Managing trade-offs in Malawian cropping systems

The income of millions of African farmers relies on maize-based cropping systems cultivated in soils often depleted of nutrients. Scientists Komarek et al. show that farms growing maize in rotation with legumes increase the stability of their profit. In contrast, such rotations have a much lower average caloric yield and use more labor than maize monoculture. Risk and labor factors must therefore be carefully evaluated before applying alternative cropping systems.