DANIDA

Strengthening Farmers’ IPM in Pesticide-Intensive Areas

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Season-long Training of Trainers in Vegetables IPM

In collaboration with DOA and DOAE, and with technical support by FAO, the IPM DANIDA project has started a season-long Training of Trainers (TOT) in vegetable IPM at the Mae Jo Field Crops Research Center in Chiang Mai. Over a period of 14 weeks (one cropping season) the 32 participants are learning about IPM in vegetables in a practical training program.

This newsletter gives an overview of the activities at the Training of Trainers and at the Farmer Field Schools (FFS).

TOT participants prepare the field to grow their own crop.

Learning IPM

The participants of the training grow their own vegetables in experimental plots at the training site. With the crop field as their classroom they learn IPM and develop a good understanding of crop ecology by studying the interactions between pests and natural enemies.

One of their experimental plots is called the "IPM plot". Decisions for crop management in this plot are made in an Agro-ecosystem analysis (AESA). This IPM plot will be compared with a "Farmers' practice plot" where the crop is grown just like the farmers in the area are doing. Other plots are used to set up field experiments where the participants learn observation skills and can discover the effect of various crop management practices.

Field observations are a daily routine during the Training of Trainers.

Learning to be a facilitator

While it is important for the participants of the TOT to learn about the crop and about Integrated Pest Management, it is even more important to learn the training skills that will allow them to become good facilitators who can work with farmers in a practical and participatory way. The TOT pays a lot of attention to developing these skills, which they will "learn by doing".

One day per week, the participants of the TOT will actually become trainers as they split up in 5 groups and each group runs a Farmer Field School (FFS). Each FFS consists of 20 farmers who receive this training in their own crop fields. The preparation and running of these FFSs by TOT participants is supervised by experienced facilitators who maintain the quality of the training and who give feed-back during the evaluation of each training day.

Also in the FFS, a core activity is learning to use AESA as a tool to make crop management decisions for an IPM plot.

For the participants, the Training of Trainers is only the beginning, because in the seasons following the TOT they will be engaged to train farmer. The IPM DANIDA project will continue to work with DOA and DOAE to introduce IPM to large numbers of vegetable growers. During the training attention will be given to the planning of farmer training in the season after the TOT. The plan is that from October onwards the facilitators who were trained in the TOT will all become involved in running FFS in vegetable IPM, which will each consist of 20-25 farmers.

IPM training involves weekly meetings over an entire cropping season (from seed to harvest).

TOT participants are preparing a drawing for the Agro Ecosystem Analysis (AESA).

Cauliflower and yard-long bean are some of the vegetables grown by the TOT participants.

TOT participants run a Farmer Field School as part of their training.

Beans infested with aphids are used as training materials in the TOT.

Why Agro-Ecosystem analysis (AESA)?

The health of a plant is determined by its environment. This environment includes abiotic factors (i.e. sun, rain, wind and soil nutrients) and biotic factors (i.e. pests, diseases and weeds). All these factors can play a role in the balance, which exists between herbivore insects and their natural enemies. If we understand the whole system of interactions, we can use this knowledge to reduce the negative impact of pests and diseases.

Decision making in Integrated Pest Management requires a thorough analysis of the agro-ecosystem. Participants in IPM training therefore learn how to observe the crop, how to analyze the field situation and how to make the proper decisions for their crop management. This process is called the Agro-Eco-System Analysis (AESA).

AESA involves three steps:

1. Observation
2. Analysis
3. Decision making

Insect zoos are used to study life cycles and behavior of pests and natural enemies.

The feeding behavior of the larva of a ladybird beetle can be studied in an insect zoo.

Preparing a pitfall trap to catch insects that live on the soil surface.

The AESA drawing shows the crop and its environment including pests and natural enemies. It is used to make decisions about crop management.

Making an AESA drawing is group work.

Presentation of the AESA.

AESA in IPM training

When participants in IPM training learn to do an agro-ecosystem analysis (AESA) they will first of all go into the field to make thorough observations of the condition of the crop. They move around in small groups collecting and counting pests and natural enemies and observing all factors that have an effect on crop development.

After completing the field observations they get together to discuss and analyze the crop situation. They do this by making a drawing on a large piece of paper, in which they include all their observations. The advantage of using a drawing is that it forces the participants to observe closely and intensively. It is a focal point for the analysis and for the discussions that follow. The drawing can also be kept as a record for reference during the following weeks.

Each drawing will show a plant representing the field situation. The weather condition, soil condition, pests and natural enemies, weeds, disease symptoms, etc. will be shown in the drawing. Pest insects will be drawn on the left. Defenders (beneficial insects) will be drawn on the right.

In the drawing it is indicated how many insects were found and on which plant part they were found. Often the drawing is also used to show the interaction between pests and defenders.

While making the AESA drawing the group of participants/farmers talk about the crop situation. Based on their observations they decide what crop management is needed to keep the crop in healthy condition.
When the AESA drawing is finished, one member of each group will present their analysis in front of all other participants. By asking guiding questions a facilitator involves all participants in the decision making process, so that in the end the entire group can formulate a common conclusion for field management according to IPM principles.

Sometimes it may be difficult to make a decision. For example, when pests are found in the crop, some participants may feel that control with pesticides is needed, while other participants have the idea that sufficient natural enemies are present to keep the pest at an acceptable level. In cases like this the strategy is usually to use this opportunity to start an experiment. For example it could be decided to divide the plot in 3 parts. One part could be sprayed with a chemical pesticide, another part with a botanical pesticide, and the third part would be left unsprayed. Regular observations by the participants will now offer an excellent opportunity to learn how pests and natural enemies develop under the 3 conditions.

TOT participants working on an AESA drawing.

A practical training session to learn about diseases of cauliflower.

Participants of an FFS observe the seedbed.

A close look at small insects.

Farmer Field Schools (FFS)

A Farmers Field School (FFS) usually consists of 20 to 25 farmers who meet weekly guided by experienced IPM-trained facilitators (i.e. graduates from a TOT). An FFS should cover at least one entire growing season. The first session will be at the beginning of the crop season (seedbed, field preparation, transplanting) and the last session will be after harvest time.

Except for the first day, where a general introduction to IPM is included, most sessions follow the same pattern:

	Recapitulation of the previous session.
	Presentation of the day's program.
	Field visit. Observations.
	AESA (=Agro EcoSystem Analysis). Drawing. Analysis of the observations. Discussion and decision making for field management.
	Presentation of AESA. Conclusions and decision making for crop management.
	Group dynamics exercise.
	Special topic(s) (for example a discussion about fertilizer management, or the planning of a field experiment with bio-control agents).
	Day's evaluation and planning for the next session.

An FFS session will usually take place in the morning (better conditions for field observations) and lasts about 3 hours.

An FFS often includes several field experiments. The objective of this is to learn by discovering and to stimulate a problem-solving attitude. An experiment that is included in each FFS is to compare an IPM plot with a Farmers Practice plot. In the IPM plot, the FFS will manage the crop according to decisions that are based on the AESA. In the Farmers Practice plot, the crop will be managed according to the practices used by surrounding farmers who have not received any IPM training. Other experiments that are quite common in an FFS are variety experiments, fertilizer experiment, and experiments with botanical pesticides or bio-control agents.

The strength of the Farmer Field School approach is that it is a participatory process where farmers become the real experts in crop management. While other training programs often focus on giving recommendations to farmers (top-down from teacher to farmer) an FFS farmer will be able to make his own observations. He will learn to make his own decisions that are valid for his own crop and he will learn to experiment in his own field to develop the best methods for his own specific situation.

Field observations in the IPM plot.

Farmers in action making detailed observations in their experimental plots.

Participants of an FFS analyze their observations and prepare an AESA drawing.

Presenting the observations and leading a discussion to make crop management decisions.

Farmers become the real experts in Integrated Pest Management.

Children attend FFS and learn about natural enemies

One of the Farmer Field Schools has invited school children to weekly visit their IPM plots and share the experience of discovering pests and natural enemies in the field. Maybe this will be their first step on the way to become IPM farmers.

Collecting small insects to study their role in the ecosystem.

Children found many natural enemies: This is an earwig.

This caterpillar was found feeding on the leaves of cauliflower.

Ladybird beetles are predators of aphids.

Many dragonflies were found at the FFS site.