A standard farm practice that focuses on soil preparation for growing crops includes soil tillage. Tillage helps manage crop residue and loosens the soil, creating a perfect sowing layer. The soil that is ready for sowing has an empty and unprotected surface.
Conventional tilling, that is ploughing up the dirt, encourages microbial action. That can lead to CO2 emissions and the more potent greenhouse gases methane and nitrous oxide. So, until crop emergence, there is a constant concern of possible soil erosion that could be caused by wind or water which would result in the loss of topsoil.
No-till can mitigate the greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. By avoiding all tillage of the soil, the organic matter from the crops you grow provides a “cushion” for the succeeding crop and continues to add to the organic matter of the soil. This continued process of decomposition of organic matter adds to the biological activity and the carbon cycling process that keeps soil alive. Not only do these soils capture more carbon from the environment (thus helping to slow down the global warming phenomenon our industrial civilisation has created), they also help grow better crops.
Masanobu Fukuoka is a Japanese farmer and philosopher who is well known for his work done for no-till, no-herbicide grain cultivation farming methods traditional to many indigenous cultures. He followed a particular method of farming, commonly referred to as “natural farming” or “do-nothing farming. Through the use of mulch and cover crops, this system effectively allows for continuous harvests of crop rotations, minimises weeds and builds healthy top soil allowing for organic food production that is ecologically sustainable.
With No-till farming, a farmer should incorporate other methods as well, like the following:
1) Releasing ducklings in the field
Integrating livestock on cropland in conjunction with cover crops can expedite the soil building process and provide additional grazing opportunities for producers. The “aigamo method” of growing rice was developed in 1989. A method of rice farming that relies on ducks to eat insects and weeds. The aigamo is a cross-breed of wild and domestic ducks.
The aigamo method for growing rice involves releasing aigamo ducklings into a rice paddy about one or two weeks after the seedlings have been planted. Between 15 and 20 of these birds are needed for every 1,000 square meters of farmland. The ducklings help the rice seedlings grow by eating both insects and weeds that get in the way.
The farmer can then grow the rice without using pesticide or herbicide. He or she is also free from the back-breaking work of bending over to pull weeds by hand. The ducklings’ droppings become an important source of natural fertiliser. In addition, they stir up the soil in the rice paddy with their feet and bills, a process that increases the oxygen content of the soil, making it more nutritious for the seedlings.
2) Straw mulching
Always keep the soil covered with organic material: Straw mulching (in contrast to plastic mulching sheets) has a significant effect on conserving initial soil moisture and reducing weed growth and this prevents the sun, the water and the wind from touching the ground. It prevents erosion, keeps moisture in, brings nourishment for the soil life and, as a side effect, brings nutrients to the plants.
How to keep the soil covered:
- Living mulch, ground cover plants (i.e. strawberries, clover)
- Mulch with dead plants (i.e. grass or meadow clippings, leaves, straw, hay)
- The mulch needs to be produced in the surroundings of the garden.
3) Seed balls
Seeds balls are an ancient technique for propagating plants from seeds without opening up soil with cultivation tools such as a plough. The seeds are protected from animals by the dried clay but will germinate with annual rainfall (or can be irrigated)
4) Multilayer farming
In multi-layer farming, the crops are grown at different heights on the same land. It includes a combination of Vegetable/Fruits/medicinal plants/that can be grown together. The objective of this system of cropping is to utilize the vertical space more effectively. In this system, the tallest component have foliage of strong light and high evaporative demand and shorter components with foliage requiring shade and high humidity.
By incorporating more diversified crop rotations, reducing tillage, and incorporating cover crops, producers can improve soil structure, improve water infiltration and storage, increase organic matter, and increase microbial diversity in their soil. These practices provide economic benefits to farmers by increasing nutrient and water availability to plants and reducing nutrient loss.They also improve adjacent aquatic habitat by reducing runoff and sedimentation in wetlands and providing other benefits to wildlife.
Source: OrganiKrishi India
