Crop production in the Caribbean is dominated by small open field holdings that are almost totally reliant on rainfall. Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L. Lam. [Convolvulaceae]) has been identified as an important commodity to attain food and nutrition security goals of the region, particularly in light of a changing climate. The crop has high nutritional value, innate drought‐tolerant properties, and can be grown with relatively low inputs. The routine use of crop models for yield optimization is largely absent in the Caribbean. In this study, an attempt was made to parameterize the FAO AquaCrop model for sweet potato for the first time. AquaCrop is a simulation model for crop water productivity, designed primarily for use in irrigation management. Parameters were developed using data from three sweet potato cultivars grown in two agroecological zones in Jamaica under rainfed and irrigated conditions. Digital photography was combined with an automated canopy estimator to track canopy development, and sample harvesting was done throughout the crop season. The overall simulation of biomass was good, with deviations of <28% for four out of six simulations, and season‐long performance of the model was commendable. The simulation of yield presented more challenges, especially given the nonlinear rate of tuber development. The results, however, indicate that AquaCrop could be a useful tool for Caribbean agriculture in predicting the productivity of sweet potato under varying water availability.
The yield performance of cowpea var. Minica # 4 (Vigna unguiculata L.) on an Arenic Paleudult (Acrisol) was evaluated in an alley cropping experiment with Gliricidia sepium (Jacq.) Kunth ex Walp., Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit and a treeless control during a short- (November-December 2004), and long-(May-June 2005) rainy season at Ebini, Guyana. The alley cropping treatments had no significant effect on cowpea plant height, pods per plant, pod weight per plant and grain weight. During the short-rainy season, values for cowpea plant height and number of pods per plant were higher compared to those for the long-rainy season, and number of pods per plant was positively correlated with pod weight. During the long-rainy season, pod weight and grain weight were correspondingly higher. Plant height vs. number of pods per plant; number of pods per plant vs. pod weight; and, number of pods per plant vs. grain weight, were all positively correlated. Cowpea could yield the same or more when associated with managed fast growing, nitrogen (N)-fixing trees or treeless plots. This alley cropping practice has the potential to reduce the use of fossil-fuel generated fertilizers and reduce the potential production of an important greenhouse gas (GHG).
The total growth increment of sugar cane stalks from 13 to 22 weeks after planting was 55% greater in elevated than depressed areas in fields flooded intermittently during the period of measurement. The weekly growth increments were 137-9% greater in elevated than depressed areas, especially when soil moisture was high. The cane was on top of high ridges but water stood up to 10 cm deep over the top of the ridges in depressed areas for up to 5 or 6 days after rain and at varying depths below the top for several more days. Provided the soil was not submerged, tillers elongated most when the soil profile was saturated or nearly so; mere waterlogging without submergence seems not to damage cane. Tiller elongation and soil moisture were well correlated regardless of depth of sampling between 0 and 45 cm, but different relations were obtained for elevated drained areas and depressed areas subject to submergence.
This chapter provides an overview of the changing environment and the increased pest pressure that are projected to occur due to climate change and variability. Protected agriculture is introduced as an adaptation strategy to address these conditions and assist with food and nutrition security targets. The scope of the technology and the benefits of producing crops using protected systems as well as the use of protected systems in SIDS, with some emphasis on the Caribbean region, are outlined. The chapter outlines: (1) the specific features of the technology that assist with reducing the impacts of climate change and (2) some possible considerations for the successful development of a sustainable protected agriculture industry under climate change and variability.
This chapter provides an overview of the changing environment and the increased pest pressure that are projected to occur due to climate change and variability. Protected agriculture is introduced as an adaptation strategy to address these conditions and assist with food and nutrition security targets. The scope of the technology and the benefits of producing crops using protected systems as well as the use of protected systems in SIDS, with some emphasis on the Caribbean region, are outlined. The chapter outlines: (1) the specific features of the technology that assist with reducing the impacts of climate change and (2) some possible considerations for the successful development of a sustainable protected agriculture industry under climate change and variability.
In the Caribbean, sugar cane (Saccharum officinarum L.) fields are being converted from Cambered Beds to Louisiana Banks to facilitate mechanization. After conversion the fields often subside particularly in the areas where former drains were located. This subsidence influences field drainage, soil water relations, and sugar yields. The effect of soil micro‐relief on sugar cane growing in the field on Louisiana Banks after conversion from Cambered Beds was studied during the wet season in Trinidad. Three types of topographies: depression, elevated, and sloping areas occurring within a field of the soil type aquic eutropepts, were selected for study. Areas of soil depression caused mainly by soil subsidence after conversion were found to have significantly higher soil moisture than areas of elevations and were also observed to have ponding water for continual periods during the course of the experiment. The nutrient and moisture levels of the top visible dewlap leaf of 21‐week‐old sugar cane, stalk growth, juice quality, and final yields of sugar cane and sugar measured on plots on the three topographies were used as indices of sugar cane performance. These parameters were found to be significantly affected by areas of soil depressions in the field. Only juice quality was favorably affected during the wet season by the areas of soil depression, as flooding caused premature ripening of canes. This better juice quality was not maintained as the soil dried out and there was no significant difference in juice quality at harvest. Losses in sugar cane and sugar yields from areas of soil depression compared with elevated and sloping areas varied between 41 and 47%. It is therefore recommended that allowances be made for soil subsidence and that more precise grading and land smoothing operations be carried out when fields are converted from Cambered Beds to Louisiana Banks.
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