Innovative farming solutions

CLOSE TO NATURE

2021-12-31T22:22:00.001-08:00

CLOSE TO NATURE

In the era of modern tech and discoveries, the need to rediscover us has increased, so has the deterioration of nature. Sustainable development is the correct step to take towards protecting nature, We often forget the surrounding habitats when we think of development .We have wrecked enough damage to the delicate balance of environment by ignoring the fact that without it's help any possible progress is not possible . These flaws are the reason why we begin to fear the possible bad outcomes of nature like bigger problems like global heating and unexpected natural disasters

Most of the people blame industries as the major pollutants and foes of the environment, but everyone is to fault, as even in every day life, pollution is caused mostly, because of usage of plastics which eventually end up in water bodies and increased utilization of vehicles. We keep disregarding the priorities to nature that each person must uphold. World level conferences which are held only for namesake does not help in implementing something new. Only speeches about preserving the environment is not enough, conservative measures should be executed rather than be told. So the responsibility is our's to take action to save our habitat, the earth

In this New Year 2022, we should pledge to protect the trees and not to disrupt nature in any way .This could be the only way we can take step towards development. when we look after nature it takes care of us .

In bird sanctuaries, the ecological cycle can be noticed more easily. many birds from variably different locations come there during breeding seasons, but many breeding grounds have been turned into wastelands, Thus reducing the the population of the expected groups of birds.These birds have their own ways of helping out the habitat.They help in the maintenance of biodiversity and also are great bio-indicators which point out the status of our environment.

The natural ecological balance in wetlands:

Mangifera indica(Mango)

2014-03-13T22:04:00.000-07:00

Mango is one of the most important and also our national fruit. It has more than 100 varieties. India is the highest mango producing country. It has grown over 1.23 million hectares and nearly 11 million tonnes of fruits. The fruits are very favorite among people because of its taste and fragrance. So it is considered as a king of fruits and also best fruit in commercial market. World wide it grown as commercially around 80 countries. Out of this India ranks first in the production as well as area.
It can be cultivated wide range of soils and climatic conditions. It is very easy to cultivate. Mango has a good source of vitamin A and vitamin C.

Mango flowers in intermediate time

MANGO FLOWERS


MANGO

Mango tree management is very important to achieve maximum profit in this cultivation. It depends on selection of superior varieties along with proper tree management. Some of the varieties grown in India are: Bangalora(kilimuzhu), Alphonsa, Banganpalli, Neelam, Himsagar, Kesar,  Kishen Bhog, Langra. Apart from that recently many hybrids released from agricultural universities.Some of them are Arka Aruna, Arka Anmol, Mallika, Amrapali etc. Accordng to Tamilnadu conditions, Bangalora is the good variety for better yield.

There are many different techniques also followed to improve the yield in mango cultivation. One of the technique is ultra high density planting (UHDP). Generally the space between the trees are recommended 10m*10m, but in UHDP they recommend only 4.5m*4.5m. In this method we can plant nearly 895 plants per acre. At this technique, its growth is also controlled. In this technique, the trees are not allowed to grow beyond two metre so that we can manage the tree from diseases and pests. It is also easy to pluck fruits.

India - Climatic Seasons

2013-02-25T08:28:00.001-08:00

India - Weather:

As per the Indian Metrological Department, there are four seasons in India.

1. Winter Season(January-Febraury)
December and January are coldest months which is between 10-15°C.

2. Pre-monsoon season - Summer(April to June)

Rain fall of pre-monsoon Season - IMD

3. Rainy season - South west summer monsoon (June to September)
India gets most of the rain during this season.

4. Post-monsoon season- NorthEast monsoon season(October to December)
South india gets the most of the rain in the North east monsoon.

Ornamental Flowers

2012-03-02T21:39:00.003-08:00

Some of the ornamental flowers ,

Flowers

2012-03-01T22:21:00.001-08:00

Flowers we have seen in common but looking very pretty ., here some of the flowers,

Rose

Bean


Periwinkle

Abutilon indicum (Thuthi)

Bhindi(Okra/Lady's finger)

Cucumber

Gerbera

Jasmine

Green Manures

2011-12-20T15:00:00.000-08:00

Green manures are excellent source of nitrogen, even more micro nutrients. It is low cost manuring so it called as poor farmer's manure. It enhances the soil structure and organic matter in the soil. Excellent remedy for the alkaline and saline soils. It improves the soil fertility. It also prevents the nitrogen from soil erosion. It improves the soil aeration and organic matter content. It improves the soil structure. It stimulates the growth of beneficial microbes and other soil organisms. Green manures are playing effective tool in controlling weeds.

Other objectives of green manures:
It can be used as a catch crops, shade crops, forage, cover crops. So it has the multipurpose uses.

Types of green manuring:
1.Green leaf manuring crops
2.Green manuring in situ crops

Green leaf manuring crops:
It is raised in other location and collected the green biomass and added in to the soil. They have to be incorporated in the soil by fine ploughing. The crops should be cutted during the flowering stage. Some of the green leaf manure crops are ,

1. Pongamia glabra (Pungam)
2. Tephrosia perpuria
3. Calotropis gigantia (Erukku)
4. Gliricidia maculata
5. Ipomea carnea
6. Azadirachta indica (Neem)
7. Leucaena leucocephala (Subabul)
8. Cassia pistula
9. Indigofera teysmannii

Calotropis gigantia (Erukku)

Tephrosia perpuria(Wild indigo)

2.Green manuring in situ crops
Crops are grown in situ and incorporated in the same field.The green manures are raised in the same field where going to cultivate the crop.It is mulched during the flowering stage. Some of the crops are,

1.Crotalaria juncea (Sun hemp)
2.Sesbania aculeata (Dhaincha)
3.Melilotus indica
4.Tephrosia perpuria(Wild indigo)
5. Sesbania rostrata(Manila agathi)
6. Vigna unguiculata(Cow pea)

Green manures incorporated in the soil

Another classifications are also there in green manures. They are,

1.Tree green manures:
Normally they are trees and cut their branches with their flowers and even fruits and put it in to fields and incorporated in to the soils. Some of the crops,

Azadiracta indica,
Pungamia pinnata,
Glyricidia sps,
Thespesia populina,
Cassia seamia

Tree green manures(Azadiracta indica)

2. Leguminous green manures:
Legumes have the ability to drive the nitrogen from air by their root nodules and fix it in to a form than can be used by plant . It can be used by crops after ploughed in to the soil.

Sunhemp (Crotalaira juncea)
Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata )
Dhaincha ( Seshania aculata)

Dhaincha ( Seshania aculata)

3. Non leguminous green manures:
It do not fix the nitrogen ,but it is fast growing crops and also increases the soil organic matter. Non legumes retain the nutrients in the soil from soil leaching. Some of the crops are,

Sunflower (Hellanthus annus)
Maize (Zea mays)
Jowar (Sorghum Vulgare)
Wheat (Triticum Sp)

Selection of green manures:
The crop should be fast growing and produce more green biomass. It can fix the nitrogen in the soil and suited for local climatic conditions. It should be tolerant to drought and flood conditions also.

Health Benefits of Brown Rice

2011-11-28T20:34:00.001-08:00

Many of us thought Brown rice is nothing but the brown colored different variety rice. But brown rice is unpolished rice or unmilled rice or partially milled rice. Nothing but it is a whole grain. Every rice grain has an outer layer called husk. The husk is removed in both the white and brown rices. Apart from the husk, the thin brownish layer called bran is there. In white rice, the brown layer is removed during the polishing process. But in the brown rice it is not removed, only top stiff layer is removed. All the nutrients vanished in the polishing the grains. Only starch remaining in the white rice.

Paddy(Before milled )

Brown Rice

Nutritional values of Brown Rice:
Brown rice has a low Glycemic index compared to white rice. So it reduces the risks of diabetics and also cardiovascular diseases. It controls the blood pressure levels and reduces the constipation. This is the good reason for medical experts stressed to eat the brown rice instead of white rice.

In white rice the bran removed fully even the embryo(germ) also removed by polishing. Only starchy endosperm is remaining in white rice. Almost all of the fibers, vitamins removed during milling process. But in brown rice has vitamins like B1, B3, B6, E, thiamin, niacin, folacin, potassium, magnesium and iron, fatty acids. Nutrient like magnesium content is very low in white rice. In brown rice it contains 3 times more. Dietary fiber content is more in brown rice. With 19% of more protein content brown rice act as a balanced food. Rice bran contains oil so obviously in brown rice also having the lower LDL Cholesterol.

Cooking process:
Before cooking brown rice should be soaked in a water for about 25 to 30 min. Then add little more (1cub extra) water compared to white rice. It takes long time to cook, so give more time for softness.

Storage:
Unlike white rice it can be spoiled very short span of time. Because of bran layer and also content of natural oil. It can be stored up to 6 months with out any odor. After that we can refrigerate the uncooked rice. Better we will use it with in 6 months means good for eating.

Parthenium Weed (Parthenium hysterophorus)

2011-11-27T07:38:00.000-08:00

Parthenium is a invasive and hazardous weed which is spreading alarming rate in India. Its germinating is faster and each plant can produce 25000 seeds. It spread by humans, animals and wind. It is affecting the crop production, livestock and humans. It contain the toxic material parthenin which cause dermatitis and respiratory problem in humans. It can grow in wide range of areas such as road side, forests, waste land, crop field etc. and also can grow in all climatic conditions.Even in metro cities also spread all over. It can grow very aggressively and spread in vast areas very quickly.

PartheniumWeed

In the domestic animals, it will cause reduction in milk, meat and contamination of parthenin. It competes with crops and makes 10%-40% loss in production of crops. This weed is first noted first in 1951 Maharashtra state, now it is spread all over India and dominant in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The weed has growing health problems in urban side.
Once the plants reach the flowering stage, the pollen from the flowers spread in the air which will cause problem for animals and humans when inhaled.

Controlling:
It can be removed by manual, mechanical and chemical methods. It should be uprooted by manually before its flowering. This method is very effective in road sides and small areas. For larger areas, weed killing chemicals can used(herbicide method) but this can be costlier method when using in large scale. There is no effective method is there to completely remove that. Awareness among the people is important to effectively controlling of this weed.

Second National Conference - Antimicrobial Resistance : A Cause for Global Concern

2011-11-24T06:37:00.001-08:00

2nd National Conference on Antimicrobial Resistance - A Cause for Global Concern.

Date: 6th to 8th February 2012.

Venue: Allahabad,India.

The Conference is Organized by 'The Department of Microbiology & Fermentation Technology, Sam Higginbottom Institute of Agriculture, Technology & Sciences, Deemed-to-be-University', Allahabad .

For further details and registration:
NCAR

Mr.Narendra Modi's great idea on saving water

2011-11-24T04:28:00.001-08:00

The honorable chief minister of Gujarat Mr.Narendra Modi blogged about one good idea for saving water in long time ago. Again I shared the idea to all people because of the importance of that information. I will thank for the Chief minister for this information sharing.

Today water scarcity is the major problem in many areas. Saving water is important compared to saving money for future generations. We have to make the green environment. For that this is the great solution in drought prone areas.

Take a unglazed clay pot and kept it in underground, along with roots of a small plant. Don't put any holes in the pot, just place it in the soil. Then fill the pot with waste water collected from the kitchen. Need not watering for one week to that plant. It serve as the natural drip irrigation. Nowadays we are going a drip irrigation for saving water in the fields, this idea will help to utilize the waste

water to grow gardens.

For more details:
A Daughter,A Tree,A Teacher

Goat Farming

2011-11-23T02:03:00.000-08:00

Agriculture and allied activities support livelihoods of nearly 70 percent of India’s rural population. In recent years, land based livelihoods of small and marginal farmers are increasingly becoming unsustainable, since their land has not been able to support the family’s food requirements. As a result, rural households are forced to look at alternative means for supplementing their livelihoods.
Apart from farm activities, farm community needs extra income from other occupations. From this they can earn much more income compared to other sectors. They are engaged with these activities when they are in adverse conditions.i.e time not suitable for farming like more drought and flood conditions. That time, this income will save their family needs and savings.

There are many non farm occupations are there like goat farming, mushroom cultivation, emu farming, silkworm culture, poultry farming, vermi compost making etc..,

Goat farming:
Goat is known as ‘Poor man’s cow’ in India and is a very important occupation in dry land farming system. Suitable for small and marginal and landless laborers. It needs less grazing lands and initial investment is low.Risk of goat farming is less compared to other livestocks species. It is a economically viable sector to the rural people. They are resistant to diseases. In a short period we can get more revenue.


Semi intensive method

Breeds:

Sirohi, Jamnapari, Surti, Tellicherry, Beetal, Malabari, Barbari and Gujarati. These are popular breeds in india.

Breeding:
For a profitable goat farming there should be 3 kidding for 2 years.
Goats with faster growth rate and larger size should be used for breeding.

Does of one year of age should be used for breeding
Does should bred after 3 months of kidding then only there will be 3 kidding for 2 years.

Shed formation:
It can be raised either intensive or semi intensive methods. In intensive method goats can be raised in sheds or raised platforms with deep bedding materials. No grazing for goats in this method. In semi intensive method they can be grown in ordinary sheds with light litter materials. They can go for the grazing lands also. A small shed with good cross ventilation is enough to keep a small herd. Litter height should be around 6cms. Litter material may be paddy straw,husk, groundnut shell. It should be changed every 6 months interval. Periodically we have to turn the bedding materials for avoiding bad odor. Care should be need for reducing parasitical infections. Each goat requires around 15 sq.ft area. If we use raised platform system means, we can reduce infection level. Around the shed should be wooden plates or wire meshed.

Feeding habits:
Goats consumes wide varieties of feeds and vegetation than either sheep or cattle. Goats are fond of leguminous fodders. They do not take fodders like sorghum and maize silage or straw. They like to eat hay prepared from forest grasses, if cut in early stages, but very much fond with hay prepared from leguminous crops.They also need grains like wheat, maize corns and some pulses. Apart from they need high mineral compositions. So we can prepare the mineral mixture in the following propositions.

Composition of Mineral Mixture Added at a 2%

a.	Sterilized bone meal	35 Parts
b.	Finely ground high grade limestone	45 Parts
c.	Iodized salt	20 Parts
d.	Copper sulphate	22 gms/ton mineral mixture
e.	Zinc Oxide	11 gms/ton ''
f	Ferrous Carbonate	11 gms/ton ''

Feeding protein rich green fodder such as acacia, leucerne and cassava and are important sources of dietary nitrogen. Farmers can cultivate agathi, subabul(subabool) and glaricidia trees along the border of the farm and used as green fodder. Oil cakes is the good supplement for goats. One acre of fodder is enough to feed 35 goats.

Seasonal fodder : Fodder sorghum, Maize, Cumbu

Perennial fodder : Co1, Napier Hybrid, Guinea grass, Para grass, Kolukattai grass

Fodder legumes : Stylo, hedge Lucerne, Fodder ground nut

Tree fodders: Subabul(Subabool), Agathi etc

Subabul(Leucaena leucocephala)

Guinea Grass(Panicum maximum)


Fodder cutting machine

Deworming and vaccinations:
           They need to be vaccinated against foot and mouth disease, rinder pest and tetanus regularly. The animals need to be dewormed at least twice a year to keep in good health. Before breeding the goat should be dewormed. Kids should be dewormed every month interval.

Returns:
            It is a economical and viable enterprise for farmers. Capital Investment of purchase of Goats is very low. For a price of 1 cross-bred Cow, one can purchase 10 quality goats. Goats & their kids can be sold and encashed anytime. Goat has shorter Gestation period(150 days). Their population in the country is continuously increasing, though 60% of the goats are slaughtered every year. Products available from Goats are mutton, milk, manure, skin and fine hair.
Total life of Goats = 15 years. Productive — 7 years. Pregnancy Period =150 days. Manure available from 1 adult goat in 24 hours is 1 kg
Indian meat is preferred in the world. The rich goat manure is ideal for fertilizing fishponds and all other crops. It is also a good base material for vermi-composting.

Loans:
        NABARD is arranging loans for goat growers in a large scale. The loans will be repaid in suitable half yearly/annual installments usually within a period of about 5-6 years with a grace period of one year. The minimum down payment collected from small farmers are only 5% of the total investment. Marginal and large farmers 10, 15% respectively.

Amla Tree - Nellikai, Phyllanthus Embilca (Emblica offcinalis)

2011-11-16T01:30:00.001-08:00

Amla(Aonla) is a indian gooseberry native to India. Amla has a high medicinal and Ayuervedic properties. The fruits have the great source of vitamin C. A small fruit of amla is equal to 2 oranges in terms of vitamin C content. It is used as a good liver tonic in Ayurveda medicines. Apart from medicines the fruit juice extract is used in shampoo preparations and oil, hair dyes. It is also a very important ingredient in the famous Chyavanaprash, and a constituent of Triphala (three fruits) powder. It helps the digestion, prevent the dysentery, cleanses the liver. The dried fruit powder used in a cosmetic sectors as a removing age spots. It also reduces the blood sugar level. So over all it has the highly medicinal values. Obviously the plant have a greater demand nowadays.

Amla Fruit

Cultivation methods:

Soil and climate:
Good fertile and loamy soil is suitable for cultivation. Sandy soils also recommended. Water logged conditions not suitable .There are some good hybrid varieties such as Banarasi, Chakaiya, Kanchan, Krishna, NA6. Black and red soils also suitable for cultivation. The tree can grown in dry regions also.

Land preparation:
Early period of monsoon is good time of planting. During May to june is best time for land preparations. First the field should be well ploughed and levelled. With the distance of 7-10m distance of pit digged with the depth of 1 cubic meter. Pit was exposed to sunlight for 20 days, then filled with 15 kg of FYM(farm yard manure) .

Planting:
The common method of propagation is shield budding. Through seeds also it can be raised. From good and old age plants the fruits collected and raised in nursery. But for commercial cultivation budding is the good method. Proper selection of mother plants is necessary for commercial planting. Superior plants need for selections. Bud should be taken from the branch with more female flowers. The healthy budded plants planting in the pits during the rainy seasons or early monsoon seasons. In dried areas the budded plants raised in the nurseries for better results. Nearly 80 seedlings need per one acre.

After Care:
Proper weeding is necessary in early stages. For first two years field should be clean. Correct plant protection measures have to be taken. Pruning is essential for good yield. Leaving 4-5 healthy well shaped wide branches and removing all other weak branches. If we want means we will go with intercrops like pulses. During early stages the crop needs frequent irrigations. After two years once in 15 days only needs irrigation. After 4 years once in 20 days enough to irrigate.


Traditional Amla Plant

Harvest and yield:
The plant starts yielding after 4-5 years of planting. A mature plant gives (10yr old) around 60-70 kg fruit per year. Per kg contains 15-20 fruits. A well maintained tree gives yield up to around 70 years. Average fruit yield is 200kg per year in a good grafted fully mature tree. It costs around Rs 6 per kg. For major medicinal crops banks including NABARD arranging loans for cost of cultivation to farmers. So all farmers will use this oppurtunity and get better returns. Because present production level in India is too low compared to the population. Now we are producing only 2 lakhs tonnes/year only. By creating awareness among people about the health benefits of Amla, We can attain great demand. That time we needs daily 2 lakhs tonnes of fruits.

Gloriosa superpa(Glory lily, kanvazhi/kalappai kilangu)

2011-11-09T01:33:00.000-08:00

Gloriosa superpa is one of the medicinal plant grown as a commercial crop and will give good returns. NABARD is providing the loans around 80-90% for cost of cultivation for it.Among the medicinal crops it gives more returns like cash crops.
Other names: Kalihari, Glory Lily, Flame lily.

Gloriosa

General information:
It is an annual climbing perennial herb with tuberous roots. Growing between 3.5 to 6 m in length. Tubers and seeds contain colchicine, isoperlolyrine and related tropolane alkaloids, sitosterol and its glucoside, 2-hydroxy 6-methoxy benzoic acid.Flower’s contain Luteolin, its Glucoside, N-Formyl-de-Me-colchicine, its Glucoside and 2-de-Me-colchicine. The colchicine content varies from 0.15 to 0.3% in the tubers and 0.7 % to 0.9% in the seeds.

Medicinal uses:
It is mainly used in Ayurvedic medicines. According to Ayurveda, tuber is pungent, bitter, acrid, heating, anthelmintics, laxative, alexiteric, abortifacient, and useful in ulcers, leprosy, piles, iflommations, abdominal pains, itching and thirst.
The roots and leaves used in snakebite. Leaves given to cattle as anti worm treatment.
Colchicine, an alkaloid extracted from the tubers and seeds gives high price in the market and used in scientific research. Glory lily extract is useful against many
skin diseases. It is used to rectify the many respiratory disorders.

Cultivation methods:
Red loamy soils is good for cultivation. Water logged soils are not suitable. Planting can be done during the rainy seasons and need nearly 1800kg of tubers per ha.

Land Preparation

Land should be ploughed many times and soil should be in fine tilth & incorporate 10 tonnes of Farm Yard Manure(FYM) during last ploughing. Furrows of 20 cm depth and 120 to 140cm between the furrows are formed and tubers are planted at 20 – 35 cm spacing. It is mainly propagated through tubers. Tubers are treated with 0.1% carbendazim for avoiding rotting.

Land preparations
The plant requires are some support. Vines trained over support plants (Commiphora beryii, Dedonea viscose). Permanent structures like iron wires can also be formed for growing the vines.With 5 days interval go with irrigation. After flowering no need of irrigation. Nowadays drip irrigation is well suited with growers. During early stages frequent weeding is necessary.

Harvest:
Flowering during Sep-Oct and pods can be harvested 170 to 180 days after planting. Seeds dried in shade for 10 to 15 days. The tubers are finally harvested after 5 to 6 years.

Seeds

Yield:
In initial years, the yield is low and gradually increase year by year. First 2 years about 100kg per acre but after 3 years 200-300kg of dried seeds per acre can be achieved in well maintained fields. Artificial pollination need for more yields. Market price is around Rs. 600 to 800/kg.There are many companies (extractors of colchicine) purchasing seed material from farmers by executing MOU with assured buy back of seeds at a fixed price. Total cost of cultivation is estimated around Rs. 85,000. From banks we can arrange the loans and they will give 85%to 90% of the total cost of cultivation.The bank loan along with interest can be repaid within five years including one year grace period.

National Conference - Changing Scenario of Food Science, Technology and Agricultural Products

2011-11-06T22:22:00.000-08:00

National Conference on
“Changing Scenario of Food Science, Technology and Agricultural Products”

Date: November 11-12, 2011

Venue: JHANSI, UTTAR PRADESH, India

For further details visit,
http://iftbu.org/seminar.htm

Cocoa Tree Plantation (Theobroma cacao)

2011-10-30T03:43:00.000-07:00

Cocoa is one of the important cash crop which fetches good revenue for small farmers. Currently India is importing 40% of its need. Its demand in India is increasing 15% annually. Cadbury India, Jindal Cocoa, Amul, Campco are encouraging cultivation in India. It is sensitive to direct sun light, so it is cultivated mainly inter-crop with coconut or arecanut trees and make additional revenues. In India, mainly South India is cultivated with it. Also Gmelina Arborea ( Kumil, White teak, Gamar) can be used as shade.

Varieties:
Popular commercial varieties are Criollo and Forestero. Trinitario is hybrid of Criollo and Forestero.
Other varieties are Amelonado and Amazon.

Cocoa Plantation inter-crop with coconut tree.

Plantation:
Cocoa plant is normally raised from sowing seeds. Seeds are sown in the poly bags and raised in 6 months.
or one can get the seedling(saplings) from plant nurseries.

The Pit size needed: 1.5 feet x 1.5 feet x 1.5 feet
Spacing needed: 10 feet
Start of the rainy season is good for planting the seedlings(June). Irrigation to be done as and when it is needed. As inter-crop with coconut trees or arecanut trees, around 200 plants per acre can be planted ( it is needs shadow for growing)

Manuring:

It need manures for good growth. Initial three years can be raised with organic manure.
Nutrient              I Year          II Year       III Year onwards
(gram/tree)
---------------------------------------------------
N                       33              66               100
P                    13              26             40
K                 46              92               140

While applying manure, split equal those gram/tree and apply 2 times a year.

Harvesting:
It needs regular pruning to get good yields. Fruits are called pods which contain seeds( Cocoa beans).

Pest and Disease:
I will cover it in the next post.

Yield:

200kg-400kg of dry cocoa beans/acre. Yearly income of rs 40000/acre can be earned.

Usage:

Cocoa Powder

Cocoa Butter

It has rich in anti-oxidants. It has good health benefits.
Cocoa powder :
It is the low fat component derived from cacao. It contains the most anti-oxidants than cacao butter. Health consultants suggests more intake cacao powder than cacao butter.
It is used in beverage, hot chocolate, cookies and desserts(Many Cocoa recipes are available). And also is used in making dark chocolates( main ingredient).
Cocoa butter:
It is used in making white chocolate and milk chocolate. It is used in pharmaceutical, it is non-toxic in room temperature and melting in body temperature suitable for ideal bases in medicine. It is used as ingredient in cosmetics, lotions and ointments.

Gmelina Arborea( Kumil , Sagwan) Pictures

2011-10-28T09:48:00.000-07:00

9 month old - Gmelina Plantation

Karnataka Global Agribusiness And Food Processing Summit 2011

2011-10-19T19:37:00.000-07:00

Karnataka - Global Agribusiness & Food Processing Summit 2011

Venue:
           Bangalore International Exhibition centre,
           10 th Mile, Tumkur road, Madavara Post,
   Dasansapura Hobli , Bangalore - 562123

Date: 1st and 2nd December 2011

Registration at: http://www.bounteouskarnataka.com/register-form.htm

Live natural and be healthy - II

2011-10-16T04:01:00.000-07:00

1.Wrightia antidysentrica(Snow flake,Milky way, veppala maram): We afraid of fruits because of ripening methods. Especially banana, sappota, mango fruits. For making profit easily majority of the fruit vendors using calcium carbides for ripening the fruits. Even very raw fruits also ripened with in one night by using the calcium carbide. Government also taking necessary steps to prevent this. But they cant control fully because of more needs of fruits. But people should have think it off. It creates more health problems like vomiting, dysentery etc. If we use regularly means we can lead to heavy health problems also. For that we can the traditional ripening methods. It is very easy and no harmful effects also. Use snow lake leaves for ripening the fruits especially bananas. Bunches of banana kept in a sac and put snow flake leaves means it can ripe with in two days. It gives too good taste. It can be used all fruits ripening also. This plant also used in veterinary medicines particularly for cattle.

calcium carbide

snow white

2. Leucas aspera(Tumbe,Thumbai): This one is commonly seen every where as a weed. But we are not aware of this medicinal uses. Flowers and leaves are used for inflammation, skin diseases, worm infestation, arthritis, cough, amenorrhea, intermittent fever, Migraine and ulcer. We don't need any formulations for using this plant, just crush it and extract the juice and can be taken as a medicine for above diseases.

tumbe plant

3. Rangpur lime(Kolumnigi) (Citrus limonia Osbeck):
This is one of the citrus species. But urban people know only about common lime , sweet lime and orange varieties. It is very common in rural areas. It can be grown in most of the soils and resistant to pests and diseases. It is little bit acidic and different in appearance from other citrus varieties. It can be used for cold and coughs. It is very good for children for cold as a natural medicine.

Plant

4.Tridox procumbens(Tridox daisy, Vettu kai poondu):
Commonly we can seen in road sides also . This is one of the weed. But it has good medicinal values . It is used for wounds and it will stop the blood bleeding in wounds suddenly. Whole plant juice extract is used.

Tridox sp

5.Phyllanthus Niruri (Kella nellai): It has wide range of medicinal uses. Phyllanthus has been used to treat jaundice, dysentery, diabetes, skin diseases, liver diseases, ulcers, cough and other bronchial diseases.Whole plants are used in Ayurvedic formulations. Clinical studies stats that Phyllanthus juice extract has the great efficacy in the treatment of hepatitis B.Nowadays it is grown as commercial crop. The market price is Rs.45 /kg dried herb.

Live natural and be healthy

2011-10-11T10:24:00.000-07:00

Nowadays all people running behind the organic products for the name-sake and afraid of health hazards. But we are neglecting our local plants that can be raised in any adverse conditions and without using any in-organic materials. Those crops we would have seen very frequently but we are not aware of the benefits. Some of the useful plants are:

Monthan Banana

1. Monthan banana:
This varieties almost gone in cities. Rarely used in villages, but it has more medicinal values. It is mainly used for reducing heat in our body system. Monthan fruit is used for chicken-pox patients. It helps to reduce the fever and heat level. Taste also too good compared to other varieties.

2. Wunja maram(Albizia amara): Nowadays all are
running behind the shampoos and conditioners for their shining hairs. But if we use the wunja mara leaves powder (Arappu) means hair looking too shining and good growth compared to any other good brands of shampoos.
The leaves and pods of Albizia amara serve a natural conditioner for the hair while washing hair. Even barks also used as conditioner. It reduces heat of the body, it softens the hair, and it’s a very good product for hair.
It is an old method of washing hair and very good for hair growth and nourishment.

Powder

It has a sweet-smelling fragrance and has aromatic smell remains naturally in the hair for more than five days.
One of the studies revealed that arappu could soothe the scalp letting the cells to grow around the hair follicles producing a new shoot of hair.
Its froth is said to compete the first class shampoos all over the world when it comes to fragrance and long-lasting odor. And the good thing is, it is very natural and does not have any side effects over time.

Wunja maram

3. Hadjod plant(Pirandai)(Cissus quadrangularis): Hadjod is given in piles, asthma, digestive troubles, cough and loss of appetite. It is recognized as good healer of bone fractures. The stems and roots produce strong fiber. It has the high healing power. And also it is rich in anti-oxidants. It can be raised through organic inputs only. No need of any inorganic fertilizers and pesticides. So it is good for health without mixing of any chemicals.

The tender stems are used in kitchen. It is the natural remedy for digestive problems. You can prepare chutneys and pickles. The stem of the plant is loaded with rich amount steroids.

Gold Euphoria

2011-10-04T08:34:00.000-07:00

Gold is moving up higher and higher on euphoria. The rupee's depreciation against dollar and uncertainty in europe region pushing the gold higher in the indian market.

Why gold is rising when inflation is high? Because of the fear of losing the currency value and more defaults.

Gold Price(10 gram pure) has reached Rs.28000 in our market and corrected from there.
Is still gold has some value for investment? Gold price will soften once European crisis is resolved. There is lot of volatility because of the that. So those who want to invest in gold phyical/etf , can wait some more time for correction to Rs.23000 levels.

Happy Investing.

Conservation of traditional crop varieties

2011-09-22T09:13:00.001-07:00

Over the years, traditional crop varieties fully replaced by High Yielding Varieties(HYVs), Hybrids and genetically modified crops. In India, the first maize hybrid was released in 1961 for general cultivation, followed by hybrid varieties of sorghum, pearl millet, and non-hybrid, high-yielding varieties of rice and wheat. Since, traditional varieties are highly recommended because they have a relatively high nutritional value compared to the introduced varieties, their consumption gives diversity to daily food intake, adding flavor, special aroma and taste to the diet. These are fully lacking in HYVs. Mainly traditional vegetable varieties are rich in vitamins, minerals, trace elements, dietary fiber and proteins.
According to rice scientists Richharia and Govindasamy states that in India more than 2 lakhs rice varieties had been identified with the evidence of Vedic and present day literature. But gradually all the local varieties are disappeared. The main reason is steady replacement with the high-yielding varieties (HYVs). And also ‘modern’ varieties continue to be aggressively promoted at the expense and exclusion of traditional varieties. For example, the success of HYVs in farms has often prompted state agricultural scientists and extension staff to promote these crops by exaggerating that their yields, claiming them to be higher than
those of indigenous varieties. But this was not true for many varieties. Many local varieties yields more than HYVs.(Eg., Kurangu samba, Kitchili samba, etc.). Several native varieties are good resistant to pests and diseases. And those can be cultivated in any adverse conditions like drought, water logging etc.

Some ingenious rice varieties :

Lakshmi kajal

Chithiraikar
Kudaivazhai
Puzhuthiikar
Bhavani
Perungar
Vaigunda
Pisini
Puzhuthi samba
Kudhiraival samba
Neelan samba
Lakshmi kajal
Aruvadhan kodai
Kollan samba
Kuruvai
Mattai 110
Soolaikuruvai
Mottakur
Kattu vaniyam

Chomala
Selam samba
Kurangu samba

Bhavani

Kitchili samba

These are all some traditional varieties in rice.

Some of the vegetable varieties:

BRINJAL

1. Dindugal local

2. Periyakulam local
3. Vellai Urundai
4. Varikkathithi

TOMATO

1. Bangalore local
2. Guli thakkali
3. Periyakulam local
4. Pink thakkali
5. Sirsi nattu thakkali
6. Nattu thakkali

SNAKE GOURD

1. Kuttai pudalai
2. Nettai pudalai

BITTER GOURD

1. Mithi pakal
2. Kuruvithalai pakal
3. Periyakai pakal
4. Nettai pakal

Nurai peerkai

RIDGE GOURD

1. Kuttai peerkai
2. Chori peerkai
3. Mezhugu peerkai
4. Pambu peerkai
5. Nurai peerkai

PUMPKIN

1. Thalaiyanai poosani
2. Urundai poosani

BEAN

1. Belt avarai
2. Pattai avarai
3. Kozhi avarai I
4. Yanaikathu avarai
5. Irakkai avarai
6. Thampattai avarai

CHILLI

1. Perennial chilli
2. Palur chilli
3. Nattu chilli
4. Kandhari chilli
5. Butter chilli

Kazuthu surai

BOTTLE GOURD

1. Kumbam surai
2. Satti surai
3. Pambu surai
4. Kazuthu surai
5. Vatta surai

BHENDI

1. Bangalore local
2. Kulemagali vendai
3. Nattu vendai

In order to promote traditional crop varieties, community seed banks should be established in each village, and required infrastructure facilities need to be developed to enhance the conservation and distribution of traditional rice varieties. And also give more subsidiaries to the local varieties cultivation. Give high prices to farmers who cultivate the indigenous varieties. Give patent and all rights to the local varieties.

Gmelina Arborea ( Kumil, White teak, Gamar)

2011-09-17T21:25:00.000-07:00

Gmelina Arborea is one of the fast growing tree and has good timber value. It can grow in all type of soils (fertile or poor, water logging to be avoided). It can grow moderate to large height up to 30 m with girth of 1.2 to 4. It will give good returns in 8-10 years.

Other names are: sagwan teak, kashmir teak, ummithekku, Shewan, Gamar tree, Gamhar tree

Method of planting (Cultivation / Plantation):
If irrigation facility is not available, start of the rainy season is good time for planting. Seedling is available from the nurseries (rs 10 -15 per sapling).
Pit size needed for planting is 2 feet x 2 feet x 2 feet.
Spacing needed between each sapling is 10-12 feet. Good spacing is needed for better growth of girth and height. Support pole is needed while planting (first 6 months) since sapling may easily break by wind or animals. If irrigation possible, you can irrigate in 2-3 weeks interval. Side branches growing is more in it, so proper pruning is needed in regular intervals. Inter crops such as black gram, groundnut, pepper etc can cultivated up to 3-4 years. No of trees can be planted per acre is 400-600 trees. It can be harvested in 8-10 years.

It can yield 500*8000 = rs 40,00000/acre in 8-10 years.

Uses:
Gmelina arborea can be used as substitute to teak wood (Tectona grandis). Gmelina arborea is used in paneling, carriages, furniture, carpentry, boxes and also for plywood industries. Timber can be used for doors and window panels. It can be used in paper and match industries. The roots and fruits are used in Ayurveda medicine.
Some of the pictures are here:

Gmelina Arborea( Kumil , Sagwan) Pictures | Innovative farming solutions

Sizzling Castor ( Ricinus communis, Aamanakku, Disa)

2011-09-14T11:14:00.000-07:00

Castor crop (Ricinus communis) is one of the high demand cash crops nowadays. And also cost of cultivation and maintenance is much lesser than other cash crops. Castor is suitable for all soil types but do best in fertile, well-drained soil (no water-log). In India, Gujarat(80% of the produce) and Andra Pradesh are major producers.
Names used:
Assam - Era-gach
Bangla - Erando, Veranda
Gujarat - Divel
Hindi - Arandi
Kannada - Haralenne
Malayalam - Chittamankku or Avanakkanna
Marathi - Errand
Oriya - Jada
Tamil - Aamanakku (ஆமணக்கு),
Telugu - Aavadam, Aamudalu

Cultivation:
Castor grows well at hot and humid tropical conditions. Duration of the plants are 5-6 months. Castor can be cultivated in two times in a year. Castor can grown as pure crop or inter crop with groundnut, green gram etc. Castor can be cultivated in irrigation or rain fed. Monsoon season(July - October) is good for sowing.
Raising castor by forming ridges 60cm apart and furrows of 30 cm width, 15 cm depth is better than flat bed method.
Spacing adopted for planting

TMV 6 - 90 x 60 cm

TMVCH 1 - 90 x 60 cm

Varieties:
The commonly cultivated varieties are TMVCH 1(Hybrid) , TMV 5 , TMV 6.
Hybrid varieties yield around 1300 kg/ha.

Usage:

Castor seeds are mainly used for oil. Castor is oil rich and having 50% oil content. Castor oil is used in paints, lubricants, pharmaceutical, textiles and perfumeries etc. And main advantage is used as a biodiesel. The residual oil cake ( Castor meal) , which contains about 5.5 percent Nitrogen, 1.8-1.9 percent Phosphorus and 1.1 percent Potassium, is used as organic manure.
Castor oil (food grade) is used in food additives, flavorings, candy and in packaging.

Future of Castor Seeds:

Castor seed prices surged recent days in India on robust export demand from China and active buying by local mills. India is the major producer and exporter of Castor oil. 100 kg of castor price is priced in rs 4700. Castor oil export during April 2010-March 2011 343,254 tonnes with vale of, 2362.46 crores. (data from the Solvent Extractors Association showed). China is the biggest importer of castor oil in this year.

Castor meal(cake) also good demand in Japan, Vietnam, South Korea, China, Taiwan.

With the increase in Diesel and Petrol prices, World is looking for the alternative source of energy. Biodiesel is one of the important renewable energy source. One major benefit of biodiesel is biodegradable, non-toxic, less green-house gas emissions. The biodiesel can be used as 20% blend with petrodiesel without modifying the present engines. Since the castor oil is non-edible and rich oil content, it can be good raw material for biodiesel production.

New castor seed variety has helped improve average national yield

Melia Dubia (Malai vembu)

2011-09-11T02:51:00.000-07:00

One of the major problem in today's agriculture is reducing income year by year. The land values are increased and income from agriculture is reduced due to increased cost for labors, increase in cost of cultivation and increase in transportation cost. Because of that farmers are selling land and looking for other business. So we need to think of good income from agriculture by reducing labors and increasing yield. In today's picture, the middle men are earning the good income from agriculture products, and the farmer who produces getting less from what he produced. Since the many short term crops need more labors, transportation and inventory cost, the final gain for the farmers are very less. To make good revenues as per acre, we need to cultivate medium to long term crops keeping the cost to minimal and also good revenue in future.

Melia Dubia is one of the fast growing tree and give good returns. It can be used in match or biomass or plywood industries. After 3 years, 30-40 tons of biomass/acre can be harvested upto 10 years. The price of wood per ton is rs 2000-4000. so one can get minimum revenue of 2000*30 = rs 60000/acre every year.
30% of the trees we leave without cutting for 8 years means it can be used in plywood industries which will fetch rs 6000-10000 per tree( 6000*300 = rs 18,00000).

Plantation/Cultivation:

Once we decide to cultivate the tree means first go with good seedling collection from Forest Departments. When direct sowing the seed without treatment , the germination percentage is less(20%). So we do alternate soaking and drying in cold water, the period of germination is 20 days and 75% germination is expected. Those having difficulty in germination, can get the seedlings(sapling) from the plant nurseries.

Then we start planting in beginning of the rainy season, so irrigation is minimal or can use drip irrigation for 2 years.

The suggested Pit size is 2 feet x 2 feet. 10x10 feet spacing is needed for better girth.
Procedure of planting:

1) Dig the pit and keep it open for 1-2 weeks.

2) Then close the pit with the soil available with digging.

3) After 2 days, open the pit slightly 1/2 feet , put organic manure(Vermicompost) of 0.5 kg for each pit and plant the seedling. If sapling height is more, can use support pole for each pit to avoid breaking of sapling.

4) And irrigate in same day.

Melia dubia has 90% less side branches, so less labors are needed to maintain.
Upto 5 years, ground nut, chilli, turmeric, blackgram as inter crops can be cultivated.
Timely weeding and pruning is needed and also practice IPM and IDM.

Profitable Fast Growing Trees - Gmelina arborea, Melia Dubia, Bamboo, Casuarina

2011-09-07T09:46:00.000-07:00

With thousands of tree species growing worldwide, only a small number are considered valuable to the commercial timber industry.

Fast Growing Timber Trees:

1. Gmelina arborea (Kumil, Kumula maram in Tamil):

Gmelina arborea is a fast growing tree. It is used in constructions, furniture, carriages, sports, musical instruments and artificial limbs. It can grow moderate to large height up to 30 m with girth of 1.2 to 4. It can be harvested in 8-10 years.
Gmelina Arborea ( Kumil, White teak, Gamar)
Gmelina Arborea( Kumil , Sagwan) Pictures

2. Melia dubia - (Malai Vembu in Tamil):

Melia Dubia is fast growing tree and it can be cultivated in all types of soil and requiring a low supply of water. Melia dubia has the unique feature of growing to 40 feet within 2 years from planting and can be mechanically pruned and harvested. It is used in plywood, match industries. Melia dubia (Malai Vembu)

Trees for Industries:

1) Match Industries:
1. Ailanthus excelsa - Indian Tree of Heaven (Perumaram, Pee maram, in Tamil):
Indian Tree of Heaven is a large deciduous tree, 18-25 m tall trunk straight. Mainly used in match box industry and also Boat building (general), Boxes and crates, Musical instruments, Plywood, Pulp/Paper products, Tool handles. Need less irrigation and suitable for all soil types.

2) Paper Industries:

1. Casuarina junghuhniana - (savukku in Tamil):
Casuarina is a fast growing and adoptable for any soil types. Mainly used in paper industries. It can be harvested after 3.5 years.

2. Bamboo (Bambusa nutans, B. Bamboos, B. tulda, B. vulgaris, B. Balcooa)

Bamboo is the world's fastest growing plant and some species of bamboo can grow up to a foot a day in the right conditions. It can be cultivated in all type of soils with sufficient water irrigation facility. Now bamboo can be cultivated in tissue culture sapling which will give 5 times more density. After the year 4, bamboo can be harvested 20-60 tons/acres for 60 years.

3) Bio mass Industries:

1. Melia dubia - (Malai Vembu in Tamil):
As an energy crop, Melia dubia has the potential of yielding in excess 40 tons of biomass on average per acre per annum over a 10 year period (before replanting is required). It’s high calorific value makes it a viable source of feedstock for biomass power plants.

2. Bamboo (Bambusa nutans, B. Bamboos, B. tulda, B. vulgaris, B. Balcooa):
Its high yield makes it usable in biomass industries.

The following trees are not comes under fast growing category, but they are having strong timber values. Those trees will take minimum of 30 to 40 years to maturity.

1.Tectona grandis - Teak.

2. Haldinia Cardifolia (Manja Kadambu in Tamil ).

3. Rose wood.

4. Pterocarpus santalinus -( Red Sanders, Sivappu Santhanam in Tamil).

5. Pterocarpus marsupium - (Indian Kino Tree, Vengai in Tamil).

6. Santalum album - (Sandal wood ,Santhana maram in Tamil).

7. Thespesia populnea - (Poovarasu in Tamil).

8. Hardwickia binnata - (Aachaa in Tamil).

Points to be considered for cultivation:

Tree cultivation combines of both science and care. Here with some points in tree plantation.

These are the things to keep in mind before going for tree cultivation.

1. Select trees according to your land type, irrigation facilities and maintenance (after care)

2. Do Soil Test and water analysis and select trees that suits your soil type and water quality.

3. Spacing of trees.
Trees are prefer to grow in many ways .so our effort would be not only to cover more area for tree plantation but also to plant more trees in a given area.
There are two aspects of tree space: above and below the ground. The above ground space is more obvious for ex. Tall trees should not be placed where high tension wires are running overhead. Underground space is also as important and medium sized trees should be planted at least at a distance of 4 meters from each other and bigger ones at 8 meters from each other and 5 meters away from buildings foundations.

4. Time of planting
The period of planting depends upon the species, region, availability of irrigation facilities, rainfall of the region, etc. Winter is the best time for planting deciduous trees as they are dormant at this period and hence less likely to suffer from damage. For evergreen and semi-deciduous trees, rainy season is the best time for planting. Trees may be planted during the following periods:
During spring: That is January and February. At this time all the factors (especially the temperature), required for tree growth are present. Thus, this is a good time for young saplings to be planted.
At the onset of Monsoons: For most species and most areas, planting is carried out during monsoons. It is advisable to start planting work immediately after a good shower and when the ground is well moistened to the depth of planting. Thereafter any delay should be treated as loss of growing season.

5. After care.

The saplings need to be watered regularly, protected from cattle and pests and insects, given manure. Pruning will make trees more increase vigor, health and increase the value of timber.

6. Select plant species.

7. Inter cropping or mixed cropping.

8. Have knowledge of different trees.

9. Carbon credit
Carbon finance facilitates the financial reward through carbon credits for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by emitters in developing countries. Activities of the World Bank Carbon Finance Unit (CFU) are part of the larger global effort to combat climate change, and are aligned with the World Bank and its Environment Department's mission to reduce poverty and improve living standards in the developing world.

So we will start our green planet from today ..,