This experiment has been added by the GLTEN Curators using existing published sources.
Objective
SysCom Kenya - Thika LTE is one of four trials in three different countries (Kenya, India, Bolivia) assessing the effects of conventional and organic farming. The Kenyan trials aim to understand the long-term benefits or drawbacks of organic agriculture in Kenya to address soil degradation and increase productivity.
Description
The experiment uses a 3 year crop rotation with maize, beans, potatoes and vegetables. with treatments comparing conventional and organic management and a comparison of high vs low input levels. The low input level represents the context of subsistence farming, whereas the high input level represents the situation of commercial growers. In the high input treatments, nutrient application levels are about four times higher than in the low input treatments. Input levels follow recommendations from the East African Organic Standards, from the Ministry of Agriculture and from own surveys.
Soils are classified as dystric nitosol and are slightly susceptible to erosion
Climate properties
Variable
Time period
Value (range)
Units
air temperature
20
degree Celsius
precipitation
(900 – 1100)
millimeter
Design period: (2007—)
Design Type
Randomized complete block design
Description
Parallel to the establishment of the long-term system experiments, climate data has been continuously collected. In addition, agronomic and socio-economic data is being gathered, and soil, fertiliser and crop samples regularly analysed. The experiment has a three year rotation with 2 harvest seasons per year.
Design description
Trial plots measure 8 x 8 m (net plot size is 6 x 6 m).
Number of plots
20
Number of replicates
5
Number of harvests per year
2
Crops
Crop
Years grown
maize
Phaseolus vulgaris
vegetable crops
potatoes
Crop Rotation
Unnamed
1
maize
vegetable crops
2
maize
Phaseolus vulgaris
3
maize
potatoes
Factors
Factor name
Factor levels
farming system
conventional agriculture
organic agriculture
fertilizer exposure
High input
High input represents fertilizer inputs for commercial large scale production representative for the area.
Low input
Low input represents fertilizer inputs for small holder production, largely for subsistence use, representative for the area.