| Category |
Agriculture,Crop Management,Harvesting techniques,Intercropping,Organic crop Protection,Mulching,Green manuring,Weed Management,Others,Plant Protection,Disease control,Herbal,Insect pest control,Bio-control |
| Details of Innovation |
Making Nature your Guru!
Venerated by some farmers of Maharashtra as Krishi Sant (agricultural saint) for his pioneering work in natural farming, and yet without a following in his own village in South Gujarat, Bhaskarbhai Save remains an enigma in the post-Green Revolution phase of Indian agriculture. Bhaskarbhai, a contemporary of Fukuoka, did not receive the kind of media attention that the latter received. However, during the past 5 to 6 years he received more than ten thousand letters from all over the world seeking information about Sajiv Kheti (living agriculture/ natural farming). Sajiv Kheti is the cultivation of crops with minimal interference in natural processes ie., allowing nature to do the production. Bhaskarbhai practices Sajiv Kheti on his farm Kalpavruksh. It comprises of 14 acres of irrigated land. About 10 acres are devoted to horticultural crops, where Sajiv Kheti is practiced. In about 1.5 acres of land, Bhaskarbhai grows organic paddy, wheat, pulses and vegetables for home consumption.
Bhaskarbhai makes 3 main distinctions between natural and organic farming:
1. In natural farming silt is added to the soil as an external input while in organic farming, organic fertilizer is used.
2.No ploughing is done under natural farming while in the case of organic farming, only initial ploughing is necessary. 3.Weeds may be supressed but not removed in natural farming while in organic farming weeding is necessary.
The package of technology that emerged over the next few years showed a striking resemblance to the "do nothing" method of farming being developed by Masanobu Fukuoka in Japan in horticulture. An alternative method of farming required patient exploration and experimentation over a long time frame. Perhaps the switch to perennial crops like coconut and chikoo, which have a life of about 100 and 400 years respectively, helped achieve this long term perspective. Bhaskarbhais attempt was to blend modern concepts with traditional knowledge.
"My neighbours called me stupid"
One of the early trials was made on the basis of a research findings of Dr H G Patel of the Gujarat Agricultural University. Dr Patel who had studied the Japanese method of paddy cultivation had mentioned the importance of oxygen which explained why methods involving the use of flowing water produced better yields as compared to those using standing water. Bhaskarbhai recalls: "I tried it in two fields. My neighbours called me stupid for removing water from the field. Sure enough, the two fields improved within a weeks time. My neighbours thought that I had put in chemical fertilizers during the night!"
Trees and trenches: Learning from nature
One of the early ideas was the "trench and platform method" for growing horticultural crops. The trees were planted on platforms sixteen feet wide. The trenches were used to feed nutrients and water to the roots of plants. Almost all organic farm-waste as well as farmyard manure were placed into the trenches. Bhaskarbhai recalled "forests grow on the mountains, where the soil layer is thin, and not on the plains where nutrient rich soil is found." Learning from the past, the idea of adopting proper spacing in coconut crop in order to ensure pollination, was picked up from a folk saying: "Lage to ne lage; Ne ne lage to lage" (If the leaves of two coconut trees touch each other, especially during a breeze, they will disturb the pollen and as a result, fruiting will be adversely affected.) Hence optimal spacing should be such that trees do not touch each other.
Natural moisture meter
Frugal use of water resources is an important part of Bhaskarbhais package of technology. He was able to cut water consumption by about seventy percent by supplying water in alternative irrigation channels (using organic mulch), improving soil water holding capacity and through effective monitoring of the moisture content in different plots. He evolved an ingenious method of monitoring the soil moisture content: he once brought a potted croton plant to his farm, for ornamental purposes. He soon noticed that croton plants showed signs of moisture stress quickly. The leaves started curling up slowly from the apex portion of the plant. Further more, the roots of the croton, were confined to the top nine inches of soil- a layer which needed careful monitoring. Soon Bhaskarbhai began planting croton plants all over the farm. Apart from adding to the aesthetic value of the farm, they serve as low cost, natural, moisture meters.
Getting more from less
In another experiment in a twenty year old chikoo plantation, the effect of removing alternate rows of trees was recorded. The results showed that by reducing plant density to half the original, (from 70 trees per acre to 35 trees per acre), gross income had increased by more than 150 percent; this was because the plots with lower plant density had produced larger fruits, which fetched a higher price in the market.
Co-existence with sentient beings
Bhaskarbhai asserts that a number of pests and diseases can be seen on his farm, but before their populations build up to economic threshold levels, they are controlled by natural predators. The black-headed caterpillar is a serious pest of the coconut throughout the Deccan plateau. He observed that the bul bul (Pycnonotus cafer) was one of its natural predators; this bird usually perched at a height of six feet. He decided to plant curry patta (Murraya koenigii) trees around the coconut trees. Not only did the trees provide a natural habitat for the birds, they also fetched additional income through the sale of its leaves. Overall, Bhaskarbhai found that although there was an initial drop in productivity, this was covered up within three years. Afterwards, the productivity began to go up steadily. Simultaneously, the quality of produce improved. He has demonstrated that with proper rotation of short, medium and long term crops, not only could the land be put to intensive use, but the problems of short term liquidity and transition losses could also be taken care of. In the long run, Sajiv Kheti is extremely profitable. According to his estimate, the Cost-Benefit ratio on his farm worked out to 1:7.
In recognition of his achievement, farmers of Maharashtra have informally conferred on him the title of Krishi Sant (agricultural saint). Perhaps implied in this title is a sentiment that what Bhaskarbhai was doing was worth emulating, but was beyond the scope of the common farmer. How else can one explain the poor diffusion of his environment-friendly technologies? |
Honey Bee Network Knowledge & Innovation Database (HBNKIND)