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December 2nd, 2020
Topic: – Natural Farming(Agriculture)
What is the news?
- On the eve of the 36th founding day of Dr Y S Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Governor Sri Bandaru Dattatreya emphasized natural farming, the use of horticultural technology and the application of research in response to changing meteorological conditions.
What is Natural farming?
- When the laws of nature are applied directly to agricultural practices, then an eco-system of natural agriculture develops. Natural agriculture operates in conjunction with the natural biodiversity of each agricultural zone.
- Natural agriculture was founded by Masanobu Fukuoka, a Japanese farmer and philosopher in his 1975 book “The Straw Revolution”.
Natural & organic agriculture, similarities?
• Both are non-chemical farming methods.
• Natural and organic methods of agriculture favour in-house methods of pest control that are non-chemical.
• Both methods encourage farmers to use local seed varieties and indigenous varieties of grains, pulses, vegetables and other crops.
• Natural and organic agriculture discourages farmers from using chemicals, pesticides on crops and in agricultural practices.
What are the main differences between natural and organically grown agriculture?
• Natural farming does not use outdoor chemical or organic fertilizers for soil and plants.
• The decomposition of organic matter takes place through microbes and earthworms in the soil, gradually adding food to the soil.
• While organic agriculture uses organic fertilisers and manures such as compost, vermicomposting, cow manure, etc.
• Organic farming is dependent on agricultural practices such as tillage, tipping, mixing, weeding, etc. Such activity does not exist in natural agriculture.
Organic farming is also expensive because of bulk manure needs and it has an ecological impact on surrounding environments. At a time when natural agriculture is extremely economical and compatible with local biodiversity.
(Source: The Tribune HP & ugaoo)
Topic: – Himachal Apple production(Agriculture)
What is the news?
- Himachal ranked 5th in Global Apple production. Horticulture has sprouted as a boon for the rural economy.
Which are the Apple growing districts of Himachal?
- Shimla, Kullu and Kinnaur districts.
- Kinnaur apples are the last to come in September-October.
- Climate for apple growth the extended chill, snowfall and rain, in line with old weather pattern, help the apple plants meet their chilling requirement before flowering.
What is the Status of Horticulture in Himachal?
- The rich diversity of agro-climatic conditions, topographical variations and altitudinal differences coupled with fertile, deep and well-drained soils favour the cultivation of temperate to sub-tropical fruits in Himachal.
- The area under fruits, which was 792 hectares in 1950-51 with a total production of 1,200 tonnes increased to 2, 32,139 hectares during 2018-19.
- The total fruit production in 2018-19 was 4.95 lakh tonnes, while during 2019-20 (until December 2019) it has been reported as 7.07 lakh tonnes.
- Status of Apple in Himachal Apple is the most important fruit crop of Himachal Pradesh, which constitutes about 49 per cent of the total area under fruit crops and about 74 per cent of the total fruit production. The area under apple has increased from 400 hectares in 1950-51 to 3,025 hectares in 1960-61 and 1,13,154 hectares in 2018-19.
(Source: HP Govt)
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