Integrated farming generates more returns

Ongole: The public and private agencies are stressing on the best utilisation of resources and non-pollution of mother earth. A farmer in Prakasam district is implementing the best practices available in organic farming for reaping maximum produce from his four acre land and cultivating crops like red ladyfingers, carrot and beetroot, which do not grow in the local atmosphere.

Meet Mannam Sridhar Babu from Ravipadu mandal in Prakasam district. He is a farmer of four acres land and no water dependant crops could be cultivated due to the consistent drought conditions. Prakasam district is witnessing most number of suicides of farmers due to the unavailability of minimum selling price, every year.

Learning a lesson from the unavoidable conditions earlier than other farmers, Sridhar Babu planted lemon, mango and sapodilla in his farm and fitted drip irrigation system. The farmers need to give adequate space between lemon, mango and sapodilla plants and should wait for at least four years for reaping the fruits.

The farmer needs to supply water regularly to strengthen the tree and allow it to give fruits. He needs to invest more in the name of pesticides and fertilisers all the years. But Sridhar Babu is an exception for that. Sridhar Babu followed integrated crop method, which is being suggested by the agricultural officers, but with a twist.

He installed the drip irrigation system to pump water to the plants as per the demand. He divided the space between lemon, mango and sapodilla plants into plots and started cultivating carrots, beetroot and red ladyfingers, which do not grow locally along with other vegetables.

For every 30 to 40 days he cultivates tomatoes, cucumber, cabbage, brinjal, lady fingers, beans, musk melon, carrot and beetroot and sells them in the local market to get at least Rs 50,000 income every month. On the other hand, Sridhar uses cow dung, urine, jaggery and other natural substances to control pests and insects attacking the crops.

Sridhar said, “I received the seeds of red ladyfingers and other non-locally grown crops from a farmer in Varanasi. They grow well in the north India and we are exporting them for our needs. But my trial of growing them here is a success and many farmers are interested in growing them.

By the integrated farming of vegetables, I am getting regular income on the land and I do not need to wait for years for returns.” A number of farmers around Ravipadu, Chimakurthy and surrounding areas visiting the farm of Sridhar to know about the red ladyfingers expecting demand, as they are not available in local market.

Vara Prasada Rao, senior scientist in Krishi Vigyan Kendra in Darsi said, “In the lemon, sapodilla and mango farm of Sridhar, we encouraged him to adopt integrated farming to cultivate vegetables, sesame and fodder for extra income. The farmers in the district are regularly cultivating paddy, tobacco, cotton, chickpea and chillies.

Majority of them are spending thousands of rupees in the name of fertilisers and insecticides. But if they grow jowar or bajra as feeder crops on the borders of the main crop, it attracts the insects and feeds on it. Also with the experience of Sridhar, we are suggesting the farmers to grow vegetables after cultivation of the main crop to earn extra income without much investment. That income could help them to cover the losses.”