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Natural Farming Concept, Definition, Objectives, Scope, Importance, Characteristics, Principles, Components Natural Farming is a chemical-free farming system rooted in Indian tradition enriched with modern understanding of...

Natural Farming Concept, Definition, Objectives, Scope, Importance, Characteristics, Principles, Components Natural Farming is a chemical-free farming system rooted in Indian tradition enriched with modern understanding of ecology, resource recycling and on-farm resource optimization. It is considered as agroecology based diversified farming system which integrates crops, trees and livestock with functional biodiversity. It is largely based on on-farm biomass recycling with major stress on biomass mulching, use of on-farm cow dung-urine formulations; maintaining soil aeration and exclusion of all synthetic chemical inputs. Natural farming is expected to reduce dependency on purchased inputs. It is considered as a cost- effective farming practice with scope for increasing employment and rural development. Definition of Natural Farming Accordintg to Niti Ayog, Govt. Of India, “Natural Farming is a chemical-free traditional farming method. It is considered as an agroecology based diversified farming system which integrates crops, trees and livestock with functional biodiversity” Natural farming is a system where the laws of nature are applied to agricultural practices. This method works along with the natural biodiversity of each farmed area, encouraging the complexity of living organisms, both plants, and animals that shape each particular ecosystem to thrive along with food plants. Natural Farming builds on natural or ecological processes that exist in or around farms. Natural farming vs. organic farming Natural farming Organic farming 1. It is not an alternative system of farming, 1. In many respect close to natural farming - but part of philosophy of life involving but does not have the philosophical continuous search to know the true spirit overtone of natural farming. and form of nature. 2. Totally eliminates all the components of 2. Does not totally exclude elements of modern farming. modern farming. It involves limited and essential ploughing, hoeing, weeding and use of chemicals. 3. It indicates "do nothing" approach. 3. It indicates soil building programme - more intensive type of natural farming. 4. The essential principles are: 4. The essential principles are: a. No cultivation a. Maintaining a living soil b. No chemical fertilizers b. Making available all essential nutrients c. No weeding c. Organic mulching d. No plant protection e. No pruning Dr. S. K. Maity/Lecture Note/NRM 121:Natural Farming-Concept/19-07-2024 Page 1 of 6  Aims and objectives of natural farming: 1. Preservation natural flora and fauna 2. Restoration of soil health and fertility and soil’s biological life 3. Maintenance of diversity in crop production 4. Efficient utilization of land and other natural resources 5. Promotion of natural beneficial insects, animals and microbes in soil for nutrient recycling and biological control of pests and diseases 6. Promotion of local breeds for livestock integration 7. Use of natural / local resource-based inputs 8. Reduce input cost of agricultural production 9. Increasing economics of farmers 10. Improving fulfilment and satisfaction of farmers in farming Scope of Natural Farming There are many working models of natural farming all over the world, the zero budget natural farming (ZBNF) is the most popular model in India. Natural Farming improves soil fertility, environmental health as well as helps in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and also promises the enhancement of farmer’s income. In broad terms, Natural Farming can be considered as a prominent strategy to save the planet Earth for future generations. It has the potential to manage the various farmland practices and hence sequester the atmospheric carbon in the soils and plants, to make it available for plants. Importance of Natural Farming Several studies have reported the effectiveness of natural farming in terms of increase in production, sustainability, saving of water use, improvement in soil health and farmland ecosystem. It is considered as a cost- effective farming practices with scope for raising employment and rural development. Natural Farming offers a solution to various problems, such as food insecurity, farmers’ distress, and health problems arising due to pesticide and fertilizer residue in food and water, global warming, climate change and natural calamities. It also has the potential to generate employment, thereby stemming the migration of rural youth. Natural Farming, as the name suggests, is the art, practice and, increasingly, the science of working with nature to achieve much more with less. Dr. S. K. Maity/Lecture Note/NRM 121:Natural Farming-Concept/19-07-2024 Page 2 of 6  Benefits of Natural Farming 1. Improved Yield: Farmers practicing Natural Farming reported similar yields to those following conventional farming. In several cases, higher yields per harvest were also reported. 2. Ensures Better Health: As Natural Farming does not use any synthetic chemicals, health risks and hazards are eliminated. The food has higher nutrition density and therefore offers better health benefits. 3. Environment Conservation: Natural Farming ensures better soil biology, improved agro- biodiversity and a more judicious usage of water with much smaller carbon and nitrogen footprints. 4. Increased Farmers’ Income: Natural Farming aims to make farming viable and aspirational by increasing net incomes of farmers on account of cost reduction, reduced risks, similar yields, incomes from intercropping. 5. Employment Generation: Natural farming generates employment on account of natural farming input enterprises, value addition, marketing in local areas, etc. The surplus from natural farming is invested in the village itself. 6. Reduced Water Consumption: By working with diverse crops that help each other and cover the soil to prevent unnecessary water loss through evaporation, Natural Farming optimizes the amount of ‘crop per drop’. 7. Minimized Cost of Production: Natural Farming aims to drastically cut down production costs by encouraging farmers to prepare essential biological inputs using on-farm, natural and home-grown resources. Characteristics of natural farming: 1. According to natural farming principles, plants get 98% of their supply of nutrients from the air, water, and sunlight and the remaining 2% can be fulfilled by good quality soil with plenty of friendly microorganisms. (Just like in forests and natural systems) 2. The soil is always supposed to be covered with organic mulch, which creates humus and encourages the growth of friendly microorganisms. 3. Decomposition of organic matter by microbes and earthworms is encouraged right on the soil surface itself, which gradually adds nutrition in the soil, over the period. 4. Neither chemical nor organic fertilizers are added to the soil. In fact, no external fertilizers are added to soil or given to plants whatsoever. 5. Farm made bio-cultures named ‘Jeevamrit, Beejamrit etc.’ are added to the to improve microflora of soil. Jeevamrit, Beejamrit are derived from very little cow dung and cow urine of desi cow breed. 6. No ploughing, no tilling of soil and no fertilizers, and no weeding are done just the way it would be in natural ecosystems. 7. Weeds are considered essential and used as living or dead mulch layer. 8. Multi-cropping is encouraged over single crop method. Dr. S. K. Maity/Lecture Note/NRM 121:Natural Farming-Concept/19-07-2024 Page 3 of 6  9. Natural, farm-made pesticides like Dashparni ark and Neem Astra are used to control pests and diseases. 10. It holds the promise of enhancing farmers’ income while delivering many other benefits, such as restoration of soil fertility and environmental health, and mitigating and/or reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Principles of natural farming The generic principles that govern Natural farming are mentioned below: 1. A healthy soil microbiome is critical for optimal soil health and plant health, and thereby animal health and human health. 2. Soil may be covered with crops for maximum period of the year. 3. The soil across a farm or larger field/collection of fields should have diverse crops, a minimum of 8 crops over the year. The greater the diversity, the better. 4. Minimal disturbance of soils is critical, hence no till farming or shallow tillage is recommended. 5. Animals should be incorporated into farming. Integrated farming systems are critical for promoting Natural farming. 6. Healthy soil microbiome is the key to retaining and enhancing soil organic matter. Bio stimulants are necessary to catalyze this process. There are different ways of making bio stimulants. In India, the most popular bio-stimulants are based on fermentation of animal dung and urine, and uncontaminated soil. 7. Increasing the amount and diversity of organic residues returned to the soil is very important. These include crop residues, cow-dung, compost, etc. 8. Pest management should be done through better agronomic practices (as enshrined in Integrated Pest management) and through botanical pesticides (only when necessary). 9. Use of synthetic fertilizers and other biocides is harmful to this process of regeneration and is not allowed. Dr. S. K. Maity/Lecture Note/NRM 121:Natural Farming-Concept/19-07-2024 Page 4 of 6  Main pillars or components of natural farming 1. Beejamrit is an ancient, sustainable agriculture technique. It is used for seeds, seedlings or any planting material. It is effective in protecting young roots from fungus. Beejamrit is a fermented microbial solution, with loads of plant-beneficial microbes, and is applied as seed treatment. It is expected that the beneficial microbes would colonize the roots and leaves of the germinating seeds and help in the healthy growth of the plants. 2. Jivamrit acts as a bio-stimulant by promoting the activity of microorganisms in the soil and also the activity of phyllospheric microorganisms when spayed on foliage. It acts like a primer for microbial activity, and also increases the population of native earthworms. 3. Mulching is defined as covering of soil surface using both live crops and straw (dead plant biomass) to conserve moisture, lower soil temperature around plant roots, prevent soil erosion, reduce runoff and reduce weed growth. There are two types of mulches: Crop Residue Mulch: This comprises any dried vegetation, farm stubble, such as dried biomass waste etc. It is used to cover the soil against severe sunlight, cold, rain etc. Residue mulching also saves seeds from birds, insects, and animals. Live Mulch: Live mulching is practised by developing multi-cropping/inter cropping patterns of short durational crops in the rows of a main crop. 4. Whapasa means the mixture of 50% air and 50% water vapour in the cavity between two soil particles. It is the soil’s microclimate on which soil organisms and roots depend for most of their moisture and some of their nutrients. It increases water availability, enhances water-use efficiency and builds resilience against drought. 5. Plant protection Neemastra, a neem based formulation, is used to prevent or cure diseases, and kill insects or larvae that eat plant foliage and suck plant sap. This also helps in controlling the reproduction of harmful insects. Neemastra is very easy to prepare and is an effective pest repellant and bioinsecticide for Natural Farming. Brahmastra, a natural insecticide prepared from leaves having specific alkaloids to repel pests is used for controlling all sucking pests and hidden caterpillars that are present in pods and fruits. Agniastra in another botanical preparations used to control all sucking pests and caterpillars. Dashaparni ark acts as substitute for Neemastra, Bramhastra, and Agniastra. It is used to control all types of pests and used depending on the level of infestation. Fungicide prepared with cow milk and curd is found to be very effective in controlling the fungus. Dr. S. K. Maity/Lecture Note/NRM 121:Natural Farming-Concept/19-07-2024 Page 5 of 6  Current Scenario of Natural Farming in India Prominent states practicing natural farming are Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Till now 6.5 lakh hectare area is covered under natural farming in India. Different State governments are promoting natural farming through various schemes. NITI Aayog is among the foremost promoters of natural farming in India. The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is also studying the natural farming methods practiced by basmati rice and wheat farmers in Modipuram (Uttar Pradesh), Ludhiana (Punjab), Pantnagar (Uttarakhand) and Kurukshetra (Haryana), evaluating the impact on productivity, economics and soil health including soil organic carbon and soil fertility. Prospects and challenges of Natural Farming in India Recently a study reported that India with about 18% world's population consumes only 1% of world's total organic produce. It shows that there is much scope and prospect of increasing natural and organic produce in the Indian market. But, there is a lot of hindrances being faced by organic food products whether obtained organically or naturally in the Indian market. A proper market infrastructure is yet to be established for selling of the produce and awareness among the farmers is required for proper implementation of all the schemes that are promoting the natural farming in India. This lecture note has been developed based on the following sources of information: 1. Website: National Mission on Natural Farming Management and Knowledge Portal, Govt. of India (https://naturalfarming.dac.gov.in/NaturalFarming/Concept) 2. Website: Natural Farming, Nitit Ayog, Govt. of India. https://naturalfarming.niti.gov.in/components/ Dr. S. K. Maity/Lecture Note/NRM 121:Natural Farming-Concept/19-07-2024 Page 6 of 6