ABSTRACT
Chapter 5 WATER PRODUCTIVITY OF STRIP TILLAGE SYSTEMS FOR MAIZE PRODUCTION IN SEMIARID ETHIOPIA6. 5.1.1 Overview The traditional implement in Ethiopia, Maresha (Figure 1.4), and the tillage system that require repeated plowing have caused land degradation (Bezuayehu et al., 2002), delayed planting and high drudgery to both draft animals and human beings (Pathak, 1987). Poor soil structure results in poor rainwater retention and infiltration (Rockström and Valentin, 1997; Hoogmoed, 1999) while delayed planting shortens the length of the growing period available for the crop (Rowland, 1993). Timeliness of operation is a serious problem for smallholder farmers in Ethiopia that cultivate 95% of the land under agriculture with more than 60% of them owning one or no ox (Pathak, 1987). Moreover, due to the geometry of the traditional tillage implement, farmers are forced to carry out cross plowing which orients the plow along the slope in one of two consecutive tillage operations thereby encouraging surface runoff (Chapter 3).
