eChapters

12.1. BASIC AND CURRENT FACTS OF AGRICULTURE

Basic information related to agriculture and allied sciences in India

1. Cattle
2. Buffaloes
3. Sheep
4. Goat
5. Swine
6. Camel
7. Rabbit
8. Poultry

Animal husbandry

Animal husbandry is the branch of science concerned with the care and breeding of domestic animals such as cattle, hogs, goat, sheep and horses.

India supports nearly 20% of the world livestock and 16.8% human population with a land area of only 2.3%. India leads in cattle and buffalo population and has world’s second largest goat and third largest sheep population. As per the 19^th Livestock census (2012) cattle (191 millions), buffalo (109 m), Sheep (65 m), goats (135 m), pigs (10.29m), camels (0.4 m) and poultry (729.2 m) population was reported in India. The total livestock population has decreased by about 3.33% over the previous census. India’s milk production increased from 43 million tonnes in 1983 to 155.5 million tonnes in 2015-16 (annual growth of 6.27%) and stands first in milk production in world.. The egg production is around 82.93 billion during 2015-16. The per capita availability is around 66 eggs per annum. The poultry meat production is estimated to be 3.26 million tonnes. Wool production (43.6 million Kgs) and meat production is 7.0 million tonnes in 2015-16.

1. Area, Production and Productivity of Horticultural Crops (2013-2014)

9.1. STATISTICAL METHODS

Measures of central tendency : Three measure of the central tendency of a frequency distribution are mean, median and mode.

1. Mean / average / arithmetic mean : It is sum of all of the data values divided by the number of data values and it affected by extreme values.
2. Median : It is the middle value of the data set when it has been arranged in ascending or descending order. This is not at all affected by extreme values.
3. Mode : It is the value that occurs most often in a distribution. Not affected by extreme values. It used to find the ideal size of different age group. eg: size of readymade garments, shoe size

   Harmonic mean : Reciprocal of the arithmetic mean of the reciprocal of a given value. It deals with rate, price and speed.

Measures of dispersion : It is the degree to which the data tend to spread about the mean value is called dispersion.

1. Range : The range of a distribution with a discrete random variable is the difference between the maximum value and the minimum value.
2. Standard Deviation (SD) : It is the square root of the arithmetic mean of the squares of the deviations measures for the mean or square root of the variance.
3. Variance : It is the average of the squared deviation from the mean or the square of the standard deviation
4. Standard Error (SE) : It is the measure of the mean difference between sample estimate of mean (X) and the population parameter (μ).
5. Coefficient of Variation (CV): It is defined as the ratio of the standard deviation to the mean. This is expressed as percentage.

Economics definition

Adam smith (1776) defined economics as the science of wealth in his book An Inquiry into Nature and Causes of Wealth of Nations.

According to Marshall Economics is primarily a study of mankind in the ordinary business of life.

Agricultural Economics : An applied social science that deals with the production, distribution, and consumption of agricultural or farming goods and services.(or) an applied phase of social science of economics in which attention is given to all aspects of problems related to agriculture.

Subject matter of Economics : It can be studied through a) traditional approach and (b) modern approach.

a) Traditional Approach : Economics is studied under five major divisions namely consumption, production, exchange, distribution and public finance.

Consumption : The satisfaction of human wants through the use of goods and services is called consumption.

Production : Goods that satisfy human wants are viewed as "bundles of utility".

Exchange : Goods are produced not only for self-consumption, but also for sales. They are sold to buyers in markets. The process of buying and selling constitutes exchange.

Distribution : The production of any agricultural commodity requires four factors, viz., land, labour, capital and organization. The land owner gets rent, the labourer earns wage, the capitalist is given with interest and the entrepreneur is rewarded with profit. The process of determining rent, wage, interest and profit is called distribution.

Public finance : It studies how the government gets money and how it spends it.

b) Modern Approach : The study of economics is divided into: i) Micro-economics and ii) Macro-economics.

Extension is an “Out – of – School” system of education for rural people.

The term “Extension” have originated in Latin. It means stretching out.

The term “University Extension” was first used in 1866.

The person considered as Father of extension and the concept of Extension Education Process was given by Paul Leagans

The person considered as father of extension in India is K.N.Singh

The term “Extension Education” was first coined in United Kingdom

Extension education is an applied behavioral science and brings about behavioral changes in human beings.

The philosophy of extension is not “What to Think?.” It is “How to think?”

6.1. PLANT WATER AND MINERAL NUTRITION

Plant water

Water form the major constituent of living (cells) things and the cells originated in a highly aqueous medium and all the vital processes of the life are carried out in it. Besides, water predominately acts as a source of hydrogen to plants and is released by the photolys is of water during photosynthesis.

In living tissue, water is the medium for many biochemical reactions and extraction process. Inorganic nutrients, photosynthesis, bases and hormones are all transported in aqueous solution. Soil nutrients are available to plant roots only when it get dissolved in water. It is essential for life and plays a unique role in virtually all biological process.

Water absorption

Plants absorbed water through root hairs which are in contact with soil water and form a root hair zone a little behind the root tips.Root hairs are tubular hair like prolongations of the cells of the epidermal layer of the roots. When roots elongate, the older root hairs die and new root hairs are developed so that they are in contact with fresh supplies of water in the soil.

Mechanism of water absorption

1. Active absorption of water : In this process the root cells play active role in the absorption of water and metabolic energy released through respiration is consumed active absorption may be of two kinds.

5.1. SEED AND SEED PRODUCTION

Origin of Plentiful Yield is the Seed - Parashara 400BC

Good Seed in Good Soil Yield Abundantly - Manu Smriti 200BC

Botanically seed is a matured ovule containing an embryo in arrested state of development with a food reserve (endosperm) and protective coat (seed coat). In albuminous seeds the endosperm is present eg. rice, wheat, castor (cereals). Whereas, exalbuminous seeds the endosperm is absent eg. onion and pea (pulses).

Types of fruit/ seed

4.1. PESTS OF FIELD CROPS

Insect pests are the major constraints limiting agricultural productivity growth. It is estimated that herbivorous insects eat about 26 percent of the potential food production. Emerging problems of insecticide and disease resistance, secondary pest outbreak and resurgence further add to the cost of plant protection. Annual crop losses due to insect pests and diseases in India are estimated to be 18 percent of the agricultural output. Main causes of emerging pest and disease are favourable prevailing weather condition, absence of natural enemies, abundant food supply, use of pesticides, use of fertilizers and irrigation.

PESTS OF RICE

Borers and Defoliators

3.1. INTRODUCTION TO PLANT BREEDING

What is Plant Breeding?: Plant breeding is an art and science which deals with changing genotypes of the plants, to adapt them to the service of human being. (or) The application of genetic and cytogenetics principles in crop improvement are called plant breeding.

Specific objectives of plant breeding: The main objectives of the plant breeding is to improve the characteristics of crop plants which are agronomically and economically desirable

Soil

Soil is a natural body of mineral and organic constituents differentiated into horizons usually unconsolidated, of variable depth which differs among themselves as well as from the underlying parent material in morphology, physical makeup, chemical properties and composition and biological characteristics (Whitney, 1982; Hilgard, 1892; Dokuchaiev, 1900 and Joffe, 1936).

According to Soil Science Society of America (SSSA, 1970) soil is the unconsolidated mineral matter on the surface of the earth that has been subjected to and influenced by genetic and environmental factors of parent material, climate (including moisture and temperature effects), macro and microorganisms and topography, all affecting over a period of time and producing a product, that is “SOIL” that differs from the material from which it is derived in physical, chemical, biological and morphological properties and characteristics. The unconsolidated mineral material on the immediate surface of the earth, that serves as a natural medium for the growth of plants.

Approaches of Soil Study

Pedological Approach : The origin of the soil, its classification and description are examined in Pedology. (From Greek word pedon means soil or earth). It is the study of soil as a natural body and does not focus on the soil’s immediate practical use.

Edaphological Approach: Edaphology (from Greek word edaphos means soil or ground) is the study of soil from the stand point of higher plants. Edaphologists consider the various properties of soil in relation to plant production.

Soil Science : The science dealing with soil as a natural resource on the surface of the earth, including pedology (soil genesis, classification and mapping) and the physical, chemical and biological and fertility properties of soil and these properties in relation to their management for crop production.

1.1. WEATHER AND TILLAGE

Weather : A state or condition of the atmosphere at a given place and at a given instant of time'

Climate : The generalized weather or summation of weather conditions over a given region during comparatively longer period

Meteorology : Greek word “Meteoro” means 'above the earth's surface' (atmosphere) and “logy” means “indicating science”. Branch of science dealing with that of atmosphere is known as meteorology

Agricultural meterology : Branch of applied meteorology or a branch of agriculture as it deals with agriculture

Coordinates of India : 8^o N and 37°N latitude; 68°E and 98°E longitude

Coordinates of Tamilnadu: 08°05' N and 13°35' N latitude; 76°15' E and 80°20' E longitude

Hydrosphere - water portion of the earth

Lithosphere - solid portion of the earth

Atmosphere - gaseous portion of the earth

Atmosphere : It is the colourless, odourless and tasteless physical mixture of gasses, which surrounds earth on all

The transition from conventional to organic farming requires numerous changes. One of the biggest changes is in the mindset of the farmer. Conventional approaches often involve the use of quick-fix remedies that, unfortunately, rarely address the cause of the problem. Transitioning farmers generally spend too much time worrying about replacing synthetic input with allowable organic product instead of considering management practices based on preventative strategies. Here are a few steps new entrants should follow when making the transition to organic farming:

20.1. Understand the Basics of Organic Agriculture and the Organic Farming Standards

Since organic production systems are knowledge based, new entrants and transitional producers must become familiar with sound and sustainable agricultural practices. Transitional producers should be prepared to read appropriate information, conduct their own trials and participate in formal and informal training events. As mentioned, switching from conventional to organic farming is more than substituting synthetic materials to organic allowed materials. Organic farming is a holistic system that relies on sound practices focused on preventative strategies. Since there are often few organic remedies available to organic producers for certain problems, prevention is the key element in organic production.

In food production remarkable progress has been made in the last fifty years in agricultural production and self – sufficiency (Food security) has been reached. Yet nutritional security seems to be a distant goal. With depleting natural resources and increasing threat to the environment, sustainable crop production is attracting the attention of the scientists, farmers and administrators. Due to over exploitation of natural resources and indiscriminate use of agro chemicals, green revolution also brought in quite a lot of miseries which focus the urgent need to have EVERGREEN REVOLUTION that is sustainable, leading to food and nutritional security to the rural poor. At this juncture it will be more appropriate to practicing organic agriculrure through the integration of traditional wisdom and modern scientific knowledge in synergy with nature.

19.1. Eco-friendly Technologies for Rice Cultivation

A sound package of eco-friendly technologies to grow rice is being successfully adopted by a few progressive farmers in Puliangudi village in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu. “The technologies work well with indigenous rice varieties such as Kitchili Samba. The cost of cultivation is substantially reduced and the organic rice fetches a premium price in the market,” says Mr. P. Gomathinayagam, a pioneer in organic farming in Puliangudi.

In India, there are two accreditation systems for authorizing Certification and Inspection agencies for organic certification. National Programme on organic Production (NPOP) promoted by Ministry of Commerce is the core programme which governs and defines the standards and implementing procedures. National Accreditation Body (NAB) is the apex decision making body. Certification and Inspection agencies accredited by NAB are authorized to undertake certification process. The NPOP notified under FTDR act and controlled by Agricultural Processed Foods Export Development Authority (APEDA) looks after the requirement of export while NPOP notified under APGMC act and controlled by Agriculture Marketing Advisor, Directorate of Marketing and Inspection looks after domestic certification. Currently 20 certification agencies have been authorized to undertake certification process.

National Programme on Organic Production

National Program on Organic Production (NPOP) was launched during 2001 under the Foreign Trade & Development Act (FTDR Act). The document provides information on standards for organic production, systems criteria, and procedures for accreditation of Inspection and Certification bodies, the national organic logo and the regulations governing its use.

Realizing that nematodes cannot be eliminated, and that we must live with them, the overall goal is to keep the population density as low as possible. The economic threshold is the density of nematodes where the losses incurred exceed the cost of nematode management. It is not advisable to depend on a single method to control nematodes. Efficient management requires judicious and careful integration of several which will result in reduction of nematode populations. Important components of non chemical methods of nematode management program are considered in this chapter.

17.1. Organic Amendments

Manure and fertilizer applications are essential part of growing any crop. Besides supplying required essential nutrients theyhelp in many ways directly or indirectly by suppressing harmful organisms including phytonematodes. The use of organic amendments against nematodes was demonstrated by Linford et al., in as early as 1938. FYM and cattle urine have found to reduce nematode population. Biogas plant waste slurry was found to be effective for nematode management. Compost of water hyacinth, oilcakes, cellulose amendments like sawdust, wheat straw, rice husk, rice hull ash, green manuring with legumes, green leaf incorporation are useful to keep nematode populations low. Non - edible oilcakes like those of neem, karanj, mahua, caster, cotton as well as edible oilcakes groundnut, mustard sesame, coconut have been recommended at 2 - 2.5 t/ha for reduction of root knot and other nematode population in soil. Miscellaneous substances like decaffeinated tea waste, rice hull ash, chicken manure, tannery and food and fruit processing waste, market and domestic organic refuse, dead vegetation and crop stalks, wood shaving, etc. have been recommended for root knot nematode management. Castor leaves (40g/kg) along with NPK at 75:25:37.5 kg/ha achieved reduction of M. javanica population on tomato.

Paddy is cultivated about 45 m ha in India, less than 1% is under organic cultivation.

16.1. Varieties

Good quality fine varieties like Ponni, Super ponni, insect and disease resistant varities must be selected for getting higher yield and returns.

16.2. Seeds

Organically produced seeds only must be used.

16.3. Seed Treatment

For 1 kg of seeds 20 g Azospirillum, Pseudomonas and 10 g Phospobacteria must be used with rice gruel.

Panchagavya spray @ 1% for treating the seeds.

15.1. IFS Components Tested for Wetlands

Area Allocation;

In 1 ha of land

75 % - Cropping

10 % - Fodder cultivation

3 % - Goat shed

12 % - Fish pond

Possible Integrations:

14.1. Water Source Identification

• In places where Ficus religiosa tree is found, underground water will be more.
• Underground water will be more in places where the neem tree with more knots is found.
• In places where termite hills are found, underground water will be more.
• Farmers are practicing traditional method of using neem stick, metals etc. for finding the water resource in underground for digging wells. While they are walking with this stick on hand it will be rottate automatically at the place where underground water is surplus.
• Some farmers are using the magnetic stones for identifying water sources. Magnet is tied with a thread and held like a pendulum while walking over the fields. The magnet will rotate automatically at the place where underground water is more and this is taken as the indication for digging wells.

13 1. Rishi Krishi

Drawn from Vedas, the Rishi Krishi method of natural farming has been mastered by farmers of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. In this method, all on-farm sources of nutrients including composts, cattle dung manure, green leaf manure and crop biomass for mulching are exploited to their best potential with continuous soil enrichment through the use of Rishi Krishi formulation known as “Amritpani” and virgin soil. 15 kg of virgin rhizosperic soil collected from beneath of Banyan tree (Ficus bengalensis) is spread over one acre and the soil is enriched with 200 lit Amritpani.

It is prepared by mixing 250 g ghee into 10 kg of cow dung followed by 500 g honey and diluted with 200 lit of water. This formulation is utilized for seed treatment (beej sanskar), enrichment of soil (bhumi sanskar) and foliar spray on plants (padap sanskar). For soil treatment it needs to be applied through irrigation water as fertigation. The system has been demonstrated on a wide range of crops i.e. fruits, vegetables, cereals, pulses, oilseeds, sugarcane and cotton.

12.1. General Practices for Storage

• Lime juice is mixed with grains and then sun dried before storage to prevent insect pests (Farmers in Nigeria).
• Seeds are safely stored in earthern pots after mixing with the leaves of neem and Vitex negundo (Farmers in Gujarat, India).
• Drying seeds and grains of all the crops on the new moon day before storing to avoid pest attack.
• Store seed materials in earthen pots which are kept on the ‘Paran’ directly above the furnace in kitchen. The smoke acts as a repellent.
• Grains, trees etc. harvested on full moon day are raqre prone to storage pest attack.
• Mixing the dried leaves of neem with seeds while storing them.

Change in weather affects growth and development of plants. The extent of these effects depends upon the range or severity of change of weather. It is very much possible to change the weather in relatively small area to reap better harvest. Micro weather modification is defined as, “The manipulation of weather elements at increasing or decreasing the duration, intensity, quality etc., for desired effects at microlevel of crop under investigation”.

The climate near the ground can be managed partly by influencing the moisture status and temperature of the upper soil layers, e.g. by mulching and partly by action above the ground e.g. by shading or use of wind breaks.

Soil regeneration is about bulding or making topsoil. It is a particular form of ecological regeneration within the field of restoration ecology is the act/idea of replenishingthe top soil with beneficial nutrients casing natural methods. Time required from inorganic to organic would be about 60 to 200 days depending upon the situation. Once the inorganic fertilization is stopped, following actions facilitate quick conversion:

• Apply Farm yard/Poultry manure available in the farm as a basal dressing.
• Sow 25 kg of multi varietal seeds (MVS) in one acre.
• Allow it to grow up to 60 days.
• Inoculate the soil with the bio-agents like Azospirillum, Phosphobacterium, Pseudomonas flouresens, Trichoderma viride on 30 days after sowing (DAS).
• Incorporate in situ 60 DAS (30 t ha^-1 biomass is generated on 60 DAS) green manures.

9.1. ITKS for Seed Treatment and Sowing

• Yield of almost all the crops depends on seed quality.
• Even if it is a quality seed, it should be a dried one because well dried seeds will have higher longevity and keeping quality.
• It better to change the seeds at least once in two years.
• To maintain the seed viability and prevent it from outside damage, the outer shell is not separated.
• The seeds are generally stored along with the leaves of neem (Azadirachta indica), pungam (Pongamia pinnata), notchi (Vitex negundo) and thumbai (Leucas aspera).
• Six weeks nursery period is enough for six months duration of the crop.
• Shallow sowing is followed in dry lands.
• Severing the broadcasted seeds in dry lands with soil.
• Dragging, over the fields, the thorny branches with weight over them for covering seeds the sown on dry lands.
• It is better to start planting from ‘Sani moolai’ (north east) of the field to get higher yields.
• It is better to perform sowing and planting operations during evening hours.

8.1. Documented ITKs on Moisture Conservation

The ITKs were documented under following specific categories

• Agronomic Measures
• Tillage
• Bunding & Terracing (Mech. & Vegetative barrier)
• Land Configuration
• Soil Amendment / Mulching
• Erosion Control & Runoff Diversion Structures
• Water Harvesting, Seepage Control & Ground Water Recharge

7.1. Rice

• Treatment of paddy seeds in diluted bio gas slurry for 12 hours increases resistance of seedlings to pests and diseases.
• During panicle formation in paddy, the flowers of Cycas circinalis are placed on sticks in paddy fields @ 4/ac. Its unpleasant odor repels ear head bugs.
• About 30 kg of tamarind seeds are applied for an acre of paddy field 1 day after transplanting to boost up the crop growth and yield.
• Soaking the paddy seeds in diluted cow’s urine before sowing, considerably reduces the incidence of leaf spot and rice blast
• Presoaking of paddy seeds in milk increases its resistance against ‘tungro’ virus and ‘stunt’ virus
• For control of red leaf spot disease in paddy, the seeds are soaked in ‘Pudina’ leaf extract (Mentha sativa) for 24 hours
• ‘T’ shaped bamboo stands are placed in many places in the paddy fields so that birds can sit on them and feed on the larvae and adults of rice pests.
• Sowing on eighteenth day (Aadipperukku) of Tamil month Aadi (Jul-Aug.) ensures good harvest.
• Daincha (Sesbania spp.) seeds are sown on paddy main fields when paddy nursery is raised and the grown up daincha is ploughed in-situ during field preparation.
• Plough the main field for four to six times for better yield.

Indigenous Technical Knowledge (ITK) based inputs (Most of the ITK’s needs scientific validation before large scale adoption)

Is the systematic body of knowledge acquired by local people through the accumulation of experiences, informal experiments, and intimate understanding of the environment in a given culture (Rajasekaran, 1993). Learning from ITK can improve understanding of local condition and provide a productive context for activities designed to help the communities. In addition, the use of ITK’s assures that the end user of specific agricultural development projects are involved in developing technologies appropriate to their needs’. Yet, ITK is still an underutilized resource in the development activities. It needs to be intensively and extensively studied, and incorporated into formal research and extension practices to make agriculture and rural development strategies more sustainable.

Many of our indigenous practices in agriculture and allied fields have been replaced by the so-called modern technologies and they have become obsolete, especially among the younger generations. Now these indigenous practices are endangered ones and these are a possibility for them to become extinct particularly during this era of globalization, liberalization and commercialization. Now the need has come to re-examine and then gradually re-introduce the effective traditional technologies of crop production.

Therefore, there is a need to systematically document the ITK as they are the unwritten body of knowledge. There is no systematic record to describe what is, what it does, how it does, means of changing it, its operations, it boundaries and its applications. It is held in different brains, languages and skills in as many groups, cultures and environments. Tamil Nadu is also a treasure land of indigenous practices in agriculture. However, only a few attempts have been undertaken by social scientists to document the available indigenous agricultural practices but none has evaluated scientifically. The documented ITK practices are given below.

Insect pests cause huge losses ranging from 5 to 80% of even up to 100%. Acute food shortage following world war –II and Bengal famine (1943) due to failure of rice crop due to a paddy disease indicate the severity of the loss, caused by the pests and diseases. The insects in storage on an average consume and spoil an additional 4 million tones of grains every year. All this indicates the importance of plant protection by which we can save millions of tones of food grains which are otherwise eaten away by different pests. Losses due to insect pests in Indian agriculture are 23.3 per cent. One of the practical means of increasing crop production is to minimize the pest associated losses.

A pest is any organism which occurs in large numbers and conflict with man’s welfare, convenience and profit.

Pests are often controlled with man made chemicals which have many harmful effects, for example:

Weeds can be considered a significant problem because they tend to decrease crop yields by increasing competition for water, sunlight and nutrients while serving as host plants for pests and diseases. Since the invention of herbicides, farmers have used these chemicals to eradicate weeds from their fields. Using herbicides not only increased crop yields but also reduced the labor required to remove weeds. Today, some farmers have a renewed interest in organic methods of managing weeds since the widespread use of agro-chemicals has resulted in purported environment and health problems. It has also been found that in some cases herbicides use can cause some weed species to dominate fields because the weeds develop resistance to herbicides. In addition, some herbicides are capable of destroying weeds that are harmless to crops, resulting in a potential decrease in biodiversity on farmers. It is important to understand that under an organic system of weed control, weeds could never be eliminated but only managed. In organic agriculture weeds are the resources as they are mostly native to the field/areas of existence (Children’s of the soil)

Technical Knowledge (ITK) based special inputs / Techniques for plant growth

Growth of the plant has for long been believed to be due to the minerals absorbed from the soil and the food materials synthesized by the palnt. It is recognized that growth of the plant is very much regulated by certain chemical substances known as growth regulators. These substances are formed in one tissue or organ of the plant and are then transported to other sites where they produce specific effects on growth and development. These materials can be produced organically for improving plant growth.

3.1. Growth Promoting Substances

Are those organic solutions (like Panchagavya, Buttermilk & Coconut milk slurry, Amudhakaraisal) prepared using the plant and animal products, decayed fruit and other agricultural wastes. For example

Manure is the organic material derived from animal, human and plant residues which contain plant nutrients in complex forms. Manures are used as source of plant nutrients. They release nutrient after their decomposition. They are applied in large quantities

Advantages of Organic Manures

• Organic manure provides all the nutrients that are required by plants but in limited quantities.
• It helps in maintaining C:N ratio in the soil and also increases the fertility and productivity of the soil.
• It improves the physical, chemical and biological properties of the soil.
• It improves both the structure and texture of the soils.
• It increases the water holding capacity of the soil.
• Due to increase in the biological activity, the nutrients that are in the lower depths are also made available to the plants through manures.
• It acts as mulch, thereby minimizing the evaporation losses of moisture from the soil.

Presently the farming situation urges need to develop farming techniques, which are sustainable from environmental, production, and socio-economic points of view. Modern agricultural production throughout the world does not appear to be sustainable in the long run. Sustainable agricultural development “is the management and conservation of the natural resource base and the orientation of technological and institutional change in such a manner to assure the attainment and continued satisfaction of human needs for the present and future generations”. Such sustainable development in the agriculture, forestry and fishery sectors, conserves land, water, plant and animal genetic resources, is environmentally non-degrading, technically appropriate, economically viable and socially acceptable. Such concerns imparted a way to organic farming. It is the need of the day to understand the prospects and problems of organic farming to launch a successful and flawless organic production programme in the farm of environment.

Organic farming

It is the most widely recognized alternative farming system to chemical agriculture evolved during 1940’s largely in response to the publication of J.I Rodale in the U.S., Lady Eve Balfour in England and Sir Albert Howard in India. In 1980, USDA released a landmark report on organic farming. The report defined organic farming as follows;

“Organic farming is a production system, which avoids or largely excludes the use of synthetically compounded fertilizers, pesticides, growth regulators, and livestock feed additives. To the maximum extent feasible, organic farming systems rely upon crop rotations, crop residues, animal manures, legumes, green manures, off-farm organic wastes, mechanical cultivation, mineral bearing rocks, and aspects of biological pest control to maintain soil productivity and tilth to supply plant nutrients, and to control insects, weeds, and other pests”.

11.1 Introduction

The application of greenhouse in agriculture is vast. Greenhouses are used for growing flowers, vegetables, fruits, transplants and varieties of certain crops in a controlled environment which is appropriate for the plants. The edible flowers are served in some good restaurants to grow them precise calculation is required. Sensor network can help to monitor and automate the activities in greenhouse. The objective of this chapter is to discuss the development of sensor nodes to monitor the growth of flower plants through XBee and internet of things. The system comprises of three sections- sensor nodes, local server and main server. Sensor nodes communicate to local server with XBee and then local server communicates the same data to main server through IoT.Fig.11.1 shows the generalized block diagram, sensor node is to be implemented on each flower pot and communicating to local and main server.

10.1 Introduction

The objective of this chapter is to develop a data logger and indicator for fire detection in agriculture field. The data logger is designed with the help of Scilab. The system comprises of Ardiuini Nano, light sensor, MQ6, MQ135, IR sensor, temperature sensor, power supply. The system is designed to take sensory data on Scilab with serial communication. Fig.10.1 shows block diagram for a system. Table.10.1 shows the component list required to develop the system.

9.1 Introduction

The objective of this chapter is to design an icloud and cayenne based perimeter monitoring system for agricultural field. Mobile app is designed to monitor the sensory data. The complete system comprises of two sections field device and mobile app. Field device comprises of NodeMCU, battery, motion sensors and laser sensors. The system is designed to monitor the agriculture field perimeter with motion and laser sensors, which are deployed at different locations of field. The sensory data is transmitted through NodeMCU and received at mobile app which can be accessed by authorized person. The same data can be accessed on webserver from anywhere in the world. Fig.9.1 shows a block diagram for a system. Table.9.1 shows the component list.

8.1 Introduction

The objective of this chapter is to develop a smart control for site-specific management of fixed irrigation system with Blynk app. Mobile app is designed to control the water management in field. The complete system comprises of two sections field device and mobile app. Field device comprises of Arduino, Node MCU, Power supply, LCD, Relay board, soil moisture sensor, temperature & humidity sensor, water level sensor, motor1, motor2. The system is designed to establish control and communication with specific agricultural field to take sensory data from the sensors and control the PUMP IN motor and PUMP OUT motor with the help of mobile app. Fig.8.1 shows a block diagram for a system.

7.1 Introduction

This chapter describes the development of data logger of agricultural field parameter monitoring system with MATLAB. The system comprises of Arduino, water level sensor, humidity sensor, light sensor, soil moisture sensor, temperature sensor, smoke detector, power supply, PC with MATLAB. The system is designed to monitor the environment and agriculture field parameters. The field device is designed to collect all physical parameters and same is communicated serially to MATLAB with I/O package. Fig.7.1 shows block diagram of the system. Table.7.1 shows the component list required to develop the system.

6.1 Introduction

This chapter describes the development of data logger of agricultural field parameter monitoring system with LabVIEW. The system comprises of two sections- Fields device and data logger. Field device comprises of Arduino, smoke detector (for sensing hazardous gases), soil moisture sensor, temperature sensor, humidity sensor, water level sensor, battery, display unit, 2.4 GHz RF modem. Data logger comprises of Arduino, display unit, 2.4 GHz RF modem, power supply, PC with LabVIEW. The system is designed to monitor the environment and agriculture field parameters. The field device is designed to collect all physical parameters and communicate it to the receiver end with LabVIEW. For establishing communication between two sections 2.4GHz RF modem is used, which can be replaced with any other modem also.Fig.6.1 shows block diagram of field device and Fig.6.2shows block diagram of data logger.Table.6.1 & Table.6.2 shows the component list required to develop the field device and data logger.