Evaluation of forage legumes and intercropping system for improved productivity of maize on mid hills of Nepal
Among cereal crops, maize is the second staple food crops after rice grown in 80% of the hilly areas. Low land and irrigated land in Terai (Plain region) and lower to mid hills are characterized by rice based farming system with wheat, maize and cash crops as secondary product whereas upland and non-irrigated (mainly hills) is characterized by a maize based farming system (Paudel, Lamsal et al. 2011). Mixed crop livestock farming is predominant in mid hills of Nepal characterized by dominance of maize based cropping system, intensive cultivation, high degree of subsistence and close integration between crops, livestock and forest (Dhungana, Tripathee et al. 2012).The mid-hills of Nepal are characterized by complex and labour-intensive farming systems with low returns. About 70% of arable land in the hills can be classed as unirrigated hill slopes (bari land), and only about 30% is irrigated (khet land). Soil fertility under the traditional farming system has been maintained by repeated addition of various amounts of organic compost/manure that comes from livestock, ranging from 3 to 21 mt/ha/annum (Paudel 1992). But this seems to be not enough for nutrient balance to get enough productivity. Next to crop sector, livestock is the second most dominant subsector of the agriculture sector accounting for 29 % of AGDP and almost two third of the agriculture households in the country rear cattle as a source of income, draft power and manure (Joshy). In mid hill of Nepal livestock raising fulfil the nutrient demands by providing milk, meat, eggs, manure and draft power for the crop production as well as contributing to house hold economy but there is deleterious effect of over stocking and denudation of common grazing and forest land resource (Das and Shivakoti 2006). Fragmentation of land is major characteristics in Nepal. As the population grows the plot get further subdivided due to inherence, sales and other form of transaction. The NLSS (CBS 1997) shows the average holding of 1.22 ha in the mountain, 0.89 ha in the hills and 1.29 ha in the terai of which majority of land holding is small holders (Maskey, Sharma et al. 2003). Increasing migration is also one of the livelihood strategy of farm household in rural mid hill of Nepal which results in neglecting subsistence farming and in addition when the house hold income is insufficient farmers shows more interest in livestock farming than cropping farming (Maharjan, Bauer et al.
Onwueme, I. C., Sinba, T. D. (1991). Field crops production in Tropical Africa. Principles and practices.CTA, Ede, The Netherlands publishers (480pp), 265-275.
Maize was first introduced to the Europeans by the Taino Indians. The American Indians used this crop for a variety of reasons to even include worshipping “maize gods”. Maize would be able to provide for humanity more than any other crop. The Old World had the labor power and land to produce such crop. Continuously growing in the vast majorities of fields, the crop is protected by its husk from the weather, birds and rodents. Being able to grow in most any type of weather condition, mai...
By exploring the past and its threats to human populations, the global modern mythology of sustainable agriculture can begin to be narrowed down as to the how and why rural communities may or may not have benefited from agricultural sustainability. By describing the dynamic analysis in the livelihoods of developing countries, the historical changes that had occurred in rural communities, can be understood. Halberg and Müller stated that globally “The world’s population was about 7 billion in 2010 and is expected to grow much more. The expected growth is highest in parts of the world that are vulnerable to hunger and adverse climate condit...
The following is an analysis of Herb Field’s editorial titled “Saving Farmland.” The author’s purpose was to inform the reader about Pennsylvania’s program on preserving farmland. His thesis is clearly stated, although it doesn't appear until the third paragraph: “Pennsylvania has the best, most ambitious farm preservation program going, a model for the country.” The author is also trying to persuade the reader that Pennsylvania, even with it’s many problems, does rather well at preserving farmland. In fact, the author further states that, “Pennsylvania is to receive the largest annual allocation of federal farm preservation funds ever made -- $3.9 million.” Despite this seemingly uninspiring subject, Fields communicates well with his readers
The producer had continuous wheat on all the fields, which affected the decisions we made regarding what was planted when. In field one we decided to plant wheat continuous one more time, so we can get this field on a wheat, fallow, sorghum rotation. This will also give us the opportunity to deal with the field bindweed and kochia problem during the times of fallow. We also wanted the producer to have an income this year from something other than his corn. These 80 acres will then be fallow for a year and will be grain sorghum the following year.
2003) and already more than half of the land suitable for pastures is subject to overgrazing and erosion, posing a risk for food production in the near future. The erosion level of pastures and rangeland exceeds the erosion rate of cropland by roughly six times, meaning, that the land becomes unusable for agricultural use at higher rates when used for meat production rather than vegetarian foods. Moreover, croplands are not exclusively used for human consumption but animal feed accounts for 40 percent of the harvest. Thus, livestock requires land to graze while also depending on land to produce feed. The FAO (FAO, 2012) estimates, that due to the high land-use of conventional agriculture and an increasing demand for omnivorous products such as beef and milk, more than 10 billion hectares of forest are lost to expand pastures and grasslands to feed
The farming approach of corn-fed cows helps the farmers to grow more profits while diminishing the nature and people’s health. Pollan
The beef industry is the largest sector of the Irish Agricultural sector. In Ireland grassland accounts for 91% of agricultural land. Grazed grass is currently the cheapest feed source available for beef cattle in Ireland. The utilization of grass by grazing should provide a sustainable livestock system as grazed grass is the cheapest source of nutrients for the animal. It is 60% of what an animal will eat in its life but only 30% of the cost. As said grass is the cheapest feed available to the animals so to get the most from the grassland the grass growth must be monitored regularly and stocking rates must be adjusted.
Our first solution is New Delhi, India. India's wheat and rice production can be increased by over 60 percent, sugarcane production by 41 per cent and cotton production by 73 per cent. The best part of this solution is that we don’t have to cut down trees or forests or we don’t even have to increase farm area! Basically, in over 157 countries, including India farms are not producing their capacities. Most importantly, in India, a study found that in wheat, the current yield was 2.49 tonnes per hectare (tph) while it could go up to 3.98 tph if proper fertilizer and water is provided. Similarly, rice yield could increase from 2.88 tph to 4...
As agriculture has become more intensive, farmers have become capable of producing higher yields using less labour and less land. Growth of the agriculture has not, however, been an unmixed blessing. It, like every other thing, has its pros and cons. Topsoil depletion, groundwater contamination, the decline of family farms, continued neglect of the living and working conditions for farm labourers, increasing costs of production, and the disintegration of economic and social conditions in rural communities. These are the cons of the new improved agriculture.
...have low fertility due to the predominance of quartz grains. If aridity, topography and hot climatic are compiled with poor soil fertility, vegetation cover becomes rare and traditional agriculture is not suitable. However, specific vegetation, which tolerates water shortage and other environmental stresses, could grow in this region. Among the natural vegetation of the region are Acacia and Tamarix Spp. Local Bedouins depend on natural vegetation as a food and energy resource as well as for medical purposes. Their animals also depend on this natural flora for grazing. In addition, there are some local attempts for cultivation of some species depending on groundwater, such as the FAO farm (120 south of Marsa Alam). At this farm, olive and Henna are cultivated. However, water scarcity near the farm forced grazing animals to damage cultivated vegetation in this farm.
Being the largest country in Eastern Africa, Tanzania occupies an area of approximately 945, 234 km squared and is comprised of the mainland and three coastal islands (Devisscher, 2010). Indeed, the nation possesses a multitude of differing ecosystems that support not only the local people but also the wider economy (Devisscher, 2010). For many LEDCs, in the modern world agricultural practices are a key activity in not only sustaining life, but also contributing to and maintaining a healthy economy. In particular, there is a significant reliance upon such a sector within Tanzania. It is considered to be the backbone of the Nations economy (Nyoni, 2007), providing over 70% of its population with employment (Sarris et al, 2006). Most notably, such an industry is characterized by smallholder farmers, with the average size of cultivated areas ranging from 1 to 3 hectares (Sarris et al, 2006). The planting of crops such as maize, wheat, beans and cassava accounts for over 85% of the cultivated area (Sarris et al, 2006).
Farming has evolved from providing food only for your family to providing food for your whole community. This aspect really kicked off in Europe during the middle ages when a new crop rotation plan emerged. Crop rotation is necessary. If every year the same crop is grown on the same soil the plants will keep taking the same nutrients needed for its survival. Previously the farmers used the Roman system, which is a two crop rotation. With this system the soil never had a break, there was always a crop being grown (“Feeding” par. 8). The new crop rotation plan was a three crop rotation. This system is very different from the Roman system. Every third year the field will lay fallow being used for pasture. When the field is used for pasture, the animals waste is spread out all over the field while they graze...
People have depended on agriculture for years as the primary source of getting food. We have developed all kinds of ways to manipulate nature so what we can produce higher yield crops, more nutritious crops, bigger crops, crops that withstand cold, and farming equipment that allows us to manufacture these crops with relative ease. Why then are there five billion people being malnourished and forty thousand children dying each day from hunger? It seems as though world hunger is more a result of the lack of distributing the food properly than the lack of quantity. agriculture has turned into a high profit business and biotech companies like Monsanto are constantly trying to come up with better and more efficient ways of farming. Are they doing this to try to solve the world hunger crisis, or merely to make a profit?
The philosophy of agriculture to live harmony with nature is deeply rooted in ancient agriculture and still practiced in India, China and the Andes. Organic agriculture reflects this philosophy, but the recent history of concepts such as organic, bio dynamic, natural farming and other related concepts, can be traced back to early in the 20th century. Conventional agriculture differ from organic farming in terms of usage of chemical fertilizers which increase the nutrient of the soil, usage of genetically modified seeds for better crop production as well as the use of antibiotics and hormones in animal farming. In Malaysia, the major agriculture crop productions are rice, fruits and vegetables (including palm oil production). China is in the first ranking for agriculture sector followed by India and United States of America. Since organic farming is practiced by many countries, without further ado, let’s take a look on how it can affect the environment and its implementation.