Regenerative farming vital for revitalising agro-ecosystem

Surinder S Kukal

THE food bowl of India direly needs to revitalise its agro-ecosystem to preserve natural resources such as water and soil and sustain agricultural production. The soil in Punjab and Haryana has been denuded of its inherent nutrients due to the intensive cultivation of high-yielding cultivars of rice and wheat. The non-recycling of plant and animal residue in this monoculture agro-ecosystem over the past three decades has aggravated the situation. The indiscriminate application of pesticides has polluted the soil. The water-guzzling crops of paddy and spring maize, along with the ‘over-irrigation’ tendency of farmers, have depleted the groundwater. Its quality has also been deteriorating with its fast depletion. Irregular rainfall with frequent dry spells in recent years has put additional burden on the groundwater in the region. Also, the climate chaos poses a huge challenge to the agricultural production system of northwest India.

INFOCUS: Agriculture - Integrated input management

We need to shift our focus towards regenerative agriculture and frame policies accordingly in Punjab, Haryana and western UP.

Regenerative agriculture aspires to spur the agro-ecosystem to follow natural cycles — carbon cycle, water cycle and other nutrient cycles. Nature offers these cycles to sustain life on earth. However, due to various anthropogenic activities, these cycles have got disturbed. This has led to a scarcity of nutrients and water, coupled with pollution of air, water and soil. Regenerative agriculture aims to restore these natural cycles to a great extent, if not to their original status. For this purpose, we need to assess the life cycle of the prevalent cropping systems for the use of various inputs. Efforts need to be made to minimise the use of chemicals, be it fertilisers or pesticides. This can best be made possible through the integrated and judicious use of organic, chemical and water inputs. The modules of integrated water management (IWM), integrated pest management (IPM) and integrated nutrient management (INM) need to be clubbed for integrated input management (IIM) because the extent of application of each input affects the others in one way or the other. For example, a higher application of nitrogen fertiliser leads to a greater insect-pest attack and a higher use of water. Similarly, a higher use of water affects the loss of nutrients through leaching and/or volatilisation losses, thereby impacting their availability to the plants. IIM involves integrating the nutrient, water and pesticide use with the aim of optimising input use.

Integrated water management: IWM should aim at rainwater harvesting, soil moisture conservation, conservation irrigation techniques, etc.

• Excess rainwater needs to be collected in dug-out ponds or diverted towards groundwater recharge structures.
• The frequency and amount of irrigation, apart from crop water requirement, should take into account potential pest attacks, weed infestation and nutrient availability to plants.
• Laser-levelled fields, small irrigation plots (based on soil texture), furrow irrigation, optimum irrigation depth, conservation irrigation (including micro-irrigation), short-duration cultivars, and coinciding the crop season with low evaporativity season should be part of the IWM strategy.
• Soil or self-mulch must be practised for better moisture conservation, apart from the use of crop residue as mulch material.
• The irrigation schedules should take into account the profile of moisture storage during the previous crop season. Water productivity must be worked out on the basis of the cropping system as a whole, including the intervening period between two crops.
• The irrigation-specific weather advisory should be part of IWM, considering expected rainfall, relative humidity and temperature conditions.
• A blend of groundwater and surface water (wherever available) must be encouraged for better plant growth and conservation of groundwater.
• Efforts must be made to allow excess rainwater to recharge the groundwater.

Integrated pest management: IPM should aim at minimising the use of synthetic pesticides.

• The habitats for insect- and disease-pests in the form of weeds and/or peripheral crop plants and crop residue need to be removed.
• Crop- and pest-specific optimum thresholds need to be strictly followed for pest control.
• Improved cultural practices, including optimum irrigation and fertilisation, must be practiced to minimise pesticide use.
• Neem and other organic insect repellents, including water sprays, should be given top priority, followed by green pesticides.
• Use of biocontrol agents and biopesticides must be preferred for pest management.
• Mechanical destruction of weeds before seed formation should be the thumb rule for minimising the use of herbicides. The weeds can be suppressed through mulching at the initial stages of their germination and growth.

Integrated nutrient management: INM is aimed at lowering the dependence on synthetic fertilisers for plant nutrients and reducing nutrient losses through leaching and volatilisation.

• The recycling of crop residue, live crop biomass in the form of green and brown manuring, coupled with the application of well-decomposed farmyard manure, can lower the dependence on synthetic fertilisers.
• Rotating the cropping system with leguminous crops can help enhance microbial activity in soils and curb the use of synthetic nitrogenous fertilisers.
• Optimum irrigation frequency and depth can help minimise leaching losses of applied nutrients.
• The use of crop-specific biofertilisers, as recommended by Punjab Agricultural University, needs to be adopted strictly.
• Balanced fertilisation in terms of the ideal ratio of N:P:K (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) with respect to the crop and the soil’s inherent nutrient capacity must be adhered to while applying synthetic fertilisers.
• Application of synthetic fertilisers should take into consideration localised variations in the soil type, including physical, chemical and biological aspects.

The three modules must be integrated to formulate cropping system-specific integrated input management for regenerative agriculture.

The author is a member of the Punjab Water Regulation & Development Authority

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