Climate change 'stirring' farmers regions of the Highlands of

    Use science, traditional knowledge to the challenges of climate
    Some seeds need temporary, others return to natural seeds
    Agriculture Uyole servants and drought-tolerant seed.
In recent years it has been bitter for many farmers in the region of the Southern Highlands, famous for "The big four," as well as their important their maize.
It regions which offers a significant contribution to the production of food crops in the country. With corn, topped crops such as rice, beans, potatoes and sweet potatoes, vegetables such as cabbage and even oil crops like sesame, sunflower and palm oil.
Veremund fuse, from Mbarali District in Mbeya Region is among farmers who have tasted the bitterness of the drought affecting the production of maize and rice in the district.
In this period when the country and the world at large is in anxiety due to warming, this farmer from Mbarali district has been witnessing a decline in its ability to maize production, the problem is spoken linawakabili all farmers in the region.
"Our biggest challenge in Mbarali is drought, there is a serious shortage of water, the rains are uncertain again, the rainy season has declined, has been short, the rice was dry before maturity, many did not reach the goals we reap very little," says a fuse in his interview with the author of these features.
Gulzar Sabir of Rujewa Mbarali district, and he agrees with the fuse on the effect of drought faced by maize and rice farmers in the district, he said the outage ever rains have affected agriculture crop two.
"The problem right now with Mbarali corn is wet, early zinakatika for maize drying up before it matures or even carry, on short-term is more beautiful, wet zinapokatika corn has already ripe," says Gulzar.
In response to the problem of drought, which experts say comes to climate change, some farmers use new varieties of maize (hybrids), with drought tolerance, while others made attempts to return to the natural seed.
The new maize seed to mature quickly
Crop researcher from the Institute of Agricultural Research Uyole, Anold Mushongi has managed to prepare several varieties of maize seeds using less water, developing the relatively fertile soil and withstand most diseases.
According to Mushongi, the ability of the seeds he zozizalisha is greater, especially in drought conditions, compared to those of the natives, that have higher yields more serious; between eight to ten tons per hectare, while the locals are less than two tonnes per hectare.
The new seeds mature during the day between 125 to 130, this being less than about three weeks, a day usually needed maize seed maturation.
Fuse, for its part, says that kind of maize seed using a few more days to mature are especially a much needed now.
"The seed which take a long time to mature is a loss (to the current situation). We need to take the seeds have less time to mature, so that when it becomes wet zinapokatika corn is ripe, "says the fuse.
Currently four types of new seeds, hybrids, which are described more suitable to high ground, cultivated in the regions of Mbeya, Iringa, Ruvuma and Rukwa, which is located between 800 to 2,200 meters above sea level.
Maize is the main staple food in the country, and the statistics institute of agricultural research, indicate that roughly 85 percent of the population depend on maize for food or survival.
Half of the corn produced in the country, according to reports of the institute's research, out in the regions of Iringa, Mbeya, Rukwa and Ruvuma, located in the zone of the Southern Highlands and is known as the "nation's bread basket."
It is stated further that the regions of the Southern Highlands contributes roughly 90 percent of all corn is stored by the National Grain Reserve (National Strategic Grain Reserve).
In previous years these regions had a great harvest of corn, unlike the current harvest plummeted due to drought, uncertain rainfall and increased crop diseases.
"It seems to climate change are causing warming, resulting in the emergence of Insect pests, new forms of diseases such as maize streak fungus, weeds such as striga or Duha Swahili, developing areas where the soil is lacking nitrogen, all these affect the very crops," says Mushongi.
However, farmers also recognize that the problem of misuse of land has contributed to a decrease in the production of agricultural products.
For example, the fuse is said that Destruction of natural wood for making charcoal, packaging increasingly able to feed and cultivation in ponds, along rivers and on water sources during the dry season, that is activity zilizokuza problem of lack of water.
Seeds of agricultural origin
When all steps are being taken to enable agriculture to adapt to climate change, have put in place more emphasis on modern science, some farmers in those regions of the Southern Highlands, now they have seen the importance of using maize natural, which they say are struggling better and conditions of their sites.
Among these farmers Leneth Motto, from District Kilolo in Iringa, who says with farmers continue to plant seeds of hybrid from Kenya, still prefer over their seeds of maize of nature that is mostly used for food and those of hybrid sows more for business.
"The seeds of native corn is thicker, and yanakomaa earlier, is good for food, offer great meal compared to those of hybrid," says Motto adding,
"These corn hybrid is good to sell, its corn sweet, tall, eating is soft, hybrid price is higher when sold fresh, but yakikauka is simple, contain bran multiple, nature is simple we care for ourselves and resilient to changing climate. "
According to the woman farmer, the Institute of Agricultural Research Uyole helps them deal with various problems of agriculture due to their studies.
Results of a recent survey conducted by the International Institute for Environment and Development, engaged in research, whether based in the UK, suggested that traditional knowledge about seed imposes helpful direction on agriculture to adapt to climate change.
In the coastal strip in Kenya, for example, researchers found that many farmers have decided to repeat them their natural seeds of maize, which have proved to be very hard to better withstand the climate in unpredictable disease yapatikanayo on their sites.
Farmers from the area in Kenya prefer their native seeds more than modern ones because they are simple, they acquired more easily and that helped among them in the village and nearby villages.
According to the results of research, policy makers seem to discredit how knowledge of nature, for centuries only now, ilivyoweza help indigenous communities to cope with warming and changes in the environment in which they live.
However, Mushongi believes that the main challenge facing Tanzania in terms of food production in the country right now is how to speak in agricultural productivity, because as the population increasingly kutotabilika inavyongezeka climate.