussion in the paper recognizes that there is increasing globalization/commercialization of agriculture and is predicated on the need to consider the whole farmer-research-development continuum involving multiple stakeholders（i.e., farmers, scientists, extension workers, input/output service providers and policymakers）.Such a continuum has been explicitly recognized in the operational plans for the recently reformed international agricultural research（i.e., CGIAR） system.The paper concludes with a short discussion on the potential role of formal modelling.

Efficiency and productivity analysis of vegetable farming within root and tuber-based systems in the humid tropics of Cameroon

The study analyzes the technical efficiency of vegetable farmers in root and tuber-based farming systems within selected sites of the humid tropics of Cameroon. Multistage sampling was used to collect primary data from a cross-section of vegetable farmers drawn from eight selected sites in Santa sub division, Northwest region of Cameroon. Stochastic frontier analysis was used to estimate the technical efficiency of vegetable farmer and to examine its determinants. The results showed that farmyard manure was the most productive factor input, followed by farm equipment and labor. The mean technical efficiency level was 67%, revealing production shortfalls and indicating possibilities of significantly increasing production with the current input Jevels. Female, as well as more educated farmers were found to be significantly more efficient than their counterparts. The results also showed that farmers become less technical efficient as farm sizes become larger. Our study findings suggest that smallholder farmers＇ access to manure, farm implements, and increased women participation in vegetable farming, will produce huge payoffs in vegetable production efficiency in Cameroon.

Variations of Farming Systems and Their Impacts on Surface Water Environment in Past 60 Years in Intensive Agricultural Area of Taihu Region, China

Based on agricultural nitrogen (N) balance model and field experiments, the impacts of farming system changes of Taihu Region of China on surface water environment were studied. During past 60 years, farming systems changed greatly in Taihu Region. The traditional method of manure collection and application was replaced by chemical fertilizer utilization gradually. Chemical N fertilization intensity decreased greatly due to the abolition of “3 crops per year” and reduction of cropland area in 1990-2010. Crops depleting soil fertility increased, while those improving soil fertility decreased, leading to an excessive dependence on chemical fertilizer application, which increased the risks of soil N loss to surface water environment in Taihu region. However, field experiments showed that the agricultural N loss with runoff only accounted for 2% of fertilizer N application rate. The majority of N was exported by crop harvesting. Our findings showed that the agricultural N loss might not be the main source of N pollution in Lake Tai after 2000. To control N pollution of Lake Tai, more attention should be paid to industrial and domestic wastewater from urban and rural areas, wastes from livestock and poultry breeding, bait input for aquaculture, etc in the Taihu Region, China.

Farming systems and crop-livestock land use consensus. Tanzanian perspectives

Agriculture is an important source of economic survival of rural populations, and with great power for poverty reduction in the economy. For this reason farming systems that are most efficient have to be sought. This paper explores crop-based and pastoralism farming systems under conflicting land use relations. Incidences of violent conflicts are highlighted, which usually assume a depoliticised expression as inter-group conflicts. Competition for resources (land and water) is an important reason for such conflict, but the role of the state in protection of property rights is also advocated to nurture rivalry. Very wide difference in conception, that to the pastoralists property is cattle, land is common property open to herds, while to crop farmers land is property, which is divided between households, complicates the conflict resolution. State bias exists in the protection of property rights. Mechanisms for the state bias arebriefly cited. This paper suggests a farming systems educational approach as a way to reduce environmentally stressful practice, and strengthen the study of administrative regulation that harmonizes equity in conflicting land use.

Dynamic Emission of CH₄from a Rice-Duck Farming Ecosystem

Global climatic change induced by emissions of greenhouse gases from human activities is an issue of increasing in-ternational environmental concerns, and agricultural practices and managements are the important contributors for such emissions. This study investigated dynamic emission of methane (CH4) from a paddy field in a rice-duck farming ecosystem. Three different cultivation treatments, namely the organic fertilizer + duck (OF+D), chemical fertilizer + duck (CF + D), and chemical fertilizer (Control) treatments, were employed in this study. Experimental data showed that hourly variations of CH4 emission from the paddy field during the day were somewhat positively correlated (R2 = 0.7 for the OF + D treatment and R2 = 0.6 for the CF+D treatment) to the hourly changes in air temperatures in addi-tion to the influences of the duck activities. The rate of CH4 emission for the CF+D treatment was higher than that of the Control treatment at the tillering stage, whereas the opposite was true at the heading stage. In contrary, the rate of CH4 emission for the OF + D treatment was always higher than that of the Control treatment regardless the tillering or heading stage. Our study revealed that the rate of CH4 emission depended not only on air temperature but also on the rice growth stage. A 6.7% increase in CH4 emission and in global warming potential (GWP) was observed for the CF + D treatment as compared to the Control treatment. This study suggested that although the impacts of duckling on the emission of CH4 depended on the rice growth stage and air temperature regime, the introduction of ducks into the rice farming system in general mitigated the overall CH4 emission and thereby the GWP.

Trace Metal Elements (Pb, Cd and As), 15N Nitrogen and Phosphorus Isotopes Accumulation in Three Varieties of Tomato from Conventional and Agro-Ecological Farming Systems in Burkina Faso

Tomato is a market gardening product that plays an important nutritional and economic role in Burkina Faso. However, the bad use of pesticides for its production could have negative impacts consumers’ health. The objective of the present study was to assess the concentration of trace metal elements (Pb, Cd and As), 15N isotopes (NO2-, NO3-, NH4+) and phosphorus (PO42-) in tomatoes according to cultivation practices. Thus, three tomato varieties (Mongal F1, F1 Cobra 26 and Roma F1) were grown using organic and conventional production methods on 2 sites at Nongr Massom, (commune of Kadiogo province). The trace metal elements were analyzed using atomic absorption spectrophotometry, the isotopes 15N (NO2-, NO3-, NH4+) and phosphorus (PO43-) using standardized methods. Tomatoes from conventional agriculture had higher levels of trace metal elements (0.163 - 0.298 mg/Kg, 0.082 - 0.146 mg/Kg and 0.018 - 0.032 mg/Kg respectively for Pb, Cd and As) than those from organic agriculture samples. Concentration of trace metal is lower for organic production with a reduction of 19.02%, 19.69% and 20.77% for Pb, Cd and As respectively compared to conventional production. High levels were recorded for the Roma F1 variety. The concentrations of trace metal elements in organic production are lower than the codex standards (2010) while those in conventional production are higher. These results could be due to the use of chemical inputs that could have a negative impact on the nutritional quality of these tomatoes. The concentration of trace metal elements in tomato fruits is strongly correlated by production method and less by the variety (genetic).

Soil chemical properties under modern and traditional farming systems at Khagrachari,Chittagong Hill Tracts,Bangladesh

Land degradation in Chittagong hill tracts has been taking place due to shrinkage of forest cover, policy weakness, population explosion, and inappropriate hill farming system. Modem farming system in the Chittagong hill tracts like Sloping Agricultural Land Technology （SALT） is practiced to provide a new strategy for developing lands for economic productivity and bio-diversity conservation through establishment of ecological community rather than traditional shifting cultivation which is no longer sustainable according to the carrying capacity of ecosystem of Chittagong hill tracts. This study is to find out changing trends of soil chemical properties of sites under modem and traditional farming systems at Khagrachari district of Chittagong hill tracts. The result of the research shows that Sloping Agricultural Land Technology has significantly higher capacity of production due to the presence of the highest percentage of organic carbon, organic matter, compared with shifting cultivated site. The study recommends that shifting cultivation may be changed into a relatively stable semi-permanent farming system through developing participatory integrated farming systems to establish stable production environment in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.

Vertical Farming Using Hydroponic System: Toward a Sustainable Onion Production in Nueva Ecija, Philippines

The development of new technology for food production is essential to sustain man’s needs for survival. The use of farmlands for food production and industrial purposes goes beyond the carrying capacity of the environment. The study determined the applicability of Vertical Farming using Hydroponic Technology to onion production in Nueva Ecija, Philippines. The country is known as the onion capital of Southeast Asia. The study measured the technology’s sustainability and acceptability to onion farmers. By using experimental method, interview, and Focused Group Discussions (FGD), the study established its viability. Three phases of field experiments were conducted in August 2016, May 2017 and July 2017 using the Vertical Farming and Hydroponics Technology and Single Factor Analysis of Variance. The results showed that there is significant difference in the growth of onion bulb per week and the suitability and comparability of the technology to conventional farming. The study concluded that the VFH technology is acceptable to most onion farmers except the aspect of the cost of initial investment which requires government subsidy for the ordinary onion grower to avail of this new and sustainable technology in onion production.

Validating the Classification of Smallholder Dairy Farming Systems Based on Herd Genetic Structure and Access to Breeding Services

Smallholder dairy farming in Africa is classified into rural, peri-urban and urban systems. The major classification criterion is demographic. Dairy systems are extensively characterized, but not based on rigorous statistical analyses. We validated this classification based on herd genetic structure and identify determinants of within-system variations, taking Ethiopia as a case study. Discriminant function analysis correctly classified 38% - 50.6% of the 360 sampled farms into the three systems. Multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that rural and peri-urban farmers were 1.26 (P < 0.1) to 1.45 (P < 0.001) times more likely to keep local and low grade crossbreds and fewer high grade crosses (P < 0.05;odds ratio = 2.35) than the urban farmers. In the rural system, proportion of high grade crosses declined and low grades increased over generations, whereas in urban system the reverse was observed. Access to breeding services and land resources significantly determined the adoption of crossbred dairy herd within systems. In conclusion, considering farms within systems as a uniform unit to target development interventions may not be appropriate and thus farm topologies and system specific determinants of farmers’ breeding strategies need to be considered to design and introduce appropriate breeding interventions.

Spatial Landuse and Farming System Analyses of Reclaimed Tidal Lowland in South Sumatra, Indonesia

This study aims to analyze spatial landuse and farming system of reclamated tidal lowland in South Sumatra, Indonesia by using remote sensing technology and GIS in knowing the distribution of landuse change of tidal lowland. From these conditions, it can see cropping patterns on each of the secondary block and its relation to the condition of the water system network. The study was carried out in Delta Saleh areas. The used methodology was field survey and remote sensing technique. It was combined with GIS technology for spatial analysis. Over the last 11 years （1992-2002）, a decline in the paddy field area is from 23,619.4 ha to 18,518.40 ha （27.65%）. A decrease of river acreage （water body） occurred from 6,643.53 ha to 6,559.83 ha. In 1992 it has not detected any coconut plantation, while in 2001 it showed an area of coconut plantation 3,422.84 ha and 3,822.84 ha in 20l l. Significant changes are also presented in primary mangrove forest, widespread declining around 1,940.88 ha （147.20%）. Most of the mangrove forest was converted into secondary mangrove forest and scrub. Linkage with topography type showed that the land with topography Type A was majority for paddy fields 250.28-262.80 ha （62.72%-65.59%）. Mixed crop fields were in second place with acreage of 90.66-107.36 ha （22.72%-26.80%）. The land with topography Type B showed the widest paddy fields （283.14-314.20 ha or 70.70%-78.48%）, followed by upland crops. The land with topography Type C showed that paddy fields were 283.03-300.41 ha （70.66%-75.02 %）, followed by upland crops 94.85-102.78 ha （23.69%-25.66%）, and coconut was the smallest 0.09-0.27 ha. Generally, the cropping index was 100 on PS-I （planting season 1） for BL-I （business land 1） and BL-2 planted with paddy fields, while the PS-2 are generally not cultivated land （fallow）.

Comparative Water Efficiency Analysis of Sole and Multiple Cropping Systems under Tunnel Farming in Punjab-Pakistan

Water scarcity is the growing concern of present times, requiring its efficient utilization deemed as necessity. Rapidly growing population has significantly exerted pressure on its demand, in Pakistan. In order to fulfill it, all factors of production are required to be used in the possibly most efficient way. Good quality and quantity of water are the growing concerns of producers in Pakistan and around the globe. The efficient water utilization is crucial to optimize the farm returns under the selected sole and multiple cropping systems. This study considered the water efficiency analysis of multiple and sole cropping systems, with the aim of finding out cropping patterns more efficient in terms of water utilization in Pakistan. In order to estimate the water efficiency analysis, the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) is run to find out the water efficient cropping systems among sole and multiple cropping systems. The Tobit analysis is also used to find out the factors affecting the water efficiency of selected farms in the study area. The results of the study report an inefficient water usage in terms of irrigation, the inefficient use of water instigates the wastage of one of the most important as well as scarce farm inputs especially water, in case of multiple cropping system. Around 51% and 13% of water inefficiency are present under multiple and sole cropping systems, respectively. Basin irrigation is the method for irrigation, used by the farmers of the study area approximating to be 95% - 97%. It is one of the most conventional and least efficient methods of irrigation. Only 2.67 and 4.67 percent of farms were using the Furrow irrigation method, which is way more efficient and steady as compared to Basin irrigation method, respectively. It appears as a requirement that the most efficient methods regarding water application in Pakistan should be recognized. Lack of management in water application on both selected cropping systems resulted in over utilization of water and depletion of one of the fundamental natural resource. In order to overcome the inefficiency in water management, farmers’ farming knowledge, adoption of new irrigation techniques, efficient application of inputs is needed.

Development of a Cylindrical Hydroponics System for Vertical Farming

The study aimed to develop a vertical crop cultivation system for leafy plants based on cylindrical hydroponics and light emitting diode （LED） technology. Investigations were conducted on growing lettuce （Lactuca sativa cv. ＂Rex＂, ＂Nanda＂ and ＂Canasta＂） indoors in a rotary system and Chinese cabbage （Brassica chinensis） in a multi-tier cylindrical hydroponics system under red and blue （RB） LED lightings. Light intensity from different light sources have an influence on the yield and growth behaviour of indoor lettuce. Photosynthetically active radiation （PAR） levels at 63 μmol/m2·s produced low fresh weights （FW） and leaf areas of lettuce ＂Rex＂ and ＂Nanda＂ were grown under rotating conditions. The effect was, however, different on the better developed ＂Canasta＂. Stem etiolation was a common occurrence under such influence. Chlorosis was not observed on all plant types grown under the LEDs. Cultivating Chinese cabbage plants （FW： 28 g/plant） in cylindrical units stacked vertically above another, increased planting density by 47% when compared to the rotary system,