More than one million farmers in the African nation of Malawi could see improved harvests in the coming years as a result of research conducted by an MSU professor.
Sieg Snapp — an associate professor of crop and soil sciences and a researcher at MSU’s W.K. Kellogg Biological Station — has collaborated with colleagues at the University of Malawi to study the effects of crop diversity for farmers in the country over the past several years.
Snapp’s work centers around the rotation of different crops and growing cycles. Specifically, Snapp and other scientists have been examining the results of rotating corn crops with soybeans, peanuts and the tropical legume pigeon pea.
About one million farmers stand to benefit from the practices, which could increase crop yields and build the soil, Snapp said in an email.
“The basic idea is to grow a wider range of legume crops to build the soil and diversify nutritious options that can be eaten or sold,” she said.
Snapp said the crop rotation practices will help farmers cope with the variable amounts of rainfall in the country, much like farmers in Michigan must do.
“A diversity of crops helps farmers build soils that can withstand variable weather and help the crops still produce despite too much or not enough rain,” she said.
Snapp said the pigeon pea crops will enhance the rotation by providing nutritious grain, which then can be incorporated into the diets of farmers and their children.
So far, about 9,000 farm families in the country have started using the crop rotation methods, Snapp said.
She said about one million farmers will receive seeds to promote the new system across the coming year through a partnership with Malawi’s government.
Snapp has been working in Malawi since 1993 and has
collaborated with researchers in Malawi on behalf of MSU since 1999.
The work Snapp is conducting overseas is helping the country’s citizens, said Russell Freed, associate chairperson and a professor of international agronomy in the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences.
“We want our professors to have a global understanding of various farming and cropping systems that are going on around the world,” he said. “The work that Dr. Snapp is doing is contributing to the welfare of people in Malawi.”
Biochemistry and molecular biology sophomore Matt Smith said it’s important for MSU to be involved in this type of research.
“Us helping get more food to them — it’s helping them out, it’s helping us out,” he said. “That affects other people. It’s just good work over in other countries.”
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