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In a world facing the challenge of feeding a growing population in a climate crisis, it is critical to produce more food and feed with less water. For farmers in dry, arid places like the Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) region, scarce and unpredictable rainfall poses even more acute challenges to cultivating crops.
ICARDA, committed to sustainability and innovation, envisages a more food-secure and water-conscious world. Our evidence-based science provides a glimpse into the future of sustainable small-scale farming in regions such as the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia, where every precious drop of green water—the water available to plants in the soil—is utilized to its fullest potential.
In a world facing the challenge of feeding a growing population in a climate crisis, it is critical to produce more food and feed with less water. For farmers in dry, arid places like the Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) region, scarce and unpredictable rainfall poses even more acute challenges to cultivating crops.
ICARDA, committed to sustainability and innovation, envisages a more food-secure and water-conscious world. Our evidence-based science provides a glimpse into the future of sustainable small-scale farming in regions such as the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia, where every precious drop of green water—the water available to plants in the soil—is utilized to its fullest potential.
In a world facing the challenge of feeding a growing population in a climate crisis, it is critical to produce more food and feed with less water. For farmers in dry, arid places like the Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) region, scarce and unpredictable rainfall poses even more acute challenges to cultivating crops.
ICARDA, committed to sustainability and innovation, envisages a more food-secure and water-conscious world. Our evidence-based science provides a glimpse into the future of sustainable small-scale farming in regions such as the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia, where every precious drop of green water—the water available to plants in the soil—is utilized to its fullest potential.
In a world facing the challenge of feeding a growing population in a climate crisis, it is critical to produce more food and feed with less water. For farmers in dry, arid places like the Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) region, scarce and unpredictable rainfall poses even more acute challenges to cultivating crops.
ICARDA, committed to sustainability and innovation, envisages a more food-secure and water-conscious world. Our evidence-based science provides a glimpse into the future of sustainable small-scale farming in regions such as the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia, where every precious drop of green water—the water available to plants in the soil—is utilized to its fullest potential.
In a world facing the challenge of feeding a growing population in a climate crisis, it is critical to produce more food and feed with less water. For farmers in dry, arid places like the Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) region, scarce and unpredictable rainfall poses even more acute challenges to cultivating crops.
ICARDA, committed to sustainability and innovation, envisages a more food-secure and water-conscious world. Our evidence-based science provides a glimpse into the future of sustainable small-scale farming in regions such as the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia, where every precious drop of green water—the water available to plants in the soil—is utilized to its fullest potential.
Supplemental irrigation: a game-changer during drought
During extended drought, ICARDA’s research demonstrates that supplemental irrigation can be decisive in continued food production. The precise application of 28–166 millimeters of extra water can make a significant difference in extreme drought years, increasing wheat production by 2–3 tons/ha. A more successful crop means more straw for animals, too, which improves income for farmers and nutrition for everyone.
Supplemental irrigation - the addition of limited amounts of water to essentially rainfed crops to improve and stabilize yields when rainfall fails to provide sufficient moisture for normal plant growth.
Wheat yields increased from 1.25 to 3 t ha-1 in Syria, from 4.6 to 5.8 t ha-1 in Morocco, and from 2.2 to 3.4 t ha-1 in Iran
In the highlands of Turkey, applying 50 mm of Sl to wheat sown early increased grain yield by more than 60%, adding more than 2 t ha to the average rainfed yield of 3.2t ha. Water productivity (WP) reached 4 4 kg/m3
In Kurdistan region, there was a 91-200% average increase in crop yield when switched from rainfed to mm supplemental irrigation, and water productivity increased from 0.35 to as much as 0. 73 kg/m3
READ MORE:
Supplemental Irrigation: A promising Climate-Smart Practice for Dryland Agriculture
Diversifying crops for efficient use of green water