Therefore, in the past decade, we have begun to orient our work more towards the training of farmers in IPM methods and particularly the conservation and use of natural enemies. Our main focus is on the use and refinement of the Farmer Field School approach to IPM training and its adaptation to new cropping systems. We draw heavily on the biological control and IPM expertise in other Bioscience programmes and CABI's information database and that of our collaborators. There are no standard recommendations or packages of technology offered. In the FFS, farmers collect data in the field and undertake action based on their findings in their own fields.
Farmers become active learners and independent decision makers through learning by doing.
They take responsibility for carrying out comparative experiments on small plots in their own fields and suggest topics for experimentation according to their particular needs. TOT is an integral part of a FFS programme. Participants attend a season long residential course, during which they gain hands on experience of basic agronomy. Using the skills and knowledge acquired during the Farmer Field School over a cropping season, group members gain the confidence to select and adapt IPM and ICM options to suit their own farm needs. They may also undertake action research with the FFS trainers or in their own farmers' groups to experiment with other crop management practices, for instance, compost and mulching or the efficacy of botanical extracts as home-made pesticides.