Scaling green manure in Hainan with forages that reduce costs and support national soil policies
Meeting the agricultural challenges of today while preparing for the needs of tomorrow requires a constant expansion of the tools available to farmers. At the heart of this effort is the Future Seeds genebank, managed by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, which serves as a global resource for identifying plant materials that can adapt to changing environments and production demands. By diversifying the options available to producers, it becomes possible to provide farmers with a wider range of options tailored to their land.
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Scaling green manure in Hainan with forages that reduce costs and support national soil policies
Meeting the agricultural challenges of today while preparing for the needs of tomorrow requires a constant expansion of the tools available to farmers. At the heart of this effort is the Future Seeds genebank, managed by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, which serves as a global resource for identifying plant materials that can adapt to changing environments and production demands. By diversifying the options available to producers, it becomes possible to provide farmers with a wider range of options tailored to their land.
In 2019, scientist Dr. Hengfu Huan from CATAS visited the Tropical Forages Program with the goal of evaluating options that could thrive within Chinese agricultural settings, particularly those of Hainan. By working closely with the program to navigate the thousands of accessions held in the genebank, Dr. Huan brought back 800 different forage (livestock feed) materials to evaluate their performance in local conditions. Following extensive testing, two high-performance options emerged in the form of Sesbania and Desmodium.
To understand why these specific plants were chosen, it is helpful to look at the role of cover crops in sustainable farming. A cover crop is a plant grown to protect and enrich the soil rather than for harvest. When these crops are incorporated back into the soil while still green or left on the surface as mulch, they are referred to as green manure. This practice returns essential nutrients and provides organic matter to the soil as the plant material decomposes. In the context of China’s national agricultural strategy, green manure has become a cornerstone of the policy to reduce the use of chemical fertilizers. By utilizing specific plants to naturally restore soil fertility and improve structure, the policy aims to move away from a dependence on synthetic inputs that can degrade land over time. Instead, the focus is on biological alternatives that support long-term productivity while protecting the environment.