1L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

INDILEIS

June

2008

vo

lum

e 1

0n

o.2

Magazine on Low External Input Sustainable Agriculture A

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 82

June 2008 Volume 10 no. 2

INDIALEIS

LEISA India is published quarterly by AMEFoundation in collaboration with ILEIA

Address : AME FoundationNo. 204, 100 Feet Ring Road,3rd Phase, Banashankari 2nd Block, 3rd Stage,Bangalore - 560 085, IndiaTel: +91-080- 2669 9512, +91-080- 2669 9522Fax: +91-080- 2669 9410E-mail: amebang@giasbg01.vsnl.net.in

LEISA India

Managing Editor : K.V.S. PrasadEditor : T.M. Radha

EDITORIAL TEAM

This issue has been compiled by T.M. Radha,K.V.S. Prasad and Arun Balamatti

ADMINISTRATION

M. Shobha Maiya and Veena Markande

SUBSCRIPTIONS

Contact: M. Shobha Maiya

DESIGN AND LAYOUT

S Jayaraj, Chennai

PRINTING

Nagaraj & Co. Pvt. Ltd., Chennai

COVER PHOTO

Practices like mixed cropping, mulching andrecycling for building soil life.

Photo: S Jayaraj for AME Foundation

Different editions

LEISA MagazineThe Global edition in English

LEISA Revista de AgroecologiaThe Latin American edition in Spanish

LEISA IndiaThe Indian edition in English

SALAM Majalah Pertanian BerkelanjutanThe Indonesian edition in Indonesian

AGRIDAPEThe West African edition in French

Agriculturas, Experiencias em AgroecologiaThe Brazilian edition in Portuguese

LEISA CHINAThe Chinese edition

The editors have taken every care to ensurethat the contents of this magazine are asaccurate as possible. The authors haveultimate responsibility, however, for thecontent of individual articles.

The editors encourage readers to photocopyand circulate magazine articles.

This issue puts together experiences of those who are innovatively revitalising soillife. Also, the experiences shared indicate the amount of perseverance and thetransition period required to improve soil fertility levels.

We are also thankful to those involved in research sharing the importance ofmaintaining soil life and the implications of not doing so. Their perspective isextremely valuable as we are interested in seeing a LEISA movement strengthenednot just by practitioners, but also mainstreamed by diverse groups of knowledgegenerators. As some leading thinkers put it, reviving and nurturing natural biologicalprocesses in the soils will be the basis of agricultural revival, therefore, the secondparadigm of agricultural development.

In this pursuit, we seek your continued support and encouragement to strengthenour efforts to enhance knowledge sharing of eco-friendly, farmer friendly alternativeswhich are working. We are envisaging soliciting your support in the coming periodthrough membership to sustain the LEISA movement in the future.

The Editors

Dear Readers

LEISA is about Low-External-Input and Sustainable Agriculture. It is about the

technical and social options open to farmers who seek to improve productivity and

income in an ecologically sound way. LEISA is about the optimal use of local

resources and natural processes and, if necessary, the safe and efficient use of

external inputs. It is about the empowerment of male and female farmers and the

communities who seek to build their future on the bases of their own knowledge,

skills, values, culture and institutions. LEISA is also about participatory

methodologies to strengthen the capacity of farmers and other actors, to improve

agriculture and adapt it to changing needs and conditions. LEISA seeks to combine

indigenous and scientific knowledge and to influence policy formulation to create a

conducive environment for its further development. LEISA is a concept, an approach

and a political message.

Board of Trustees

Dr. R. Dwarakinath, Chairman

Mr. Aloysius Prakash Fernandez, Member

Dr. Vithal Rajan, Member

Mr. S.L. Srinivas, Treasurer

ILEIA is the Centre for Information on Low External Input and Sustainable Agriculture.ILEIA seeks to promote the adoption of LEISA through the LEISA magazines and otherpublications. It also maintains a specialised information data base and an informative andinteractive website on LEISA (www.leisa.info). The website provides access to many othersources of information on the development of sustainable agriculture.

AME Foundation promotes sustainable livelihoods through combiningindigenous knowledge and innovative technologies for Low-External-Inputnatural resource management. Towards this objective, AME Foundation workswith small and marginal farmers in the Deccan Plateau region by generatingfarming alternatives, enriching the knowledge base, training, linkingdevelopment agencies and sharing experience.

AMEF is working closely with interested groups of farmers in clusters of villages,to enable them to generate and adopt alternative farming practices. Theselocations with enhanced visibility are utilised as learning situations forpractitioners and promoters of eco-farming systems, which includes NGOs andNGO networks. www.amefound.org

Dr. M. Mahadevappa, Member

Dr. N.C.B. Nath, Member

Dr. K. Shivashankar, Member

Dr. C. Ramasamy, Member

Dr. P.G. Chengappa, Member

Reclaiming earthly smell and livelihoods –SVARAJ’s experienceL C Nagaraj

Soils in Arkavathi river basin which were found to be lifeless and depleted regained lifeby the efforts of SVARAJ, a development organization. The key strategy was putting

every bit of organic matter back to the soil.Adding with other practices like mulching andpolyculture, the soils became rich in microorganisms indicated by the colour and smell ofthe soil.

7

3L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

Talking soil science with farmersPablo Tittonell, Michael Misiko and Isaac Ekise

Farmers and soil scientists often use different language to talk aboutsimilar concepts. Farmers in western Kenya were keen to hear theresults of research conducted on their farms by soil scientist fromthe Tropical Soil Biology and fertility institute. In order to makethe results and feed back from their research more accessible tofarmers, the scientists had to find imaginative ways to present it tothe farmers. They organised meetings to discuss basic soil processestogether. Both benefited as farmers could make more informeddecisions on the adoption and use of technology, while TSBF learntmore about how farmers make decisions.

15

22

Traditional night-soil compostingcontinues to bring benefitsSantaram S Oinam

In the harsh climatic conditions of the north-west Indian Himalayas,poor soil fertility is a big hurdle to sustainable agriculture. Farmershave traditionally relied heavily on containing organic manure madefrom composting human excreta. Recently, with modernizationand the easy availability of chemical fertilizers people aredistancing themselves from this age-old practice. The productionof night-soil compost is therefore under severe threat and is mostlikely to disappear in the near future if steps, such as this effort todocument its use, are not taken to save it.

CONTENTSVol. 10 no. 2, June 2008

Including Selections from International Edition

4 Editorial

7 Reclaiming earthly smell and livelihoods –SVARAJ’sexperience

L C Nagaraj

9 Cover crops do it all

Máximo Ochoa and Pedro J Oyarzun

11 Green manures: Nature’s gift to improve soil fertility

Arulanandam Vakeesan, Tharshani Nishanthan andGunasingham Mikunthan

13 Indigenous soil management to revive below groundbiodiversity - case of Garhwal

Shalini Misra, R K Maikhuri and Deepak Dhyani

15 Talking soil science with farmers

Pablo Tittonell, Michael Misiko and Isaac Ekise

18 Farmers’ parameters for assessing soil fertility in semi-arid regions

B Suresh Reddy

20 Rejuvenating soils with innovative farmingapproaches

Wardjito

21 Vermicomposting for building soil fertility

A S Ninawe

22 Traditional night-soil composting continues to bringbenefits

Santaram S Oinam

22 Changing attitudes to night-soil in Tanzania

Patrick Mwalukisa

25 Microbial wealth regulates crop quality and soil health

D P Singh and H B Singh

27 Implications of genetically engineered crops on soilfertility

Amitava Rakshit, N C Sarkar, D Sen and R K Maity

28 Sustainable agriculture in the news: International studystresses role of farmers

Janice Jiggins

29 The Narayana Reddy ColumnEffective microorganisms for ecological agricultureduring transition

30 Farmers DiaryThe Living SoilMadhu Ramakrishnan

31 Sources

32 Networking

33 Books

34 Building healthy soils organically

K Raghavendra Rao

35 Themes for LEISA India

Building healthy soils organicallyK Raghavendra Rao

This article highlights the efforts made to rejuvenate and build lifeinto soils by adopting organic methods. Harvesting rain water,building organic matter into soils, nurturing diversity-both aboveand below the ground and integrating animals into the ecosystemwere some of the basic interventions made to get bountiful returnsfrom the farm.

34

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 84

Soil is not a lifeless and inert component. Soil is not just anefficient nutrient chamber. It is by far the most biologicallydiverse part of the earth (http://soils.usda.gov).

Soil is often viewed as a physical substrate, regulating water,sustaining plant and animal life, recycling organic wastes intonutrients, filtering pollutants, and serving as a physical support forstructures. Soil is indeed a living entity in itself, containing anenormous number of organisms, and vast biodiversity. One gramof good soil contains millions of organisms, including severalthousands of different species. They range in size from the tiniestone-celled bacteria, algae, fungi and protozoa, to the more complexnematodes and arthropods, and to the visible earthworms, termites,insects, small vertebrates and plants. This community of organismsmakes up a ‘soil food web’ densely packed in the upper layers ofthe soil (see Figure 1). These organisms can be divided into differentlevels of producers and consumers that interact and convert energyand nutrients between themselves, as well as in association withplants’ roots.

Living soils:a store house of life

Editorial

Relationships between soil food web, plants, organic matter, and birds and mammalsimage courtesy of USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service http://soils.usda.gov/sqi/soil_quality/soil_food_web.html.

Secondtrophic level:DecomposersMutualistsPathogens, parasitesRoot-feeders

First trophic level:

Photosynthesizers

Third trophiclevel:ShreddersPredatorsGrazers

Fourthtrophic level:Higher levelpredators

Fifth andhighertrophic levels:Higher level

PlantsShoots androots

FungiMycorrhizalfungiSaprophyticfungi

NematodesFungal- andbacterial-feeders

Birds

ArthropodsPredators

NematodesRoot-feeders

ArthropodsShredders

Animals

ProtozoaAmoebae, flagellates,and ciliates

Bacteria

Organic MatterWaste, residue and metabolites fromplants, animals and microbes

NematodesPredators

Figure 1: Soil food web

Healthy roots and healthy plants

It is firmly believed that ‘the root is the reflected image of thesoil’. Better root growth reflects better nurturing of biological andecological processes in the soil. The living together of plants andsoil organisms is most striking in the closest surroundings of theroots, in the rhizosphere. Here, there is a dense colonisation offungi and bacteria. The root literally wraps itself up in coat oforganisms. This living together of plants and soil organisms happenson a basis of mutual benefit, which means that they live in asymbiosis. While the root constantly excretes organic substancesand discards cells, thereby providing the micro organisms with food,the micro organisms help the plant with the breaking up of nutrients.

Top soil is the capital reserve of every farmer and farm. It isparticularly so, if it is rich in organic matter and humus. They helpin rapid decomposition of crop residues, granulation of water stableaggregates, decreased crusting and clodding, improved internaldrainage, better water filtration and water and nutrient holdingcapacity. This in turn helps in improved soil structure for easymanagement, storage capacity, reduced erosion, better and moreprolific plant root system.

Nature does not know any isolated organism, only organisedcommunities. – Erhard Hennig

5L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

The soils with organic matter and humus would be characterizedby soil tilth. Soil tilth enables enhanced moisture holding capacityand reduced erosion losses besides several other benefits. By theapplication of compost and surface compost mulch (soil covering/mulching) the process of tilth formation in soil can be effectivelypromoted. Humus plays a ‘regulator’ role in slow release ofnutrients. Nutrients are released slowly enough to be absorbed andused by the plants.

Soil biodiversity

There are many different types of creatures that live on or in thetopsoil. Each one has a role to play. These organisms will work forthe farmer’s benefit if we simply manage for their survival.

Earthworms play an important role, not only for the soil but alsofor the plants and roots. Earthworms are like miners and processors;while their tunnels create better soil structure, their excreta serveas processed nutrient supplies for plant growth. While bacteria areconsidered the living ‘chemical factories’ of the world, each speciesthrough their symbiotic relationships supply nutrients. The microbesare busy in the decomposition of organic substance and in theconstruction of new humus.

Ultimately, together, all these living creatures with their adhesivesecretions, the mucilage, mycelia and fungus hyphen connect singlesoil particles to form living bridges and organism chains, whichgive firmness and elasticity to the whole soil structure. Air pocketsare formed as the result of the building up of crumbs, which allowthe soil to breath effectively. Because of their clinging properties,erosion losses are minimized. Therefore, creating a life supportingenvironment is necessary to foster and support biological processesin the soils with rich biodiversity and their mutual relationships.

The work of a plant’s foliage depends on the state of the soil andits relation to the plant’s roots. Ultimately, the nutritional supplyof the whole planet is dependent on the productive power of thegreen leaves (photosynthesis). There exists no other source ofnutrition!

– Erhard Hennig

Enabling environment for soil life

If soil is a living entity, creating favourable living conditions forthem is a necessity. These include moisture, right temperature,nutrient status, pH and aeration. Also, critical to any model forsustainable soil management is understanding the role that soilorganisms play. One of the known ways is to build enough organicmatter and humus levels in the soil to create this environment.

Enhancing living processes in the soil requires building up organicmatter in the soils. Careless management practices also break upthe soil structure, destroy the habitat of helpful organisms, whileincreasing the threats of erosion and compaction. Practices such asburning and deforestation without replenishing the soil also lead todegradation. With time, farmers notice that their soils get ‘tired’,their yields decline, and erosive processes become accelerated.

Except for protected forest eco systems, we do not effectively closecycles. With human interventions in nature, the composition of soillife varies from one land-use system and ecological environmentto another. However, there have been efforts to revitalize degradedsoils through various means and social processes. This issuehighlights some of these efforts.

Ecological approaches to agriculture consider the soil’s livingdimensions and processes to build up organic matter. Conservationagriculture (CA) is one of the approaches which is being practicedin some contexts. However, where conservation agricultureprinciples are not followed in totality, certain practices that enhancebuilding up soil organic matter are being followed, for instance,reducing tillage (no till); diversifying cropping systems, usingnitrogen fixing crops, crop rotations, applying manure and compost;using additives like Effective microorganisms.

Integrating cover crops and green manures helps farmers torehabilitate degraded soils in highland areas (Maximo, p.9). Severalgreen manure species were tried out successfully to enhance theproductivity of Tsunami affected soils in Sri Lanka. Farmers believethat ‘soil is a community resource and an active reservoir’ and ‘greenmanures are nature’ (Arulananadam, p.11).

Locally suitable indigenous practices for maintaining soil healthnot only facilitate easy acceptance and implementation, but also,when combined, they tend to be more effective. More importantly,the food sufficiency and security is achieved through a highlydiverse cropping system, popularly known as ‘Barahanaj’ (growing12 staple food crops in an year). Diverse canopies not only checksoil erosion but also minimize growth of weeds. Integration ofleguminous crops serves health needs of the soils as well as humannutritional requirements (Shalini Misra, p.13).

Involving farmers and integrating their knowledge systems is crucialfor any successful soil nutrient management programme. Defyingassumptions that scientific concepts such as soil fertility and nutrientbalances are too abstract for farmers to understand, given anopportunity, they express their understanding by relating to theirdaily foods (Pablo Tittoneell, p.15) and by their own nativeterminology (Suresh Reddy, p.18).

In severely degraded soils, as is often the case, deliberateaugmentation efforts are needed, particularly during the periods oftransition. Recycling of farm residues, generation of adequate plantmanurial biomass, processing and incorporating it into soils throughcomposting or vermicomposting is being practiced worldwide. Withperseverance and hard work, farmers have proved that it is possibleto reclaim degraded land to a fertile soil full of life (Rao, p.34).

Box 1: Enabling factors

In the rhizosphere, an intensified biological conversion takesplace, where the activity of microbes is very high comparedto less-rooted areas. it is not unusual to find a hundred billionbacteria per gram of dry root matter. The micro flora and faunaconsist mainly of microbes which use easily digestible organicmatter. The fine and delicate root hairs, which are constantlydying off, represent an indispensable carbon reservoir for thesemicrobes.

Organic matter refers to organic fractions of the soil that iscomposed of both living organisms and once living residuesin various stages of decompostion.

Humus is formed as a result of the complicated interplay ofinorganic conversions and the life processes of the microbesand tiny creatures living in the soil.

Soil Tilth - A soil that drains well, does not crust, takes inwater rapidly and does not make clods is said to have goodtilth. Tilth is the physical condition of the soil as it relates totillage easily, seed bed quality, easy seedling emergence anddeep root penetration. Good tilth is dependent on aggregation– the process whereby individual soil particles are joined intoclusters or ‘aggregates’.

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 86

Specific activities for augmenting soil fertility, when organized intocommunity efforts, is also generating additional income to the ruralpoor (Ninawe, p.21). However, with varying transition periods,farmer groups are moving towards organic farming practices.(Wardjito, p.20).

Effective microorganisms addition is another strategy beingfollowed for revitalising the depleted soils. However, preparationof these has to be done reliably and carefully. Some progressivefarmers make their own secondary preparations successfully(Narayana Reddy, p.29). Farmers have observed increasedbiological activity induced through preparations based on cow urineand dung (Madhu, p.30).

Night soil (human waste), a valuable organic resource, whenhandled safely, is effective in reducing soil degradation and waterscarcity. This has been found in the areas like Lahual Valley, Indiaand Ileje district, Tanzania. Night soil compost is being promoted asone of the organic practices in the regions (Santaram; Patrick, p.22).

These practices are based on revitalizing natural processes basedon restoring the eco-balance so essential for a robust nutrientrecycling and access. Experiences show that when soil becomesrich in humus and organic matter, it could be felt like a ‘carpet’ andalso begins to emanate earthly smell (Nagaraj, p.7).

More often, the revitalization process is arduous - needs patienceand perseverance. It is rooted in the social processes, genderdimensions, based on a balance between household needs andincome generation, reflecting efforts to integrate food, economic,health and ecological security.

Research and Policy

In spite of the limitations well known to imitate the dynamic naturalmilieu in the earth, gradually, with persistence, last 50 years researchis giving clearer outlines and more specificity to the actors andprocesses in the soil food web that have been amorphous andinexact2. Also, with increased efforts by scientists the soil life aspectis gaining importance (Singh, p.25). However, there are certainconcerns when it comes to the use of GE technology, particularlythe impacts it has on soil health. It is believed that research effortsare not adequate and the unpredictability factor is looming large(Amitava Rakshit, p.27). However, voices are growing strongerrecognising that the new frontiers of research should strengthen‘biological’ approaches for revitalizing soils. The new approach isexpected to shift significantly from input dependent, exogenouslyfocussed production systems to ones that are soil system based andendogenously focused2.

Lastly, a supportive policy environment would help to stimulatefarmers to invest more in ecological practices. Janice Jigginsdescribes a landmark international agricultural report, which urgespolicy-makers and scientists to move in the direction of sustainablemethods to offset large-scale land degradation and to meet globalfood needs.

Lively soils as carbon sinks

At the same time, international climate change experts point to thesoil as an important potential reservoir for carbon dioxide,a greenhouse gas (see box 2 for more details).

These developments all point to the need to respect the soil’s livingprocesses even more. As this issue shows, farmers practising lowexternal input and sustainable agriculture are nurturing and buildingliving soils in many practical ways. With the growing recognitionthat farmers have valuable knowledge and skills to share, we need

Box 2: Importance of soil organic carbon

The soil’s organic carbon (SOC) content comprises animportant part of soil organic matter. SOC is valued byagrarians as a natural buffer for “living soil”, insulating itfrom extreme changes in temperature, reinforcing soilstructure, reducing compaction, improving water-holdingand drainage, storing nutrients and providing energy forsoil biological communities.

Soil organic matter holds a great proportion of organiccompounds, nutrients, cations and trace elements thatare necessary for plant growth. Plants absorb carbon fromthe atmosphere. They then transfer it to the soil throughtheir roots, or as decomposing plant residues. Soil carbonmay be returned to the atmosphere from the soil, whenthe organic material in which it is held is oxidised bydecomposition or burning. Different agricultural practicesthat build up rather than deplete soil organic matter (andtherefore carbon) are outlined in this issue of the LEISAMagazine.

SOC has lately become even more widely appreciated,especially on the international stage, as a potentialreservoir for carbon dioxide (CO

2), a greenhouse gas. The

amount of carbon in the soil is much larger than in theatmosphere (3.3 times) and in vegetation (4.5 times). Asa result, soil carbon is seen as one of the major reservoirsfor the global carbon pool. How land is used andmanaged determines whether the soil can be a “source”or “sink” for atmospheric CO

2. Building the SOC pool

appears to be the most promising low-cost strategy tonot only mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, but also toinsure against otherwise devastating consequences ofwater shortages, drought, nutrient depletion and salinity.

Caron Gala. Policy Programs Co-ordinator, Soil ScienceSociety of America, 900 2nd St., NE, Suite 205, Washington,D.C. 20002 U.S.A; E-mail: cgala@agronomy.org; http://www.soils.org

to work hard to keep documenting and learning from LEISAfarmers, while at the same time supporting them in their dailyefforts.

References

1 Erhard Hennig, 1997. The Secrets of Fertile Soils. ISBN 3-922201-

27-x (English version – original in German).

2 Norman Uphoff and others Eds., 2006. Biological approaches tosustainable soil systems. Florida, CRC Press, 2006. v, 764p.

�

7L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

To understand the status of agriculture and the irrigationmethod practiced, SVARAJ, a development organization,conducted a study in Arkavathi river basin in Karnataka

State. Many among the 50 farmers interviewed felt that thecultivable land is getting parched every year with artificially inducedthirst in the top soil. The study is conducted with the hypothesisthat dominant NPK macronutrient chemical soil fertility method iseither depleting the naturally occurring micronutrients or istriggering off antagonism among micronutrients. Many of thechlorotic plant diseases such as yellow and brown spot occurrenceon the leaves are in fact induced by deficient soils and are abioticin nature. To confirm this hypothesis, SVARAJ took up a pilot studyin the area by experimenting different agriculture plant species forreclaiming land, without the application of any chemical fertilizers,pesticides and insecticides.

Through the survey in the Arkavathi river basin, and a workshopconducted in this region, Mr. Nanjappa’s fallow land at Alur ofDevenahalli taluk was selected for the study. The criteria for theselection of the land were willingness of the farmer, quantum ofland available and water availability on the farm.

Current farm situation

The land was left fallow for about 6 years where no chemicalresidues were present and this was suitable for the project. Mr.Nanjappa had cultivated only ragi (finger millet) along withcompanion crops like field beans and cow pea in the small area.The history of the land depicted that grapes and potato cultivationwere tried, which had failed. During the fallow period, about 6families grazed their cattle and also scraped the land for foddercontinuously.

After several visits and discussions, Mr. Nanjappa showed hiswillingness to be a part of the programme addressing the problemsof remediation and transitioning to natural condition. In 2006, westarted working. When we walked across the land, we felt as if wewere walking on a rock. The heap of soils looked like the work ofmice and bandicoots done for their burrows. Throughout the 4.5acre of land, bunds and contours were completely invisible andrain water had drained all the surface soil. We thought that the soiland water run off is the immediate issue that needs to be addresed.

The first thing we started was restoration of the water aquifer. Inthe bore well, the water table was just alive at the depth of 320feet, whereas in the neighboring chemical farming plot, the waterlevel was still lower at a depth of 500 to 850 ft. They used 18 hpsubmersible pumps to lift the water for irrigation. The wateravailable was not good for drinking and was also contaminatedwith salts. We also came to know that the water table was not so

deep in all the areas. In some places, it was available at 150 ft also.Thus, along with Mr. Nanjappa, we decided not to deepen the borewell but to take the remedial measures to enrich the existingaquifers. We dug up a percolation tank in the upstream for rainwaterharvesting followed by complete contouring of the land across thealtitude/slope.

The farm soil was tested for its consistency and the mound of soildidn’t show any sign of organic residues and physical stability.Neighbouring farmer, Mr.Rajanna, advised us not to venture to anykind of cropping without the application of chemical fertilizers andhe was right too, as the soil had no element of clay or organicresidues. But, we were stubborn with our hypothesis, that, chemicalfertilizers trigger antagonism among micronutrients and furtheraggravate the crisis in soil. Mr. Nanjappa started arguing about thesplendour of bygone agriculture with fertility practices likeapplication of lake bed soil, farm yard manure and cattle urine. Wewent around tracing fertile lake bed soil accumulation but foundgood soil in only few places. While returning back, we came acrosshuge deserted anthills which flickered some hope in reclaimingmarginal soil with the assumption that anthill soil is PH neutraland therefore, is neither acidic nor alkaline.

During bunding, we found the soil in the upstream area in goodcondition and Mr. Nanjappa identified this soil as ‘tanuvu kebbe’meaning red soil with moisture retention capability. While diggingthe percolation pond to harvest the upstream rain water, we foundthis red soil up to six feet depth after which the soil turned hard andgravelly. This made us to come to conclusion that the soil in themiddle stream with peculiar altitude was also of the same kindwhich has been eroded now. After contouring the land, we foundthat the water yield of the aquifer was just 6,000 liters with 6 hoursof power supply.

Reclaiming earthly smell and livelihoods –SVARAJ’s experienceUse of chemicals over years has resulted in impoverishingsoils of organic matter and micro-organisms. SVARAJthrough its action research reiterates that it is possible toreclaim degraded lands with simple, eco-friendly practiceslike application of compost and vermicompost, mulchingand polyculture cropping.

L C Nagaraj

Cover crop in plant basin

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 88

Improving quantity and quality of water in aquifers

Around the aquifer, we dug 300 pits of 2 feet deep, and in the firstphase of fertility enhancement, mixed dry leaves of Pongamea,banyan tree, farm yard manure, lake bed clay soil with the top soiland allowed it to get decomposed for 20 days. In the second phaseof fertility enhancement, Pongamea, neem cakes, vermi compostwere filled into the pits and left for fifteen days for furtherdecomposition. We planted drumstick and papaya in intercroppingmethod and planted chilly in the remaining space. After three rains,the colour and taste of the aquifer water was changing. This smallchange in the water left some hope of good results ahead butparthenium weeds started sprouting and it was big challenge beforeus. While the saplings got properly acclimatized into soil, weconducted intercultural operations and turned parthenium and othervegetation back into the soil and mulched the plant basins with un-flowered parthenium weeds. In 15 days, the soil started emittingearthly smell. After 5 rainfalls, the aquifer water started tastingdifferently; its salty elements were getting diluted with the rainwater percolation.

In the bower unit, where the soil erosion was severe, we decided todig pits of one foot deep for remediation. Again, these pits werefilled with the mixture of the farm yard manure, dry leaves, oilcakes of Pongamea and neem, vermicompost and ant hill soil. Theamended pits were watered and left for fifteen days fordecomposition. Here, we went for vegetables such as bottle gourd,bitter gourd and ridge gourd. The germination rate was about 95%.After heavy rains, the ridge gourds became yellowish due to highmoisture, but, bottle gourds and bitter gourds were resilient.

In the second year, we started working on the remaining area of thebower unit. We dug 400 pits of 2 feet deep each, packed withbiomass, farm yard manures, lake bed soil, oil cakes of neem, castorand pongamea and vermi compost and left for decomposition. Hereagain, we went for drumsticks and planted custard apples in theborder as buffer crops. In 45 days, we observed pink earth wormsin the amended areas of soil and the drum stick trees were lookingflush green. The top soil was again mixed with lake bed soil andthe area was dug up to remove the weeds. These weeds were driedand mulched in the plant basins. After this, we observed variousvarieties of herbs growing in the region. But, we knew that there ishidden hunger in the soil. We had no reason to go disheartened,with excess of weeds, as many were used in local food culture. Weused these weeds for mulching. Keshavamurthy, the farmers’ son,started grumbling that we will run short of weeds for mulching.We went ahead with one assumption that more the plant residuesin soil, more the physical textural consistency. We allowed theweeds to grow until the seed formation and then we cut them andused for mulching. All the time after each rain, the weeds went onsprouting and provided sufficient biomass for mulching the plantbasins. At this stage, we observed the colour change in plant basinsoil which was emanating earthly smell after rain. Keshava startedmaking links between the earthly smell and the actinomycetes whichhe studied in his college.

We started to work on the second step of soil amendment. To reducethe moisture evaporation in the summer, we mulched dried leavesof pongamea and Banyan in the plant basin. We started plantingcow pea, horse gram and field beans (legumes), as cover crops andalso as nitrogen fixers. These plants were allowed to grow but theexcess plants were chopped to mulch the basin again and again.We identified a local land race variety of tomato which was thrivingeven in this marginal soil. We collected the fruits of this ‘cherrytomato’ and broadcasted them in the plant basins. Tomato creepers

started growing in the plant basins and were keeping the mulchedplant residues in tact.

Adopting polyculture cropping

We learnt a great deal from the locally prevailing polyculturecropping. In this area, Ragi (finger millet) as a principal crop iscultivated with sequential cropping of field beans, niger, maize,mustard and lentils. One of the senior farmers in the area felt thatthe traditional polyculture cropping method would have been theprototype for all the crops. With this polyculture cropping method,all the aspects of soil fertility, requirements of livestock fodder andfamily food were taken care of. In polyculture cropping, multiplevarieties with varying root depths were holding the soil intact andwere absorbing nutrients from various levels of soil to enrich thetop soil. Different parts of the plant cells get decomposed in thesoil at various levels and feed the soil biological system which inturn takes care of the crops. Also, various parts of the plant cellsdevelop various enzymes in the top soil which conserve capillarymoisture essential during dry spell. Field beans and lentils asnitrogen fixers and Ragi as a ‘nitrogen craving’ crop completed thesoil, atmosphere and plant symbiotic system. In polyculturecropping method, pollen and petals of various flowers and leavesshed from plants mulch the land surface, naturally.

Future plans

Now, we are at the stage of following companion cropping withvarious vegetable varieties and nitrogen fixing leguminous crops.We achieved two feet length pod formation even in the marginalsoil, where as in the soil with enough organic content, we got threefeet length pod formation last year.

Considering drum stick tree plant basin as the epicenter, now, weare digging another four pits around the epicenter and amend it tosuit various crops. Diverse varieties of crops will be planted. Toenhance the biological activity, we are considering application oftraditionally prevailing probiotic extractions like Panchagavya.

The research team in SVARAJ will continue to work on reclamationof marginal soils. A range of micro organisms can quench the hiddenhunger in the soil. They produce various enzymes that are requiredto mitigate climate change. Reclamation of marginal soil has botheconomic and larger ecological benefits. It is holistic in the foodcycle of soil biosystems, animal and human nutritional system.

�

L C NagarajResearch Officer, Svaraj, No.95/2, 6th Main, 15th Cross,Malleshwaram, Bangalore 560 003,Email: lcnagaraj@svaraj.in; lcnagaraj.lc@gmail.com;www.svaraj.in

References

Bill Mollison, Permaculture manual.

Dr. Kasturidas, 2004. Transitioning to organic in India together.

Dan Woodward, Soil and Sustainability. www.livingsoil.co.in

9L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

Agricultural soils in Ecuador are highly degraded.Deforestation, together with practices such as monocultures and farming on steep slopes, has contributed to

the disappearance of fertile soils. The subsoil, largely made up ofhardened volcanic sands, is now widely visible. Another indicatorof this degradation is seen in diminishing levels of the soil’s organicmatter content, and therefore in its structure, stability and nutrientcontent. The use of agro-chemicals has worsened the situation. Itis thus more appropriate to talk about the “rehabilitation” ratherthan the “conservation” of this resource.

Naturally, the first step to consider in such a rehabilitation processis to look at the necessary changes in local practices. Given thewell-known effects of organic matter, Ecuador’s Management ofNatural Resources Network, MACRENA, in alliance with WorldNeighbors and the McKnight Foundation, decided to focus on thebest ways to ensure enough organic matter, especially on smallscale farms. As part of our search for alternatives to current

practices, we visited many successful experiences in Mexico,Central America and Brazil, recognising the uses and benefits ofcover crops and green manures. As the use of cover crops is notcommon in the Andean highlands, we started working with anetwork of innovative farmers from the low, medium and high areasof the country’s northern highlands.

Advantages of cover crops

“Cover crops” refer to additional crops that are integrated alongsidethe principal crop; or to cover the land when it is left fallow, toprotect the soil from the erosive effects of wind, rain and hightemperatures. Similarly, “green manures” are cover crops grownto maintain or increase the soil’s organic matter content, and raiseits overall fertility. These are fast growing species which arechopped and buried in the same place where they grow, beforeflowering – which would divert the concentration of nutrients tothe seeds or fruit. Cover crops and green manures have similar andcomplementary advantages, including:

• protecting the soil from erosion, drying up, and improving soilmoisture levels and water circulation;

• impeding the development of weeds, either directly (by blockinglight) or indirectly (some species are known to act as herbicides);

• enriching the soil with nitrogen (for leguminous green manures)and other nutrients;

• creating new habitats for natural enemies of pests and diseaseorganisms;

• contributing to a better soil structure as a result of greater soilbiological activity, and mechanical action of roots;

Cover crops do it allIntegrating cover crops and green manures helps farmersrehabilitate degraded soils in highland areas. In Ecuador,farmers experimented with this conservation practice. Theyfound that it improved their farming system in many ways:increased productivity in their main crop, decreased weedingtime, provided them with an extra crop (for food, fodder,marketing), besides rehabilitating their soils.

Máximo Ochoa and Pedro J Oyarzun

People admiring don Ramón’s mango production hear that he didn’t

do much: ‘Cover crops do it all’.

Photo: Horacio Narvaez, MACRENA

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 810

• contributing to building up the soil’s organic matter and humuscontent, activating the soil fauna and micro-organisms; and

• providing for a more humid environment which helps breakdown hard residues such as straw in cereal systems, balancingthe carbon and nitrogen ratio.

The most common species used as cover crops or green manuresare generally beans or pulses, grasses and also crops from theCucurbitaceae family. They must be able to grow in poor soils;produce great volumes of green mass in a short time; be water-efficient; and have a dense root system. On the other hand, theymust also be easy to eradicate, as they cannot become invasiveweeds. Their use is subject to several restrictions and demands,which are not only linked to the species but also to the particularfarming conditions. Cover crops, for example, must not stop theadequate heating of the soil in the colder highlands; sowing andgrowth must be cheap; they must not represent a source of pest ordisease for the main crop; and the liberation of nutrients mustcoincide with the time that the crop needs them. Preferably, theyshould not compete in terms of labour and time with the commercialor subsistence crops. Finally, it is important to compare both systemsin economic terms.

Promising green manure and cover crops

On mountains ranging from 1500 to 3400 m above sea level, thehighlands of northern Ecuador present a diversity of ecosystems,covering Andean valleys, steep slopes and highland plateaus. Manyfarmers, together with MACRENA and World Neighbors, have beenexperimenting with cover crops and green manures in differentecological zones, trying to prove the benefits in the soil and theirpositive effects on the main crops in these areas. Working in differentecosystems is generating experiences and information which canthen be adapted in other high Andean regions. Until now, farmersin the lower valleys have been using mucuna (Stizolobium sp. orMucuna pruriens), Canavalia ensiformis, dolichos or lablab bean(Lablab purpureus), pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan) and other beans(such as Phaseolus vulgaris or Arachis pintoi). Farmers in the higherareas have used common beans, as well as peas, oats, alfalfa, Viciaspp., lupin (Lupinus spp.) and the “torta” or lima bean (Phaseoluslunatus).

Although the soil rehabilitation process can take many years, theeffects of using cover crops and green manures can be noticedimmediately. One example comes from the results achieved by donRamón Alcívar and his family. He is one of the farmer researchersbelonging to EcoAmbuquí, a farmers’ organisation. His farm isfound in the Ambuquí parish, in a valley known as Chota, at analtitude of between 1500 and 2000 m. This is a semi-arid area,with an annual rainfall of only 500 millimetres. Two years ago,don Ramón started experimenting with cover crops; he sowed sixdifferent kinds of beans between his mango trees.

Don Ramón’s experience

The cover crops grew well. It was only necessary to weed the fieldonce after sowing. At the same time, however, the first problemappeared: don Ramón and his family started panicking when theysaw how the beans were climbing up the growing mango trees:“Will these beans suffocate the mango?” The solution was to controlthe way the vines were growing, cutting them with scissors. Therewere no further difficulties, and don Ramón carried on with hiscrops. Now, after two seasons, he exclaims:

“Cover crops are marvellous. I only needed to sow them once.The first thing you notice is that weeds stop coming up, so I

don’t have to spend money or time in weeding. Then I foundout that these beans produce a lot of seeds. I harvested manybeans which I shared with my neighbours and also with othermembers of EcoAmbuquí. I kept a part of the cover crops inthe ground and so they keep growing on their own, so I didn’tneed to sow again. Now I have a twenty centimetre cushion oforganic matter and a lot of earthworms and soil animals haveappeared, all of which break down organic material. The mostincredible thing is that the ground stays humid for longer, sothe watering frequencies have also changed. Now I don’t needto water my field every week, but every three to four weeks!”

Having had cover crops and green manures for two years, thechanges taking place in the soil are visible to the naked eye: thereis a new layer, formed by decomposing organic material. The topsoilin don Ramón’s farm now has a different colour. And there is alsoa clear difference in the soil’s nutrient content. During these lasttwo years, don Ramón and his colleagues took a series of soilsamples. Comparing the fields where they grew two types ofmucuna, lablab and Canavalia, they found a significant change inthe soil nitrogen of up to 35 percent. None of the other measuredproperties showed significant differences.

Yields and crop performance

In relation to yields and crop performance, and backing similarprevious work on cover crops and green manures, don Ramón hasmore to say:

“Now I have more time to dedicate to other things like myown family. What surprised me most was that plants alongsidegreen manures are bigger and greener than those without them.I started harvesting, and found out that these crops producedalmost twice as much as those without them. I harvested mymangoes every week for two months, and money came in everyweek. My wife is happy and now also recognises the benefitsof green manures and cover crops. People from othercommunities come to see my field and even people from otherprovinces have come. When they see my beautiful mangoesthey ask me: What did you do? I answer, ‘ Nothing, cover cropsdo it all”.

Implemented by World Neighbors, the COVERAGRI projectsupports many farmers like don Ramón, all of whom are busybuilding more sustainable and productive systems. All of them arebased on better soil management techniques, and on the in situgeneration of organic matter. Our project began with a small farmand a seed bank of 2 kg for multiplication. Today, the differentsmall farms managing cover crops and green manures cover almost30 hectares. We plan to continue expanding this area using a farmer-to-farmer model. We also plan to start working in differentecological zones in the near future, especially at higher altitudes,where we expect to make an important contribution to thereconstruction of degraded soils. This will help increase theprofitability of local agro-ecological production.

�

Máximo Ochoa and Pedro J OyarzunPrograma de los Andes, Vecinos Mundiales/ World Neighbors,Avenida Florencia 203 y Bramante, La Primavera I, Cumbaya.Casilla Postal 17-17-1797 Quito, Ecuador.E-mail: poyarzun@wnandes.org

11L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

Healthy soils lead to healthy plants. Maintaining such soilsis a huge task for farmers. The Jaffna peninsula, Sri Lanka,is recorded as having a very high consumption of inorganic

inputs (fertilizers and pesticides) per area of crop cultivation. About65 percent of the farm wells now have excess nitrate nitrogen (abovethe WHO recommended level of 10 mg/l) in areas where intensiveagriculture is practised. Huge amounts of pesticides were used inJaffna peninsula before 2006. Now, soils are polluted and sick.

The general public, especially farmers, realise these problems andnow wish to adopt organic methods. Green manures are a gift fromnature, being a suitable alternative to increase the organic mattercontent of the soil. Partially decomposed or decomposing planttissues feed the beneficial organisms in the soil that build it up.Some farmers in certain areas of Jaffna have traditionally used greenmanures. Students in the Faculty of Agriculture at the Universityof Jaffna learned from farmers, through visits and interviews, abouttheir methods to enrich the soil organically, which plant speciesthey use as green manures alongside which crops, and the difficultiesthey face in maintaining soil fertility. More than 250 farmersparticipated in this study which took place from 2005 to 2007.Farmers from tsunami affected areas and non-tsunami areas wereboth interviewed, to learn about their different experiences on theuse of green manure as a soil improver.

Green manure dependent crops

About 60 percent of the population in Jaffna are farmers, whocultivate vegetables, cereals, cash crops and fruit crops. Greenmanure is seen as an essential input when cultivating these crops.Farmers say that with increased and effective use of green manures,chemical fertilizers are not necessary anymore. In addition, greenmanures add greater organic matter, improve the richness of thesoil and help to increase crop yields. Some cash crops depend onspecific green manures and without them there is little chance forbetter production (see Table for common crop combinations).

In situ green manure

Green manures are either grown and used in situ, or used as greenleaf manure. In the in situ method, green manure crops are grown

in a field prior to crop cultivation and then cut and buried whenapproximately 50 percent of all plants are flowering. The use ofsunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea) is popular and well practised bymost of the farmers in Jaffna. Because of its ability to grow fastand its efficient nitrogen fixing capacity, these plants are grownand sacrificed to improve the living condition of the main crop.Sunn hemp is grown in tomato, tobacco and onion fields. Afterploughing, the sunn hemp seeds are broadcast. Farmers then cutand incorporate the sunn hemp into the soil. After churning, thesoil is left for one to two months to allow for the decompositionprocess. Green gram and black gram are also used as green manurein situ in paddy fields. After harvesting the pods, the remainingplant parts are incorporated into the soil and allowed to decompose.During the hottest period of the year, farmers delay cultivation andfallow the field for one or two months. Grasses such as Mimosapudica, Tephrosia pumila and other non-legumes are allowed togrow as a cover crop on the soil. At the end of the hot period thesoil is ploughed once, and this vegetation is turned into the soil asgreen manure.

Green leaf manure

The practice of incorporating green leaf manure is different fromgreen manure grown in situ. Thespesia and Gliricidia are grown inlive fences, and jackfruit, neem and palmyrah are grown on barrenlands. The leaves are cut and brought to the farms in bundles. Thereis a charge for transportation. However, “…the benefits of its useare innumerable” said one traditional farmer. Thespesia is in greatestdemand, and is sold at US$ 20-25 per load (a bull cart). Beforeincorporating it into the soil, Thespesia is allowed to wither fortwo days. It is kept in the field in a heap and then covered by bananaleaves. This helps for partial decomposition, reduces the carbon tonitrogen ratio and makes it easier to apply.

Excessive use of inorganic fertilizers and pesticides hasaffected soil and water quality in the Jaffna peninsula, SriLanka. Students from the Faculty of Agriculture at theUniversity of Jaffna have been learning about green manuresfrom farmers, and how they have been used to improve soils.Green manures were also used successfully to rehabilitatesalinated soils affected by the tsunami. These and other organicpractices are now being promoted with and by farmers.

Arulanandam Vakeesan, TharshaniNishanthan and GunasinghamMikunthan

Green manures:Nature’s gift toimprove soil fertility

Table 1. Crop – Green manure combinations practised in Jaffna

Green Manures used Main crop

Thespesia populnea tobacco, grapes, banana

Sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea) tobacco, onion, tomato

Nem (Azadirachta indica) Tobacco, grapes

Calotrpis gigantia onion

Palmyrah (Borassus falbellifer) paddy

Green gram (Vigna radiata) paddy

Black gram (Vigna mungo) paddy

Gliricidia sepium paddy, coconut

Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) potato

Clausena indica chilli

Using green manure can be labour intensive, but has manybenefits – here a farmer is showing the students how he

incorporates Thespesia as green leaf manure.

Photo

: A

uth

ors

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 812

The timing of application of green leaf manure depends on themoisture content of the soil. Farmers measure this by digging to adepth of 5cm, and taking a soil sample. They make a clod by pressingthe soil between their hands. If the clod breaks up immediately,this indicates insufficient soil moisture. If there is enough moisturein the soil, farmers will start to add green manure. Farmers alsohave their own method of detecting soil fertility. They refer to theorganic matter content as ‘soil fat’, characterised by the sticky natureof the soil. If they find that the soil is not very sticky, they confirmthat the soil is less fertile, and will use green manures. To test forfertility, some farmers press their feet into the soil – if they can dothis easily, they believe it is rich in organic matter content.Otherwise, it needs to be supplemented with green manure orfarmyard manure.

Green manures for salinity reclamation

On December 26th 2004, tsunami tidal waves hit the east coast ofSri Lanka, devastating both fisheries and agriculture. In Jaffna, morethan 300 acres of cultivable land were flooded with sea water andabout 560 farm families were directly affected by the tidal waves.The soils and fresh water bodies therefore became saline. Onion,tobacco, chilli and other vegetable fields were totally devastated.After the tsunami, cultivation of such crops failed. The crops plantedin tsunami affected lands appeared burnt and their growth wasretarded. However, farmers solved this problem by plantingappropriate green manures. They succeeded and reclaimed the soilwithin 4-6 months of the tsunami disaster.

Partially withered tamarind (Tamarindus indicus) leaves were usedas a good salinity reclamation agent by most of the traditionalfarmers in the coastal regions. This was known among farmers asan effective method. Tamarind leaves are slightly acidic in nature,and can create a favourable environment for soil microbes. Also,the Department of Agriculture (Extension) conducted a project,with one hundred farmers, to solve the salinity problems in tsunamiaffected land. Finger millet seeds were distributed to them. Afterharvesting this millet, crop residues were turned into the soil andallowed to decompose for two months. Interestingly, the soilrecovered and the farmers benefited. They restarted crop cultivationsix months after the tsunami.

In addition, Pavetta indica, Thespesia, neem and sunn hemp werealso effective against salinity and were used to improve the soilfertility. These species were mixed and dug into the soil twice, atan interval of six months. Farmers said that the combination ofusing both farmyard manure and these green manures in equalamounts gave encouraging results and enhanced the productivityof the tsunami affected soil. Among all the green manure species,however, tamarind leaves and finger millet were the best and actedas fast and effective salinity reclamation agents. The reclamationof alkaline soil basically involves replacing the sodium ions withmore favourable calcium ions. There is an intimate relationshipbetween soil pH, level of CO

2 and calcium ion activity in calcareous

alkaline soils like tsunami affected soils in Jaffna. Evidence hasshown that increasing the amount of plant tissues in such soilfacilitates rapid production of CO

2 and enhances the soluble calcium

status of soils. That, in turn, replaces the sodium ions, resulting inthe improvement of saline soils.

Healthy soils

Many farmers have chosen to use green manures, and expressedtheir intention to contribute to long-term agricultural sustainabilitythrough better soil fertility management. However, green manuringis not currently practised by all farmers. Together with the

Department of Agriculture and the Coconut Cultivation Board, theFaculty of Agriculture, University of Jaffna is working with farmersto demonstrate that having a healthy soil is the basis for creatinghealthy plants. The next step is the work being done with the farmerson developing healthy soils, through seminars, newspaper articles,and projects promoting organic farming. As the reality is that thereis not enough green manure available, the Faculty of Agriculture isalso promoting other organic manures and methods. These includemaking compost using earthworms, promotion of medicinal plants,and agroforestry techniques.

Through local groups and community based organisations, farmersunderstand that ‘soil is a community resource and an activereservoir’ and ‘green manures are nature’s tonic for the soil’. Thesenotions inspire and enlighten the concept and help in buildingknowledge and skills for developing a more integrated soil fertilitymanagement.

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to acknowledge the assistance provided by the DeputyDirector and Agricultural Instructors, Department of Agriculture(Extn.), Thirunelvely, Jaffna; Mrs. A. Sivaruban, Assistant Lecturer,and Mr. N. Senthilkumaran, Technical Officer, Department ofAgricultural Biology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Jaffna;students (especially 16th batch) of the Faculty of Agriculture, and theprogressive farmers of Jaffna peninsula.

�

Arulanandam Vakeesan, Assistant LecturerTharshani Nishanthan, LecturerGunasingham Mikunthan. Head and Research SupervisorDepartment of Agricultural Biology, Faculty of Agriculture,University of Jaffna. P.O.Box 57, Thirunelvely, Jaffna, Sri Lanka. E-mails: avakeesh@gmail.com;tharshanig@yahoo.com; gmikunthan@gmail.com

SWOT analysis for using green manures

This analysis was done by the students, with the farmers, as part of theirstudy programme.

Strengths

Farmers believe the application of green manures has several advantagesover application of compost or fertilizers.

• Greater soil fertility;• Improves soil structure;• Serves as good food for earthworms;• Zero risk to soil health• Increases soil biodiversity of beneficial microbes by stimulating their

growth; and• Green manures are cheap and affordable to almost everybody.

Weaknesses

• Large amount of green manures are needed;• Labour intensive; and• The nutrients only become available after the decomposition process,

which may mean a wait of 2-3 months.

Opportunities

• Green leaves and manures are cheap, organic and readily available;• Green manures species have the potential to suppress soil borne

fungal diseases; and• Green manures can be used to reclaim saline soils.

Threats/ challenges

• Termites are becoming a problem in alluvial soils;• Salinity-Jaffna is surrounded by the sea, and calcium is the bedrock

for the formation of soil, so the soil is always alkaline in nature;• Lack of research on green manure crops; and• Poor availability of good quality green manure seeds

13L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

Traditional agriculture plays a vital role in the livelihoods offarmers of Garhwal Himalayas. About 80% of the populationis actively engaged in agricultural activities. The agricultural

land holdings are very small and per capita land holdings isestimated to be about 0.02 hectare. Terraced slopes covering 85%of the total agricultural land are generally rainfed while the valleyscovering only15% of the area are irrigated. The soil, particularlyunder rainfed agriculture, is vulnerable to losses owing to thetopography, heavy seasonal rainfall and intensive agriculturalpractices. There are more than 40 different crops cultivated alongan altitudinal gradient of 300 to 3000 m above mean sea level.

For last few decades, government agencies have been emphasizingthe use of chemical fertilizers like Urea and DAP to enhance theproductivity of the crops. Monocropping of potato, cabbage etc., inagricultural croplands and fruits like Malta (citrus crop) and applein horticultural plots have replaced the traditionally valuedindigenous crops of human health (e.g. Buck Wheat, Finger millet,Cheena, Jhangora, Koni, Paddy etc.) and soil health ‘below groundbio-diversity’ (BGBD). Commercial cropping has gradually led tothe rapid decline in indigenous crop diversity.

With increasing modern agricultural practices, the indigenousknowledge and techniques have gradually faded away. Lack of in-depth scientific information on BGBD as well as its economic usefor increasing the crop yield by using indigenous practices is alsoone of the factors.

Rejuvenating soil health through traditional hill specificpractices

There is however, a growing recognition that soil influencesagriculture, agriculture influences health and health influences lifeand that all of them can have a profound impact on reducing thepoverty of the hill states. Local inhabitants of higher Garhwal areunderstanding the importance of forests and the value of organicproducts. With increasing awareness on the risk of chemical use,they are looking back to their traditional practices. They startedremanaging their forests as well as producing their food organically,which is also an integral part of soil health management.

The farming communities in Garhwal are extremely rich in theirindigenous knowledge and techniques. They have developed andrefined this knowledge and techniques over centuries by carryingout farming under diverse, uncertain, risky and fragile ecological

conditions. Various examples demonstrate that modern knowledgeand advancements either have their origin in the farmingcommunities or have been built upon the knowledge base alreadyexisting among these communities.

The indigenous methods of maintaining soil fertility by increasingthe soil faunal diversity (earthworms, ants, arthropods, nematodes,mycorrhiza etc.) described in this paper are the time tested ones bythe traditional farming communities of the Central Himalayas. Theuniqueness of these practices is their suitability to the localconditions, their economic feasibility and easy implementation.As one practice compliments the other one, if they are applied incombination, they tend to be even more effective in maintainingsoil health. Following are some of the indigenous and traditionalmethods to improve the soil fertility practiced by the farmingcommunities in the region.

Application of Farm Yard Manure (FYM)

Applying Farm Yard Manure (FYM) locally called as Mole is oneof the most useful and significant indigenous methods practiced

Indigenous soil management to revivebelow ground biodiversity -case of GarhwalFarmers over centuries have been managing their soilsusing traditional and indigenous knowledge. Theseindigenous practices which increase the below grounddiversity of soil fauna, are not only time tested but are also

affordable by farmers.

Shalini Misra, R K Maikhuri andDeepak Dhyani

Women harvesting from the mixed farming crop

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 814

almost in all the villages of the region. Application of FYM is apractice which involves using of fully decomposed organic matterof livestock dung, straw, grasses, left over feed etc. The leavesused for animal bedding are also used for making organic manure.The preference towards leaves used for cattle bedding depends uponthe availability of resources in nearby forests. However, farmersfrom middle altitude of area give preference to Oak leaves. Maple,Aesculus, Alnus Walnut tree leaves are excellent sources of makingFYM because of their rapid decomposition.

The quantity of FYM used for field application depends upon thenumber of livestock reared, proximity to the forest, extent of landas well as the manpower available. Collection of leaf litter startsfrom the month of November and ends by April before the sowingof wheat crop. With the application of FYM, earthworms also getintroduced in the cropland and increase the fertility of the soil.Although, it is a time taking process, good FYM is prepared withina period of about 3-4 months of continuous open-air decompositionof cow dung with other leaf litter. Farmers in the higher altitudeareas maintain two cattle sheds - one near to their village and anothernear to their agricultural fields to reduce the labour in carrying theFYM. In this practice, they only shift their livestock from one cattleshed to other according to the growing season of different crops.Of late, people from nearby towns have also started buying FYMfor their gardens from these villages.

Mixed Cropping and Crop Rotation

The practice of mixed cropping exists in the traditional farmingsystem of Garhwal Himalaya. Paddy, millet and pulses are the cropsof Kharif (April - October) season and wheat, barley, mustard, lentilsand peas of winter season. Farmers generally cultivate 10 – 12staple food crops together in a year to meet their food requirements.This system, locally known as ‘Barahnaja’ (meaning foodsufficiency and security can be achieved only through a highlydiversifying cropping system, which means growing at least 12staple food crops in a year). Some of the common crops sown inthis practice are, Gahet (Macrotyloma uniflorum), Sonta (Vignaunguiculata), Rains (Vigna angularis), Kalabhatt (Glycine spp.)Urd (Vigna mungo), Ragi (Elusine coracana), Ramdana(Amaranthus spp.), Sesamum indicum, Setaria italica, Echnocloa,Perilla ocimoides, Paddy etc. This practice is considered beneficialmainly because diverse canopies of a variety of crops help to checkthe soil erosion, minimize the weed growth and reduce competitionfor soil nutrients. More emphasis is however given to theleguminous crops, grown either as a crop or as a green manure, fortheir ability to fix the atmospheric nitrogen.

Although, farmers are not aware of the scientific reasons of growinglegume crops, they are well aware that legume crops are good forenhancing and maintaining the fertility of soil. They opine thatafter harvesting leguminous crop, the productivity of crops grownsubsequently is high with less application of FYM.

Other practices

Spraying of ash is a common and indigenous practice used almostin each and every household for the sake of increasing fertility ofthe various crops. Amount of ash applied has not been quantifiedbut mainly practiced for crops like Onion, Garlic, Coriander, andSpinach.

Keeping agricultural land fallow for a brief period of 4-6 months isa general practice in the rainfed regions. No crop is cultivated duringRabi season on the land from where the mixed crop of finger milletand pulses are taken during Kharif season.

Terracing is a critical aspect of rainfed agriculture in the hills.They not only substantially reduce erosion but also make it easierto carry out practices like zero tillage.

Inhabitants of low and mid altitude villages plant fodder and fuelwood yielding trees on the bunds of their crop fields to check soilerosion. Some of these trees are Celtis australis, Grewia optiva(Bhemal), Sapindus mukorossi, Ficus neriifolia (Thelak),Boehmeria species etc.

A variety of weeds grow during rabi season. Some of them belongto family Fabaceae and play a significant role in fixing nitrogen.Two of these weeds that are studied in middle low altitudes areLathyrus aphaca and Lathyrus odoratus, commonly known as“Kurfulie” and “Jungalee matar”, are grown naturally betweenOctober and April. Primary level research revealed that apart fromplaying a major role in retaining the fertility of the soil by fixingthe atmospheric nitrogen, these weeds are also being used as rawvegetable and cattle feed.

In-situ manuring is mainly employed before the sowing of rabicrop (winter crop) at higher altitudes, where people have largenumber of sheep and goat. In this practice, cow, goat and sheep areleft in open fields for 2-3 days for their dung and urine.

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the Director, G.B. Pant Institute of HimalayanEnvironment and Development for his encouragement and facilitiesprovided. Financial support to continue the work from TSBF-CIAT/GEF/UNEP is thankfully acknowledged.

�

Shalini Misra, shalini3006@gmail.com

R K Maikhuri, rkmaikhuri@yahoo.com

Deepak Dhyani, deep_dsmile@rediffmail.comG.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development,Garhwal Unit, P.O. Box 92, Srinagar (Garhwal) 246 174, India.

References

Maikhuri, R K, U Rana, R L Semwal and K S Rao, 2000. AgricultureUttarakhand: Issues and management prospects for economicdevelopment. In: Sati, M C and S P Sati (eds.), Uttaranchal Statahood:Dimensions for development. Indus Publishing Co., New Delhi, pp.151-167.Maikhuri, R.K., Rao, K. S., Semwal, R.L., 2001. Changing scenarioof Himalayan agroecosystems: loss of agrobiodversity, an indicatorof environmental change in central Himalaya, India. TheEnvironmentalist 21, 23-39.Drinkwater, L.E., Wagnor P. and Sarrantonio, M. 1998. Legume basedcropping systems have reduced carbon and nitrogen losses. Nature396, 262-265. http://www.fao.org/ag/aGL/agll/soilbiod/casecall.stm

15L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

When agricultural researchers visit farms in order to gatherinformation for their research programmes, farmers rarelyget proper feedback. Research information on scientificconcepts such as soil fertility and nutrient balances is oftenconsidered too abstract for them. Researchers in Kenyareturned to farmers to discuss their results in the context ofFarmer Field Schools. Through the workshops that ensued,they managed to find a common language to bridge thecommunication gap.

Pablo Tittonell, Michael Misiko andIsaac Ekise

We researchers often visit farms to extract information,take measurements and samples, and then we leave.We publish our results for the scientific community,

assuming that the result of our research will benefit farmers in thelong run. However, farmers usually do not get direct feedback aboutresearch findings. We also needed better understanding of how theymake decisions. When conducting research on soil nutrients in thefield in western Kenya, we noticed that farmers very muchappreciate feedback. We therefore set out to discuss basic processestogether to help them to make decisions on the adoption and use oftechnology, while also helping us to learn about how farmers makedecisions.

Our research context

Research was conducted on sixty farms in Emuhaya, western Kenya,and concentrated on understanding soil nutrient balances better tohelp improve integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) strategies(see Box). Soil on smallholder farms of sub-Saharan Africa tendsto vary greatly in quality depending on location. Particularly in

highly populated areas such as western Kenya, soil fertility typicallydecreases within a farm the further you move away from thehomestead. These heterogeneous patterns, known as soil fertilitygradients, result partly from the variability in soil types in thelandscape, but also as a consequence of farmers’ decisions onapplying nutrient resources (e.g. animal manure) as well as whereto best use their labour. When either nutrient resources or labour isscarce, farmers tend to concentrate these resources in the fieldsand gardens around their homesteads. Over time, this pattern ofresource allocation leads to the typical picture observed across

Talking soil science with farmersWhat is integrated soil fertility management?

ISFM is knoweledge-intensive rather than input-intensive approachthat aims at raising productivity levels while maintaining the naturalresource base. It aims to replenish soil nutrient pools, maximise on-farm recycling of nutrients, reduce nutrient losses to the environmentand improve the efficiency of external inputs. ISFM makes use ofboth local, traditional and scientific knowledge and integrates theminto technologies that enable sustainable natural resource managementsystems. The diagram shows a number of examples of suchtechnologies.

Green manures Animal manure

Micro-dosage of fertilisers

Composting

Crop rotation

Traditional soil management

Mineral fertilisers

N2 fixation by legumes

Improved germplasm

Biomass transfers

Agroforestry(fertiliser trees)

Improved fallows

Researcher and farmer exchanging different perspectives and knowledge about soils.

Photo

: Pab

lo T

itto

nel

l

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 816

different areas of sub-Saharan Africa: well growing crops aroundthe homestead or in the village fields versus sparse stands of poorlyyielding crops in the bush fields. Clearly, soil fertility gradientsneed to be taken into consideration when designing ISFM strategies.

Our data collection included drawing resource flow maps (seeexample in Figure 1) and calculating nutrient balances, combinedwith soil sampling from the different field types within farms forlaboratory analysis. We also measured the yield of maize cropsgrowing on different fields within the farms, and large differenceswere observed. We saw that farmers tended to concentrate theirorganic resources in the home gardens. Very often, crop residuesare also collected from the fields and brought to a compost pitwhere they are mixed with animal manure to be applied to thehome gardens in the next season. Farmers used little mineralfertilizer in general, and those who did, applied less than 20 kg/ha(strikingly low when compared with the 200 kg/ha that is commonin European agriculture!).

The partial nutrient balances (inputs as mineral and organicfertilizers minus outputs in crop harvest and residues removed)were negative for most fields for all farmers. The outer fields receivefew inputs, but they also yield little, so not much is harvested fromthem. Therefore, the most negative balances were calculated forthe close and middle fields, which are where the largest cropharvests are normally obtained. Along a soil

What is integrated soil fertility management?

ISFM is a knowledge-intensive rather than input-intensive approachthat aims at raising productivity levels while maintaining the naturalresource base. It aims to replenish soil nutrient pools, maximiseon-farm recycling of nutrients, reduce nutrient losses to theenvironment and improve the efficiency of external inputs. ISFMmakes use of both local, traditional and scientific knowledge andintegrates them into technologies that enable sustainable naturalresource management systems. The diagram shows a number ofexamples of such technologies.

fertility gradient, maize yields varied from almost 4 tonnes perhectare near the homestead to less than 0.5 tonnes per hectare inthe remote fields.

Making research feedback more accessible

The farmers were keen to obtain the results of our analysis, buthanding out reports with tables full of analytical data would nothave made sense to them. Therefore, we decided to first discusswith the community some basic concepts on nutrient balances, soilnutrient availability and plant nutrition. We held a workshop with15 farmers (men and women) at the Emanyonyi Farmer Field Schoolin Emuhaya. First we drew a farm transect on a flip chart, depictinga typical farm there. Farmers recognised the existence of soil fertilitygradients and had local names for the different fields within theirfarms, distinguishing between home gardens, close and mid distancefields, remote fields, valley bottom lands and the grazing sites withinthe compound. During earlier visits to the farms, farmers hadclassified their fields according to their perceived fertility, by usingthe signs +, -, or +/- on the map to indicate fields of good, poor ormedium soil fertility (see Figure 2). We next recalled all our researchactivities on their farms, also handing out the results of the soilanalyses. And we provided reference values for the different soilindicators (soil organic carbon, total nitrogen, soil pH, etc.)corresponding to poor and fertile soils in the region.

Useful analogies

To make the discussion on plant nutrients and soil fertility indicatorsmore accessible to the farmers, we used a simple analogy focusingon the typical meal consumed in the area. A typical meal includesa relatively large portion of ugali (a warm porridge made out ofwhite maize flour), a smaller portion of nyama (normally stewedor fried chopped beef) and an even smaller portion of sukuma wikii(boiled kale, cabbage or other local vegetables). We compared cropswith the human body, which needs food to grow and function. Weexplained that the food of crops comprises mainly N, P, K andother nutrients in smaller proportions. We used local terms for theelements, and likened N to ugali, P to nyama, and K to sukumawikii. A well growing healthy crop needs a larger amount of ugali(N), a smaller amount of nyama (P), and some sukuma (K). (Thelatter is an assumption that works fairly well for the situation ofEmuhaya, where K deficiencies are not generalised and only infew cases were crop responses to K fertilizers observed.) We alsoexplained that next to N, P and K, plants need other macro- andmicro- nutrients, which are to the crop like the soup, the sauces,the salt and the spices that we consume together with our meal.

Figure 1: A farmers’ resource flow map, showing movementsof all nutrient resources throughout the farm.

Figure 2: An example of a typical farm transect, drawn withfarmers in Emuhaya.

17L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

Looking at the reports, some of the participants asked about theroles of soil carbon and pH, following the proposed analogy. Weindicated that soil C represents the ‘plate’ where the food is served;the amount of food can be plenty, enough for a good crop, but if theplate is too small only a small amount of food can be served (littleavailability). Soil pH was compared to the taste of the food, toolow pH values indicating a bad taste; again, food can be available,but if it does not taste good the crop will not take it up completely.

With these analogies, we took two examples from the results of thesoil analysis for illustration, using reference values for the localsoils provided to farmers, together with the analytical results. Oneof the examples was a soil sample with a relatively high K content,and low C, N and P contents (drawn as a big plate with plenty ofsukuma and little nyama and ugali). The other example had low Cand N, K was almost adequate, and P was in excess (the plate wasnot big enough to contain all the nyama). Next to the drawing of aplate with ugali, nyama and sukuma, coloured bar charts were usedto represent these soil indicators. After repeatedly drawing the barcharts next to the “meals” farmers got familiar with such graphicrepresentation, so that only bar charts were necessary forillustrations later on. However, we kept the analogy going as farmersoften got a good laugh out of certain images used, like the oneabout a person who is fed exclusively ugali who becomes fat buttotally unproductive!

Understanding nutrient resources

Our next objective was to characterise the various nutrient resourcesavailable to farmers, on the basis of their nutrient content. Whenrequested to recall the different nutrient resources known to them,farmers mentioned mineral fertilizers first, then farmyard manureand finally legumes and green manures. Some of the farmers pointedout that the main problem with farmyard manure was the smallquantity available on the farm, which could fertilize only a smallportion of their land. Where livestock is not kept in a stall, theeffort needed to compost, carry and apply manure was alsomentioned as a constraint to the use of manure as fertilizer. Fewfarmers, by the way, seemed to be aware of the fact that the qualityof their manure is influenced by their animals’ diet, a point thatraised many questions in the group.

One farmer asked why she got greater yields in certain fields thanin others, even if she had applied the same type and amount offertilizer throughout her farm. She said she used the same maizevariety in all her fields, planted and weeded the fields at the sametime, and used the same planting density; however, she had notnoticed differences in the visual properties of the soils within herfarm, such as texture, slope or soil depth. The other farmers cameup with possible causes of yield differences across the farm, suchas varying pest or disease pressures on different fields, or differencesin the placement of the fertilizer (e.g. by two different workers).Subsequently, we used the report of the soil analysis from her farmand drew a simple sketch to illustrate the variability she observed,using once again the analogy described above. Pointing to thissketch we suggested that she had probably applied more nutrientresources in the past to the fields around her homestead. This sheconfirmed. It turned out to be a very useful example as the resultsof the soil analysis clearly indicated higher N, P and K contents inher close fields.

More nutrients present in the soil, together with those added bythe fertilizer, led to higher yields near the homestead.

Explaining nutrient balances

Discussing the concept of nutrient balances proved to be moredifficult. We started by comparing it to cash balances that arenecessary to run a shop: “If we want a profit, our balances shouldbe positive, which means that the earnings should be more than theexpenditures”. We explained that in the various fields of a farm, itis however practically impossible to have positive nutrient balances,but at least they should not be too negative. If nutrient balances arenegative for long periods of time, the soils will be depleted. Flowsof nutrients in harvested crops from the outer fields to the homesteadand outflows to the market were listed. Farmers were surprisedabout the idea that nutrients are brought into the farm system whenlivestock grazing in communal land is kept on the farm at night.This discussion ended with a general feeling that the concept ofnutrient balances appeared to be too abstract and puzzling tofarmers: “So, the nutrient balances are most negative in the fieldswhere we get the best yields?!!...”

Bridging farmer and scientific knowledge

Unlike technologies depending purely on inputs, the Integrated SoilFertility Management approach is knowledge-intensive. To a largeextent, ISFM strategies can be built on what farmers know and ontheir logic. Farmers’ knowledge is largely constructed from pastexperience, and their adaptive capacity allows them to manageextremely complex systems (in places like western Kenya, farmershave managed to sustain their families on less than 1 hectare).Nevertheless, principles such as “nutrient stocks”, “nutrient losses”or the “efficiency of nutrient capture”, which are central to ISFM,are often too abstract. The mere concept of “nutrients” is unfamiliarto many farmers. Nevertheless, our discussions with farmersrevealed that they appreciate to have direct contact with scientists,to be able to access the results of their research, and to discussissues as complex as nutrient cycling. They showed interest inlearning more about the underlying processes affecting soil fertilityand particularly on how their decisions contribute to soilheterogeneity.

This experience suggests that ISFM strategies will not sink downin rural communities unless parallel strategies are in place toempower farmers to make their own choices and decisions inrelation to technology use and adoption. Specifically on the problemof poor soil fertility, the strategies for disseminating ISFM shouldgo beyond comparing technologies from demonstration plots. Theyshould place emphasis on discussing basic processes governingsoil fertility together with farmers.

�

Pablo Tittonell, Michael Misiko and Isaac EkiseTropical Soil Biology and Fertility Institute of the InternationalCentre for Tropical Agriculture (TSBF-CIAT),P.O. Box 30677-00100, Nairobi, Kenya.E-mails: pablo.tittonell@wur.nl ; m.misiko@cgiar.org ;iekise@yahoo.com

References

Misiko, M., 2007. Fertile ground? Soil fertility management andthe African smallholder. Wageningen University, the Netherlands.

Tittonell, P., 2007. Msimu wa Kupanda – Targeting resources forintegrated soil fertility management within diverse, heterogeneousand dynamic farming systems of East Africa. WageningenUniversity, the Netherlands.

Vanlauwe, B., P. Tittonell, and J. Mukalama, 2006. Within-farm soilfertility gradients affect response of maize to fertilizer applicationin western Kenya. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems 76: 171-182.

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 818

Farmers’ parameters for assessing soilfertility in semi-arid regionsB Suresh Reddy

Sustainable soil fertility is key to food and livelihood security ofmillions of people living in semi-arid regions. Soil fertilitymanagement (SFM) in agricultural production is a crucial aspect.In addition to technical factors, there are many social issues, whichsignificantly affect the SFM. Till now, in India, little research hasbeen done to focus on the social, economic, ecological andlivelihood dimensions of soil fertility management.

Soil quality is an important aspect. It is generally believed that toknow the quality of a soil it has to be tested in the laboratory. But,it is possible that farmers in the villages can also tell about thequality of various soils based on their experience. They use a widerange of parameters which are sometimes beyond the imaginationof a Soil Scientist.

Farmers’ Parameter Technical indicator

“Balamaina bhoomilo molka manchigosthadi” (In the fertile soils the crop germination will be good)- Swaroopamma, Germination percentageYedakulapally, Medak district

“Garaka gaddi unte urve panta radu” (If the cyperus grass is there there wont be much crop yield)- Harijan Gangamma, Indicator plantGaddiralla village, Anantapur.

“Bankamannu unte panta raadu” (If the soil is sticky, the crop yeild wont be good)- Sarojamma Kummari, Sanagala, Anantapur Presence of only silt is not good

“Garpanela manchidi” (The soil which can be worked inspite of heavy rain is very good soil)- Jawli Osman Saab, WorkabilityDevanakonda Village, Kurnool.

“Balam leni bhoomilo panta pilaka laga untadi” (In infertile soils, the crop will not grow properly and is thin)- Jookuri Stunted Crop growthAnusuyamma, Pagidipally Village, Nalgonda district.

“Metthaga unte kooda manchidi” (Soft soil is good)- Meesala Pentamma, Kotakadira, Mahbubnagar district. Soil Texture

“Chavudaithe uttigunnapudu, railaga untadi, chavudu neetini diganiyyadi, Yekuvaithe Kalupedithe payilannaithadi ledha Drainagedigabaduthadi, thakkuvaithe gattiguntadi” (During ordinary times the saline soil is hard. It wont let the water to percolate.If there is more water on the saline soil it will be slippery or sinking and if less water, it becomes hard)- Yanapati VenkataSubbamma, Nikarampally Village, Prakasham district.

“Nalla maska bhoomi aithe manchi guntadi” (Black soil is more fertile)- Permangari Narsamma, Metalkunta Village, Medak district. Soil type

“Tunga unte balamaina bhoomi” (If tunga grass is present, the soil will be generally to be fertile)- Kuruva Pedda Anjaneyulu, Indicator plant/uncultivatedKunkunoor village, Kurnool district. plants diversity

“Khanda khallaga undi” (Good clods indicate fertility)- Pyapili Alivelamma, Dosaludki village, Anantapur. Presence of clods

“Cahavudu bhoomilo panta pettinka pacchagai rali pothadi” (The crop turns yellow in the saline soils and hence such soils Salinityare not fertile. If the paddy crop turns yellow and leaves fall down then the soil is infertile)- Gajjela Nagaiah, Gundepally Village,Mahbubnagar district.

“Mannu naaki choostham, koddiga pulla pullaga, karamkaramga unte manchi bhoomi antamu, sappaga matti vasana unte pH of Soilsappidi bhoomi antaru” (We taste the soil by putting it on the tounge and if it sour and hot we call it fertile soil, if it tastes tasteless,with soil smell we call it infertile soil)- Kuttchula Mallesha, Choudharypally village, Nalgonda.

“Ralla bhoomi manchi guntadi” (The soils with presence of stones is fertile)- Sangamma, Gopanpally Village, Medak district. Presence of stones

“Dubba, matti, usike kalisunte manchidi” (If a soil has sand, silt and clay, it is called a good soil)- Gavdi Surya Naik, Proper ratio of Sand, siltVenkatampally Thanda, Ananthapur district. Sand clay.

“Midhu rashi oka vana lekunna panduthadi, tayaniki oka vana lekunna lepukosthadi” (The fertile soil yields well even if there is one rain Moisture Holding Capacityless and if there is also some delay also it helps the crop to come up well)- Kattela Ramchandrudu, Bhairanvani Kunta, Kurnool.

“Yerra nelalo pannendu pantalu panduthai” (In the red soils we can grow 12 different crops)- Polgaari Manemma, Metalkunta, Soils where diverse crops can beMedak district. grown

“Dubba bhoomiaaithe panta radu” (In the sandy soil we wont get crop)- Korra Salamma, Venkatampally thanda, Anantapur. Soil type

“Lothaina bhoomaithe kandagala bhoomani thelthadi” (The soil with good depth will be turning to a fertile soil)- Gaddam Effective DepthAlivelamma, Kodur, Mahbubnagar district.

“Balam leni mannu thookam undadhi” (The infertile soil is not heavy when one takes into hand)- Bandaru Hussain, Dosaludki, Heavy nessAnantapur.

“Baga leni nalla ryagadilo neellu nilabadatha” (In infertile black soils, the water stagnation is there when it rains)- Jawli InfiltrationOsman Saab, Devanakonda Village, Kurnool.

“Mannu pattukoni choosthe thelusthadi” (By touching the soil by hand we can say whether a soil is fertile or not)- Barkam Das, Feel of the soilChityal, Nalgonda district.

“Colour choosi chepphochu” (By seeing colour of the soil, we can indentify the fertility of soil)- Pamula Susheelamma, ColourMetalkunta village, Medak district.

“Mannuthine pamu unte bhoomi balamainadhi antam” (The presence of mud eating snake is considered as a great indication Biological activityof soil fertility)- Rajamma, Metalkunta.

Table 1: Diverse parameters adopted by farmers for assessing soil quality

Farmers have an immense knowledge on various aspects of farming – not only on how to use the farm resources but alsoin assessing their quality. Farmers in Andhra Pradesh have been using their own parameters and indicators to assess thesoil quality. Though different from the scientific methods, they are no inferior in terms of providing the right results.

19L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

Farmers have criteria for classifying soils, such as their workability,inherent fertility, suitability for certain crops, responsiveness toparticular inputs and water-holding capacity. In the mainstreamscientific circles, issues of soil quality and fertility are dealt withas an extremely specialised knowledge, which borders onmystification. It is also a common belief that unless farmers gettheir soils tested in the scientific laboratories and understand theirstrengths and deficiencies in “scientific” terms, what they knowabout soils is not a viable knowledge. This is a highly questionableproposition.

Farmers’ knowledge on soils and their assessment of soil fertilityis a valuable resource that is being lost with time. There are severallocal indicators of soil quality. Rarely, attention is paid to listen tofarmers to find out their method of assessing soil fertility, whichoften can be more precise than the soil testing laboratory results.

Understanding farmers parameters

Keeping in view the above aspects, a study was taken up with anobjective of understanding the farmers parameters for assessingsoil fertility in semi-arid regions. The study was done in 25 villagescovering 6 districts of Andhra Pradesh namely Medak,Mahabubnagar, Nalgonda, Kurnool, Anantapur and Prakasham.Care was taken to include women, female-headed households,widows, small and marginal farmers, the landless, shepherds andcattle herders. Focused group discussions and participatoryapproaches were used.

Rainfed agriculture is predominant in the region. These areas havelow annual rainfall (below 900 mm) and high inter-annual variationsin precipitation. The soils are mainly shallow, barren, stony andonly marginally fertile. Most farmers are ‘small and marginal’ andgrow a large variety of dryland crops like millets, pulses, oilseedsand fibre crops.

Farmers are not in the practice of getting their soils tested in thelabs for various reasons. They generally cannot comprehend thesoil test results which indicate a variety of parameters and measuresthat need to be taken to improve fertility. Moreover, majority ofthe farmers are illiterate and too poor to rely upon external inputsfor fertilizing their soils. However, they have developed acomprehensive knowledge system by which they can understandtheir soils and the problems in a very practical way.

How do farmers assess soil fertility?

Farmers understand their soil types based on soil qualities such astexture, colour, smell and composition. They are also aware that amixture of sand, soil and clay is a good soil, as they opine thatpresence of only silt is not good. This they come to know by thestickiness of the soil. Similarly, farmers believe that they can neverget a good crop if the soil is sandy. They are aware that a fertile soilis one which holds enough rain water and can be worked throughinspite of heavy rain. Water stagnation is indicative of infertile soil(See Table 1 on page 18).

Farmers in the region assess the soil quality by its physical structureand also with the help of indicator plants. For instance, a poorlydrained saline soil becomes hard during normal days and becomesslippery when it rains. They understand that such soils do not allowwater to percolate. Similarly, indicator plants help farmers knowtheir soil quality. For example, presence of cyprus grass indicateslow crop yields and presence of tunga grass indicates fertile soil.

Farmers are also aware of the importance of the biological activitywithin the soils. Presence of earthworms is considered as a greatindication of soil fertility.

Some local methods of soil quality assessment also exist withinthe farming community. They taste the soil by putting it on thetongue. If it is sour and hot it is considered to be a fertile soil, if itis tasteless, it is considered as infertile. Of course, from ages, thefeel of the soil has been one of the best indicators of soil fertility.

Conclusion

It can be said that farmers have a wealth of knowledge about soils,their nutritional strengths and deficiencies. It is only that the termsand definitions they use are very different from the ones used by theformal science. What is probably needed for the community in formalscience and formal research is deciphering the meanings of theseterms and translating them into a language that they understand.Speaking about the ability of a farmer in soil fertility assessment,Kattela Ramachandrudu, Bhairavanikunta village of Kurnool districtsays: “the way a weaver or person selling the clothes tells by justtouching the cloth about its quality and possible price, similarly thefarmer can also tell whether a soil is fertile or not”.

This paper is the output of author’s work with Natural ResourcesInstitute (NRI), Greenwich, U.K. with which he was associated asa freelance consultant.

�

B Suresh ReddyPhD Scholar, Centre for Economic and Social Studies (CESS),Begumpet, Hyderabad - 500 016, Andhra Pradesh.E-mail: srihithasuresh@yahoo.com

ReferencesBarbara. A and Butterwoth, J., 2002, Soil fertility management insemi-arid India: Its role in agricultural systems and the livelihoodsof poor people, Natural Resources Institute, U.K.

Barrios, E., 1995. Agroforestry on tropical flood plains: IndigenousKnow-how from Venezuela. Agroforestry Today 7(1): 13-15

Poinetti, C. and Suresh Reddy, B., 2002, Farmers’ Perceptions ofCrop diversity in the Deccan Plateau, SEEDLING, Quarterly newsletter of Genetic Resources Action International(GRAIN), Spain.

Scoones Ian, 2001. Dynamics and diversity: soil fertilitymanagement and farming livelihoods in Africa, case studies fromEthiopia,Mali and Zimbabwe.

Capacity Building on Knowledge Management in CSOsby K V S Prasad and T M Radha

Development organizations are deeply involvedin generating lot of field knowledge. Often theselearnings are not adequately captured and widelyshared. Building necessary understanding,systems, processes and skill sets required formanaging knowledge within institutions andsharing widely in public domain therefore becomes crucial. Thisrequires integrating practices evolving from multiple disciplines,such as Management, Information systems and Communication.

The programme of Knowledge Management in Civil Societies isa new programme being initiated by LEISA India team throughshort duration Learning Workshops and long duration customisedprogrammes. This document is the proceedings of the firstworkshop organised for CSOs during 22-26 April 2008.

If interested in the initiative/ copies, please contact:

K.V.S. Prasad/ T.M. Radha, LEISA India, AME Foundation,No.204, 100 Feet Ring Road, 3rd Phase, 2nd Block, 3rd Stage,Banashankari, Bangalore - 560 085.Phone: +91-80-26699512 / 26699522; Fax: + 91-80-26699410E-mail: leisaindia@yahoo.co.in; website: http:\\india.leisa.info

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 820

The Bakti Lestari-Banjarnegara Organic Farming Group wasborn in February 2004. Its members, all from Banjarmangusub-district, in Central Java, exchange resources and

knowledge among themselves and also conduct some experiments.They realised that there was a link between using agro-chemicalsand the start of their problems with soil deterioration and waterscarcity. The biodiversity of the paddy field ecosystem –eels, birds,and snakes– was also decreasing. Together they decided that theyhad to stop using chemical pesticides and fertilizers, and look for abetter way of farming. In September 2005, in co-operation withBina Desa Secretariat-Jakarta, a training course on Natural Farmingwas organised. This method, which originated in Korea in the1960s, pays attention to soil management, such as using cover cropsand organic mulches, while respecting natural processes. The groupthought this would be a useful way to help solve the soil problemsthey faced.

Concepts and practices

During the training, farmers learned the concept of “living soil” –that the soil lives and can become sick, or get well, just like humanbeings, depending on how it is treated. Methods discussedemphasised the proper use of the right material, at the right stage,in the right quantity.

After learning these ideas, farmers in Paseh village agreed to startthe practices on their land within months. They considered thatthe simple, cheap yet productive farming methods were verysuitable for them, having only limited land and resources. Somepractices which farmers in Paseh have recently been using arementioned below. Many differ greatly from the conventionalmethods that farmers had been using for a long time:

• using leftover rice fermented near bamboo stakes as materialto reintroduce local micro-organisms to their farms;

• applying fermented plant juice – made by fermenting plant partsin palm sugar. Any plant with strong vigour can be used;

• using oriental herbal nutrient mixtures, made from herbs valuedin oriental medicine, for pest control and to provide solublenutrients;

• treating weeds as friends, not enemies: wild grass or cloverwhich grows in between the crops can be used for mulching;

• practising minimum tillage, to keep grass seeds deep in thesoil, and have fewer weed problems;

• valuing worms, the amazing digger: farmers now realise thatearthworms (and other small animals which live in the soil)help them to build a better soil; and

• using organic household waste such as vegetable peels, eggshells, fish and bones for compost.

Farmers’ observations

Since taking up these methods, members of the farmers’ group havenoticed some changes on their land. The soil texture is better now,it is more crumbly and full of worms. It is also easier to work with,and to weed. Farmers now also find it possible to plant crops in thedry season, and the soils crack less than before.

There is less soil erosion and fewer pest attacks. Farmers feelhealthier, and they find that their rice and vegetables taste better.Yields have increased as well – for example, cardamom has goneup from 30 kg to 45 kg per plot. They have had rice yields of 70-75kg, compared to a maximum of 60 kg regularly obtained withconventional methods. Farmers believe that these methods haverevived the balance of the local ecosystem in their paddy fields,which is a good base for producing a healthy crop and a goodharvest.

The news of these results has spread – the farmers have had severalvisitors from outside their district, some media coverage, andrequests from NGOs and other groups to be resource persons. Otherfarmers have heard about their success, and have come to talk withthem, interested to join their group. The farmers who want to joinstate that they suffer from poor soils, and many pests, and that theywould like to learn about these methods which they understand tobe cheaper, relatively easy and more environmentally friendly. Theyrealise that they must be more patient as they will be working withnature and not with the chemical inputs which give instant results.

The thirty members of the farmers group now want to expandactivities. They will produce organic fertilizer (compost andmanure) and sell it to the Agricultural Agency of Banjarnegaradistrict that wants to promote organic agriculture in their area. Theywant to develop their cattle production, and produce organicfertilizer to sell. These are some of many ideas the Bakti Lestari-Banjarnegara Organic Farming Group has for building on its currentsuccess and looking to the future.

�

WardjitoLeader of the Bakti Lestari-Banjarnegara Organic Farming Group,Desa Paseh RT 02/III Kecamatan Banjarmangu,Banjarnegara 53452, Java, Indonesia.

Rejuvenating soils withinnovative farmingapproachesFarmers have been using chemical fertilizers and pesticidessince the Green Revolution arrived in Paseh village in CentralJava. Over time, however, they became aware that their soilwas becoming harder and more infertile. With increasing costsof chemical inputs, farmers began to think more carefullyabout their soil fertility practices. One farmers’ group startedexperimenting with Natural Farming methods, with successfulresults.

Wardjito

Photo

: K

aren

Ham

pso

n

Growing living soils.

21L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

Vermi-biotechnology is an ecofriendly, socially sound andeconomically viable innovative technology to manage theorganic waste resources on low capital input basis. This

does not call for expensive laboratories or sophisticated industrialinstruments. It has multiple benefits - can convert wastes intofertilizers; make soils healthy; can eliminate the dependence onchemicals; can bring waste-land under cultivation; createemployment to millions of youth, can feed hungry citizens and canmake a country green and prosperous in a span of just a few years.

A project on vermi biotechnology is being implemented in AligarhDistrict of Uttar Pradesh in India, with the assistance of theDepartment of Biotechnology, Govt. of India. It is beingimplemented in five panchayat blocks namely Lodha, Jawa, Khair,Tappal and Dhanipur with the technical assistance of Dharma SamajCollege, Aligarh.

Building soil fertility

Prior to implementation, a farmer’s meet was organized for creatingawareness on the production and application of vermiculture aswell as taking up vermicomposting as an entreprise. More thanhundred farmers of Aligarh District have applied vermicompost intheir fields and are not only saving upto fifty per cent of chemicalfertilizer, but have also got 10-15% more yield. For example, aprogressive farmer, Shri Asha Singh in Rajpur village of TappalBlock, is producing vermicompost in bulk and applying upto 50-60 mt per month for paddy and vegetable crops. According to thefarmers, vermicompost is 4-5 times more effective than theconventional compost.

In the last four years, 284 compost units have been established forthe benefit of SC/ST, women and farmers. The earthworms arebeing supplied free of cost to the farmers and the establishmentcost of the unit is being financed by the banking institutions. Thecost of a single unit varies between US$ 75-250 and is affordable,collectively by the farmers.

Vermicomposting as an enterprise

Vermicomposting is picking up as an enterprise, both at theindividual as well as the group level. At an individual level, farmersare not only benefiting by the improvement of soil fertility throughits application on land. They are producing more than required fortheir land and selling surplus to other farmers. For example, aprogressive farmer of Khushal Gari village, Atrauli Block who ownsa nursery of horticulture plants earned an income of aroundUS$ 2500 through production and sale of earthworms andvermicompost, besides meeting his own nursery requirements. He

Vermicomposting for buildingsoil fertility

also experimented with the use of vermicompost in grafting ofhorticulture plants and observed an increase in the rooting of graftedplants.

As a group initiative, vermicomposting is being taken up at differentlevels. For example, in Barola Hagi village of Lodha block (about20 kms away from the city), a cooperative society of SC/ST peoplehaving cattle, is managing a vermiculture unit with around morethan hundred vermicompsting beds. Most of the vermicompostproduced is being sold as they do not have much agricultural landfor field application. They sell it in the local market or at a nearbytown for US$ 50 per ton. The society which is actively associatedin collecting and selling the vermicompost has earned more thanUS$ 5000 during the last two years.

Similarly, some of the enterprising graduate students haveestablished their own units, enabling them to meet their contingencyrequirements. Realizing the success of this programme, rural banksof the district have come forward to associate themselves for thetechnology dissemination, encouraging more and more farmers toadopt vermicomposting.

Self help group approach is developing in a major way invermicomposting. Village banking institutions are highly impressedwith the micro-credit system established by the village communities.Good linkages have been developed in the village cluster formarketing the worms and compost produced through self helpgroups. Trained beneficiaries are being financed for theestablishment of vermicompost units and vermiculture to propagatethe activity in the village at large scale.

Looking into the future

Mass rearing and maintaining worm cultures and tapping of organicwastes for their maintenance has a good scope for developing it asa cottage industry in developing country like India. The effort isalso to mitigate the ill effects of farming intensification and use ofinorganic fertilizers and pesticides.

�

A S NinaweDirector, Department of Biotechnology,Government of India, Block – 2,C.G.O. Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi – 110003.E-mail: ninawe.dbt@nic.in

Vermicomposting process

It is basically a process of composting with earthworms(Eisenia foetida; Eudrilus eugeniae; Perionyx excavatus). Itcan be done virtually anywhere either in indoor or outdoorconditions. Organic wastes used for composting are animaldung (cattle dung, sheep dung, horse dung, goat dung andpoultry droppings), agricultural waste (after harvesting andthreshing of the produce), forestry wastes (wood-saw, peelssawdust and pulp), city leaf litter (mango, guava, orangesetc, from residential areas), paper and cotton clothes.

A S Ninawe

Earthworms are the friends of farmers. They not only aeratethe soil but also help in producing vermicompost, a valuableresource for improving soil fertility. Vermicompost isbecoming increasingly popular among farmers, as a sourceof soil fertility and also as a source of income generation.

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 822

The Lahaul valley of the northwestern Indian Himalayamountains is cut off from the rest of the world during winterdue to heavy snowfall. The harsh and inhospitable climatic

conditions prevailing in this region mean that farmers havedeveloped unique agricultural management practices. In recentyears, the G.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment &Development has initiated documentation of some of thesepractices, especially traditional and innovative soil nutrientmanagement practices that help in sustaining agro-ecosystems withfew external inputs. As part of this documentation initiative, asurvey was conducted in four selected villages to assess the status

Traditional night-soil compostingcontinues to bring benefits

Night-soil (human waste) has been considered a valuableagricultural resource since ancient times. When handled safely,its use can contribute to reducing soil degradation and waterscarcity in the areas like the Lahaul valley. Despite such knownbenefits, its use is now decreasing with modernisation.Recognising this, the G.B. Pant Institute in India has been takingsteps to promote the use of night-soil as one of the organic farmingpractices promoted in the region.

Santaram S Oinam

Farmers in Ileje district rarely used night-soil, believing it tobe unsafe. One farmer’s efforts started a change in thinkingand now night-soil is a valued commodity. As benefits havebeen realised, changes in practice and attitudes, as well asimprovements to soils, have been seen.

Patrick Mwalukisa

Cereal production has been declining in many parts ofTanzania since the late 1970s, when input subsidies wereremoved. In the late 1980s, a study was conducted in

Ileje district in the southern highlands, which revealed high ratesof malnutrition and mortality of the under 5s due to insufficientfood intake per day. The major reason for this was judged to below agricultural production, caused by poor soil fertility in thearea. In response, COOPIBO (a Belgian NGO), CDTF (aTanzanian NGO) and the Ileje District Council signed a tripartiteagreement to form the Ileje Food Crop Production Project(IFCPP) in 1988. IFCPP started to train smallholder farmers topractise resource efficient agriculture, through ParticipatoryResearch and Extension groups. The main objective of the newtechniques was to use the naturally available resources for soilfertility improvement. This would be a way of reclaiming landthat has become exhausted due to intensive agriculture practisedwhen there were enough industrial inputs subsidised by thegovernment.

Mbebe is one of the villages where resource efficient agriculturetechniques were introduced, but with great difficulties in changingpeople’s mindsets. Farmers were trained to decompose farmyardmanure prior to application as basal fertilizer for maize production.This practice was possible for farmers with livestock. Farmers whohad no animals started improving their farms by using othertechniques such as burying crop residues, use of sunn hemp(Crotolaria juncea) and crotalaria (Crotalaria ochroleuca), croprotation and compost.

Night-soil was introduced as another technique. When farmers werefirst introduced to it, they found it difficult to accept due to the factthat human waste was commonly regarded as unsafe, unhealthyand useless. However, one farmer, called Bahati Simbeye, secretlyemptied his toilet which was about three years old, and used thematerials for maize production. Some people saw what Bahati wasdoing, and found it interesting that the maize he planted was growingvery well and looking healthier than in previous years. Bahati cameto the office to report on what he had tried and asked us to go andlook at his maize plot. We went and were impressed by his efforts.We asked him if we could bring some more farmers to his plot andhe agreed. We then organised a farmers’ field day, inviting farmersfrom the surrounding villages. We showed them the differenttechnologies practised, of which Bahati’s plot was a main attraction.All farmers who attended the field day appreciated what they sawand decided to try using night-soil. This happened in 2004.

In the following year, the number of farmers applying night-soilincreased. The notion that human waste was useless declined withtime. Farmers began buying the contents of old toilets for between800 and 1000 Tanzanian shillings (US$ 1) per pit, which have now

Changing attitudes tonight-soil in Tanzania

It is important to wear the right protective clothing when removing thenight-soil composed from the composting room.

Photo

: A

uth

or

23L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

of the indigenous system of night-soil composting. Heads ofhouseholds were interviewed between November 2003 and January2004. The information recorded was also verified through personalobservation of various field operations. All available past records,published research papers and other detailed information pertainingto the indigenous practice were also collected.

Poor soil fertility is a big hurdle to sustainable agriculture in theseareas, as topsoil is removed and the rate of nutrient leaching ishigh, due to the abundance of snowfall, avalanches, landslides anderosion. In the cold and harsh climatic conditions of the region,with grass and vegetation cover being scanty, it is not possible tomaintain enough cattle to produce adequate amounts of farmyardmanure. Faced with this situation, the locals have traditionally reliedheavily on obtaining organic manure derived from compostinghuman excreta. In earlier times, sheer necessity meant that farmerswere able to overcome the revulsion associated with the practiceof handling human excreta. Now, with the advent of modernisationand the easy availability of chemical fertilizers, people aredistancing themselves from this age-old practice. Moreover, becauseof the large-scale adoption of modern septic toilets, nowadays,farmers are forced to use chemical fertilizers to raise the yields ofrecently introduced cash crops like pea, potato and hop (Humuluslupulus).

Present scenario and future implications

Farmers do not want to use chemicals on crops, and they clearlyknow the consequences of continuous use of inorganic fertilizer inthe same agricultural fields. They prefer to use organic inputs,

however, supplies are limited, and subsidised chemical fertilizer iseasily available. Despite the perceived benefits of night-soilcompost, its use in the Lahaul valley is gradually decreasing. Themain reasons for this decline are: the unhygienic conditions oftraditional toilets, the introduction of modern toilets, lack ofworkforce for the task, the increasing influence of outside culture/society, educational improvement and concerns of social status,and the easy availability of subsidised chemical fertilizer. Inaddition, the use of the traditional dry toilets which facilitated theconversion of night-soil into compost, is decreasing. The practiceof night-soil composting has completely vanished from somevillages, while many other villages have gradually started discardingthis traditional system since the 1980s. The production of night-soil compost is therefore under a severe threat of modernisationand is most likely to disappear in the near future if steps are nottaken to save it.

Preparing night-soil compost

Villagers in Lahaul build traditional toilets on the first floor of thehouse attached to their living rooms. Through a rectangular hole(12” x 6”) in the toilet floor, the night-soil drops down to the groundfloor, where the composting takes place. To avoid extra moisture

become a commodity in Ileje. Farmers who have been applyingnight-soil and other organic fertilizers have realised an averageincrease from two to fifteen 100 kg bags of maize per acre. Thishas attracted many farmers to apply night-soil as basal and topdressing fertilizer. Because night soil was previously regarded asuseless, latrine pits were constructed far away from homesteads,and were dug up to15 feet deep. Nowadays, toilets are constructedcloser to the homestead and not to that depth. This has been donepurposely to reduce the workload of emptying the pits. Otherimprovements have been made, such as putting crop residue andother organic material in the pits, to increase the volume of fertilizer.

Collection of night-soil

When the toilets are full of human waste, farmers cover them withsoil, and leave them for at least two years for the decompositionprocess to take place. After this, the cover layer of soil is scrapedoff and the pits are emptied using spades and hand hoes. Asprotection, farmers wear gloves and gumboots. Before using night-soil as fertilizer, people used to throw dangerous materials likebroken glass and nails in latrines.

Now, family members are aware of the danger of such material,and dispose of them elsewhere.

Night-soil has been found to be the best fertilizer, compared toother organic fertilizers, as it tends to give a quick response,especially when used as top dressing. Farmers have noted that night-soil should be applied in small quantities as it may lead to cropburn (scorch) if applied in large amounts. They also mention that itis worth paying for this organic input, as yields are so much betterthan when no fertilizer at all is used. Fields planted with night-soil

are fertile for more than two years. It is possible to get good harvestson the same plot for three years consecutively without applyingother fertilizers.

While night-soil is ranked as one of the better organic fertilizers inthe area, the major difficulty is availability. In addition, somefarmers still query whether it is hygienic and safe to handle withbare hands.

The application of organic fertilizer in Ileje district has reclaimedfarmers’ land. The nature of the soil has improved in comparisonto previous years. Crops are growing as well as they did before theintroduction of chemical inputs.

�

Patrick M MwalukisaHead of Agriculture Department,Ileje Rural Development Organisation, Box 160 Ileje, Tanzania.

Mr. Admin Lungwe in his maize plot fertilized with night soil

Photo

: A

uth

or

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 824

content during composting, the use of water in these toilets is strictlydisallowed. After defecating, villagers cover the faeces with othermaterials, locally known as fot (dry cattle dung, kitchen ash, drygrass or leaves). This fot serves two main purposes: it makes thecompost rich in nutrients, while it also prevents bad odours andkeeps flies away. For best results during the composting processthe night-soil must be stored in two different chambers or vaultsfor a minimum period of six months. The first vault can be left tocompost for six months while the other vault is being used. Byalternately using the two vaults, proper compost can be obtainedtwice a year and night-soil compost can be made continuously byshifting from one vault to another. Night-soil compost from thecomposting room is normally emptied in October/November andMarch/April. The composting room has a special door for theremoval of the compost. It is carried to the fields and dumped in aseries of piles. The heaps of compost remain in the fields for fouror five months. Soon after the melting of the snow and before thebeginning of the crop season, it is scattered all over the fields. Thisallows sufficient time for composting of the material, and the night-soil compost is then safe and fit for use. Due to the social stigma,this task is generally conducted during night time, particularly whenthere is a full moon. To avoid nutrient losses, compost heaps shouldbe protected against rainwater in the fields. Night-soil compostshould be mixed with the soil before sowing the seeds, and thedosage has to be appropriate.

Associated health risks

The mixture of urine and faeces should never be used as it not onlysmells foul but also the slurry produced by this mixture has a highnumber of enteric micro-organisms. Urine can be treated by storingit separately for a period of six months; this makes it free of bacteriaand safe for use in the fields. By consistently following theseprocedures, the presence of enteric bacteria, viruses, protozoa andhelminth eggs in faeces can be fully controlled. Some possiblediseases due to partial treatment and unsafe use of night-soilcompost are amoebic dysentery, human tapeworm, cholera or viralhepatitis. Safe and hygienic use of night-soil compost is importantfor protecting the health of the users, as well as the environment.In order to prevent diseases, proper management of night-soil andits treatment are essential. So for proper conversion of night-soilinto compost, a series of control measures need to be followed.The World Health Organization has also produced guidelinesrelating to the safe use of wastewater, excreta and greywater (seeBox, p.24).

Highly beneficial

The G.B. Pant Institute promotes night-soil as one of the organicfarming practices in the region. Enhancement of soil nutrientsthrough night-soil compost in the Lahaul valley is highly beneficialto the local inhabitants. The survey found that after proper treatmentof night-soil through the double vault toilet system, the night-soilcompost is free of pathogens, reducing health risks to the users.The survey also revealed that the use of night-soil compost canplay a vital role in maintaining soil fertility and increasing the cropyield in a region that has a limited growth period (mid April-midAugust). This model of sustainable traditional soil managementcan be scientifically validated and may be replicated in many regionsof the world, which could contribute to more efficient and chemical-free cropping systems.

Acknowledgements

The author is thankful to the Director, G. B. Pant Institute of HimalayanEnvironment and Development, Kosi-Katarmal, Almora (Uttarakhand)

for providing necessary facilities; and the Indian Council of SocialScience Research, New Delhi is also highly acknowledged for grantingfinancial assistance to carry out this study.

�

Santaram S Oinam. G.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment& Development, North-East Unit, Vivek Vihar, Itanagar 791 113,Arunachal Pradesh, India.E-mail: oinamsantaram1@rediffmail.com

References

Drangert, J.O., 1998. Urine blindness and the use of nutrients fromhuman excreta in urban agriculture. GeoJournal, 45: 201-208.

Jonsson, H., A.R. Stinzing, B. Vinneras, and E. Salomon, 2004.Guidelines on the Use of Urine and faeces in Crop Production.EcoSanRes., 1-35.

Kuniyal, J.C., S.C.R. Vishvakarma and G.S. Singh, 2004. Changingcrop biodiversity and resource use efficiency of traditional versusintroduced crops in the cold desert of the northwestern IndianHimalaya: a case of Lahaul valley. Biodiversity and Conservation13 (7): 1271-1304.

Mashauri, D.A., M.A Senzia, 2002. Reuse of nutrients fromecological sanitation toilets as a source of fertiliser. Water ResourcesEngineering Department, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Oinam, S.S., Y.S. Rawat, R.S. Khoiyangbam, K. Gajananda, J.C.Kuniyal, and S.C.R. Vishvakarma, 2005. Land use and land coverchanges in Jahlma watershed of the Lahaul valley, cold desertregion of the northwestern Himalaya, India. Journal of MountainScience, 2 (2): 129-136.

World Health Organization Guidelines for the safe use ofwastewater, excreta and greywater

• Where faecal matter and other organic materials are composted atambient temperature, the end-product of such an aerobic compostingprocess does not smell and has good properties as a soils conditionerand slow-release phosphorus fertilizer.

• To minimize the health risks from using night-soil as a fertilizer,WHO makes various statements and recommendations. Where it isdifficult to increase the temperature of the compost heap, WHOrecommends “prolonged storage” to ensure safety. With ambienttemperatures of2-200C, they note that storage times of one and a half to two yearswill “eliminate bacterial pathogens; will reduce viruses and parasiticprotozoa below risk levels.”

• In addition, WHO recommends various precautions to “controlexposure” to risk. Precautions for those handling night-soil includewearing personal protection such as boots, gloves and a facemask,and using tools or equipment not used for other purposes.

• At the time of applying the night-soil compost to the field, if thequality cannot be guaranteed, it is recommended to use “close tothe ground application”, working the material in to the soil, andcovering it. In addition, children should be kept away from all areaswhere night-soil is prepared, treated or has been applied.

• Finally, WHO notes that domestic and personal hygiene is veryimportant. Technology alone cannot stop transmission of diseases,and communities must be aware of good hygiene practices. Iftreatment recommendations are followed, coupled with good generalcommunity hygiene, the risks to people who collect and use night-soil (as well as those consuming fertilized products) will be reducedto acceptable levels.

Source

- World Health organization, 2006. Guidelines for the safe use of wastewater,excreta and greywater. Volume IV: Excreta and greywater use in agriculture,Geneva, Switzerland

25L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

Microbial wealth regulates crop qualityand soil health

Interaction, whether mutualistic, symbiotic or suppressive, thatcoexists in soil ecosystem within the plants, microbes or micro-fauna is among the most important phenomenon regulating the

soil and plant health. The most intense interactions betweenmicrobes and plants take place at the rhizosphere, the root zone inthe close vicinity of the soil. This is the zone where complexbiological and biochemical activities between microbes-microbes,microbes-plants and plants-plants are continuously going on toinfluence the biodiversity of the beneficial organisms, suppressionof pathogenic microflora and the physicochemical behaviour ofthe soil.

Although most research focus is on what is happening above-ground level, researchers have demonstrated direct link between“above-ground” and “below-ground” biodiversity. The biologicalcost-benefits and ecological impacts of this phenomenon remainelusive, but the overall findings suggest that the maintenance ofhigh plant diversity as well as good crop quality requires acorrespondingly high level of soil microbial biodiversity.

A complex soil biodiversity reflects a great variability among theliving entities in the soil - ranging from the myriad of invisiblemicrobes, bacteria, fungi, protozoans, nematodes to the familiarmacro-fauna such as earthworms and termites.

Beneficial microbes improve soil health

Microbes being an integral component of any soil ecosystemprovide life to the soil. Native soils minus microbes are merelydead material. It is now widely being recognized that the presenceand abundance of microbial wealth provide soils richness in termsof making available slow-release nutrients, continuous breakingdown of complex macro-molecules and natural products intosimpler ones to enrich beneficial substances, maintaining physico-chemical properties of the soils and most essentially, providingsupport to the plants in terms of growth enhancement and protectionagainst diseases and pests through their metabolic activities thatgo on in the soil along day and night. The metabolic activities ofthe microbes such as rhizosphere bacteria, beneficial mycorrhizalfungi, biological control agents and soil fauna like nematodes,worms, protozoans etc., continuously add to the soil health andpromote crop productivity through diverse mechanisms. Theorganisms such as Rhizobium, Azotobacter, Azospirillum, phosphatesolubilizing micro-organisms etc., that are currently being used asthe formulations of biofertilizers have been officially recognizedfor enforcing quality standards.

There is growing interest in the presence of certain naturallyoccurring, beneficial microorganisms in agricultural wastes too.The various mechanisms of disease suppression and plant protectionimparted by these beneficial microorganisms may be related to(a) microbe-microbe interactions, (b) plant-microbe interactions,(c) metabolites produced and/or, (d) induced systemic-acquiredresistance.

Promotion of micro organisms – our experience

To share our more than a decade experience with the farmingcommunities, we have started promoting the usage of beneficialmicrobes as a component of integrated farming practices withfarmers in the villages of Varanasi, Ghazipur, Chandauli andAzamgarh districts. For instance, they include, seed treatmenttechniques with Trichoderma formulation, rural productiontechnology of Trichoderma on cow dung, use of microbial consortiaof Pseudomonas and Bacillus, use of vermicompost in the fieldand its in-house production with simple and repetitive technology.All these microbes are being promoted in vegetable crops liketomato, potato, brinjal, cabbage, cauliflower, ladyfinger etc., fruitcrops, pulses like chickpea, pigeonpea, masoor etc., and cerealslike wheat, bajra, rice etc. Case studies indicated that these microbespossess the potential to suppress soil borne plant diseases, promoteplant growth by releasing plant hormones and by nutrient acquisitionand keep soils in good physicochemical conditions. Further, researchis being carried out to determine the optimum time, rate andfrequency of application for improving plant health and protection.

Microbial interactions, biological control and plant health

The rhizosphere or the zone of influence around roots harbors amultitude of microorganisms that are affected by both abiotic andbiotic stresses. Among these are the dominant rhizobacteria thatprefer living in close vicinity to the roots or on their surface andplay a crucial role in soil health and plant growth. Both free-livingand symbiotic bacteria are involved in such specific ecologicalniches and help in plant matter degradation, nutrient mobilizationand biocontrol of plant disease. These are the real players in a

Microbes are an integral component of a living soil. It iswidely being recognized that the presence and abundanceof microbial wealth make soils healthy in terms of growthenhancement and protection against pests and diseases.Scientific research also shows that organic farmingpractices essentially based on natural resourcemanagement significantly increase the microbial densityand diversity in soils.

D P Singh and H B Singh

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 826

defined ecosystem whose beneficial effects boost and detrimentaleffects diminish soil health and crop production. Overall, thepopulation of all these inhabitants is directly dependent on theorganic matter content of the agro-ecosystem.

Microbial interactions that take place in the rhizosphere and areinvolved in biological disease suppression are very important fromthe view of sustainable crop productivity. These organisms haveevolved many mechanisms such as antibiosis, competition,parasitism and resistance induction in plants to provide effectivedisease suppression and plant growth promotion. It has been welldocumented that such interactions provide plants the neededresistance against pathogenic attacks or environmental stress.Also,metabolites constituted due to such interactions either in plants orin microbes are beneficial to each other. The significance of plantgrowth promotion, rhizosphere competence and the suppression ofdiseases and pests on the plants is much considered research themein present days. Multiple microbial interactions involving bacteriaand fungi in the rhizosphere are shown to provide enhancedbiocontrol than when used singly.

Organic practices nurture microbial biodiversity and soil healthScientific research has shown that organic farming practicesessentially based on natural resource management significantlyincrease the population density and species diversity. It is beingrealized that suitable organic practices that favour soil micro-faunaand flora also favour soil conditioning and nutrient re-cycling.Practices like crop rotations, strip-cropping, green manuring andorganic fertilization (animal manure, compost, crop residues), zeroor minimum tillage and avoidance of chemical pesticides andherbicides nurture good soil conditions and support plant health.

Organic practices favour arthropod and earthwormabundanceOrganic farming practices increases the species abundance andrichness of beneficial arthropods and earthworms, thus improvingthe soil conditions. Increased predator population helps to suppressharmful organisms in the soil. In organic systems, the density andabundance of arthropods, such as carabids, increase up to 100%,staphylinids up to 60-70% and spiders up to 70-120% as comparedto conventional farming systems. Such a vast difference is explainedby prey deficiency due to pesticide influence as well as by a richerweed flora in the standing crop that is less dense than in conventionalplots. With the presence of field margins and hedges, beneficialarthropods are further enhanced, as these habitats are essential forover-wintering and hibernation. The biomass of earthworms inorganic systems is 30-40% higher than in conventional systemswith 50-80% more population density. When compared to thechemical fertilizer based farming systems, this difference may beeven more pronounced.

High occurrence of symbionts essential for good soilOrganic crops benefit from symbiotic mechanisms undergoing withthe root systems that better enable plants to utilize the soil minerals.On an average, mycorrhizal colonization of roots is highest in cropsof unfertilized systems, followed by organic systems. Conventionalcrops with chemical farm inputs have lower mycorrhizalcolonization to a level of up to 30%. The most intense mycorrhizalroot colonization is found in grass-clover, followed by the vetchrye intercrop. Roots of winter wheat are scarcely colonized. Evenwhen all soils are inoculated with active micorrhizae, colonizationis far better enhanced and supported in organic soil. This indicatesthat, even at surplus inoculum, soil nutrients at elevated levels andplant protection suppress symbiosis. This underpins the importanceof appropriate living conditions for specific organisms.

Abundance of micro-organisms relates with soil health

Micro-organisms in organic soils not only mineralize more actively,but also contribute to the build up of stable soil organic matter likehumus and other natural carbon complexes. By this way, nutrientsare recycled faster and soil structure is improved. The amount ofmicrobial biomass and decomposition is correlated. At highmicrobial biomass levels, only small fractions of complex carbonmaterials remains undecomposed adding to crop health. The totalmass of micro-organisms in organic systems is 20-40% higher thanthat in the conventional system with manuring and 60-85% thanthat in the conventional system without manuring.

Microbial wealth supports biochemical activity in soils

Microbes have activities with important functions in the soilecosystem. Soil enzymes are indicative of these functions. The totalactivity of micro-organisms can be estimated by measuring theactivity of a living cell-associated enzyme, dehydrogenase. Thisenzyme plays a major role in the respiratory pathway. Proteases insoil, where most organic N is protein, cleave protein compoundsinto simpler constituents. Phosphatases cleave organic phosphoruscompounds and thus establish link between the plant uptake andthe reservoir of organic phosphorus in the soil. Enzyme activity inorganic soils is markedly higher than in conventional soils.Microbial biomass and enzyme activities are closely related to soilacidity and soil organic matter content. A diverse microbialpopulation, as observed in the organic fields, may divert a greaterpart of the available carbon to microbial growth rather thanmaintenance. In agricultural practice, this may be interpreted as anincreased turnover of organic matter with a faster mineralizationand delivery of plant nutrients. Finally, more organic matter isdiverted to build-up stable soil humus.

Acknowledgement: D. P. Singh is thankful to Council of Scientific andIndustrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi for financial Support.

�

D P Singh and H B Singh

Department of Mycology and Plant Pathology,Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University,Varanasi 221 005, E-mail: dpsfarm@sancharnet.in;hbs1@rediffmail.com

New CD Price: Rs. 50

The CD Rom contains articlespublished in the ILEIANewsletter and LEISA Magazinecovering over a period of twodecades. Contact AMEFoundation for copies.

AME Foundation,No.204, 100 Feet Ring Road,3rd Phase, Banashankari 2ndBlock, 3rd Stage,Bangalore - 560 085.Ph: 080-26699512, 26699522email:amebang@giasbg01.vsnl.net.in orleisaindia@yahoo.co.in

Knowledge treasure on LEISA

LEISA India (1999-2005)LEISA Global (1984-2006)

andall regional editions of LEISA

27L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

One of the least understood areas in the environmental riskassessment of genetically modified crops is their impacton soil and plant associated microbial communities. The

recognition that interactions between them could change microbialbiodiversity and affect ecosystem functioning has initiated a limitednumber of studies around the world. The great problem in predictingpotential outcomes is that the suggested horizontal transfermechanism would have very diverse results, impossible to predict.Only by multiple experiments will it be possible to get some ideawhether this can affect soil fertility. We can only speculate on somepotential scenarios that might be the result, if our hypothesis iscorrect:

1. The scenario that would seem most likely is that there occursan accumulation of vector DNA in the soil microbiota withrepeated GMO cultivation. This would enable horizontaltransfer between unrelated species, leading to a cumulative lossof soil biodiversity over repeated harvests. Diversity has beenfound to be important for soil fertility.

2. A second possible complication might come from horizontaltransfer of the toxin gene from Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) tosoil bacteria from GM crops with this gene.

3. A third scenario might be that a new variety or species arisesthat is able to overgrow or damage some essential species ofsoil microorganism so that the ecological balance would bedisrupted. If it has a good survival and multiplication capacity,including sporulation ability, it might spread widely throughwind erosion and through the ground water. New virulent andharmful species might cause reduction of fertility in infectedsoils.

Microbial diversity can be altered when associated with transgenicplants; however, these effects are both variable and transient. It hasalso been shown that these effects are dependent on field site,seasonal variation, and method of analysis used for assessment.The changes in microbial communities associated with growingtransgenic crops are relatively variable and transient in comparisonwith some other well-accepted agricultural practices such as croprotation, tillage, herbicide usage, and irrigation. Since minoralterations in the diversity of the microbial community, such as theremoval or appearance of specific functional groups of bacteria suchas plant-growth-promoting rhizobacteria, phytopathogenicorganisms, or key organisms responsible for nutrient cyclingprocesses, could affect soil health and ecosystem functioning, theimpact that plant variety may have on the dynamics of rhizosphere

microbial populations and in turn plant growth and health, andecosystem sustainability, requires further study.

The potential problems

The potential ‘problems’ will not be noticed immediately, or evenin a year or two. Indeed, it may be many years, or tens of years,before there are noticeable changes in the soil microflora. But,changes may well occur, and these will be both genetic in originand evolutionary in nature. In short, the genetic makeup of the soilbacteria and fungi could well change in the longer term as a resultof the cultivation of GM-crops. The nature of these changes, andtheir consequences, cannot be predicted,and it is this‘unpredictability’ which should cause concern. There may be manypotential ‘problems’ which have been described below:

1. There could be accelerated spread of antibiotic resistance genesin bacterial populations, with the inevitable consequences forhuman (and animal) medical treatments.

2. Changes may occur in the relationships between root nodulebacteria and their host plants. Any genetic variants of thesebacteria (caused by horizontal gene transfer from GM-crops)which result in a less symbiotic, and more parasitic, associationwith the host plant could lead to reduced levels of nitrogen-fixation. For crop plants, this could be a real problem, withlower yields and possibly lower soil fertility. For wild species,it could cause changes in local vegetation as the competitivebalance between plant species is altered.

3. Changes may occur in the relationships between mycorrhizalfungi and their host plants. In recent years, the importance ofmycorrhizae in the growth of plants has only just been realised.It now seems that the majority of higher plants, including somecrop species, form associations with these soil fungi. Anyhorizontal gene transfer to mycorrhizal fungi from GM-cropswhich changed the characteristics of their interactions withhigher plants could potentially have far-reaching effects onecosystem structure and dynamics.

Conclusion

To conclude, the key factor here is ‘unpredictability’. It is notpossible to predict that horizontal gene transfer will never occur inthe soil. If it does occur, no prediction could be made about itspossible consequences. The only thing we can predict is that weare unsure of the long-term effects on the biosphere of the cultivationof GM crops.

�

Amitava Rakshit, Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry,Institute of Agricultural Science, BHU, Varanasi, 221005,India. Email:amitavar@bhu.ac.in

N C Sarkar, Department of Agronomy, Nagaland University, Nagaland,India. Email: ncsiari@rediffmail.com

D Sen, College of Horticulture and Forestry, CAU, Pashighat, AP.Email: dr.d.sen@gmail.com

R K Maity, Professor, Departamento de Quimica Biologia Universidadde las Americas-Puebla, Santa Cacarina Martir, Cholula C. P. 72 820,Puebla, Mexico. Email: rkmaiti@yahoo.com

(for references contact authors)

Implications of genetically engineered cropson soil fertilityTransgenic crops may have an impact on soil microbialdiversity affecting the functioning of the ecosystem.Though it is one of those issues which have not been studiedextensively enough to conclude strongly, the element ofsuch an unpredictability in itself is a matter of seriousconcern.

Amitava Rakshit, N C Sarkar, D Sen andR K Maity

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 828

Landmark report

What kind of agricultural knowledge, science and technology dowe need to solve these problems? Over the last three years UNorganisations, the World Bank and many governments supported400 experts from all over the world to conduct a massive study: theInternational Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science andTechnology for Development (or IAASTD, see http://www.agassessment.org for more details). They delivered their reportin April in Johannesburg, South Africa, which happened to coincidewith the sudden doubling of world food prices. The broad conclusionwas that agricultural knowledge and technology need drasticchanges: “business as usual is not an option”. The sad reality isthat the countless poor and the vast amount of degraded agriculturalland are so far not major drivers for change in agriculture andscience. The IAASTD study suggests that three transitions wouldhelp move practice in the desired direction.

First: Science must help farmers to use resources more efficiently.Soils, energy, biodiversity, fertilizers and pesticides need to be usedwisely. Farming must adapt to and contribute to counteractingclimate change. Science must complement local knowledge andsupport sustainable farming with a “best mix” of economic, socialand environmental outcomes.

Second: Issues like subsidies, markets, access to land and know-how must take the necessities of smallholder farmers into account.For example, most smallholder farmers cannot respond; that benefit

the rich more. Intellectual property regulation hampers smallholders’seed systems that have become “illegal” as industries take outpatents on seeds as well as other living organisms.

Third: The true agricultural production costs should show in prices.Farmers invest in maintaining soil quality or biodiversity but getno rewards from the market, while it is the world community’sinterest to keep soils productive, and to make sure that water fromagricultural land is drinkable, and does not run off in the shape offloods.

This assessment highlights the contribution of strong collaborationbetween researchers, formal science, and the knowledge, skills andexpertise of small farmers in moving sustainable agricultureforward. It provides robust evidence that public and private goodscan be secured only by a new balance among environmental,economic and social interests. And importantly, it emphasises thekey role of small farmers in providing global food security.

�

Janice JigginsGuest researcher, Communication and Innovation Studies.Wageningen University. P.O. Box 430, 6700 AK Wageningen, the Netherlands. E- mail: janice.jiggins@inter.nl.net

Janice Jiggins is a contributing author and editor of the IAASTDreports.

Sustainable agriculture in the news:International study stressesrole of farmers

The recent global food crisis shows that agro-technology and markets alone cannot reducehunger. A ground-breaking three-year studyrecently concluded that the agriculture sectorshould use the know-how of smallholder farmersbetter.

Janice Jiggins

Global agriculture is not delivering all it should.Agricultural production has increased, but atan environmental and social cost. All over

the world, some 800 million people are stillundernourished, most of them in rural areas. At thesame time, a similar number of people globally areoverweight, with obesity rates on the increase.Currently, 1.9 billion hectares of land (three times thesize of India!) is affected by significant landdegradation. Agriculture today uses about 70 percentof the world’s freshwater, nutrient run-off fromfarmers’ fields causes pollution of all major rivers inthe world, and agricultural production emits gasescontributing to climate change. Food export bans andspeculation disturb supplies to the poor in importingcountries, even if production is sufficient.

Members of the Mkombozi farmers group in Mkomo, Mtwara region, Tanzania.Their knowledge and expertise, like that of all small holder farmers around the world,is crucial in ensuring global food security.

Photo

: Jo

rge

Chav

ez-T

afur

29L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

The Narayana Reddy Column

About 25 years ago, I came to know about EffectiveMicroorganisms and their use in agriculture, animal healthand sanitation through a Japanese friend who visited my

farm and also arranged to get literature about EffectiveMicroorganisms.

Prof. Teruo Higa, an agronomist, modified an age-old Japanesetechnology which he learnt from his grandmother. Traditionally,Japanese farmers used to make ‘Bokashi’, a concentrated form ofcompost, apply it to the soil along with other organic manures. Thepurpose was to inoculate beneficial organisms to improve the qualityof organic manure and to check fungus and virus problems in thesoil. They used to collect chemical free soil, rich in humus, fromforests and mix it with dry cow dung powder, dry fish meal, jaggerysyrup, oil cake and rice bran, adding about 10% to 12% of potablewater. The anaerobic compost thus prepared was used at the rate of100 grams per square metre of land. Prof. Higa, further worked onthis traditional practice along with his friend, a microbiologist andintroduced Effective Microorganisms to agriculture, animal healthand sanitary uses. Now, almost after 30 years of its introduction, itis being used in most of the countries all over the world. In India,through its licensed tie-up with Maple Orgtech (I) Limited, theEffective Microorganisms are being supplied through theirdistributors all over India.

What is EM?

EM contains more than 70 beneficial organisms, more importantlylactic acid bacteria, photosynthetic bacteria (RhodopseudomonasPalustris) and yeast. Surprisingly, use of EM helps in augmentingthe photosynthesis by about 30% in all the crops. Further, it controlsviruses and fungal damage to crops and animals by inoculatinglactic acid bacteria and actinomycetis bacteria. It is very expensiveand not very effective to use the stock solution. So, the farmer hasto prepare Secondary Effective Microorganisms (SEM) or ExtendedEffective Microorganisms (EEM).

To prepare SEM/EEM, we need a 20 litre plastic can, free fromchemicals, 20 litres of potable water (not chlorinated, or bleachingpower being used for purification), 1 or 2 kgs of chemical freeJaggery. Mix jaggery in 20 litres of water in the plastic can and addone litre of Effective Microorganisms stock solution. Close the lidand keep in a cool and dark place for about 8 to 10 days. The PHwill come down to 3.5 and the processed product - E.E.M or S.E.Mwill smell sweet and sour like a mixture of jaggery and curd.

Ways in which EEM can be used

E.E.M or S.E.M can be used in agriculture in 5 ways.

1. Direct use of E.E.M

You can spray E.E.M. directly on crops at 0.1% or one ml inone litre of water. You can also spray on the soil or crop residuesat 0.5% to help them break down much faster (particularly

sugarcane and paddy thrash). If you have S.E.M in excess, notbeing used after 60 days, you can spray at 0.5% on your compostheap.

2. Enriched Urine with E.E.M

Collect urine including human urine and process anaerobicallyfor 8 days. Mix 50 ml E.E.M with one litre of urine and100 gms of jaggery and spray on crops at the rate of one ml inone litre of water. Farmers in Doddaballapura, Bangalore Ruraldistrict, Karnataka State area are collecting urine from schoollatrines and are using on their crops as soil application as theyhesitate to spray on crops. But for sure there will be no tracesof bad odour after addition of E.E.M and fermentation doneanaerobically.

3. Fermented Plant Extraction (F.P.E)

Collect about 10 kgs of weeds at the time of sunrise and cutthem into 2 inch pieces. Fill them into a plastic container withwater, adding 500ml of E.E.M. and 500 ml of jaggery syrup.Close the lid, not too tight, as this particular fermentationreleases some gas. Allow it to ferment for 8 days, in a cool anddark place. You will find clear odourless liquid which can bestrained in a cotton cloth. This sap can be sprayed on the cropsat one ml in one litre of water i.e., at the rate of 0.1%.

4. Bokashi or concentrated compost

You need 100 litres of fine rice or wheat bran, 10 kgs of drycow dung powder, 10 kgs of groundnut oil cake, 5 kgs dry fishmeal, 2 kgs of jaggery, about 12 to 14 litres of chemical freepotable water, one litre of SEM or EEM and a suitable plasticcontainer to fill all the above material. Mix all the ingredientswell and fill into the container as tightly as possible for anerobiccomposting for 8 to 10 days in a cool and dark place. The pHwill come down below 3.5 and the product can be mixed withsoil at a cooler time along with other organic manures at therate of 100 gms per square metre.

5. E.M. 5

You will need 600 ml of chemical free potable water, 100 ml ofjaggery syrup, 100 ml of E.E.M or S.E.M, 100 ml of ethylalcohol (rum or brandy) and 100 ml of natural vinegar. Fill andmix all the above ingredients in 1 litre bottle and allow toferment anerobically in a cool and dark place for 8 to 10 days.The pH will come down to 3.5. You can spray EM 5 as anantifungal, antiviral and insecticide at the rate of one ml in onelitre of water.

In my vast experience on my family’s five mixed (bio-intensive)farms, I can recommend the use of EM to increase soil fertility and

Effective micro-organisms forecological agriculture duringtransition

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 830

suppress development of harmful organisms. In the first two tothree years, we used EM as a 5 percent spray on our crop residuessuch as maize, rice paddy stubble and sunflower, to decomposethem quickly. We noticed that by using EM spray, composting isquicker and better. Similarly, when we applied bokashi (anotherEM product) together with farmyard manure, we noticed that ourrice, tomato, bottlegourd, soyabean, gladiolus, banana and papayacrops were free from fungal attacks and viral diseases. AnotherEM preparation was very useful in controlling sucking insects onlegumes and cucurbits. We have observed better growth in the leavesand stems of crops sprayed with different EM preparations, leadingto yield increases of 15 percent and fewer pest infestations.

Farmers in Erode District of Tamil Nadu in South India, are regularlyusing EM preparations for soil treatment to check root-rots. Farmersin Raichur District, Karnataka State are using EM to help quickenthe breakdown of paddy stubble, as do sugarcane growers inSivaganga District, Tamil Nadu. The EPPL thermal power company,with 700 acres of hill neem trees (also in Tamil Nadu), found thatthe germination capacity of their seeds increased from 5 percent atthe beginning to 85 percent after soaking their dry fruits in 5 percentEM solution for 24 hours before planting. I myself and over 500farmers in the area also use EM solution to soak all our seeds beforesowing.

Care in use of EM

Since Effective Microorganisms are basically an inoculum ofbeneficial organisms, care needs to be taken not to use any chemicals

Living soil

Madhu Ramakrishnan

Directly or indirectly all food comes from soil. If it is not aliving system, it can’t continuously produce. Just as anyother living thing, soil possesses physical, chemical and

biological properties. It is also believed that it has physiologicalsystems like digestion, respiration, circulation and excretion. Soilbeing the basis for all human life, our only hope for a healthy worldrests on re-establishing the harmony in the soil.

Soil organic matter is an essential component of the soil and inassociation with the soil fauna, contributes to the soil fertility. Soilis said to have ‘life’ only when it is holistically looked upon alongwith its inhabitants, in the form of flora and fauna. Soil faunaldensity and diversity is also partly due to the C: N availability insoils. Though the soil is rich in microflora, it remains inactive andinefficient when there is lack of organic carbon. Sources of carbonin the form of cellulose are mainly contributed by plants. Practiceslike mulching and incorporating crop residues into the soil helpsbuild up the soil carbon. Also, integrating livestock with agricultureenables access to animal waste which can be converted to organicmanure.

Cow dung and cow urine are the sources which are cheapest andmost accessible for farmers to increase the biological activity intheir soils. Irrigation is an effective medium in spreading them acrossthe field.

The cow dung and urine mixed with a small quantity of jaggery isbeing extensively used in India under different names likeJeevamirtham, Amirthapani, starter solution, Janjeevani and so on.This solution is mixed with the irrigation water in a most effectiveway, by following a novel method in our farm.

The irrigation water tank is made up of two parts - one big and onesmall. The water from the pump set is filled in both the parts. In thebig part of the tank, cow dung, cow urine and jaggery are put andstirred well. Once the motor is switched on, plain water from thesmaller part of the tank flows out through the outlet into the biggerpart. In this part, water fills and spills out through the small holemade in the wall, allowing a uniform mixing of Amirthapani withirrigation water. Thus, the multiplication of microbial populationis improved in the entire land, by maintaining a favorableatmosphere with good mulching.

The living soil is an organic entity and this entire web of life mustbe protected and nurtured. Natural Farming is the way.

�

Madhu RamakrishnanOoruppanadi Nivas, Kottur, Malayandipattinam,Coimbatore District, Pollachi,Tamil Nadu - 642 114. E-mail: ooruppanadi@sancharnet.in

in the same land. Also, as these are acidic in nature, EM preparationsof 0.1% only should be sprayed, otherwise, it may scorch the plants.All the preparations have to be stored in a cool and dark place andshould be used before 60 to 70 days of preparation.

Although some farmers produce their own micro-organismmixtures, for example, keeping rice gruel near humus rich wet soilfor 4-5 days, my fear is that farmers cannot identify any harmfulorganisms getting into the preparations, as they do not have suitablelaboratory equipment to segregate them. Therefore, I think it isbetter to get EM stock solution from an authentic laboratory. It isvery cheap to use it; in India, the use of EM on one acre costs lessthan a cup of coffee. Farmers use it 3-4 times a year on all theircrops. Nevertheless, it is enough to use EM preparations only inthe first 2-3 years during the transition from chemical to organicfarming. It is very useful in building up the population of beneficialorganisms both in the soil and plants. In my opinion, use of EM isthe best way for farmers intending for a transition from chemicalfarming to bio-intensive farming.

�

L Narayana ReddySrinivasapura, Via Marelanahlli,Hanabe Post, Doddaballapur Taluk,Karnataka, India.Phone : 080-27601103

Farmers Diary

31L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

Biological approaches to sustainable soil systems by NormanUphoff, Andrew S. Ball, Erick Fernandes, Hans Herren, Olivier Husson,Mark Lang, Cheryl Palm, Jules Pretty, Pedro Sanchez, NteranyaSanginga and Janice Thies (eds.), 2006. 784 pp. ISBN 978-1-57444-583-1. CRC Press / Taylor and Francis Group, 6000 Broken SoundParkway NW, Suite 300, Boca Raton, Florida 33487-2742, U.S.A.http://www.crcpress.com

This textbook includes fifty articlescovering the diverse biological componentsof soil systems. It is divided by themes, andincludes descriptions of soil processes, aswell as research on soil fauna, micro-organisms and their associations with plantroots. Practical overviews on experienceswith integrated soil fertility management,conservation agriculture, use of legumes,green manures/cover crops,(vermi)compost, biofertilisers, multiplecropping, all with an emphasis onagroecological practices. Examples come from 28 countries, withemphasis on the tropics. This text would be very helpful to researchers,students and educators who need a more solid understanding of theliving soil. However, it is likely to be affordable only to institutions.

Enhancing soil fertility in organic farming, S.Arumugasamy, K.Subramanian and Subhashini Sridhar, Center for Indian KnowledgeSystems, Chennai, 2007, 16p, Rs.25, info@ciks.org

Farmers have realized the importance of main-taining the fertility of soil using organic amend-ments. They are now looking for alternatives tochemical fertilizers. It is possible to enhancethe fertility of the soil by making use of easilyavailable material like Farm yard manure, greenmanure and green leaf manure. Besides this,composts can also be prepared easily usingmaterial available in the farm. This book de-scribes the methods by which soil fertility canbe enhanced using organic material. Prepara-tion of composts is also described.

No-till farming systems by Tom Goddard, Michael Zoebisch, YantaiGan, Wyn Ellis, Alex Watson and Samran Sombatpanit. (eds.). 2008.540 pp. ISBN 978-974-8391-60-1. Special Publication No. 3, WorldAssociation of Soil and Water Conservation, WASWC, SamranSombatpanit, 67/141 Amonphant 9, Soi Sena 1, Bangkok 10230,Thailand. E-mail: sombatpanit@yahoo.com. CD-Rom anddownloadable version of this book and other related works are alsoavailable from website: http://www.waswc.org

No-tillage (or “zero-till”) is a soil management practice that has beenrapidly adopted by farmers around the world in recent decades. It notonly increases yields and improves soil quality, but has also been shownto offset carbon emissions. This book gathers experiences from 25study areas, most of which are from North and South America.However, good overviews of no-till (and conservation agriculture,which allows for minimum tillage) are also included from Africa, Asiaand Latin America. Conservation agriculture is further reviewed inthe context of smallholders, as well as organic farmers – a challengeas reduced tilaage often depends on herbicides to combat weeds. Thisbook provides a very interesting overview on tillage and soilmanagement for field workers, agricultural researchers and educators.

Conservation agriculture in Africa series by Bernard Triomphe, JosefKienzle, Martin Bwalya, Soren Damgaard-Larsen (eds.), 2007.Produced by African Conservation Tillage Network / Centre de

Coopération Internationale de Recherche Agronomique pour leDéveloppement / Food and Agriculture Organization of the UnitedNations. Published by ACT : P.O. Box 14733, Westlands,Nairobi 00800, Kenya. Downloadable as PDF files from:http://www.worldagroforestry.org/sites/relma/relmapublications

This jointly facilitated series documents the current situation and lessonslearned on conservation agriculture (CA) in Africa. It includes eightcase studies with examples from Ghana, Zambia, Uganda, Kenya andTanzania. The booklets provide insights and critical reflection on notonly the benefits of CA but also the challenges confronting farmers,such as difficulties in keeping the soil covered, gaining access toequipment and weed control; as well as the challenges faced byinstitutions in implementing participatory approaches to CA technology.

Voices from the forest: Integrating indigenous knowledge intosustainable upland farming by Malcolm Cairns (ed.), 2007. 826pp. ISBN 978-1-891853-92-0. Resources for the Future RFF Press,1616 P Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20036-1400, U.S.A.http://www.rffpress.org

This book seeks to “set the record straight”on shifting cultivation (otherwise known asslash-and-burn or swidden agriculture). Themost common view of this cultivationsystem is that it degrades the soil anddestroys forests. However, this book showsthat such cultivation systems are verycomplex, diverse (agroecologically as wellas culturally), innovative (showing greatexperimentation) and adaptable withinfarmers’ fallow and rotational arrangements.In spite of increasing population pressure,“Voices from the forest” concludes that shifting cultivation still offersa future for upland farms but that improved fallow managementschemes need further research efforts. It brings together 64 case studiesfrom the Asia-Pacific region, mostly arranged according to six differentfallow management types. It has contributions from a broad spectrumof authors –agronomists, agricultural economists, ecologists andanthropologists– which makes it a valuable resource for students,researchers and development workers seeking to better understand andlearn from this practice.

Soil biology primer by Elaine Ingham, Andrew R. Moldenke andClive A. Edwards. 2000. 48 pp. Soil and Water Conservation Society,945 SW Ankeny Road, Ankeny, Iowa 50023-9723 U.S.A. E-mailpubs@swcs.org ; http://www.swcs.org Can also be downloaded from:http://www.soilandhealth.org/01aglibrary/ingam/ingham.html

This booklet explains all the majororganisms (bacteria, fungi, protozoa,nematodes, arthropods and earthworms) andtheir functions within the “soil food web”and how this relates to soil health, air andwater quality, and agricultural productivity.Short descriptions are written in veryaccessible language and it includes manycolourful diagrams and photos ofmicroscopic fauna. It provides an interestingintroduction to soil life to anyone interestedin learning more about it.

SOURCES

31L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 832

Soil and Health Libraryhttp://www.soilandhealth.orgP.O. Box 524, Exeter, TAS 7275 Australia.

The agriculture library on this website provides a large number of freee-books available for immediate download. The site also hosts anelectronic discussion group on soil and health, facilitating the exchangeof ideas. The books in the library are mainly about holistic agriculture,holistic health and self-sufficient homestead living. No fees arecollected for this service. Upon special request, the Soil and HealthLibrary provides custom-made digital copies of a far wider range ofbooks delivered on CD-ROM by post, for a small fee.

World Soil Information, ISRIChttp://www.isric.orgISRIC, PO Box 353, 6700 AJ Wageningen, the Netherlands.E-mail: soil.isric@wur.nl.

World Soil Information is an independent foundation with a globalmandate, involved in a wide range of national and international projects.Among its objectives, ISRIC aims to inform and educate (for example,through the World Soil Museum). It maintains the World Data Centrefor Soils since 1989, serving the scientific community. ISRIC alsoundertakes applied research on land and water resources. ISRIC hasbuilt up a collection of more than 20,000 articles, country reports,books and maps with emphasis on developing countries. Emphasis ison soils, but related geographic information on climate, geology,geomorphology, vegetation, land use, and land suitability is alsocovered. New features include: geographic searches using Googlemaps; on-line access to some 3700 down-loadable maps; over 900 full-text reports on-line; and a pick-up list of links related to soil science.

Conservation and Sustainable Management ofBelow Ground Biodiversityhttp://www.bgbd.net

The Conservation and Sustainable Management of Below GroundBiodiversity is a project co-ordinated by the Tropical Soil Biologyand Fertility Institute and supported by the Global Environment Facilityand the UN Environment Programme. Its goal is to generate informationand knowledge to better manage and conserve below-groundbiodiversity in tropical agricultural landscapes. The knowledgegenerated contributes to the maintenance of agricultural productivityand thereby contributing to the reduction of incursion of agricultureinto natural landscapes (e.g., cutting of natural forests, etc). The CSM-BGBD project is being implemented in seven tropical countries,namely: Brazil, Côte d’Ivoire, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Mexico, andUganda.

Conservation Agriculturehttp://www.fao.org/ag/caFAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy.

In FAO’s perspective, conservation agriculture requires a rich mix ofexpertise for its promotion. This site is put together by an informalworkgroup consisting of members from its Plant Production andProtection Division, the Land and Water Division, and the RuralInfrastructure and Agro-Industries Division. Conservation agricultureis presented as a way to achieve sustainable and profitable agriculture,and subsequently improved livelihoods of farmers. It revolves aroundthree principles: minimal soil disturbance, permanent soil cover andcrop rotations. The site provides a lot of technical information inEnglish, French and Spanish, referring to economic aspects, theimportance of cover crops, the use of machinery, the integration ofcrop and livestock enterprises, etc. It also includes links to otherorganisations, as well as information on coming events.

Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility Institute, TSBFhttp://www.ciat.cgiar.org/tsbf_institute/index.htmP.O. Box 30677-00100, Nairobi, Kenya. E-mail: tsbfinfo@cgiar.org

This is a project of the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture(CIAT), supporting local livelihoods by developing profitable, socially-just and resilient agricultural production systems, based on IntegratedSoil Fertility Management. It works towards the sustainable landmanagement of tropical areas of Africa and Latin America, basicallyby reversing land degradation and building social and human capitalof different stakeholders. It seeks to develop and disseminate strategicprinciples, concepts, methods, and management options for protectingand improving the health and fertility of soils through manipulation ofbiological processes and the efficient use of soil, water, and nutrientresources.

Worldwide Portal to Information on Soil Healthhttp://mulch.mannlib.cornell.eduE-mail: lhf2@cornell.edu

This portal is presented as an international clearing-house and searchengine for internet resources on soil covers, organic inputs and soilmanagement. Put together and managed between the Tropical SoilCover and Organic Resource Exchange Consortium, CornellUniversity’s Mann Agricultural Library and the Agricultural NetworkInformation Center, it offers an extensive database of annotated Englishand Spanish language resources (documents, events, links toorganisations, networks, journals and publications). Also availablethrough the portal are the archives of many different electronicdiscussions, as well as a series of on-line learning modules.

GET Foundation – Information and market access for marginalfarmershttp://www.GETfoundation.org and http://www.eFresh.comLagedijk 164, 1544 BL Zaandijk, The Netherlands.E-mail: info@getfoundation.org

The GET Foundation is an independent organisation that strives toincrease farmers/cooperatives empowerment by providing marketaccess, market information and transparency in the supply chain, bysponsoring memberships to www.eFresh.com; the world’s largesttrading community on the web. eFresh.com shows live information asto who is producing what, for which price and quality surrounded byhigh quality business news. Both main stream and certified / specialtysuppliers and buyers are present on this trading platform to make thebest connection with each other. Suppliers and buyers are invited toregister as a blue member for free at www.efresh.com thereby, makingthemselves visible to a wide audience. Marginal farmers who areassisted by any capacity development organization, can contactinfo@getfoundation.org to apply for a (partly) sponsored membership.

International Legume Database & Information Service ILDIShttp://www.ildis.orgCentre for Plant Diversity & Systematics; School of Plant Sciences,University of Reading. Reading RG6 6AS, U.K. E-mail: ildis@ildis.org

The International Legume Database & Information Service (ILDIS) isan international project which aims to document and catalogue theworld’s legume species diversity in a readily accessible form. ILDISinvolves legume experts and institutions from all over the world, withactivities co-ordinated by the Centre for Plant Diversity andSystematics, at the University of Reading, in Britain. Research groupsin many countries participate on a co-operative basis to pool informationin the ILDIS World Database of Legumes, which is used to provide aworldwide information service through publications, electronic accessand enquiry services. It is possible to order a CD Rom with the onlineinformation on it.

NETWORKING

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 832

33L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

An introduction to sustainable development by Peter P. Rogers,Kazi F. Jalal and John A. Boyd, 2008. 416 pp. ISBN 978-1-84407-521-4. Glen Educational Foundation, Inc., Earthscan, 8-12 CamdenHigh Street, London NW1 0JH, U.K. E-mail:earthinfo@earthscan.co.uk ; http://www.earthscan.co.uk

This book states that it is an introduction tosustainable development and therefore limits thediscussion of each topic to basic information,issues and descriptions. It does do this clearly,dealing with the three identified dimensions ofsustainable development - environmental,economic, and social – separately. Based onlectures and course material, it is useful forstudents and those seeking an overview to this vastsubject. It is written from the point of view ofbroad policy frameworks and large institutions, and as such, NGOsand similar development efforts are given little attention. The lastsections provide thought-provoking material about our global future.

Close concerns, distant mountains: a space of interculturallearning on AIDS and rural development by Loes Witteveen and P.Thachapuzha, 2007. ISBN 978-90-77614-04-4. DVD, 39 minutes. VanHall Larenstein University, PO Box 411, 6700 AK, Wageningen, theNetherlands. E-mail: Loes.Witteveen@wur.nl ; http://www.vanhall-larenstein.nl

This film documents the observations, reflections and exchange ofideas by participants during a refresher course for alumni of Van HallLarenstein University in Tanzania. The film aims to visualise theintercultural learning process and share these experiences among ruraldevelopment colleagues who also aim to contribute to the preventionand mitigation of HIV/AIDS. At the start of the course, the participantsfrom across the world presented the state of the art in their respectivecountries with regard to AIDS and rural development. After outliningand framing the issues at stake, field work was undertaken related tothe reach and effectiveness of HIV/AIDS policies and services in theUluguru mountains.

Farming with nature: The science and practice of ecoagricultureby Sara Scherr and Jeffrey McNeely (eds.), 2007. 445 pp. ISBN 978-1-59726-128-9. Island Press, Suite 300, 1718 Connecticut Ave., NW,Washington DC 20009, U.S.A. http://www.islandpress.org

The concept of ecoagriculture has developed since the term was firstcreated in 2001. A book was published in 2003, a conference held in2004, and in 2005 an NGO, Ecoagriculture Partners, was establishedto promote and support ecoagriculture practitioners. This current bookbrings together papers from the 2004 conference and, together withother specially commissioned papers, aims to establish a baselineregarding the current science and practice of ecoagriculture. The bookis divided into three sections, covering agricultural production,biodiversity and ecosystem management, and institutional foundationsfor ecoagriculture. The intended audience is all the many groupsengaged in organising and managing the various elements of anecoagriculture landscape: land use planners, scientists, farmers andrural enterprises.

The future control of food: A guide to international negotiationsand rules on intellectual property, biodiversity and food securityby Geoff Tansey and Tasmin Rajotte, 2008. 266 pp. ISBN 978-1-84407-429-7. Earthscan, 8-12 Camden High Street, London NW1 0JH, U.K.E-mail: earthinfo@earthscan.co.uk ; http://www.earthscan.co.uk

This book demystifies the high-level negotiations and languagesurrounding the whole issue of intellectual property rights. In clearlanguage, it describes key global negotiations such as TRIPS (Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights) and CBD (the Convention on

Biological Diversity), constantly bringing theminto the context of smallholder farmers indeveloping countries. It is a valuable resource foranyone wanting to understand these ongoingdevelopment, for policy makers and developmentworkers concerned with maintaining smallfarmers’ rights to access to seed and otheragricultural material. Digging deeper into thecontrol over food is also timely as it gives furtherinsights into the current global food crisis.

Trends in Organic Farming in India/edited by S.S. Purohit andDushyent Gehlot, Jodhpur, Agrobios, 2006, xxxiv, 438 p., tables, figs.,$60. ISBN 81-7754-262-1.

In the view of resurgence of interest in alternate agriculture in recentyears, organic farming has been considered to be a viable option inmost of the countries. Organic farming is a production system thatavoids or largely excludes the use of synthetically produced agricul-tural inputs like fertilizers, pesticides, growth regulators, live stockfeed additives etc.

In the context of increasing importance of organic farming, varioustrends regarding production of various organic inputs and their usagesetc., are flashing here and there. Thus, with the aim to bring variousflashing trends related to organic farming, this book “Trends in or-ganic farming” is compiled. This book contains comprehensive mat-ters related to concept, components, and tools, popular package ofpractices, plant protection measures, and success stories of organicfarming.

Sustainable agriculture and food by Jules Pretty (ed.), 2008. 4volumes. 1944 pages. ISBN 978-1-84407-408-2. Earthscan ReferenceCollections. Earthscan, 8-12 Camden High Street, London NW1 0JH,U.K. E-mail: earthinfo@earthscan.co.uk; http://www.earthscan.co.uk

This comprehensive four volume work bringstogether current thinking, research and analysis insustainable agriculture. While its size may bedaunting, as a reference book it can be dipped into,and is well-structured to allow for this. Its sizeallows for many interesting topics to be expandedon, and readers will find a mixture of academictexts as well as easily readable chapters. Eachvolume has an Editorial Introduction to guidereaders, and there is also an overview of the four volumes. The fourvolumes cover the history of agriculture and food; agriculture and theenvironment; agriculture and food systems; and policies, processesand institutions. However, as this set costs £650 sterling, it is mostlikely that only institutions and libraries will be able toafford it.

Planting and establishment of tropical trees by David Upton andPeter de Groot, 2008. 142 pp. ISBN 978-0-85092-708-5. Tropical Trees:Propagation and Planting Manuals, Volume 5. CommonwealthSecretariat, Marlborough House, Pall Mall, London SW1Y 5HX, U.K.http://www.thecommonwealth.org/publications

This is the last in a series of five practical guides on propagating andplanting tropical trees. It is written in a clear style with questions andanswers. The text is jargon-free, to-the-point and non-academic. It isdesigned for training purposes: it is spiral bound, allowing for easyphotocopying, with clear well-labelled diagrams and illustrations. Theaim of the series as a whole is to encourage growing, planting and careof trees “on any site, by anyone, at any scale”, and readers might includefarmers and foresters, lecturers and students, NGO staff and managers,international funding agencies, and extension workers and advisors.The section on soils explains basic concepts very clearly.

BOOKS

33L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 834

Building healthy soils organically

When I decided to leave a cushy and comfortable job inDelhi to come South and settle down in a ‘palli’ (theterm for village in the south Indian language, Telugu), I

knew I’d be in for a few surprises. My idea was to start organicfarming from scratch on a barren patch of land and make a livingfrom it! I knew it would be difficult and time consuming processand entail a lot of hard work, but somehow I felt that it could bedone. In spite of being a first generation farmer, I was confident ofmaking it a successful venture. Looking back, I can’t explain myconfidence; maybe it was because I was armed with the theoreticalknowledge – I have a Masters in Ecology – and some practicalexperience in growing vegetables and fruit.

Some known ‘truths’

For those of us who have grown up in cities, soil is a bunch of dirton the ground. It is something that has to be washed off our clothes,swept off the floor and wiped off our TV screens and refrigerators.For me as a farmer, however, soil is a lot more than that. Soil, amajor constituent of our planet is the mother of us all – plants,animals and humans. It gives us our sustenance and provides us

resources to build our shelters. It is the substrate for plants and isthe thin top layer on which we do agriculture and produce our food.It is not inert – every square meter swarms with millions andmillions of bacteria and other microorganisms. Potentially, theorganic material that’s in the soil or the raw materials that youdeposit there – fallen leaves, grass clippings, kitchen waste,agricultural residues, animal manure, and so forth- contains essentialelements that plants can use in their own growth. Unfortunately,these elements are tied up in such a way that our crops – agricultural,horticultural and commercial – cannot make immediate use of them.Fortunately, for our plants, the soil bacteria rip into such deadmaterial in the soil, breaking it down and converting it into formsthat plants can use and build with.

The ambient temperature, the amount of air available, the soilmoisture and the nature of the organic material itself determinehow fast the soil bacteria act. When the soil is warm and has theright level of moisture, both the bacteria in the soil and bacterialaction increases tremendously. When you add fresh organic material,the bacteria immediately attack it, breaking it down into food forour crops. The bacterial organisms themselves need nitrogen totake care of their growing needs. And if you don’t have nitrogen in

Putting every bit of plant or animal matter back to the soil is key to soil’s health. Sounds simple. But building soilsorganically requires a lot of hard work, commitment, dedication and respect for nature. This is what the author experiencedin his journey towards building a healthy and fertile soil on his farm.

K Raghavendra Rao

A view of the farm

Photo

: A

uth

or

35L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 8

the material that you put into the field or your garden, the bacteriawill be constrained to steal it from the crop or vegetables that you’retrying to grow. As farmers or gardeners we don’t want to see thathappen.

In order to be healthy and vigorous, plants need appropriate soilconditions and certain nutrients – sixteen of them, to be precise -besides air, water and sunlight. Among them are three majornutrients: Nitrogen (N), Phosphorous (P) and Potassium (K) and anumber of minor nutrients. The absence of even one of thesenutrients can make a difference to the overall health and yield fromthe plant.

Going step by step

My experiments in farming started in June 2003. Before that I wastreating the entire patch of land and doing soil and moistureconservation work which I believe is the foundation on which asustainable agriculture enterprise can be built. The actual vegetablecultivation which forms the basis of my confidence and experiencewas done on a little less than 1.75 acres (7000 sq.m). Initialinvestments included digging a bore well, obtaining an electricalconnection, laying out the pipelines, installing a drip irrigationsystem, land levelling and establishing field bunds along theboundaries.

The first thing I did on the farm was to mark out contours andmake trenches cum bunds to harvest rain water which is a veryprecious resource in the drought prone area where I had my land.The field boundaries were stablized vegetatively with variousspecies of locally occurring grasses and also with Lemon grasswhich has a great economic value. Several species can begrown along the bunds to provide wind-break effects, bio-massproduction and habitat protection as well as live trellises wheretrailing vegetables (gourds, beans, leafy vegetables, etc.) can begrown.

Nurturing diversity

The second activity was to procure saplings of a diverse variety ofnitrogen fixing and multi-purpose herbs, shrubs and trees. Thesewere integrated into the agricultural landscape as field boundaryplantations, windbreaks, vegetative stabilization for bunds andmicro-climate amelioration elements.

Planting around the boundary of the farm, for instance, provides,according to the terminology of permaculture (permanentagriculture), the advantage of one element fulfilling severalfunctions. A hedge consisting of herbs, shrubs and trees along theperimeter of the land provides a barrier or a ‘live fence’. Based onthe choice of species, the fence (element) also serves several otherfunctions - as windbreak, a habitat for birds, reptiles and smallanimals, a forage area for bees and birds, a zone for fuelwood,timber, fruit production, and nitrogen fixation. Through leaf fall, italso acts as a stable and steady production zone for a fair amountof organic matter. Also, trees with deep root systems withinagricultural landscapes serve as ‘nutrient pumps’ to ‘mine’ lowerhorizons of bedrock and bring valuable minerals to the soil surfaceby way of leaf fall. These minerals are released by the action ofbacteria for use by crops.

A close observation of the plants growing in a particular agro-ecological system provides valuable insights into the species thatcan be chosen for producing organic material to improve soil quality.Drought hardy nitrogen-fixers, which produce large quantities ofbiomass are the first choice. Species like Albizzia lebbek, Albizziaamara, Glyricidia sepium, Sesbania sesban, Sesbania grandiflora,

Enterolobium saman, Cajanus cajan, Leucaena leucocephala,Pongamia pinnata, Erythrina sp., Cassia sp., Dalbergia sissoo,Pithecollobium dulce, Acacia auriculiformis, Acacia nilotica,Crotolaria sp. and ground covers like Macroptilium atropurpureum,Mucuna puriens, Dolichos lablab, Centroscema pubescens andClitorea ternatea are some that can be used. In addition, Annonasquamosa, Azadirachta indica, Melia azedarach, Holopteliaintegrifolia, Wrightia tinctoria, Holarrhina antidysenterica,Bambusa sp., Muntingia calabura produce copious amounts of leaflitter which can easily be collected and composted.

Building organic matter in the soils

The next big effort was to build enough organic matter in the soil.The old axiom of organic farming is basically sound advice: Whenin doubt, add more organic matter which can be in the form ofcompost, humus or raw organic matter.

Since the soil was much depleted, in the first season, I appliedabout 8 tonnes of poultry manure collected from a deep litter broileroperation. This was incorporated into the area of 7000 sq. m. usinga tractor with plough attachment. After this ‘basal’ application, theonly other amendment was vermicompost which used to be providedas a basal dressing at the root zone of each individual plant whichwas irrigated by the drip irrigation system.

The moisture from the drip holes and the weed biomass was put asmulch near the plants. This provided a food source and habitat for

Volume 10 no. 4, December 2008

Climate change and resilience

Throughout history, farmers have adapted their agriculturalsystems, responding to crises such as droughts, floods, soildegradation and social conflict. They have also responded topositive opportunities such as new crops and emerging markets.Failure to adapt often results in disaster; people have had to leavethe land and some agricultural systems have died out.

There is now wide scientific consensus and realisation that theglobal climate is changing, affecting rainfall patterns and boostingtemperatures around the world. In some areas, it may lead tofurther desertification and decline of food production. Ironically,agriculture is one of the major contributors to climate change.Fertilizer production emits large quantities of greenhouse gasesand its application acidifies soils. Because of practices such asdeforestation and intensified agriculture, soils are also losing theircarbon content to the atmosphere.

Climate change has been described as “a threat to humanity”,and there is no doubt that those in poorer areas will suffer more.The (sub-)tropics are expected to be hit hardest by climate change.Sustainable agriculture can help reduce the threats from climatechange. On the one hand, it can reduce the impact of agricultureon the climate through sustainable methods (e.g. integration ofdiverse crops, soil management, low fossil energy input, localmarketing). On the other hand, it can help rural societies copewith drastic changes, as farmers adapt and respond to newopportunities, and build more resilient farming systems.

The coming climate change issue of the magazine will look forconcrete examples on how LEISA helps to build resilience. Howdo farmers perceive and deal with changes in their environment?What do they anticipate? How have they been dealing with shocksand stresses in the past and how can such strategies be importantin the years to come?

Please send us your stories!

Deadline for submission of articles is 10 November 2008

Themes for LEISA India

L E I S A I N D I A • J U N E 2 0 0 836

the earthworms which were found in abundance where ever I dug!Weed growth between the drip lines in the rainy season was alsochopped with a nylon-cord trimmer and used as mulch. So the‘weeds’ actually served as a perennial source of much needed mulchwhich covers the soil, prevents excessive evaporation and servesas food for soil microorganisms.

We built a compost pile for organic material. This pile lets theinitial bacterial decomposition take place outside the soil. Then,when the material is turned into the soil, the nutrients are in a formthat the plants can use immediately. However, the slow metabolictransformation of organic waste by soil micro organisms into thegood friable humus and rich, brown, fertile, tilthy material that isso familiar to organic farmers, takes time (weeks to months) andhuman effort. Also, to provide these diverse nutrients, we as organicfarmers, add the following organic ingredients: compost, well rottedmanure, bone-meal, wood-ash and fish emulsion.

The crop residue after the harvest was also converted into compostand incorporated into the soil again in the place where the plantshad grown before. Thus, the quality of the soil continually improvedin terms of good tilth and water holding capacity.

Integrating animals

Another parallel activity was integrating animals into the farmingsystem. The importance of animals – small and large ruminantsand domesticated birds – as integral components in farming systemscannot be underestimated. These animals (elements) by theirinherent nature perform several functions – they convert biomassinto milk, meat and poultry products, produce dung which is avaluable ‘innoculant’ for composting, a soil ameliorant, a ‘bio-energy’ source, and a substrate for ‘vermi-compost’ production.

Domesticated birds like chicken and ducks provide pest and weedcontrol in addition to meat and eggs. Wild animals and birds providefor free, pest control, pollination and seed dispersal services, andhelp to maintain the balance in nature by ensuring that pestpopulations don’t build up to dangerous levels and cause damageto our crops.

Since no plant protection chemicals are used, pollinator activitywas very high on the farm leading to good fruit set. A variety ofbirds, lizards contribute to pest control during the day and at night,toads, frogs, bats, owls and geckos help to control pests. With awell designed system, one can have 24 x 7 pest control!

Returns from the farm

The farm was a ‘certified organic’ operation - more than 17 speciesof vegetables were grown during any cropping season taking careto maintain diversity and following crop rotation. Needless to say,very exhaustive records were kept regarding any agriculturaloperation carried out. This meticulous recording of operations isalso mandatory for any organic operation. My wife and I used tomanage the operation and used to have casual labour (2 men and 3-4 women) to help.

During the peak harvest time, products worth Rs. 10,000-14,000was supplied each week to Spencers in Trivandrum. The harvestwould last from six to twelve weeks. Since the planting was doneto have peak productivity at all times, careful staggered plantingand planning was very essential. I have recorded yields of 2.5 to 5Kg/ sq.meter, which translates into 10 - 20 tonnes/acre! The netprofit after deducting all expenses on labour materials, etc, wouldbe in the range of Rs. 5000-7000 per week.

Hard work pays

As a general principle, the goal of every farmer should be to haveenough organic matter. This can be achieved with a little bit ofimaginative thinking and a small investment of time and labour.The lack of greenery and the absence of trees in today’s farms,does not augur well for the future of agriculture. Perceptible shiftsin climatic patterns leading to unpredictable weather and unseasonalrainfall puts tremendous strain on farmers who are dependent onfarming for their livelihood. Moreover, lack of awareness on theseissues among farmers is a matter of serious concern. For instance,unfortunately, no one tells farmers of the important role that treesplay in the health and productivity of their farming systems.

However, with directed efforts, it is still possible to build the lifein soils which are depleted and degraded. Even if a farm is chemicalintensive over years, it is still possible to convert it into an organicfarm by reintroducing micro organisms with application of bio-fertlilizers and bio-pesticides such as Rhizobium sp., Azospirillum,Azotobacter, Phosphate Solubilizing Bacteria, VAM, Beauvariabassiana, Verticillium, Trichoderma, Pseudomonas, etc. If the rightenvironment and appropriate conditions are provided and use ofchemical fertilizers and sprays are stopped, they will remain andmultiply in the agroecosystem ensuring healthy and bountiful yieldson a sustainable basis.

As the Chinese proverb goes, ‘the best fertilizer for the soil is thefootsteps of the gardener’. All it requires to convert unproductiveland into a bountiful oasis is lots of hard work, dedication,commitment and a deep respect for nature, our teacher.

�

K Raghavendra RaoCEO, GREEN Foundation, PO Box 7651, No. 30, 4th Main,19th Cross, BTM 2nd Stage, NS Palya, Bangalore-560 076.E-mail: raghu_oasisfarm@hotmail.com

ReferencesDuane Newcomb, The Postage Stamp Garden Book. BantamBooks.Robert Kourik, Designing and maintaining your ediblelandscape – Naturally. Metmorphic Press.Bill Mollison, Permaculture: A Designers’ Manual.Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird, Secrets of the soil.

Maize stalks used as mulch and devoured by white ants

Photo

: A

uth

or