Chapter 11.

Sustainable Agriculture
 Harmful effects of agricultural practice
1. Monoculture
Large areas are planted with a single species or even a single strain or subspecies, such as a single
hybrid of corn. It makes the entire crop vulnerable to attack by a single disease or a single change in
environmental conditions. Repeated planting of a single species can reduce the soil content of certain
essential elements, reducing overall soil fertility.

2. Easily affected by Pests

When crops are planted in simple geometric layouts, they make life easy for pests because the crop
plants have no place to hide. In natural ecosystems, many different species of plants grow mixed
together in complex patterns, so it is harder for pests to find their favorite victims.

3. Plowing
repeatedly and regularly turns over the soil to a specific depth. Plowing exposes the soil to erosion and
damages its physical structure, leading to a decline in organic matter and a loss of chemical elements.
4. Emission of greenhouse gases from agricultural practice

❑ The agriculture sector is responsible for the greatest share of greenhouse

gas emissions of any individual sector across the economy.

❑ Agriculture uses fossil fuels but what is particularly problematic for

agriculture are emissions of nitrous oxide from nitrogen fertilizers and
emissions of methane from cows and sheep. Nitrous oxide has 273-times
and methane 30-times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide
for a 100-year timescale.
5. Emission of Ammonia

❑ Agriculture accounts for most ammonia emissions arising primarily from

animal manure and nitrogen-based fertilizers.

❑ Ammonia emissions in particular conditions lead to acid rain, which in high

concentrations can be harmful:
To health
To water and soil quality
Reduce plant growth
Damage forests
 What is Sustainable Agriculture?
The term ''sustainable agriculture'' means an integrated system of plant and animal
production practices having a site-specific application that will over the long-term:

• Satisfy human food and fiber needs.

• Enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which the
agriculture economy depends.
• Make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and on-farm resources
and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls.
• Sustain the economic viability of farm operations.
• Enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole.
Key component of Sustainable agriculture
 Environmental Factors Affecting Agriculture
❑ Agricultural production involves biological processes which are determined by
the quality of seeds as well as environmental factors.
❑ The environmental factors affecting agricultural growth and yield of crops
include:
Abiotic factors such as Biotic factors such as
▪ Solar radiation ▪ Beneficial and harmful micro-
▪ Temperature organisms (in soil and air)
▪ Rainfall ▪ Insects and other plants and
▪ Relative humidity animals.
▪ Soil condition, e.g., pH
▪ Climate or extreme weather
 Impact of agriculture on the environment
❑ Agriculture is the world’s oldest and largest industry. Because the production,
processing and distribution of food all alter the environment, and because of
the size of the industry, large effects on the environment are unavoidable.

❑ Agriculture has both primary and secondary environmental effects.

▪ A primary effect, also called an on-site effect, is an effect on the area
where the agriculture takes place.
▪ A secondary effect, or off-site effect, is an effect on an environment
away from the agriculture site, typically downstream and downwind.
 Impact of agriculture on the environment
The scale of effects of agriculture on the environment may be local, regional or
global:
• Local: Occurs at or near the site of farming, e.g. soil erosion, increase of
sedimentation in downstream
• Regional: Generally results from the combined effects of farming practices in the
same large region, e.g. desertification, large scale pollution, sedimentation in
rivers, change in the chemical fertility of soils over large areas.
• Global: Through GHG emission, the effects include climate change, change of the
chemical cycle.
 Impact of agriculture on the environment

Major environmental problems that result from

agriculture include:
6%
25%
1. Soil fertility
2. Soil erosion
3. Deforestation 44%
4. Desertification 25%
5. Degradation of water aquifers
6. Salinization
7. On-site pollution from fertilizers and pesticides
8. Loss of biodiversity
9. Emission of GHGs
 Soil Fertility
❑ Soil fertility is the ability of a soil to sustain plant growth by providing essential plant
nutrients and favorable chemical, physical, and biological characteristics as a habitat
for plant growth. Plant nutrients include the macronutrients nitrogen, phosphorus
and potassium, sulfur, calcium and magnesium. Micronutrients are essentially
boron, chlorine, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum and zinc.

❑ A fertile soil provides essential nutrients for plant growth, to produce healthy food
with all the necessary nutrients needed for human health. Fertility has impact on
economic growth and our fight against poverty. Good management of soil fertility
can help reduce soil, water and air pollution, regulate water resources availability,
support a diverse and active biotic community, increase vegetation cover and allows
for carbon neutral footprint.
 Soil Erosion
❑ Farming easily damages soils. When land is cleared of its natural vegetation by
ploughing or tillage, disrupts soil structure, breaks down soil aggregates, and
the soil is exposed directly to water and wind, which remove the loosened soil.
❑ Clearing forests for agriculture eliminates the natural cover that protects the
soil from wind and rain. Tree roots help bind soil together, and their removal
increases soil vulnerability to erosion.
❑ Grazing animals can remove or damage ground cover, leaving the soil exposed
to erosion.
❑ Leaving soil bare between planting seasons increases its vulnerability to wind
and water erosion.
❑ Planting the same crop repeatedly reduces soil biodiversity and can weaken the
soil structure.
Environmentally Sustainable Agricultural Practices

❑ Organic farming
❑ Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
❑ Conservation tillage
❑ Crop rotation
❑ Multiple Cropping
❑ Agro-forestry
❑ Pollution control from agricultural landscape
❑ Water deficiency control in agricultural landscape
❑ Management of flood control & irrigation infrastructure
 Organic Farming
❑ Organic farming refers to cultivation of plants and rearing of animals in natural
ways.
❑ It includes use of organic manures, and bio-pesticides with complete avoidance
of inorganic chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Also includes crop rotation,
composting, and Integrated Pest Management to keep the soil healthy and
productive.
❑ To be certified as organic, farms must avoid using synthetic pesticides, synthetic
fertilizers, and genetically modified organisms.
❑ Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are
given no antibiotics or growth hormones.
 Principals of Organic Farming
The principals of organic The principal methods of organic farming include-
farming include- ❑ Crop rotation (different crops over the year)
❑ Cover crops (natural fertilizer, e.g., grass)
❑ Soil Health ❑ Mulching (covering the soil with a layer of organic or inorganic material.
❑ Biodiversity It helps to retain moisture, suppress weeds, regulate soil temperature,
❑ Sustainability and improve soil health as organic mulch decomposes. Materials used
❑ Natural Plant Nutrition include straw, leaves, wood chips, grass clippings, or even plastic and
stones)
❑ Pest Management
❑ Green manures (crops that are incorporated into soil while green)
❑ Animal Welfare
❑ Green compost (food scraps, garden waste – biodegradable)
❑ Mechanical cultivation (Machinery to till soil and control weeds)
❑ Biological pest control (use of living organisms, like predators, parasites,
or pathogens, to control pest populations)
❑ Integrated pest Management
Multiple Cropping

Mulching
Green Manure
 Agroforestry
❑ Agroforestry is the process of planting rows of trees combined with a cash crop.
Besides helping to prevent wind and water erosion of the soil, the trees provide
shade which helps promote soil moisture retention. Decaying tree litter also
provides some nutrients for the interplanted crops.
 Contour and Terrace Farming
❑ Contour farming involves plowing and planting crop rows along the natural contours of
gently sloping land. The lines of crop rows perpendicular to the slope help to slow water
runoff, inhibit the formation of channels of water, and limit soil erosion (and the
resultant loss of nutrients).
❑ Terracing is a common technique used to control water erosion on more steeply sloped
hills and mountains. Broad, level terraces are constructed along the contours of the
slopes, and these act as dams trapping water for crops, reducing runoff, and limiting
erosion.
 Minimal Tillage and No-till Agriculture
We use heavy machinery for: Problems caused by soil compaction:
❑ Preparing the seedbed for planting ❑ Increases soil density
❑ Controlling weeds ❑ Limits root penetration depth
❑ Harvesting crops ❑ Inhibits proper plant growth

Advantages of heavy equipment Effects of soil tillage (mixing the soil):

❑ Saves time ❑ Leads to rapid decomposition of organic
❑ Reduces labor requirements matter due to increased aeration
❑ Releases more carbon and nitrous oxides
Disadvantages of heavy equipment: (greenhouse gases) - contributes to climate
change.
❑ Causes soil compaction
❑ Disrupts natural soil organisms
 Minimal Tillage and No-till Agriculture
One of the easiest ways to prevent these problems is to minimize the amount of tillage, or
turning over of the soil. In minimal tillage (conservation tillage) or no-till agriculture, the
land is disturbed as little as possible by leaving crop residue in the fields. Special seed drills
inject new seeds and fertilizer into the unplowed soil.
Tillage of fields does help to break up clods that were previously compacted, so best
practices may vary at sites with different soil textures and composition.
 Minimal Tillage and No-till Agriculture
Benefits of minimal or no-till agriculture:
❑ Limits soil erosion and compaction
❑ Protects natural soil organisms
❑ Reduces operational costs (if done properly)
❑ Promotes water infiltration
❑ Sequesters carbon into the soil, helping to mitigate climate change

Minimal or no-till agriculture has proved a major success in Latin America and is being used
in South Asia and Africa. However, a drawback of this method is that the crop residue can
serve as a good habitat for insect pests and plant diseases.
 Windbreaks
Creating windbreaks by planting tall trees along the perimeter of farm fields can help
control the effects of wind erosion of soil. Windbreaks reduce wind speed at ground level,
an important factor in wind erosion. They also help trap snow in the winter months,
leaving soil less exposed. As a side benefit, windbreaks also provide a habitat for birds and
animals. One drawback is that windbreaks can be costly to farmers because they reduce
the amount of available cropland.
 Integrated Pest Management
• Integrated pest management can be defined as the practice of preventing or suppressing
damaging populations of insect pests by application of the comprehensive and coordinated
integration of multiple control tactics. Tactics are the various control methodologies, e.g.,
chemical, biological, cultural.
 Integrated Pest Management
Cultural practices can be incorporated in the ‘Prevention’ step. These activities aim at allowing
the crop to avoid, resist, or delay its interaction with the pest. In other terms, cultural practices will
prevent the pest from developing. These include:

1. Crop rotation: it can interrupt the pest’s life cycle by replacing the host plant with a non-
host plant.
2. Strategic planting: some pests might be problematic at certain times of the year, or at
specific weather conditions. To avoid critical periods, you can adapt the time of planting.
3. Roguing: this is the act of removing sick and dying plants. This helps prevent the build-up
of a reservoir of pests
4. Resistant varieties: some plant varieties are better armed to against specific pests
5. Trap crops: some plants are more attractive to pests than others and can therefore attract
them away from the desired crop.
 Integrated Pest Management
Mechanical or physical agricultural practices focus on physically removing the pest or disrupting
its activities. These practices are usually the first to be used to control pests once the threshold
has been reached. Mechanical or practical practices are usually rapid and effective and have little
to no impact on non-target organisms. These practices include:

1. Hand picking: manually removing pests from plants.

2. Barriers and traps: mesh screens or nets for instance keep pests away from the plants,
while yellow sticky cards can trap them.
3. Mulching: covering the soil with mulch has many benefits, including promoting indirect
pest control by supporting natural enemies of pests
4. Water pressure sprays: high pressure spraying on sturdy crops can sometimes dislodge
insects from plant leaves and stems
 Integrated Pest Management
Mechanical or physical

Solar insect trap

[Link]
File:Solar_Trap_Installed_in_Field.jpg
 Integrated Pest Management
Biological Control In Integrated Pest Management
This integrated management method implies a common way of destroying pests
by predators, parasitoids, pathogens, and other biological control agents. The
role of biological control in IPM is to cause a minimum imbalance in ecosystems
by mimicking nature.

Lacewings - natural predators of garden and crop pests

[Link]
 Integrated Pest Management
Chemical control in Integrated Pest Management
We can use chemical pesticides within an IPM program, but they should be used
as a last resort, when all other options are not able to reduce or limit the pest
damage. In IPM, the use of chemicals should minimize the environmental impact.
This can be done by:

1. Selective chemical: select chemicals that have a narrow host range to

reduce the non-target effects
2. Spot treatment: only treat the areas affected by the pest
3. Rotate classes of pesticides: to avoid building resistance in the pest, use
products that have different modes of actions
 Integrated Pest Management
Chemical control

Selective Chemical - Pheromone trap

Used to control the Asiatic rice borer.
[Link]
Advantages of IPM
▪ More regular crop quality and quantity – more profits
▪ Healthier plants
▪ Lessening negative impacts on biodiversity, as well as soil and water
resources
▪ Reduced use of pesticides
▪ Prevention of pest resistance to chemicals
▪ Reduced input costs
▪ Better use of natural resources
▪ Reduced contamination of the crop with chemical residues
▪ Reduced risk of farmers from contamination with chemicals