Continuous minimum mechanical soil disturbance

There are manual and mechanized options for preparing the land and planting seed in CA systems. The manual CA options are most appropriate for farmers who have no or limited access to draft power.  They enable farmers to plant on time and to better manage farm resources such as labour, soil fertility amendments. However, their drawback is that they usually require more labour for land preparation and they do not enable farmers to practice CA over large areas of land. Mechanized CA systems will help farmers reduce the labour requirements and enable farmers to apply CA over large areas of land. In mechanized systems, power is provided by either animals or tractors

Manual CA Systems
Examples of manual systems currently being promoted in southern Africa
•    The dibble Stick . With a dibble stick a planting hole is opened in the otherwise undisturbed soil, through the field residue.
•    Planting basins: Planting basins are uniformly spaced holes (15cm x 15cm x 15cm) which are dug in a line running across the main slope in the field. Manure and/or fertilizer are precisely placed into each basin, rather than broadcast, saving on resources. This method is popular because the basins may be made at any time before the growing season so the farmer is ready to plant on time. The planting basins are maintained for use in subsequent years, saving on labour while fertility is improved over time.
•    Jab planter: The jab planter requires less labour than planting basins. It makes a planting hole and deposits the seed and fertilizer in one operation. It is important that the jab planter is properly calibrated and that planting is done under suitable soil moisture conditions

Mechanized CA systems
There are equipment and tools that are animal- or tractor-drawn that enable farmers to plant their crops with minimum soil disturbance.
Direct seeders, rip-line planting, no-till planter,

Permanent organic soil cover

It is recommended that at least 30% of soil surface be covered with organic materials for effective soil protection from erosion and for moisture conservation. Previous crop residues and cover plants are used in southern Africa. Most smallholders, are currently not achieving the 30% cover because the residues are not adequate to meet all their farm requirements, which include livestock feeding, thatching and  soil fertility management. Some farmer use veld grass and leaf litter to cover the soil. However, the sustainability of such practices has not been fully ascertained.

Diversification of crop species grown in sequences and/or associations

The diversification of cropping systems does not only allow farmers to meet their nutritional requirements, it also enables to cope with the fluctuations in rainfall that is prevalent in the region and is getting worse with climate change. Farmers are encouraged to plant cereals (maize, sorghum, millet) in combination with other food and fodder crops such groundnuts, beans, cowpeas, sunhemp, pumpkin, bambara nuts, soyabeans, mung beans. Most farmers face the challenge of lack of adequate legume seed for diversifying their crops.