ORGANIC FARMING IN HORTICULTURE

Table of content:

1. Introduction
2. Objectives
3. General information of organic horticulture
4. Certification process
   
5. Conclusion

INTRODUCTION

Organic farming is a crop production method respecting the rules of the nature. The British botanist, sir Albert Howard often called "the father of modern organic agriculture" studied traditional farming practices in Bengal . In 1972, the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movement (IFOAM), was founded in France, certification started in 1990.Organic farming is targeted to produce nutritive, healthy and pollution free food. It maximizes the use of on farm resources and minimizes the use of off-farm resources. It is social profit oriented, than profit oriented. In organic farming entire system i.e, plant, animal, soil, water and micro-organism are to be protected.

Organic horticulture is the science and art of growing fruits, vegetables, flowers, or ornamental plants by following the essential principles of organic agriculture in soil building and conservation, pest management, and heirloom variety preservation.

The Latin words hortus (garden) and cultura (culture) together form horticulture, classically defined as the culture or growing of garden plants. Horticulture is also sometimes defined simply as "agriculture minus the plough." Instead of the plough, horticulture makes use of human labour and gardener's hand tools, although small machine tools like rotary tillers are common now.

Organic farming provides a real opportunity for horticultural crop production,  expend the food market worldwide (organically produced food has great demand in foreign countries ; there is major deficiency of home produced organic fruit and vegetable in certain countries like Island),  has lower cost of production and provide good price premium which may cover reductions  in yield during early phase of organic farming system. It increases the opportunity of direct sale of produce e.g. Farmers Markets, Farm Shops etc. (People are now keen interested to purchase organically produced food).

OBJECTIVES

1. To produce healthy, nutritious and quality food.
2. To maintain and enhance long-term fertility of soils.
3. To encourage and enhance biological cycles involving microorganisms, soil flora and fauna, plants and animals.
4. To help in soil and water conservation.
5. To minimize all forms of pollution that may result from agricultural practices.
6. To use on farm resources as far as possible.
7. To maintain genetic diversity.
8. To preserve and enhance traditional and indigenous knowledge in farming, varieties.

Why...?

1. Use of pesticides in the world has registered ten fold increase from 1945 to 1975. In India, about 80,000 tonnes of pesticides are used.
2. Fertilizer consumption has also been increased substantially.
3. The pesticides and fertilizers persist in the soil which are harmful to the beneficial soil micro-organism and earthworms and thereby resulting in degradation of soil fertility.

Adverse impact of Green Revolution (1967-1977)

1. Soil fatigue due to intensive cultivation.
2. Stagnation of HYV yield.
3. Decrease in input use efficiency.
4. Declining water table.
5. Increase susceptibility to pest & diseases.
6. Pest becoming tolerant to pesticides.
7. Increased soil salinity.
8. Serious imbalance in nutrient status.
9. Deficiency in secondary & micronutrients i.e. Sulphur, Zinc, Boron, Iron,   Manganese, Molybdenum including universal deficiency of NPK.
10. Nitrate contamination in ground water.
11. Accumulation of heavy metals like Arsenic, Lead & Cadmium.
12. Presence of pesticide residue in food material and milk sample.

Present status of organic farming in India

1. Ranks 33 rd in the world in terms of area under organic cultivation
2. Ranks 88 th in the world in terms of ratio of agriculture land under organic crops to total farming area
3. Cultivated area under certification is 3,39,113Ha (all crops), main vegetables grown are Okra, Brinjal, Tomato,Potato, Onion, Garlic
4. Total area cultivated 2.8 million Ha
5. Seventy districts in the country consuming less than 25kg/ha of NPK  are identified as potential areas e.g. Assam (10), Jharkhand (5), Himachal Pradesh (2), Uttar Pradesh (8), Uttaranchal (8), Madhya Pradesh (7), Chattisgarh (1), Rajasthan (13) and North Eastern Region.

Approaches for organic farming

1. Nature farming;-  'do nothing' approach
2. Ecological agriculture;- tools used are biofertilizers , botanical pesticides, bio-control agents, stress resistant varieties, vermi-compost etc.
3. Rishi krishi;-

• angara - bhoomi sanskar, to make soil fertile.
• amrit pani - for seed treatment.
• pancha gavya - for vegetative and reproductive growth.
• biodynamic farming - for micronutrient supply.

GENERAL INFORMATION OF ORGANIC HORTICULTURE

Vermicompost, mulches, cover crops, compost, manures, and mineral supplements are soil-building mainstays that distinguish this type of farming from its commercial counterpart. Through attention to good healthy soil condition, it is expected that insect, fungal, or other problems that sometimes plague plants can be minimized. However, pheromone traps, insecticidal soap sprays, and other pest-control methods available to organic farmers are also sometimes utilized by organic horticulturists.

Horticulture involves five areas of study. These areas are floriculture (includes production and marketing of floral crops), landscape horticulture (includes production, marketing and maintenance of landscape plants), olericulture (includes production and marketing of vegetables), pomology (includes production and marketing of fruits), and postharvest physiology (involves maintaining quality and preventing spoilage of horticultural crops). All of these can be, and sometimes are, pursued according to the principles of organic cultivation.

Organic horticulture (or organic gardening) is based on knowledge and techniques gathered over thousands of years. In general terms, organic horticulture involves natural processes, often taking place over extended periods of time, and a sustainable, holistic approach - while chemical-based horticulture focuses on immediate, isolated effects and reductionist strategies.

Organic practices arise from the understanding that all organisms in nature are interdependent, and in order to have healthy plants we must foster the health of their entire ecosystem. These practices go beyond integrated pest management, beyond the use of so-called organic fertilizers and pesticides. They acknowledge the concept of intrinsic health, and seek to create environments that cater to the well-being of all their inhabitants.

Organic gardening systems

There are a number of formal organic gardening and farming systems that prescribe specific techniques. They tend to be more specific than, and fit within, general organic standards. Biodynamic farming is an approach based on the esoteric teachings of Rudolf Steiner. The Japanese farmer and writer Masanobu Fukuoka invented a no-till system for small-scale grain production that he called Natural Farming. French intensive and biointensive methods and SPIN Farming (Small Plot INtensive) are all small scale gardening techniques.
A garden is more than just a means of providing food, it is a model of what is possible in a community - everyone could have a garden of some kind (container, growing box, raised bed) and produce healthy, nutritious organic food, a farmers market, a place to pass on gardening experience, and a sharing of bounty, promoting a more sustainable way of living that would encourage their local economy. A simple 4' x 8' (32 square feet) raised bed garden based on the principles of bio-intensive planting and square foot gardening uses fewer nutrients and less water, and could keep a family, or community, supplied with an abundance of healthy, nutritious organic greens, while promoting a more sustainable way of living.

Other methods can also be used to supplement an existing garden. Methods such as composting, or vermicomposting. These practices are ways of recycling organic matter into some of the best organic fertilizers and soil conditioner. Vermicompost is especially easy. The byproduct is also an excellent source of nutrients for an organic garden.

Soil

"Soil is the result of interaction between three equal partners: the a-biotic components of the soil, living organisms and environmental components (temperature, water, air). Each of these brings different assets to the partnership, and each makes a unique value contribution to the whole. The synthesis of all contributions - soil - is greater than the sum of its parts. Soil must be understood and managed from this holistic perspective." [1]

"The primary a-biotic component of soil is rock which, as it becomes reduced to smaller particles, contributes the secondary components: sand, silt, clay and mineral nutrients." The "combination of particle size, shape and arrangement affects the soil's compactability, air supply and water holding capacity." [2]

Living organisms make the following contributions to the soil partnership: conversion of carbon and nitrogen gas into solid compounds, modification of inherent soil fertility through biological transmutation, conversion of mineral soil nutrients into organic forms, creation of multi-level food production and storage systems, and creation of habitat through structural improvement of the soil.
Environmental components of soil include air, water and temperature. "The environmental components literally become incorporated into living organisms, and into the soil ecosystem. They are not just 'factors' or 'influences', they contribute essential building blocks and energy to fuel the processes. They are vital and active participants." [3]

Soil is an ecosystem "created through the proportionate availability and interaction of all three soil partners. Soil is the habitat living organisms have synergistically created for themselves. Our job is to support them, not to put them out of work." [4]
Managing the soil is very important. If your garden is healthy then insects will not attack the plants. Insects only attack plants that are unhealthy. To keep your garden healthy give it organic matter and humus to survive. The most important thing is to give your garden lots of attention and your energy.

Nutrient management

Principally, animal manures, compost, green manures, bio-fertilizers, mixed organic fertilizers are used in organic farming. Nitrogen is provided by legume crops having nitrogen fixing symbiotic bacteria and by soil habiting non-symbiotic bacteria. Enrichment of phosphorus in soil is done by incorporation of rock-phosphate, VAM (Vesicular Arbuscular Mycorrhiza - solublises phosphorus for greater availability to the plants) and VAM treated compost. Potassium is provided by wood ash, sea weeds, tobacco stem; used alone or in combination with others. Beside it permanent mulching layer reduces the potassium leaching.

Apply lime 2-3 months before planting to correct soil acidity.

Pest control approaches

Differing approaches to pest control are equally notable. In chemical horticulture, a specific insecticide may be applied to quickly kill off a particular insect pest. Chemical controls can dramatically reduce pest populations in the short term, yet by unavoidably killing (or starving) natural control insects and animals, cause an increase in the pest population in the long term, thereby creating an ever increasing problem. Repeated use of insecticides and herbicides also encourages rapid natural selection of resistant insects, plants and other organisms, necessitating increased use, or requiring new, more powerful controls.

In contrast, organic horticulture tends to tolerate some pest populations while taking the long view. Organic pest control requires a thorough understanding of pest life cycles and interactions, and involves the cumulative effect of many techniques, including:

• Allowing for an acceptable level of pest damage
• Encouraging predatory beneficial insects to flourish and eat pests
• Encouraging beneficial microorganisms
• Careful plant selection, choosing disease-resistant varieties
• Planting companion crops that discourage or divert pests
• Using row covers to protect crop plants during pest migration periods
• Rotating crops to different locations from year to year to interrupt pest reproduction cycles
• Using insect traps to monitor and control insect populations

Each of these techniques also provides other benefits, such as soil protection and improvement, fertilization, pollination, water conservation and season extension. These benefits are both complementary and cumulative in overall effect on site health. Organic pest control and biological pest control can be used as part of integrated pest management (IPM). However, IPM can include the use of chemical pesticides that are not part of organic or biological techniques.

Pest, disease and weed management

Suitable crop rotations, green manuring, use of balanced fertilizers, proper care during nursery, mulching etc. play important role to protect the crop from insect pest and disease.  The following practices are recommanded:

1. Use trichoderma  for seed treatment
2. Use resistant varieties
3. Use disease free planting material
4. Use mulching for those vegetables whose fruits touches the soil
5. Clean the crop residue
6. Summer fallowing and flooding
7. Use spray Bt, NPV, Beauveria
8. Use insect traps- such as pheromone trap, light trap, yellow trap, sticky trap
9. Use botanicals like neem, garlic etc. See detailed article: Some plant based insecticides
10. Use trap crops to misguide the insect and protect the main crop. See detailed article: Trap crops: A tool for managing insect pests damage

Research conducted in organic horticulture

See detailed article: Research Conducted At Long Island Horticultural Research And Extension Center (Lihrec)

CERTIFICATION PROCESS OF ORGANIC FOOD PRODUCTION

Certification process in organic horticulture is similar to certification process in organic agriculture.

See the detailed article: Certification Process for Organic Food Production

 

CONCLUSION

Organic farming helps in rejuvenating the degraded soil and ensure sustainability of crop production .Hence its to be promoted. Only 1% organic vegetables are exported now more potential is there  as more demand in market, and consumers are ready to pay premium prices.

 

REFERENCES

1. Heide Hermary. Working With Nature - Shifting Paradigms. Gaia College Inc. 2007. ISBN 9780973568721, pg 35-36
2. Heide Hermary. Working With Nature - Shifting Paradigms. Gaia College Inc. 2007. ISBN 9780973568721, pg 35-36
3. Heide Hermary. Working With Nature - Shifting Paradigms. Gaia College Inc. 2007. ISBN 9780973568721, pg 44
4. Heide Hermary. Working With Nature - Shifting Paradigms. Gaia College Inc. 2007. ISBN 9780973568721, pg 45