Status and prospects of organic crop management in Jammu and Kashmir

Crop residues, manure, farm yard manure, vermicompost, biogas solution, green manure, poultry manure are the major components of organic agriculture. It is an integral part of organic agriculture that helps in activating the biological, physical and chemical properties of the soil. Organic agriculture/farming is not a new concept it has been followed in India as well as Jammu and Kashmir since prehistoric times and is one of the most effective methods of sustainable agriculture of all times. The last two decades have witnessed remarkable sensitivity in the global community towards ensuring food quality and environmental protection. Good promoters of organic agriculture believe that it can meet these demands and become a medium for overall development of rural areas. After nearly a century of neglect, organic agriculture is now making its way into the mainstream of development and is showing very good prospects from commercial, social and environmental perspectives. The founders' concerns for healthy food, healthy people, healthy soil, environmental sustainability and productivity are now at its core. In organic farming, natural methods are adopted for good crop production and without harming the fertility of the soil like integration of crops, mulching, crop rotation, inter-cropping, biological pest control, composting, use of local farm inputs and livestock etc.Therefore, it is necessary to promote organic farming throughout the world to maintain soil fertility as well as preserve the environment.

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Organic Management CycleClose ×

AI-generated conceptual illustration (Saffron and apple crops in a Himalayan valley landscape). It explains the idea and does not show study data.

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N contribution(kg/ha): Sunnhemp (Crotolaria... vs Dhaincha (Sesbania... vs Green gram(Vigna... vs Cowpea (Vigna sinensis) vs Cluster beanClose ×

Replotted from Table 2 (page 2) of the original paper. Every bar is the paper's own table value.

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Introduction

Organic farming is receiving more attention around the world recently due to increasing awareness of the health risks of chemical agriculture. Consumers are waking up and questioning the ethics of promoting poison in our food chain. They are also willing to pay for chemical-free, environmentally sensitive and safe food products. Agrochemicals like pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, growth promoters etc. are affecting human health, plant health, soil health, animal health, water bodies and environment. Traces of these chemicals have been found in food products, milk-based products, and even breast milk. After the Green Revolution, our agricultural scenario has completely changed with the use of modern technology. The increased uses of chemical fertilizers as well as the use of plant protection measures and high yielding varieties have undoubtedly increased our production, but the quality of the produce has declined. (Raina 2019) [17] . Organic farming is most relevant for 74% of small and marginal farmers in India as they lack the resources to provide expensive inputs to increase yields and they also need to protect the land from erosion. In the organic farming system approach, a piece of land is used optimally and to its full potential to produce nutritious and healthy food as well as other essential commodities, thereby supporting a small family healthily. There is a need to maintain soil health and productivity through agricultural practices based on the principles of nature. Plant protection is also controlled and managed by selecting crop mixtures and using biological control measures (GoI 2016) [18] . Consumers are now turning to organic food because they believe it to be tastier, as well as healthier, both for themselves and environment (Alfoldi et al. 1998) [19] .

The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir consists mainly of two geographical regions, namely the Jammu and Kashmir region which lies in the north of the Indian Union and includes the extreme western part of the Himalayas. Jammu region is represents almost all the zones ranging from sub-tropical one to mid hills extending to high hills (high altitudes) thus constituting temperate zone. Rice, maize, wheat, pulses, fodder, oil seeds, potato and barley are the main crops of the region. Farmers in Jammu and Kashmir have been farming without the use of chemicals for a long time, but now with the increasing demand for organic products across the world, the state has started the practice on a large scale. The state is a natural place for organic farming, the state has immense potential to produce high value crops like black cumin, guchi, basmati rice, raj mash, wheat, pulses and other field crops.

Scope and Potential of Organic Farming

Organic farming has become of utmost importance even in dry land areas. The soil and climatic conditions of India's dry lands make them particularly suitable for organic agriculture. These are actually better suited to low-input farming systems that make adequate use of biodiversity (Sharma, 2000) [13] . The addition of organic matter, a cornerstone of organic farming practices, will not only improve the physical condition of these dryland soils, but also greatly improve their ability to supply balanced plant nutrients. In dry lands, natural resources are overexploited (Reddy, 2010) [11] mainly due to inappropriate production-enhancing technologies. Organic farming is done on about 50 thousand hectares of land in Jammu and Kashmir and this includes organic certified area of 18,441.82 hectares and 29150.00 hectares organic area under wild collection. During the year 2021-22, organic farm production in Jammu and Kashmir was 38,640.64 MT and organic production from wild area was 3,064.02 MT and 539.55 MT of organic products were exported and valued at about Rs 8.92 crore (Source: APEDA 2022-23). Abundant use of chemical fertilizers results in soil acidity/salinity, decrease in porosity thus poor soil health in Jammu and Kashmir. Apart from this free nitrate from nitrogenous fertilizers and pesticide residues result in water pollution. These fertilizers add lead and cadmium in the soil. Considering the above facts and factors, there is need for another revolution called organic revolution to ensure good soil health, food security, and reduced environmental pollution. Therefore there is need and that too urgent for rejuvenating the tired, over worked, degraded, polluted and malnutrition soil to make it potent for future food production.

Agronomic Manipulations

A) Soil preparations: Ploughing soil (tillage) up to depth of 30 cm help to expose soil for better aeration and sunlight will help in killing the eggs, larvae of many insects.

B) Crop selection:

To begin with, crops which require low nutrient should be selected.

C) Nutrient Management:

As we know organic farming systems the nutrient needs of crop plants are met through organic sources.

Green Manuring

Green manuring for improving productivity and soil fertility is an old age practice with the farmers. Green manure offers considerable potential as source of N and organic matter. The availability of P, K and secondary and trace elements in the soil is also increased. Sunhemp, dhaincha, cowpea are commonly grown green manure crops in India. The amount of N accumulated in 45-60 days old green manure crop range from 42-201 kg/ha.  Its dark color contributes to the absorption of energy from the sun  Soil erosion is checked.  The organic components in humic substances can act as plant growth stimulants.

Crop residue/legume residue recycling

Crop residues affect the productivity of the soil and mulch on the surface is also quite appreciable. They are potential source of plant nutrients and their incorporation into the soil helps to return apart of nutrients drawn from the soil. Crop residue of annual grain legume such as green gram, black gram, and soybean can be recycled into soil after grain is removed. About 50-70 kg N /ha is estimated as residual N to the succeeding crop by pulse residue incorporation.

Legumes in rotation

The N content in leaves of tree legumes used for green leaf manure is usually high, ranging from 3.49 to 4.20%. The phosphorus content in green manure crops ranges from 0.20 to 3.34%. Green leaf manure has lower P content (0.2 to 0.24%) than legume green manure. The average N concentration in different legume crops ranges from 2.5 to 3.91% and the straw of food legumes have a comparatively low N content, ranging from 1.70% in cow pea residue to 2.21% in moong bean, because food legumes are harvested near maturity when straw N is translocated into grain.

Conclusion

 Organic farming requires higher levels of labour, therefore creating more income-producing jobs per farm, the cost of an organic product is usually 10%-40% higher than similar conventional crops and it depends on both input and output factors of crop production.  Tourism an important contributor of state economy could be further enhanced by broadening its scope as Organic Agro-Tourism.  Organic foods have proven to be better in terms of health and safety.  Only developing the supply chain mechanism across towns of J&K even though it is uncertified, farmers will fetch higher price. It is a general global experience that organic produce of local area is trusted and preferred more than farther away markets.  It is concluded that there is wide consensus that in hilly areas, we should emphasize on organic farming for the benefit of the farming community, consumers and the environment.

Figures and tables from the paper

Fertilization	Nature of use
Chemical and synthetic fertilizers	Banned
FYM, poultry manure, Vermicompost	Permitted
Compost from organic residues	Permitted
Green manure, green leaf manure	Permitted
Azolla	Permitted
Crop residue, straw, ground nut laulms, mulches	Permitted
Kitchen waste, mushroom bed waste	Permitted
Oil cake	Restricted
Human excrement	Restricted
Sewage sludge	Banned
Biofertilizers	Restricted
Gypsum	Restricted
Basic slag	Restricted

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Products for use in fertilization and soil conditioning in

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Green manure crop	Growing season	Green manure(t/ha)	N contribution(kg/ha)
Sunnhemp (Crotolaria juncea)	wet	21.2	91
Dhaincha (Sesbania aculeate)	wet	20.2	86
Green gram(Vigna radiate)	wet	8	42
Cowpea (Vigna sinensis)	wet	15	74
Cluster bean	wet	20	68
Senji (Melilotus alba)	dry	28.6	163
Berseem (Trifolium alexandrinum)	dry	15.5	67

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Some common green manure legume crops and their potential nitrogen contribution

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Crop	N fixed (kg/ha/year)
Lucerne	100-200
Red clover	100-150
Cowpea	53-885
Ground nut	112-152
Lentil	35-100
Green gram	50-55
Soybean	49-130
Pea	46

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Estimation of biological N fixation by some legumes

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