The Effect of Different Cultivation Techniques on Soil Moisture Conservation and the Establishment and Yield of Maize at Kongwa, Central Tanzania

Abstract

Two years experimentation with different methods of cultivation for maize growing at Kongwa, Central Tanzania, are described. A ripping operation before the onset of the rains has been c hown to be an integral part of any cultivation system to provide for both water infiltration and to assist in root development on this compacted soil. A case is pre-iented for the adoption of a zonal tillage system with reduced surface cultivation, inter-row mulching and ripping.