MPUAT, Udaipur

1. Welcome

2. Resource Conservation Techniques in Crop
Production
Department of Agronomy
Rajasthan College of Agriculture,
Udaipur
Speaker
Bachchu Singh Meena
M.Sc. Agronomy
Seminar Incharge &
Major Advisor
Dr. V. Nepalia
Credit Seminar on
Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture and
Technology, Udaipur

3. CONTENT
Introduction
Emerging challenges in Crop Production
RCTs in Crop Production
Research finding
Conclusion

4. Introduction
 Resource: A resource is any physical or virtual
enity of limited availability that needs to be
consumed to obtain a benefit from it.
 Conservation: Management of the human use
natural resources to provide the maximum benefit
to current generation while maintaining capacity to
meet the needs of future generations.

5.  Resource conserving technology refers to any management
approach or technology that increases factor productivity including
land, labour, capital and inputs.
 Resources conserving technologies (RCTs) conserve the resources
and produce more output with less input.

6. Emerging challenges in Crop Production
o Declining factor productivity
o Declining ground water table
o Development of salinity hazards
o Deterioration in soil fertility
o Deterioration in soil physical environment
o Biotic interferences and declining biodiversity
o High energy requirements
o Reduced availability of protective foods
o Increases air and ground water pollution

7. RCTs in Crop Production
RCTs includes following practices:-
 Minimum tillage
 Zero tillage
 Rotary tillage
 Residues management
 Brown manuring
 Laser land leveling
 Surface seeding
 DSR
 SRI
 SWI
 FIRBs
 Leaf colour chart
 Mulching
 Fertilizer use efficiency
 Drip irrigation

8. The concept of minimum tillage was started in USA in 1974.
Minimum tillage is aimed at reducing tillage to the minimum
necessary for ensuring a good seedbed, rapid germination, a
satisfactory stand and favorable growing condition.
Minimum tillage

9. Advantages of minimum tillage
• Improved soil condition due to decomposition of plant
residues in situ
• Higher infiltration rate of water
• Less soil compaction by the reduced movement of heavy
tillage vehicles
• Less soil erosion compared to conventional tillage.

10. ZERO TILLAGE
Zero tillage is an extreme form of minimum tillage in which primary
tillage is completely avoided and secondary tillage is restricted to
seedbed preparation in the row zone only.
• Helps in early sowing
• Save water, labor and diesel
• Increase fertilizer use efficiency
• Reduced soil erosion
• Improve soil organic carbon
• Increase yield up to 20%

11. Rotary tillage
Rotary tillage is the best option for increasing productivity and net returns,
followed by zero tillage and conventional drill sowing (Chauhan, 2003).
Rotary tillage technology is a tractor-driven version of the rotavator attached to
power tiller, which pulverizes the soil, place the seed and fertilizer at appropriate
depth and dose in a single operation.

12. RESIDUE MANAGEMENT
• Turbo seeder is an advance version of happy seeder developed by
PAU.
• The Happy Seeder is a tractor-powered machine that cuts and lifts
the rice straw, sows into the bare soil, and deposits the straw over the
sown area as a mulch.
• The Happy Seeder thus combines stubble mulching and seed and
fertilizer drilling into a single pass.

13. Benefits of Zero tillage
Positive influences on soil organic
carbon, N, P and K .
Increase aerobic bacteria (5-10 times)
and fungi.
Reduces Bulk Density, maintain soil
temperature.
(Sidhu et al., 2007

14. BROWN MANURING
Brown manuring is a technique to grow Sesbania in standing rice
crop and kill them with the help of herbicide for manuring. After
killing the colour of the Sesbania residue become brown so it called
brown manuring.

15. Advantages of Brown manuring
 It exerts smothering effect on weed spp.
 Conserving soil moisture
 Add organic matter in soil
 Fix atmospheric nitrogen in soil.

16. LASER LAND LEVELING
Land leveling through laser leveler is one such proven technology
that is highly useful in conservation of irrigation water. Laser
leveling results in a much more level field. Laser land leveling is
leveling the field within certain degree of desired slope using a
guided laser beam throughout the field.
Advantage:-
•Better distribution of water
•Water saving 35-45%
•Save fertilizer 15-25%
•Increase farming area
•Good crop health
•Reduce weed infestation
•Decrease cost & higher
productivity.

17. Surface seeding
 Excess soil moisture lead delayed sowings after rice harvest in
lowland areas
 Seeds of wheat broadcast (about a week before harvesting) or on
wet/muddy soil (after rice harvest).
 Benefits:
(I) Equipment not needed,
(ii) Heavy textured soils are
more suitable,
(iii) Suitable for areas
where land preparation is
very difficult and costly,
and often results in cloddy
tilth.

18. DIRECT SEEDED RICE(DSR)
 Rice is sown directly in dry seeding or wet seeding, and irrigation
is given to keep the soil sufficiently moist for good plant growth,
but the soil is never flooded.
 It is labour, fuel, time and water saving (75%) technology and
Higher net economic returns.
Methods of direct seeding

19. SYSTEM OF RICE INTENSIFICATION(SRI)
• It was developed in 1983 by the Henri de Laulanie in
Madagascar.
• System of Rice Intensification (SRI) is a methodology aimed
at increasing the yield of rice produced in farming. It is a low
water, labour-intensive, organic method that uses younger
seedlings singly spaced and typically hand weeded with
special tools.
• SRI PRINCIPLES:- Early, quick and healthy plant
establishment
• Reduced plant density
• Improved soil conditions through enrichment with organic
matter
• Reduced and controlled water application.

20. In the prevalent system of wheat cultivation requires more
chemical fertilizers and nearly 100-120 kg of seed per hectare.
SWI uses only 20-30 kg of improved seed in one hectare.
Twenty to twenty five cm spacing between rows, use of manure
and organic seed treatment ensures higher yield.
Sufficient spacing between the plants and sowing of two seed
grains at one point facilitates desired moisture, aeration,
nutrition and light to the crop roots, this helps faster growth of
plants.
Only 2-3 times irrigation and weeding through cono-weeder
save time and expenses on labour.
System of Wheat Intensification (SWI)

21. Furrow irrigated raised bed system (FIRBs)
 In this method, wheat is sown on raised beds in 2-3 rows
 Bed planting reduces the population of Phalaris minor on the
top of the bed
 Bed planting reduce the lodging
 Less seed and nutrient requirement by 25 %
 Good for irrigation as well as for drainage
 Less water requirement by 30- 40%.

22. LEAF COLOUR CHART
 A simple handy, ever-lasting pocket tool, made up high quality
plastic material and consists of 6 strips of different shades of green
from pale green to dark green
 Easy to use and inexpensive alternative to chlorophyll meter
 Measures leaf colour intensity which is related to leaf N status
 Helps farmers determine the right time of N application

24.  Retain large amount of rain water.
 Allows the water more time to percolate into the root zone.
 Maintains the favourable soil temperature for plant growth.
 Reduces evaporation loss of soil moisture .
 Increases the microbial population and their activity in the
soil.
 Provides organic matter to the soil after decomposition.
 Checks weed growth.
 Reduces soil erosion.
 Improves the efficiency of irrigation, particularly in drip
method.
Benefits of mulches
Mulching

25. • The yield of crops (biomass or economic yield) in per kg of
nutrient applied.
• Crop must be sown timely, maintained ideal plant population,
and the fertilizer is applied on the basis plant population.
• Use of organic manure and organic material.
• Legume crops included in the inter cropping system.
• N,P and K basal applied and the N is applied in 2-3 splits.
• The fertilizer use efficiency can be improve by management
practices like application of fertilizer at right time, right amount,
right method and at right place.
Fertilizer Use Efficiency

26. • Drip irrigation discovered in Israel, discharge rate of water per unit
area is 1-4 lit/hr.
• It saves 50-70 % water and even more.
• Herbigation and fertigation is possible through drip irrigation.
• Deep percolation, surface runoff, evaporations losses are minimum.
• No land leveling is necessary.
• Energy requirement is less.
• Less disease and weed infestation.
DRIP IRRIGATION

27. RCTs – Advantages in crop production
• Saving of resources : 60-85%
• Yield advantage : 3-17%
• Increase in profitability : 11-45%
• Increase in energy efficiency : 20-39%
• Lower production cost : 8-27%
• Saving in irrigation water : 4-38%
• Reduced weeds : 10-48%
• Improved soil health
(Sharma and Jat 2006)

29. Time and fuel consumption as influenced by tillage practices in
wheat at farmers field
Tillage
practices
Tractor
operation
Time
(hr/ha)
Fuel
(liters/ha)
Time
saving (%)
Fuel saving
(%)
Zero tillage 1 1.56 6.00 83.42 90.76
Conventional
tillage (drill)
10 9.41 65.00
--- ---
(Sharma et al., 2004)

30. Treatment Mean crop yield
(t/ ha)
NUE
(kg grain/ kg N uptake )
WUE
(kg grain /m3
water )
DSR 4.14 18.2 0.43
SRI 5.42 28.8 0.38
TPR 4.93 24.7 0.31
(Pal et al., 2012)
Performance of SRI on yield, NUE and WUE of rice over
transplanted and direct seeded rice

31. Water productivity (kg grains/m3) as influenced by sowing
methods (average of 6 years)
Sowing
method
Days taken to
maturity
Irrigation
water
applied
(cm)
Rice yield
(t/ha)
Water
productivity
(kg grains/m3)
DSR 113 148 6.82 0.461
TPR 125 174 7.59 0.436
(Gill et al. 2007)

32. Time required and suitability of different land leveling
techniques
Land leveling
techniques
Capacity
(ha/day)
Leveling accuracy
(cm)
Suitable for plot
area (ha)
Animal 0.08 +/- 4-5 cm < 0.25
Hand tractor 0.12 +/- 4-5 cm < 0.25
Blade 0.5-1.0 +/- 4-5 cm < 0.50
Bucket 0.5-1.0 +/- 4-5 cm > 0.10
Laser Up to 2 ha +/- 1 cm > 0.10
(Jat et al., 2006)

33. Grain yield and irrigation water productivity of rice under different
crop establishment techniques and land leveling practices
Crop
Establishm
ent
Technique
Rice Grain yield
(t/ha)
Total water use
(m3/ha)
Water productivity
(kg grain/m3 water)
Laser
Levelin
g
Tradition
al
Leveling
Laser
Leveling
Tradition
al
Leveling
Laser
Leveling
Tradition
al
Leveling
DSR
(drill sown)
5.25 5.10 11200 12471 0.50 0.41
TPR
(puddled)
5.41 4.98 13718 15056 0.39 0.33
Mean 5.33 5.04 12459 13763 0.45 0.37
(Jat et al., 2006)

34. Rice grain yield and N-use efficiency under different N
management practices
N management
practice
Total N applied
(kg/ha)
Grain yield (t/ha) Agronomic
efficiency (kg
grain/kg N)
Control 0 2.75 -
Recommended N
management
80 3.86 13.9
LCC≤3 (no basal
N)
80 4.18 17.9
80% N basal+
LCC≤3
104 3.62 8.4
Farmers’ practice
(3 splits)
100 3.74 9.9
(Jat and Sharma, 2005)

35. Wheat yield and productivity of wheat as influenced by
planting pattern
Planting
pattern
Seed rate
(kg/ha)
Leaf area
index
Number of
spikes/ m2
Grain yield
(kg/ha)
water
Productivity
(kg/m3)
Bed 75 cm -
3 rows
90 4.23 386.3 4560 1.53
Bed 90 cm -
3 rows
80 5.32 445.7 6180 2.25
Bed 90 cm -
4 rows
90 4.66 384.7 4890 1.75
Flat planting 100 5.06 426.1 5282 1.26
CD 0.05 -- 0.26 19.84 343 0.11
(Kumar et al., 2010)

36. Yield and water used in the different irrigation methods in
sugarcane
Irrigation systems Yield
(t/ha)
Water applied
(cm)
Water saving
(%)
Drip 162.36 111.25 49.21
Overhead
sprinkler
157.02 159.74 27.07
Rain gun 150.05 171.37 21.76
Micro sprinkler 154.11 152.42 30.41
Micro jet 153.0 149.42 31.78
Surface 134.06 219.02
(Pawar et al., 2007)

37. Irrigation efficiencies of different methods of irrigation in
sugarcane
S. No System Irrigation
efficiency (%)
Application
efficiency (%)
1. Surface methods of
irrigation
70-90 50-95
2. Sprinkler irrigation systems 70-90 60-95
3. Micro irrigation systems 80-90 70-95
(Sikka et al., 2005)

38. Nutrients Fertilizer use efficiency
Soil application Drip + soil
application
Drip + fertigation
Nitrogen 30–50 65 95
Phosphorus 20 30 45
Potassium 50 60 80
Comparison of fertilizer use efficiency in different irrigation
methods
Balasubramanian (2008) and Biswas (2010)

39. CONCLUSION
 RCTs save inputs like seed, fertilizer, water, energy
besides improving the crop productivity, higher net
returns and environmental quality.
 RCTs also improves the soil physical, biological and
chemical health.
 RCTs are more effective in combinations rather than
their individual application.
 RCTs produce more with less use of input/resources.