Context
Introduction
Hey, so before jumping onto what is sustainable agriculture let’s discuss why do we need it? I mean what had been wrong with the common industrial agriculture that we switched up to another one. What do you think growing crops without worrying about nature or soil would provide long-lasting profits and yields. No, it won’t. You won’t be able to get your profits for quite a long period because of the resources being depleted. The practices of the green revolution that include high dose use of fertilizers, pesticides, and the practice of monocultures are now posing a problem. Sustainable agriculture overcomes this riddle.
Let’s now go on
What is SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE?
It involves the production of crops while working with nature. It sustains both economy and ecology. It is a general method of farming where we obtain our yield without poisoning our environment and resources. We try to go for minimum possible spending of resources. All those practices that support this above-sung idea come under the shed of sustainable agriculture.
ARE ORGANIC , PROTECTED , NATURAL, PRECISION, CROP ROTATION FARMING SUSTAINABLE?
I say yes they are. Since all these practices include least spending up of our resources along with avoidance of hazardous fertilizers, etc. they are very much capable of sustaining the environment. They involve efficient and precise use of inputs.
Advantages of sustainable agriculture
It helps in:-
Conserving the environment
Reducing pollution
Making use of AI and technology
Removing dependence on intuition
Saving resources and making their optimum utilization
Healthy nutrition
Reducing costs
Long-lasting profits
Healthy and fertile land
HOW IS IT PRACTICED?
Use of Artificial Intelligence
You can very well understand it by making reference to our article on precision farming,
where we, making use of remote sensing, GPS technology, etc. identify the exact locations of nutrient or water deficiency, and as and when required we go for the exact target it’s like hitting the nail job as the resources are spent only where it is required.
In AI we make use of intelligent spraying, automatic wedding, identification of any pest attack, deficiency of any nutrient, and so on. From drones, we capture the excellently pixelled images of fields while enjoying tea on our sofas with our family.
BEING MORE RESOURCE EFFICIENT
As seen in protected cultivation or soilless farming,
we hereby adopt practices that refrain from the use of abundant resource utilization.
Since we are present at the stage where we have a great population with many stomachs to feed and resources being as mere as then we need to stress on innovative, creative, and resource-efficient methods. In protected cultivation, we make use of practices like hydroponics and aeroponics where we substitute the use of soil to clay balls, coco peat, and so on. We make use of vertical framing placing stands one over the other to make three-dimensional use of land. In aquaponics, we use the emissions of fish to provide nitrogen nutrition to plants and so on. You can find a very perfect use of integrated farming in this blog where we make use of the symbiotic relationships between various components on integration and earn the maximum possible produce at the least possible cost.
AGROFORESTRY
In this, practices like alley farming of which you would find a detailed article in our upcoming blogs. It makes use of trees to maintain the fertility of the soil. Let me quote a few examples for you
Chives attract pollinators along with discouraging insects by repelling them.
Mints and lemon palm repels insects.
Comfrey helps accumulate nutrients.
It also includes practices like polyculture and many more.
USE OF RENEWABLE RESOURCES
The use of renewable resources like biogas, etc. helps in ensuring energy supply along with saving nonrenewable sources and also protecting the environment.
IPM PRACTICES
As stated above plants like mint, chives and sage help avoid insects.
BE MORE WATER EFFICIENT
Farmers can use drippers for saving water. Moreover with the omission or reduction of chemicals water pollution could also be dismissed. Rainwater harvesting is the greatest source of collecting the once excessive water and using it at times of requirement.
PREVENTING EROSION
Soil erosion could be prevented by strip cropping of erosion-resistant crops with the crops we desire to cultivate. Check dams, diversion channels etc. could also be taken into practice for being more efficient in preventing erosion.
REGENERATIVE GRAZING
Allowing cattle to graze a small land by imposing restrictions on its accessibility could reduce the excessive grazing of agricultural land.
PREVENTING ACTIVITIES LIKE STUBBLE BURNING
Activities like stubble burning, slash and burn agriculture need to be paused to save nature and work with it lest working against it. Activities like the adoption of a happy seeder, turning remains into compost, decomposing it, etc. can be fruitful.
PERMACULTURE
It takes natural practices free from chemicals, soil disturbance, etc. into account to make the best deal of production with nature’s well-wishing.
CROP ROTATION
For its detailed knowledge, you can rely on our undermentioned source
Government promoting policies
NATIONAL MISSION FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
It includes Soil heath management, paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana, rainfed area development, and many more.
Launched in 2014-15, it provides the adoption of agricultural practices that help restore dramatic climatic effects. It includes the adoption of risk of crop failure, integrated practices, technologies aiding deteriorating climate, soil conservation, etc. Its official website where you could register is undermentioned
PRADHAN MANTRI KRISHI SINCHAYEE YOJANA
Its information is present on our webpage
PRADHAN MANTRI FASAL BIMA YOJANA
You can take the assistance of our blog for details of it
Conclusion
For meeting our wider needs with scarce resources it is necessary to adopt practices that help nurture both economy and ecology in an efficient manner to maximize our outputs with optimum inputs. This is what sustainable agriculture promises us.
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