Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
and changes to fertilizer practices made
accordingly. In Africa, high transport costs in
land-locked countries contribute to prohibitively
high fertilizer prices (FAO
2008
). In the case of
small-scale farmers, these costs may represent
too high a proportion of the total variable cost of
production, thus ruling out inorganic fertilizer as
a feasible option.
for adaptive measures. Anthropological and soci-
ological studies have highlighted the importance
of community-based resource management and
social learning to enhance their capacity to adapt
to the impacts of future climate change. Tribal
and hill knowledge systems are pregnant with
potential indigenous practices used for absorp-
tion and conservation of rainwater, nutrient and
weed management, crop production, and plant
protection. Their belief systems have effectively
helped in weather forecasting and risk adjust-
ment in crop cultivation. During the course of
their habitation, the indigenous people of
Himalayan terrain region through experience,
experimentation, and accumulated knowledge
have devised ways of reducing their vulnerability
to natural hazards. Studies have shown that their
understanding was fairly evolved in the matters
of earthquake, landslide, and drought and they
have devised effi cient ways of mitigating the
effect of natural or climatic changes.
12.2.10
Biological Nitrogen
Fixation
In agricultural systems, some types of microbes
can carry out biological nitrogen fi xation (BNF)
as free-living organisms: heterotrophic and auto-
trophic bacteria and cyanobacteria. Other micro-
organisms can only fi x nitrogen through a
symbiotic relationship with plants, mainly legume
species. In agricultural areas, about 80 % of BNF
is achieved by the symbiotic association between
legumes and the nodule bacteria, rhizobia.
Farmers have some scope to infl uence BNF,
through legume selection, the proportion of
legume and grass seed in forage mixtures, inocu-
lation with bacteria such as rhizobia, crop nutri-
tion (especially nitrogen and phosphorous), weed,
disease and pest controls, planting time, cropping
sequence and intensity, and defoliation frequency
of forage swards. In perennial temperate forage
legumes, red clover and lucerne can typically fi x
200-400 kg of nitrogen per hectare (whole plant
fi xation, above- and belowground) (FAO
2009
).
12.2.12
Interventions
12.2.12.1 Research and Development
Promotion of organic agriculture research.
Develop technologies for improvement of
water-use effi ciency.
Develop technologies for management of salt-
affected soils and waterlogged areas.
Explore potential of change in sowing time as
adaptation strategy.
12.2.12.2 Technologies and Practices
Promoting agriculture heritage and traditional
methods for conservation and management of
resources
Soil enrichment through intercrop transfers
(use of legumes), promotion of conservation
agriculture practices to enhance soil organic
carbon, water conservation, and minimize soil
erosion
Developing and applying resource conserva-
tion technologies (RCTs) like zero-tillage,
raised bed planting, laser land leveling, etc.,
for enhancing soil productivities
Promoting inter-terrace land treatment,
12.2.11
Harnessing Indigenous
Technical Knowledge
of Farmers
Farmers in South Asia, often poor and marginal,
are experimenting with the climatic variability
for centuries. There is a wealth of knowledge on
the range of measures that can help in developing
technologies to overcome climate vulnerabilities.
There is a need to harness that knowledge and
fi ne-tune them to suit the modern needs.
Traditional ecological knowledge of people
developed and carried which have stood the test
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