Dissemination of an alternative inoculant for cowpea beans based on nodulated fine root preparations
alternative inoculant; nodule bacterial community; biological nitrogen fixation; family farming; cowpea; sustainable agriculture
Agriculture management known as conventional has generated a series of questions regarding the deleterious social and environmental effects associate do this technological model. This background calls for alternative technologies capable of reducing environmental degradation and increasing the quality of life in rural and urban areas, as well as preserving soil fertility in the long term. The input of nutrients through natural biological processes is a key point for the maintenance of agricultural systems in a sustainable way. Biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) is a biological process in which a symbiosis between roots from some plant species and soil microorganisms reduces nitrogen from the air to ammonium, which may be used by the plant. Cowpea is a species that forms efficient symbiosis, therefore can significantly benefit from BNF. The use of seed inoculation with elite bacterial strains is widespread in Brazil for some crops, being soybean the best example. However, commercial inoculant is still a long way from being available to family farming units. Some studies using an alternative inoculant prepared from nodulated fine roots of cowpea showed yield results similar to the commercial product. As a further advantage, it is made of local resources well adapted to plant variety and edaphic and climatic factors. This study aims to identify the main challenges to the appropriation of this practice by smallholder farmers, and the factors that can contribute to improve the rate of adoption in units of the state of Rio de Janeiro.