Table 1.
Socio-economic and biophysical characteristics of participating farmers in three regions. Data in brackets represent standard deviations from the mean.
| Dowa | Mchinji | Salima | Total/Fpra/Mean | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Participation in trials | Total | |||
| Only BNFb trial (n) | 13 | 6 | 11 | 30 |
| Only rotation trial (n) | 9 | 10 | 8 | 27 |
| Both trials (n) | 8 | 9 | 9 | 26 |
| Socio-economic characteristic | F pr | |||
| Female participants (%) | 72 | 31 | 32 | |
| Age of farmer | 51 (13) | 47 (14) | 32 (9) | <0.001 |
| Arable land (ha) | 1.4 (0.86) | 2.9 (2.6) | 3.4 (3.8) | 0.017 |
| Available family labour (MEc) | 4.4 (2.4) | 4.1 (1.8) | 3.1 (1.3) | 0.041 |
| Value of assets (USD) | 81 (152) | 288 (334) | 250 (463) | n.s. |
| Livestock ownership (LUd) | 0.7 (1.8) | 3.1 (5.6) | 1.1 (2.4) | 0.036 |
| Soil data both trials | F pr | |||
| SOCe (g kg−1) | 15.3 (4.1) | 8.3 (2.4) | 8.8 (4.1) | <0.001 |
| P (mg kg−1) | 7.2 (9.7) | 9.8 (5.8) | 8.6 (13.7) | n.s. |
| pH (CaCl2) | 4.8 (0.4) | 4.6 (0.3) | 5.4 (0.6) | <0.001 |
| Soil data BNF trials only | F pr | |||
| K (cmol kg−1) | 5.4 (3.5) | 2.5 (1.2) | 6.1 (2.2) | <0.001 |
| Clay (g kg−1) | 402 (80) | 282 (127) | 285 (121) | <0.001 |
| Silt (g kg−1) | 146 (36) | 125 (75) | 143 (73) | n.s. |
| Sand (g kg−1) | 452 (89) | 594 (188) | 572 (183) | 0.002 |
| Climatic data | Mean | |||
| Rainfall 2009/10 (mm) | 979 | 1257 | 1199 | 1145 |
| Rainfall 2010/11 (mm) | 1278 | 756 | 1106 | 1047 |
| Rainfall 50 years averagef | 905 | 952 | 946 | 934 |
a
Fpr = the probability of no difference between regions calculated through REML analysis. Fpr > 0.05 means no significant difference (n.s.) between regions.
b
Biological Nitrogen Fixation.
c
Men Equivalent.
d
Livestock Units.
e
Soil Organic Carbon.
f
Source: Hijmans et al. (2005).