DESCRIPTION OF FARMING SYSTEMS RESEARCH AND
EXTENSION (FSR/E)

 Although FSR/E is flexible enough to adjust to the
agricultural and institutional conditions existent in
different countries and cultural settings, it will usually
involve a sequence of steps similar to the following
within a previously determined geographical or political
region.

1. Initial characterization and analysis of existing
 farming systems through close consultation with
 farmers
 a. First estimation of problems and constraints
 b. Tentative partitioning into homogeneous farming
 systems,or recommendation domains

2. Planning and design of first-phase work
 a. Biological research
 b. Continuing agro-socioeconomic characterization

3. Selection, generation,and evaluation of technologies
 a. Commodity and discipline research on experiment
 stations and laboratories
 b. Researcher-managed on-farm trials with farmer
 participation
 (i) Exploratory trials
 (ii) Site-specific trials
 (iii) Regional trials
 c. Farmer-managed trials
 (i) Individual evaluation of acceptability by the
 farmers themselves
 (ii) Refined partitioning of recommendation domains
 by researchers
 (iii) Initiation of technology transfer activities

4. Collection and analysis of data
 a. Agro-technical data from on-farm and on-station
 trials
 b.. Economic records of farm enterprises from farmers
 c. Additional agro-socio-cultural and political
 information from farmers and other area
 residents