Against a backdrop of complex climate conditions and severely limited water resources - defining features of Jordan's agricultural and environmental landscape - Jerash governorate has emerged as a working model for confronting these challenges. Its agricultural land has shifted from a conventional growing area to a field laboratory testing new crops and smart irrigation techniques aimed at raising the economic return on every cubic metre of water.
اضافة اعلان
In a practical step supporting national agricultural modernisation goals, the Princess Basma Centre for Human Development, based in the village of Al-Katta, organised a field school to transfer modern agricultural knowledge to farmers through hands-on training in open fields and greenhouses.
The field school aims to give farmers access to modern agricultural technologies and to trial new crops that can open productive and economic opportunities for rural families and smallholders. It also seeks to improve the efficiency of water and agricultural resource use in line with increasingly demanding climate conditions.
Officials familiar with the programme said a farmer needs more than knowledge of how to grow a crop - he also needs to understand demand levels, selling prices, production costs, marketing possibilities, potential buyers, and how his product competes with what is already on the market. 'This is why it is important for the field school to continue in coming phases,' they said, 'not stopping at agricultural training but extending to economic feasibility studies for new crops, calculating production costs and expected returns, and linking farmers to markets and marketing channels, so that the experiment becomes a sustainable economic opportunity.'
Agricultural engineer Firas Al-Huwaidi said the use of greenhouses in the experiment provides an environment better suited to controlling production conditions and allows farmers to apply techniques that help manage water and improve crop growth. He said the model could be replicated in other areas that face water scarcity or climate variability.
Al-Huwaidi said the focus on water-conservation techniques comes at a time of growing need to develop more resource-efficient farming methods, particularly because the agricultural sector is among those most affected by climate change and water shortages. He added that basin cultivation using wick technology and climate-smart irrigation do not merely represent technical tools within the field school - they reflect a broader rethinking of the agricultural process itself, making every unit of water more efficient while maintaining crop productivity and quality.
Participating farmers said converting non-traditional crops into tangible economic opportunities depends on identifying actual production costs, calculating expected profit margins, gauging local market demand, assessing competition from imported products, and building a stable marketing network that guarantees fair prices in line with product quality.
Participants said the field experience in Al-Ma'aradh district remains a model that can be developed and expanded across the kingdom's governorates, provided agricultural viability is matched with comprehensive market studies to ensure a genuine transition from field training to commercial production. They said the experiment had opened new avenues to diversify their income and use their land as efficiently as possible, and had given them direct, practical skills - particularly in greenhouse management and water-use efficiency.
Farmer Ahmad Al-Qudah, who took part in the field school in Al-Ma'aradh district, said: 'We had never thought about growing turmeric or Chinese lettuce before. For decades we stuck to the same traditional crops, but climate conditions and water scarcity forced us to look for new options. What sets this experiment apart is that it was not limited to theory - we went into the field and tried with our own hands how to prepare the basins and apply the wick technique, and we saw for ourselves how significantly water consumption inside the greenhouse can be reduced while keeping the plant healthy and growing.'
Al-Qudah said the field experiment aims for a gradual transition from open-field farming to greenhouses and the adoption of advanced irrigation methods that maximise water-resource efficiency. These include basin cultivation using the wick technique, which helps reduce irrigation costs and delivers water to plants regularly and directly without waste, as well as flexible responses to climate change and reduced water evaporation inside the protected structures. The approach also focuses on high productivity using limited surface areas and less water.
One of the female participants, identified as Um Mohammad, said the skills acquired in greenhouse management and smart irrigation had opened new doors for rural families to improve their income from small plots around their homes. She added: 'We now know what these crops need and how to care for them, but our next step - one we hope for - is support in marketing. A farmer today does not only need agricultural gains; what matters equally is knowing where and how to sell the product at a fair price that delivers a worthwhile profit margin.'
Um Mohammad said the value of the experiment lies not only in learning about turmeric and Chinese lettuce as new crops, but in gaining practical skills in greenhouse management, irrigation, water efficiency, crop handling, and monitoring growth stages - skills that can help them develop their farming operations in the future. She said agricultural development is not only about increasing cultivated areas but also about changing production methods, introducing knowledge and technology, and enabling farmers to test new options before committing to investment.
The choice of turmeric and Chinese lettuce carries particular significance, as both are crops that can move farmers towards non-traditional production rather than continued dependence on a limited range of conventional staples. However, the long-term success of the experiment depends on its ability to transition from a training and trial phase to commercial production and marketing.
Bakr Al-Balauna, assistant secretary-general for agricultural extension at the Ministry of Agriculture, said these techniques are especially important given water scarcity - one of the most pressing challenges facing agriculture in Jordan. Increasing production, he said, is no longer solely a matter of expanding cultivated land but of the farmer's ability to use available resources efficiently and select production methods that achieve the best possible yield at the lowest resource cost. He highlighted field schools as one of the most effective tools for transferring modern agricultural knowledge and technology directly to farmers.
Al-Balauna said the ministry places high importance on agricultural extension as a means of enabling farmers to adopt best agricultural practices and improve resource-use efficiency, adding that such programmes help develop farmer capacities and strengthen agricultural production chains in line with the kingdom's agricultural modernisation goals.
Abdullah Al-Qudah, director of the Extension Programmes Directorate, said extension programmes follow a methodology aimed at introducing modern and digital technologies into agricultural practice, enhancing the farmer's ability to manage resources more efficiently and to handle climate- and production-related challenges. He said the field school does not limit itself to providing theoretical information but relies on practical application, giving farmers the opportunity to observe agricultural techniques, trial them, and follow crop growth stages - all of which helps improve their decision-making in the production process.
Ola Khalaf Al-Mahasneh, director of agriculture for Jerash governorate, said agriculture in Jerash constitutes one of the most important sectors of the local economy and a source of income for a large number of families, making it essential to identify alternative or supplementary crops capable of generating better economic value - particularly given the challenges facing some traditional crops as a result of climate change, rising production costs, and water scarcity. She said the Agriculture Directorate is working to support and embed pioneering agricultural experiments that can contribute to diversifying production and creating new economic opportunities for rural families and small farmers.
Al-Mahasneh pointed to the importance of expanding high-value-added crops, noting that introducing new varieties to the local agricultural environment - after testing their suitability for local climatic and productive conditions - can give farmers additional options and strengthen their ability to diversify income sources.
Mohammad Shafiq Al-Momani, director of agriculture for Al-Ma'aradh district, said the turmeric and Chinese lettuce experiment had generated a positive response from farmers and a commitment to applying modern agricultural practices. He confirmed that technical and extension staff would continue to provide the necessary support and monitor production stages with the aim of ensuring the experiment's sustainability and further development.
This article was originally written in Arabic for Al Ghad.
