Women as Researchers in Raising Multi-Vegetable Gardens in Malwah, Sindh, Pakistan and the Potential to Build and Scale Out Knowledge | [Pakistan Journal of Agricultural Research • 2025]

Author(s):

1. Benazir Kumbhar: Society of Facilitators and Trainers (SOFT),Islamabad,Pakistan

2. Sandra Heaney-Mustafa: University of Canberra,Canberra ACT,Australia

3. Michael Mitchell: Gulbali Institute, Charles Sturt University,Albury NSW,Australia

4. Abdul Latif Qureshi: Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Water, Mehran University of Egineering and Technology,Jamshoro, Sindh,Pakistan

5. Tahira Sher Baloch: Society of Facilitators and Trainers (SOFT),Islamabad,Pakistan

6. Asmat Ullah: Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics, Kasetsart University,Bangkok,Thailand.

Abstract:

Co-inquiry research led by women farmers assessed the difference in yields between mulched and non-mulched kitchen gardening plots used for growing multiple types of vegetable crops in Malwah, Sindh, Pakistan. This farmer-led research was part of a broader ‘Adapting to Salinity in the Southern Indus Basin’ (ASSIB) project, which used co-inquiry between researchers and farmers as part of a strategy for building and scaling out knowledge on how to ‘live with salinity’. An impact assessment of the ASSIB project found, among other things, that our approach of Stakeholder Engagement for Research and Learning (SERL) enhanced the knowledge and capacity of rural women farmers, led to changes in their vegetable cultivation practices, and built confidence for them to share their knowledge with women within and beyond their villages. Here we present an example from the ASSIB project where the co-inquiry research was led by women farmers living in a salinity-affected area at the tail end of the Malwah distributary. The women found that the highest production of vegetables was obtained from plots that had been mulched while minimum yields were obtained from non-mulched plots. Bed mulching was beneficial in controlling weeds and conserving soil moisture. These benefits combined to enhance vegetable plant growth and development. The women’s use of mulching and production of organic food that is free from pests and diseases is part of a much-needed shift towards sustainable agriculture. The strategy of growing multiple types of vegetables encouraged and enabled their families to eat a range of fresh vegetables daily for a healthier life. The families also saved money by not having to buy vegetables and by saving seeds from their crops for use in future cropping seasons. The results we present here demonstrate that farmers can indeed become researchers. We assert that enabling farmers to take a leading role in research can be an effective way to co-create knowledge for living more productively with salinity and has the potential to build and scale out knowledge.

Page(s): 36-45

DOI: 10.17582/journal.pjar/2025/38.1.36.45

Published: Journal: Pakistan Journal of Agricultural Research, Volume: 38, Issue: 1, Year: 2025

Keywords:

Sindh , mulching , SERL coinquiry research , Malwah distributary , multiple vegetable kitchen gardening , fivecolour nutritionsensitive agriculture system

References:

[1] Allan C.,Baloch T.,Channa M.Y.,Channa M.A.,Heaney-Mustafa S.,Jabeen N.,Kumbhar B.,Malik I.N.,Riaz M.F.,Rubab A.,Samoo A.H.,Zahid S.M.A.,Zaman B. .2024 .Adapting to salinity in the southern Indus Basin: Stories of change (. Gulbali Report No. 4), : .

[2] Chaudhry M.R.,Malik A.A.,Sidhu M. .2004 .Mulching impact on moisture conservation soil properties and plant growth. Pak. J. Water Resour, 8(2) : 1-8.

[3] Choudhary M.,Anop K.,Choudhary S. .2022 .Efect of mulching on vegetable production: A review. Agric. Rev., 43(3) : 296-303.

[4] Erenstein O. .2002 .Crop residue mulching in tropical and semi-tropical countries: An evaluation of residue availability and other technological implications. Soil Tillage Res., 02(2) : 00062-4.

[5] Finance Division .2024 .. Government of Pakistan, 24 : .

[6] Hassan T.,Qureshi A.L.,Ullah A. .2024 .Impacts of mulching on the yield and economics of diferent vegetables cultivated under the saline soil conditions at Malwah distributary of Rohri canal, Sindh, Pakistan. In: Proceedings of the 8th International Water Conference, Islamabad, 6-7 March, : 225-232.

[7] Heaney-Mustafa S.,Ashraf M. .2024 .Building and scaling out knowledge: The practice of co-learning with farmers. Gulbali Report No. 11), : .

[8] Heaney-Mustafa S.,Channa M.Y.,Baloch T.,Channa M.A.,Kumbhar B.,Riaz M.F.,Rubab A.,Samoo A.H.,Zahid S.M.A.,Zaman B. .2023 .Stakeholder engagement for research and learning (SERL): Theoretical underpinnings and guidelines for facilitators (. Gulbali Report No. 3), : .

[9] Hussain A.,Qureshi A.L.,Ahmed W. .2021 .Mapping of groundwater zones using vertical electrical sounding (VES): A case study of Malwah Distributary. ADRI Int. J. Civil Eng, 6(2) : 52-105.

[10] Islam F.,Quamruzzaman A.,Mallick S.R. .2021 .Efect of diferent mulch paper on growth and yield of diferent high value vegetables in Bangladesh. , 12 : 237-246.

[11] Kalhoro K. .2019 .Determination of soil salinity using EM induction technique and its efects on wheat crop yield. , : .

[12] Mitchell M.,Ahmad M.,Allan C.,Baig I.A.,Barrett-Lennard E.G.,Channa M.Y.,Heaney-Mustafa S.,Khan M.R.,Lashari B.K.,Punthakey J.F.,Qureshi A.S.,Soomro N.A. .2024 .Adapting to salinity in the southern Indus Basin (ASSIB) Final Report. , : .

[13] Nangraj G.M. .2018 .-Color agricultural approach. , : .

[14] Nangraj G.M. .2023 .Agriculture of Sindh: Problems and solutions. Roshni Publications, : .

[15] Nangraj G.M.,Nangraj A.,Nasir A. .2024 .Color nutrition sensitive agricultural approach. Paper presented at the 2nd PKNC Conference on Food, Nutrition, and Public Health: Through Innovation towards a Sustainable Future, February 20-21, : .

[16] Qureshi A.L.,Memon K.S.,Zaidi A.A.,Ullah A.,Kumbhar B.,Zaman B. .2024 .Summary of co-inquiry research experiences with salinityafected farming communities along the Malwah Distributary (. Gulbali Report No. 10), : .

[17] Waddington H.,Snilstveit B.,Hombrados J.,Vojtkova M.,Phillips D.,Davies P.,White H. .2014 .Farmer field schools for improving farming practices and farmer outcomes: A systematic review. Campbell Syst. Rev., 10(6) : .

[18] Weather .2024 .. (accessed 7 Aug, : .

[19] Yasmin T.,Khattak R.,Ngah I. .2013 .Ecofriendly kitchen gardening by Pakistani rural women developed through a farmer field school participatory approach. , 30(1) : 32-41.

Citations

Downloads

Views