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Carrying capacity defines the number of Animal Units (AU; head of cattle or number of sheep, goats or other animals) that can graze in a rangeland unit without exhausting the vegetation and soil quality – essentially optimally utilising resources. Optimum carrying capacity is where a given unit of rangeland can support healthy populations of animal species, while allowing an ecosystem to regenerate, thus creating a sustainable balance. The stocking rate - defined as the number of animal species grazing a unit of rangeland for a limited period - must be kept fixed on an average year, meeting the carrying capacity to allow regeneration, the fallen seeds to rejuvenate and the soil to recover. However, stocking rates can fluctuate depending on the nature of the vegetation, rainfall variability, herd composition and management system. If the conditions are not favourable for vegetation growth during drought season, the number of livestock or the grazing period must be adjusted to avoid overgrazing. Moreover, the purpose of livestock keeping, i.e. for milk, meat, or wool production, will determine the carrying capacity of a rangeland unit. Factors such as climatic zone, rainfall dependency, class of livestock (steer, dry cow, calves, lactating cow and bull, etc), health of grassland and animal species affect the stocking rate. While relevant in all climatic zones, it is more applicable in arid and semi-arid zones where rainfall is most scarce. This climate smart practice increases production (meat/dairy), increases pasture resilience to extreme climate hazards (drought) and enhances soil fertility.

Drying techniques are agricultural practices applied to assist with the balance of moisture in grains post-harvest, determined by a combination of ambient temperature and relative humidity. Spoiling due to insufficiently dried grain is one of the main causes of grain deterioration, loss in grain quality, and thus market value. Grains have the capability to absorb or evaporate moisture, and a balance of moisture content in the air and grains should be sought to achieve an Equilibrium Moisture Content (EMC). EMC prevents the formation of moulds that may affect the quality of grains, spread of pests and germination of grain seeds. After harvest, transportation and threshing, grain needs to be further dried to be preserved. Natural drying techniques are based on ambient air circulation to reduce the moisture content of the grain before storage. Artificial drying techniques apply fans and/or heating elements to move air and maintain constant temperatures .Natural drying (sun drying) is the preferred, commonly used agricultural technique in southern Africa and does not require use of machinery. Drying techniques preserve the contents of seeds thus assuring sustainable agricultural productivity and the practice as climate smart.

Changing harvest time refers to adjusting harvest time to focus on optimal moisture conditions, thereby avoiding losses from mould, decay and possible disease, while also considering optimal maturity of the crop. This approach encourages the reduction in potential losses of ripened grain and increases potential higher quality grain for consumption or market. Harvesting of crops when physiologically mature can minimise losses during transportation to the homestead. Physiological harvesting refers to the time when a grain (fruit, etc.) can be separated from its parent plant and continues to ripen over time. Farmers should consider planting earlier or later or consider planting faster or slower maturing varieties to avoid issues of post-harvest loss. This is a climate smart practice because it reduces potential losses of ripened grain, increase the quality of grain harvested, and is overall a more efficient use of resources, all while mitigating the spread of diseases and reducing GHG emissions.

Best Practice Harvesting Techniques are formalised harvesting practices intended to reduce breakage and bruising of crops during collection and storage. These techniques minimise harvest losses and maintain the quality of the produce. To maximise this approach, factors such as moisture content, cleanness of the grain, colour, odour and potential pest infestation need to be considered during harvest periods. Considering each of these factors will increase grain value as quality standards are directly related to grain price. Harvesting can be performed manually or mechanically, with obvious cost implication of employing the latter.

Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) is a technique of restoring degraded land and monitoring restoration of the land involving the systematic regeneration and management of trees and shrubs from tree stumps, roots and seed. Degraded arid land often features left over indigenous plants, which if maintained and promoted to grow can improve pasture and crop lands while simultaneously encouraging re-growth of seeds, roots and shrubs. Key to this practice is the existence of living stumps, tree roots and seed that, if encouraged, will regrow. The land is protected from being completely cleared or further grazed and this allows trees to grow without disturbance. Once the stumps and trees start to grow, pruning and trimming of trees is required to allow space between trees and promote healthy long tree trunks. Once the trees have matured, intercropping can take place or livestock can be re-introduced to graze.

While requiring some investment in terms of effort, FMNR has climate smart advantages such as controlling rainfall/irrigation run-off, supporting water quality improvements, providing sources of timber or fodder, supporting habitant regeneration for pollinator insect species, acting as sun shade, and reducing soil erosion.

Agroforestry is a land management practice that combines the planting and management of trees and shrubs with crops and pasture, providing benefits of soil health, crop yields, resilience to climate change, biodiversity and economic opportunities. Agroforestry encompasses numerous practices, including silvo-pasture, agro-silvo cultural, and agro-silvo-pastural. One such successful agroforestry practice is silvo-pasture – the planting of trees and shrubs within livestock grazing pasture lands. Not to be confused with agrosilvopasture (combination of crops, shrubs/trees and livestock, silvopasture is the combination of trees and shrubs with pastural grazing land. The trees can be regularly or irregularly placed, and in addition to improving soil conditions in pasture lands, also provide production of protein-rich tree fodder for on farm feeding and for cut-and-carry fodder production. If growing larger species of tree, coppicing can also produce timber for building materials and firewood.

Boundary planting, also known as live fence planting, is a technique used to protect crops from the interference of people and animals that can disturb plant growth. Trees/shrubs are a good example of this approach as they can form a shield when planted along the boundaries of the garden or surrounding a planted field. The trees/shrubs act as wind break to shield plants against strong winds causing physical damage to plants themselves, or the removal of soil (erosion). Additional benefits include the use of branches for firewood or building materials, and the other parts of trees can be used as fodder, fruit or leave harvested for consumption, or for medicinal use. Tree/shrub spacing is critical, as trees that have dense canopies can conversely cause destructive down-drafts, negating the intended benefits. Boundary planting helps limit global warming by mitigating GHG emissions through reducing harmful gases such as, carbon dioxide, from the atmosphere and releasing oxygen.

Alternate wetting and drying also called intermittent flooding is a technique developed by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) to control water consumption in rice fields (CGIAR 2014). This technology saves water throughout the year in areas of variable rainfall. It is designed as a pick-up water system in cases when water consumption is cut. Water levels are monitored and controlled by the removal of excess water, leaving enough water to sustain crops. Alternate wetting and drying reduces greenhouse gas emissions especially methane, which is emitted from flooded rice fields (FAO 2016). The drying phase helps to sustain and develop plant roots. Moreover, costs on fuel used for irrigation are reduced.

Water spreading bunds are barriers used on gradual slopes to slow down surface water and slow filter runoff, increasing the chance of infiltration, capturing runoff sediment, and decreasing soil erosion. Bunds can be built of different materials including packed earth or stones. Bunds can be spread across fields or used in micro-settings around individual trees or plants and should be applied in semi-arid or arid conditions. Bunds efficiently spread rainwater across the system and prevent streams from developing. Implementing bunds in areas with adequate rainfall or irrigation, may cause waterlogging and adversely affect crop growth.

Different types of bunds include:

• Contour bunds: ridges of soil that follow slope contours and can be implemented at a large scale. Crops are cultivated between bunds.
• Semi-circle bunds: ridges of varying size build in a half-moon or semi-circle. They are generally applied to rehabilitate rangelands and/or in the production of fodder.
• Contour stone bunds: lines of stones laid in a shallow dug out areas that slow down the flow of runoff

Half-moon Pits are water harvesting techniques that assists crop growth in harsh climatic conditions, improving water and nutrient availability, promoting biodiversity and restoring the fertility of the degraded soil. The technique is similar to Zai pits in terms of its purpose. Half-moons are semi-circular wide-open basins used to collect runoff water. The mouth of the half-moons must face a slope where rainwater will flow during precipitation events. Water will be trapped in the pit to irrigate crops. Stones are used to support the half-moon curve to avoid being washed away during rain. The amount of fertilisers required in farming systems decreases when this technique is adopted by farmers. Areas with lots of rainfall are not suitable for this technique as it may lead to water logging effect.