Pasture cropping for sustainable agricultural production in African drylands

Abstract African dryland farming systems integrate crop and livestock production. In these systems, cropland and livestock productivities are intricately connected to support livelihoods of pastoral and agropastoral communities inhabiting African drylands. However, achieving sustainable increases in crop and livestock production under the prevailing conditions of low external inputs, soil degradation and climate variability and vulnerability to climate change, remains a great challenge in African drylands. Thus, to address these inherent challenges and achieve food security in the region, there is a need to adopt sustainable agricultural systems and practices. Pasture cropping, a no-tillage system where annual cereal crops are sown into perennial pastures during their dormant stage, has great potential to diversify African dryland farming systems and enhance overall cropland productivity. This can be linked to its contribution to increased perennial vegetation cover that protects the soil from agents of erosion, improving soil structure and soil hydrological properties, accumulation of organic matter, reducing N leaching, promoting C sequestration and weed control. Despite its great potential, pasture cropping in African drylands is still at its infancy stage. This review examines the potential of pasture cropping as a sustainable agricultural production system in African drylands. Specifically, we describe its salient features, benefits and challenges and explore its applicability to the environmental and socio-economic conditions of African drylands. Pasture cropping shows promise for improving agricultural productivity and sustainability in the African drylands. However, to achieve its full potential, significant adaptations are needed to tailor the system to match prevailing local socio-economic and environmental conditions, including climate and local adaptation, species selection, socio-economic constraints and economic viability among farming communities.