PAU develops vegetable washing machine
V.P. Prabhakar
FOR on-farm operations, vegetable washer made of stainless steel has been developed at the Punjab Agricultural University centre of AICRP (All-India Coordinated Research Project) on PHT (post-harvest engineering and technology).

Paddy cultivation: adopt AWDI to save water
G. S. Dhillon
THE AWDI mode of irrigation implies alternate wet and dry phases during growth of paddy. As per findings of the IWMI, this mode leads to considerable saving of water and also power used for pumping, without adversely affecting the productivity levels or yield of the crop. This mode is being used in many parts of Asia, especially in Japan, China, and now also in India.

• FARM OPERATIONS FOR APRIL

Promoting women’s participation in agriculture
Balkrishan Prashar

KEEPING in view this year as "Women Empowerment Year", 25 women groups have been constituted to promote and highlight the participation of women in agriculture in Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh. Under the scheme, Rs 4.48 lakh is being utilised for various activities like link workers’ training, women village-based training, women study tours, women symposiums, result-oriented demonstrations, etc.

Fortunately, in Himachal Pradesh the year has been ideal for the production of field crops as well-distributed rainfall was received during February and March that is going to result in a bumper kharif harvest. In the current rabi season, a good amount of rainfall has been received except a little drought during the early crop season, which has slightly restricted tiller formation in the wheat crop.

But the well-distributed rains afterward have enhanced the prospects of the rabi crops, particularly the oilseed crops, which do not suffer moisture stress during the flowering and pod-formation stages. The climate has also been congenial for vegetables and other high-value crop production during this and ensuing seasons.

This year, 575 metric tonnes (MT) of high-yielding varieties of cereals, pulses, oilseeds and vegetable seeds have been provided to the farmers under various programmes. For this purpose, Rs 38 lakh has been spent, besides 1.65 MT of plant protection material, 2441 MT of fertilisers through HIMFED, 4,000 improved implements, machinery and equipment have been made available to the farmers through licensed and field agencies.

In order to increase the crop production per unit area, the soils of fields are being tested to identify the inherit soil fertility status. So far, 5500 soil samples have been tested and farmers have been guided to apply the nutrition to the crops on the basis of soil test values.

Taking into account the importance of soil testing, a new laboratory complex is being set up at Rajpura in Chamba district at an estimated cost of Rs 6 lakh. This laboratory complex will be ready for the services to the farming community during next financial year.

For the production of high-value crops and adoption of new farming technology, farmers training camps have been organised under various centrally sponsored schemes and macromanagement. In these camps, 2,000 farmers have been trained. In this series, four farmers study tours were also organised to get the farmers acquainted with the latest technology in agriculture.

According to Dr B.C. Awasthi, Deputy Director, Agriculture, out of 6,92,919-hectare geographical area of Chamba district, only 41,844-hectare area is cultivated with 7,020 hectare of irrigated area.

To bring the maximum area under irrigation and to enhance the vegetable production, 19 sprinkler sets were installed in the district this year at a cost of about Rs 3 lakh. To add mechanisation in agriculture seven tractors were provided to farmers on subsidy.

PAU develops vegetable washing machine
V.P. Prabhakar

FOR on-farm operations, vegetable washer made of stainless steel has been developed at the Punjab Agricultural University centre of AICRP (All-India Coordinated Research Project) on PHT (post-harvest engineering and technology).

The machine, according to the annual report of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, can remove dirt, dust and insecticide/pesticide residues from the surface of vegetables. It has a capacity of 100 to 200 kg/hr and requires one person for its operation.

It consists of a cylindrical perforated drum which rotates in a pool of water in the wash chamber. The shaft of the drum also acts as water jet sprayer and helps in pressure cleaning of adhered foreign matter from the vegetables. Speed of operation, and time of wash can be varied depending upon the requirement. The machine costs about Rs 35,000 with an electric motor of 0.5 kw rating.

Besides, a number of other instruments have also been developed under the farm implements and machinery and the PHT.

Two vegetable transplanters, one a single row self-propelled machine from South Korea using seedlings raised in paper cups and the other a tractor-operated six-row machine from the USA were procured by the Central Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Bhopal. Both were semi-automatic machines requiring feeding manually. The tractor-operated unit was modified from six-row to two-row and evaluated for transplanting brinjal and tomato crops during rabi 1999-2000. The two-row machine gave an output of 0.7 ha/hr with 5 per cent missing hills. It required 20 man-hr/ha compared with 320 man-hr/ha with manual transplanting.

The Punjab Agricultural University centre of AICRP on FIM (Farm implements and machinery) has developed a single row semi-automatic tractor-mounted vegetable transplanter, suitable for transplanting crops like tomato, brinjal, chilli and onion. Metering mechanism consists of a moving conical cup to carry seedling to the soil. The operation of cone, according to the ICAR report, is actuated by metering knob at fixed interval for maintaining proper plant-to-plant spacing. This opening mechanism releases sound to enable operators to feed nursery in the cup one by one. Two persons can sit for putting seedling in the cups alternately. On opening the cup, seedling moves down to rear of shoe type furrow opener by gravity. After the plant is dropped in the furrow, the soil is compacted around the plants with the help of two moving inclined wheels. Initial trials on the machine have shown encouraging results.

Farm power availability: Under the AICRP on ERAS (energy in agriculture), assessment of farm power availability in 10 years has indicated that in Punjab farm power has increased significantly. While draught animal use, according to the report, has greatly decreased, power from tractors has increased from 43 to 118 per cent over the same period. Depending upon available population and increase in power connections, electric motor population has increased from 44 to 320 per cent. Farm power availability in the villages has increased from 17 to 42 per cent, leading to availability of 1.77 KW/ha (Nawanshahr district) to 5.20 KW/ha (Kapurthala district). Based on published secondary data, the average farm power availability in Punjab has increased from 2.22 KW/ha in 1988 to 3.72 KW/ha in 1999, of which tractors provide more than 70 per cent of power.

The changing scenario in energy consumption at study areas in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu indicates a dynamic production by agriculture system operating in the country. Farmers have opted for mechanical power sources, mostly for land preparation and irrigation purposes, wherever situation so permits.

Every investment in the production of agriculture is generally increasing with an increase in the crop productivity. Energy intensity has decreased in some cases, while it has increased in others. Decreasing energy intensity is a positive indication, reflecting better use of energy invested.

Paddy cultivation: adopt AWDI to save water
G. S. Dhillon

THE AWDI mode of irrigation implies alternate wet and dry phases during growth of paddy. As per findings of the IWMI, this mode leads to considerable saving of water and also power used for pumping, without adversely affecting the productivity levels or yield of the crop. This mode is being used in many parts of Asia, especially in Japan, China, and now also in India.

The AWDI implies that a paddy or rice field is not kept continuously submerged for 100 days (the normal growth period of paddy), but is allowed to dry intermittently during the paddy growth period.

The IWMI (International Water Management Institute) of Sri Lanka has carried out a review of research studies carried out by the various research institutes keeping in focus the aspect of water saving, and found that this irrigation mode offers a promising path to conserve diminishing water resources without in any way affecting the rice production.

Rice grown under traditional practices in the Asian tropics and sub-tropics requires between 700 mm and 1500 mm of water for one crop depending on the soil texture. The break-up of the above volume of water between different uses are: (i) for land preparation: 150 to 250 mm, (ii) for growing paddy seedlings: 50 mm, and (iii) for evapo-transpiration: the requirement may very between 5 and 12 mm per day i.e. total requirement of water for this purpose being 500 to 1200 mm.

In addition to above, there is unavoidable seepage or percolation involved for maintaining the root zone of the plant in a fully saturated state for its entire growth period.

However, it has been found that in actual practice the amount of water used by the farmers for preparation of land and the growth period is much higher than the above figures. The availability of "free electricity for irrigation tubewells" is a significant factor to leading in use of excess water. The paddy growing farmers often "store water in the field" as a safety measure against unpredicted failure of power or water supply. This leads to high seepage and percolation loss and has been found by the IWMI to account for 50 to 80 per cent of the total water input.

Numerous studies conducted on the manipulation of depth of water and interval of irrigation, to save water use, have demonstrated that the continuous submergence is not essential for obtaining high rice yields.

Maintaining a very thin water layer at saturated soil conditions or alternate wetting and drying can reduce the applied water to a paddy field by 40 to 70 per cent compared to the traditional mode of continuous submergence without any significant loss of yield.

In certain areas and under right conditions the AWDI mode offers a promising method in irrigated paddy cultivation with benefit of saving of water and human disease control e.g mosquito-borne.

The IWMI found that it is not yet possible to draw general conclusions about the institutional and economic feasibility of implementation programme of the AWDI as the water saving and vector-control measure. This is no because the studies carried out so far were in different environment conditions and in the areas with different soil texture, water-table depth, so a common methodology could not be evolved by the IWMI for the AWDI.

Conclusion: It is stated that a further research is needed to be carried out for different regions listing their soil characteristics, water-table depth in the area and determine the minimum water depth and interval between irrigations so as to formulate guidelines.

FARM OPERATIONS FOR APRIL

Wheat:
The last irrigation to wheat sown after December 5 should be given now. Do not irrigate on windy/stormy day.

Sugarcane:
— For the control of weeds, use bullock-drawn or tractor-drawn implements. However, for the control of dila, post-emergence application of 2, 4-D sodium salt 80 WP @ 800 g per acre in 200-225 litres of water is recommended.

— Irrigate the sugarcane crop at 7 to 12 days’ interval for getting better growth of the crop. Apply 65 kg of urea to the ratoon crop. Irrigation may be given after the application of fertiliser.

— The attack of black bug in sugarcane can be checked by spraying 350 ml Thiodan 35 EC (Endosulfan) or 225 ml Sumithion/Folithion 50 EC (Fenitrothion) or 350 ml of Dursban 20 EC in 250 litres of water per acre. Direct the spray material into the leaf whorl.

— Mite feeds on the lower side of leaves under fine web. The leaves turn red and later appear to be burnt. Spray the crop with 400 ml of Malathion 50 EC in 100 litres of water.

— Do not ratoon the crop if it is severely affected with red rot, wilt or smut. Rogue out the smut-affected clumps and destroy.

Cotton:
— Start sowing cotton during second fortnight of April using F-1861, F-1378, F-846, F-505, F-1054 or LH-1556, 1134 varieties of American cotton or LHH-144, Fateh hybrids of American cotton; or LD-694, LD-491, LD-327 of Desi cotton.

— Treat 5 kg seed of American cotton before sowing to prevent primary seed-borne infection. Add 5 g Ceresan wet or 5 g Agallol or 2.5 g Tafasan or 5 g Aretan and either 1.3 g Streptocycline or 8 g Agrimycin-100 in 5 litres of water and soak seed in it for six to eight hours. In case of acid delinted seed soaking for 2 to 4 hours is enough. Avoid growing American cotton in citrus orchards and adjoining bhindi crop.

— In wilt infested fields, prefer to sow LD-694, LD-327, LD-491 variety and LDH-11 hybrid of desi cotton. To prevent primary infection from seed-borne pathogens treat 4 kg seed with 4 g Agallol/Ceresan or 2 g Tafasan/Aretan, 1 g Streptocycline and 5 g Bavistan/Derosal in 4 litres of water and soak the delinted seed in it for two to three hours. If undelinted seed is used, soak it for 6 to 8 hours.

— At the time of sowing, smear the cotton seed with Gaucho 70 WP (imidacloprid) @ 5 g/kg seed for preventing damage by cotton jassid.

— Sow both American cotton and desi cotton varieties in rows at 67.5 cm apart with plant-to-plant distance of 30 cm. However, for hybrids plant to plant distance may be kept 60 cm and for LHH-144 hybrid it should be 75 cm.

— Apply 75 kg of superphosphate per acre by drilling with last preparatory ploughing. If cotton follows wheat which received recommended dose of phosphorus, the application of phosphorus can be omitted to cotton. In poor soils, half dose of nitrogen (35 kg urea/acre) may be applied at the time of sowing.

— For controlling weeds, spray Treflan 48 CE, Shaktiman Triflurex 48 EC (trifluraline ) @ 1.0 litre/acre pre-plant incorporation or Stomp 30 EC (pendimethalin) @ one litre per acre as pre-emergence application in 250 to 300 litres of water. At the time of spray, there should be sufficient moisture in the soil. For controlling itsit which emerges with first irrigation, Stomp @ 1.0 litre/acre can also be applied after first irrigation.

— Progressive Farming, PAU