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Sustainable Agriculture: Concepts and Approaches

Alok Kumar Patra
  • Country of Origin:

  • Imprint:

    NIPA

  • eISBN:

    9789395319010

  • Binding:

    EBook

  • Language:

    English

Individual Price: 3,995.00 INR 3,595.50 INR + Tax

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This book deals with almost all the important aspects of Sustainable Agriculture viz., principles of sustainable agriculture, indicators of agricultural sustainability, LEISA, conservation agriculture, soil, nutrient, water and integrated pest management for sustainable agriculture, climate smart sustainable agriculture, contingent planning for weather hazards, agroforestry, agriculture waste management.

The details have been discussed about the objectives, benefits and concerns related to sustainable agriculture. Not only this but the chapters presented in this book discusses about the sustainable soil and water management, approaches for nutrient management, benefits and limitations of IPM, effect of climate change on agriculture, crop diversification for sustainability and what aims and principles of organic farming are required for sustainable agriculture.

This book will provide a knowledge base for developing human resources for students, teachers, researchers, in short for everybody who are associated with the concept of sustainable agriculture.

0 Start Pages

Years ago, the focus was to support life by providing food, fodder, timber, fibre, etc. For this, the farmers were trying to increase the productivity level year after year and they achieved it through the modern high-input agricultural practices. However, during the mid-1980s it was realised that high productivity and economic development at the cost of ecological health and social equity did not lead to longlasting prosperity. It was also realised that the very existence of life was in danger due to environmental pollution, climate change, disease, loss of biodiversity, conflicts and so on.

 
1 Introduction to Sustainable Agriculture

The food productivity increased manifolds due to high-input modern agriculture with the adoption of new technologies like high yielding varieties, farm mechanisation, increased use of fertiliser and pesticide, specialised farming practices, water resource development and improved irrigation practices, etc. The Green Revolution started in the early 1960s has led to the attainment of self-sufficiency in food grain production.

1 - 24 (24 Pages)
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2 Indicators of Agricultural Sustainability

Indicators of agricultural sustainability are a composite set of attributes or measures that embody a particular aspect of agriculture. These are quantified information, which help to explain how things are changing over time. Smyth and Dumanski (1993) define indicators as environmental attributes that measure or reflect environmental status or condition of change.

25 - 40 (16 Pages)
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3 Low External Input and Sustainable Agriculture

Low external input agriculture developed as a concept in the 1980s, gaining ground with the establishment of the Information Centre for Low External Input and Sustainable Agriculture in 1984 (Kessler and Moolhuijzen, 1994). Low external input agriculture developed as a response to the criticisms surrounding Green Revolution technology being neither sustainable nor feasible for many small-scale farmers around the world.

41 - 64 (24 Pages)
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4 Conservation Agriculture for Sustainability

Conservation agriculture is an approach to managing agroecosystems for improved and sustained productivity, increased profits and food security while preserving and enhancing the resource base and the environment. Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) defines conservation agriculture as a farming system that promotes maintenance of a permanent soil cover, minimum soil disturbance (i.e., no tillage), and diversification of plant species.

65 - 90 (26 Pages)
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5 Soil Management for Sustainable Agriculture

Soil is a biologically active porous medium that has developed in the uppermost layer of the earth’s crust which serves as a natural medium for the growth of plants. It is one of the principal substrata of life on earth, serving as a reservoir of water and nutrients, and as a participant in the cycling of carbon and other elements through the global ecosystem.

91 - 114 (24 Pages)
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6 Nutrient Management for Sustainable Agriculture

Sustainability in agricultural production is guided by the overriding philosophy of ‘feed the soil to feed the plant’. Adequate supply of plant nutrients is required to ensure efficient crop production. Plants use individual chemical elements and ions as their food. In 1939, Arnon and Stout laid down three criteria for the essentiality of a plant nutrient.

115 - 132 (18 Pages)
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7 Water Management for Sustainable Agriculture

Water is a critical input for agricultural production and plays an important role in sustainable agriculture and food security. Agriculture is the principal user of water, accounting for around 70% of total withdrawals. Producing each calorie of food requires approximately one litre of water.

133 - 158 (26 Pages)
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8 Integrated Pest Management for Sustainable Agriculture

The integrated pest management is a set of effective and environmentally safe pest management practices that takes advantages of all appropriate pest management options including, but not limited to, the judicious use of pesticides. The comprehensive information on the life cycles of pests and their interaction with the environment, and the available pest control methods are used to manage pest damage by the most economical means, and with the least possible hazard to people, property, and the environment. 

159 - 176 (18 Pages)
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9 Climate Smart Sustainable Agriculture

Agriculture is the largest human activity in the world which depends on climatic parameters. Despite technological advances, such as improved crop varieties, genetically modified organisms, and irrigation systems, weather is still a key factor in agricultural productivity, as well as soil properties and natural communities.

177 - 210 (34 Pages)
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10 Contingent Planning for Weather Hazards

Agriculture is an economic activity that is highly dependent upon weather and climate in order to produce the food and feed necessary to sustain human life. In spite of technological improvements that increase agricultural production, weather hazards have caused significant yield reductions in some years at different regions.

211 - 228 (18 Pages)
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11 Cropping Systems for Sustainable Agriculture

A system is a set of components that are interrelated and interact among themselves. A system may be natural, social or artificial. Natural systems consist of all the materials both physical and biological and are independent of human beings. Our role in relation to natural systems is to try to understand these systems and make use of them as per our needs. 

229 - 266 (38 Pages)
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12 Integrated Farming Systems for Sustainable Agriculture

Integrated farming system is a multidisciplinary whole farm approach, which enables the farmers to identify opportunities and threats and act accordingly. It is a dynamic approach which can be applied to any farming system around the world. It is very effective in solving the problems of small and marginal farmers. The approach aims at increasing income and employment from small-holding by integrating various farm enterprises and recycling crop residues and by-products within the farm itself.

267 - 304 (38 Pages)
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13 Agroforestry : A Sustainable Land Use System

The general concept of agroforestry is to integrate trees and agriculture so as to create a more diversified landscape, while providing the producers with new environmental and economic benefits. In other words, agroforestry is a method of farming that allows trees and shrubs to grow along with crops and/or livestock, therefore blending agriculture and forestry in the same production system.

305 - 336 (32 Pages)
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14 Organic Farming for Sustainable Agriculture

Organic farming is one of the several approaches found to meet the objectives of sustainable agriculture. It is often associated and sometimes confused with ‘sustainable farming’. However, policy and ethics-wise ‘organic farming’ is different from ‘sustainable farming’. Organic farming is based on various laws and certification programmes whereas sustainable agriculture is the practice of farming using principles of ecology.

337 - 362 (26 Pages)
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15 Sustainable Livestock Farming

The livestock sector has emerged as a vital sector for ensuring a more inclusive and sustainable agriculture system. Livestock production can be an important component of a sustainable agricultural system because it can provide a quality source of plant nutrients, be an income generator, and provide an environmentally sound use of certain lands. Some farmland is just not suitable for crop production, but may be utilised sustainably for livestock production.

363 - 398 (36 Pages)
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16 Agricultural Waste Management

The residues from production and processing of raw agricultural products such as fruits, vegetables, meat, poultry, dairy products and crops are called agricultural wastes. The by-products of agricultural activities are also referred to as agricultural waste.

399 - 418 (20 Pages)
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17 End Pages

Adaptation strategies 201, 205 Additive intercropping 235 Advantages of IFS 274

 
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