Agroecological toolkit

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Since 2014, with the support of the Big Lottery Fund and the European Union, SCIAF has worked with five partners in two holistic programmes across El Salvador and Nicaragua to develop these promising agroecological practices.

The 21 promising practices available below are proven to work. They have been used and recommended by the most vulnerable producers and their families. They have helped these families make their lives healthier and more food secure by providing additional food, and helping them withstand the challenges of greater climate variability and extreme weather.

You can download the above agroecology infographic from our friends at CIDSE who also have excellent agroecology resources.

Download the introduction to our toolkit here.
Each promising practise hase a booklet and poster to download.

The booklets provide technical information. They include costings are designed to be used by both field technicians and community leaders.

The posters are a visual guide for each practice and are designed to be used as part of community and farmer training sessions - including as part of farmer-to-farmer training.

We recommend printing the posters on at least A3 sheets, if possible. SCIAF is happy for any of these resources to be printed and used by those interested.

Promising agroecological practices

1. Soil conservation

   1.1 A-frames and slope contours
   Soil and water conservation work first requires the use of an ‘A frame’, a tool that allows you to plot contour lines on a slope so that work can be developed on the same level.
   Booklet
   Poster
   
   1.2 Ditches, and organic and inorganic barriers
   To stop water and wind eroding soil in fields, especially if they have a steep gradient, it is necessary to establish barriers, whether organic or inorganic, and dig infiltration ditches.
   Booklet
   Poster
   
   1.3 Individual terraces for fruit trees
   These terraces are small round platforms, two meters in diameter, built on land with up to a 60% gradient. They ensure good tree development, greater infiltration of rainwater, conservation of moisture and reduction of soil erosion.
   Booklet
   Poster

2. Water Conservation

   2.1 Bio-filters
   Grey water from household bathrooms (showers and sinks) and laundry rooms in the countryside is wasted because it is contaminated by cleaning products. The bio-filter is able to decontaminate this water and make it useful for watering plants and trees.
   Booklet
   Poster
   
   2.2 Drip irrigation
   An easy to manage system with quick installation.It increases resilience to climate change as it helps mitigate irregular rainfall and is used to plant during the dry season.
   Booklet
   Poster
   
   2.3 Reforestation of water recharge areas
   The water recharge areas are the parts of a hydrographic basin where rain and surface water are collected: part of the water infiltrates into the ground and part of it runs-off into streams and rivers.
   Booklet
   Poster

3. Seed conservation

   3.1 Community seed banks
   Having stocks of basic grain seeds, at a community level, is a guarantee of greater food security, especially in times of drought.
   Booklet 
   Poster
   
   3.2 Improvement of native corn
   Due to the free pollination of its flowers, the corn plant is easy to cross-pollinate with other plants. Phenotypic selection is the oldest, simplest and
   cheapest method of crop improvement. It is the visual selection of corn based on physical and phenotype differences between plants.
   Booklet
   Poster

4. Crop management

   4.1 Seedlings produced in tunnels
   Ensures healthy and strong plants in the first weeks of their development and can reduce field losses from 40% down to just 10%. This is achieved by transplanting seedlings that have started their development in a tunnel.
   Booklet
   Poster
   
   4.2 Community greenhouse
   Cultivation in a greenhouse guarantees production throughout the year, and vegetables, fruit trees, herbs, and medicinal and ornamental plants are protected from adverse conditions such as the climate or an attack of pests. Water consumption is also reduced.
   Booklet
   Poster
   
   4.3 Family vegetable gardens
   By producing most of the food consumed by their families, the farmers are assured available, healthy food in sufficient quantity, and save money as they don’t have to buy produce from the market.
   Booklet
   Poster

5. Production of inputs

   5.1 Production of solid fertiliser
   Making fermented organic fertilisers is the process of decomposition of organic waste by microorganisms. This produces a stable material known as bokashi (organic fertiliser), able to fertilise plants and nourish the earth at the same time.
   Booklet
   Poster
   
   5.2. Bio-fermented fertiliser
   Bio-fermented products are liquid organic fertilisers that can be produced with local naturally occurring micro-organisms obtained from a process of fermentation and the decomposition of organic matter.
   Booklet
   Poster

6. Farm diversification

   6.1 Crop diversification
   The diversification of a field or farm is a good measure of mitigation of climate change for a farming family and takes advantage of the space available for planting different types of crops so that the family has food and produce available to sell at different times of the year.
   Booklet
   Poster
   
   6.2 Energy parcels
   By planting fast-growing trees families can guarantee firewood and charcoal for today and tomorrow, without the need for future deforestation.
   Booklet 
   Poster
   
   6.3 Making homemade concentrate for chickens 
   The preparation of these concentrates provides a more balanced feed for poultry to keep them healthy and producing eggs and meat to meet the demand for good quality food for the family.
   Booklet
   Poster

7. Field methodologies

   7.1 Community exchanges
   Learning from others and being convinced by other farmers of the benefits of certain practices is part of the farmer-to-farmer philosophy.
   Booklet
   Poster
   
   7.2 Farmers’ school and experimentation
   Farmer experimentation consists of testing the best practices, and putting the teaching and learning from training workshops into practice.
   Booklet
   Poster
   
   7.3 Farm maps
   Mapping a farm with a climate change adaptation approach is the first phase of transforming a conventional field. It helps to analyse crops and
   their yields, and to make decisions on where to improve first.
   Booklet
   Poster

8. Community leadership

   8.1 Leadership and advocacy course
   A training course that aims to equip community leaders with basic methods to organise and empower the rural sector in order to carry out local advocacy work.
   Booklet
   
   8.2 Ecological brigades
   Teaching children to take care of nature and recycle or treat rubbish properly is essential to have clean and healthy communities.
   Booklet
   Poster