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| AGRICULTURE TRIBUNE |
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Grading
grains can guarantee gains Bio-fertilisers: taming
nature to produce nitrogen Grow
certified seeds for profit Fighting
black scurf in seed potato Tree
talk Graphic:
Production of pulses |
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Grading grains can guarantee gains
Quality grading of agricultural produce not only facilitates its marketing but also helps sellers and buyers to choose a particular commodity. The process essentially involves ensuring that in a given lot the produce is of a uniform quality and specification according to set standards. Grading ensures that the right price is set for different qualities. Accurate grading and pricing can benefit the producer at the time of sale. In the present scenario, with international trade gaining momentum, setting quality and grade standards has become necessary. All horticultural products have been influenced by such changes and grains cannot remain isolated. Several countries have developed and framed national standards for their main grain crops like rice, wheat, maize, barley, etc. When the grading standards are not legally and officially set, the quality is assessed visually and the price is influenced by local rather than national factors. In transactions involving the movement of large volumes of grains over long distances, the buyer may not be able to examine the whole consignment. Standards or grades can help clarify the quality of produce and facilitate in the formation of a legally binding contract. Such standards can also serve as a consumer protection instrument and minimise adulteration. Centres thus need to be established in rural areas, markets, ports and grain depots to ensure efficient implementation of grading standards.
Advantages — Graded grains are likely to be more equitably priced than non-standardised grains. This can bring stability in prices and ensure quality. — Prices against a grade assist producers and traders to market their products. — Millers, bakers and other processors can get material of the required consistency. — Sanitary hazards associated with inter-country movement of produce can be reduced. Grain quality:
Supply and demand control the quality of grain within local markets. In international trade, the consumer does not have direct influence over the grade. Hence regulatory standards have to be established to protect consumer rights. The criteria assigned to grain are based on intrinsic varietal qualities and those that are environment or process-induced.
Standardisation Standards are established for a variety of purposes, but mainly for produce grading in agricultural marketing and for the protection of consumers’ rights. There are 330 standard specifications for cereal and cereal products at national and international levels. Many countries have standards institutions like the Bureau of Indian Standards in India, which issues specifications for commodities as well as methods of testing. Many countries incorporate international standards, like those set by the International Organisation for Standardisation, into their national system. Another agency is the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), which has a committee to formulate standards on cereals, pulses and legumes. There are specific standard test methods for cereal and cereal products, of which 75 are applicable globally. The grading standards for different commodities can be obtained from the National Institute of Agricultural Marketing (www. niamonline. com), Jaipur, and the Directorate of Marketing and Inspection (http:// agmarknet. nic.in/dmiwelcome.html), Faridabad. |
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Bio-fertilisers: taming nature to produce nitrogen Agriculture today consumes high inputs of nitrogen. The present needs of nitrogen are largely met from synthetic nitrogen fertilisers. Their consumption has more than doubled during the past decade. These fertilisers are very expensive because of high production cost. Therefore, attention is being paid to tap alternatives for biological fixation of nitrogen. This is an important biotechnology programme. The national project on the development of bio-fertilisers has been promoting their use. Over 10,000 tonnes of different bio-fertilisers are being produced in the country. The commonly used bio-fertilisers are Rhizobium and Azotobacter species and blue-green algae. The first two occur naturally in the soil. The latter generally grows on the surface of stagnant water. Their efficient strains are being isolated. Azospirillum-based association has also shown promising results. Its use increases yields of cereals amounting to a saving of 20-40 kg N/ha. Symbiotic process In the symbiotic nitrogen-fixing system, photosynthetically stored energy is utilised instead of fossil fuels. In this process, atmospheric nitrogen is converted to ammonia with the help of biological catalysts, which are present in some of the plants or in bacteria naturally occurring in the soil. Certain nitrogen-fixing bacteria (Rhizobium species) grow in close association with a leguminous plant, usually with its roots where nodules are formed. The process takes place in these nodules through an enzyme system. The efficiency of the process depends on the synthesis, control and regulation of the enzyme. In a biological system, the regulation of an enzyme is governed by the repression of genes. The cluster of genes for nitrogen fixation has been identified as nif. Attempts are being made to introduce this gene into non-leguminous crops. Exploring the feasibility of extending symbiotic type of relationship to other agriculturally important crops like wheat by incorporating nitrogen-fixing genes has evoked wide interest. But there are certain biological barriers to this. For this reason, agricultural exploitation of Rhizobium and Azotobacter has met with limited success. Non-symbiotic process In the non-symbiotic process, there is a wide variety of free-living organisms like Azotobacter or Clostridia, which fix atmospheric nitrogen under aerobic (presence of oxygen) conditions. There are photosynthetic bacteria like Rhodospirillum, purple-sulphur bacteria and green-sulphur bacteria, which fix nitrogen photochemically under anaerobic conditions. Blue-green algae also possess nitrogen-fixing ability. These algae are now commercially grown, dried and sold in packets as bio-fertilisers. Around 500 tonnes of blue-green algae is being produced. Application of a combination of blue-green algae at a rate of 10 kg soil containing 5 per cent algae per hectare is commonly used as a bio-fertiliser, saving about 30 kg synthetic fertiliser nitrogen per hectare. Application of blue-green algae has an additional advantage: it reduces salinity. It has been found successful with rice crop because it gets favourable submerged conditions for growth. These algae could not be exploited in wheat fields. Environment cleaning The Tata Energy Research Institute (TERI) has demonstrated at the Badarpur thermal power plant that a Mycorrhiza (fungi) bio-fertiliser in plant-root association turns a flyash pond into rich soil, where plants like sheesham and eucalyptus could be grown. The TERI says that Mycorrhiza protects the plants from soil-borne diseases and detoxifies soils contaminated by toxic metals. This technology is expected to turn waste into wealth. The long-term future of Indian agriculture would thus depend on the success of these efforts, which ultimately means going back to Mother Nature and reduction in the dependence on synthetic chemical fertilisers. |
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Grow certified seeds for profit The phenomenal increase in agricultural output over the past decades is largely owing to improved varieties of seeds. A crucial component in farming, the importance of the quality of seeds thus cannot overemphasised. Herein lies the role of certified seeds. Benefits Certified seeds possess higher genetic purity, germination, physical purity and are free from any disease, weed and other crop residues. This ensures increase in production. For instance, certified seed of paddy possesses a physical purity of 98 per cent, germination 80 per cent and moisture 12 per cent. Classes: There are different classes for certified seed production—nucleus, breeder, foundation and certified seed. First, nucleus seed is produced by mass selection with progeny testing. Breeder seed is produced from nucleus seed; it is costly and produced in limited quantity. Breeder seeds are produced by research institutes. These are the source of foundation seeds, which are in turn used for the production of certified seeds. Field inspections for certified seed production standards are conducted by agencies like the Punjab State Seed Certification Authority (PSSCA). Certified seed is produced by seed-grower farmers through buy-back agreements. The seed crop is inspected during flowering and before harvesting and cleared at the field stage. This becomes the source of raw seed, graded and sampled and cleared by labs for Indian minimum seed standards for purity, germination, moisture, etc. It is finally packed and tagged with blue tags to be sold to farmers. The blue tag and seal are symbols of certified seed with a guarantee of nine months, provided the seed is stored under ideal conditions.
Procedure To begin, a farmer has to buy foundation seed from The National Seed Corporation, PAU, Ludhiana, or HAU, Hisar. Then (in Punjab) he has to register himself with the PSSCA by submitting an application fee of Rs 25 and an inspection fee on a per-acre basis according to the type of crop to be raised. Once the area is registered then the job of field inspection staff starts. At least two or three field inspections are conducted to establish the genetic purity of the crop, isolation distance from other fields and the off-type plant count. Farmers are advised to remove the off-type plants to maintain a crop of uniform quality. These fields are cleared according to the Indian Minimum Seed Certification Standards fixed by the Government of India. The raw seed received from such fields is further graded, sampled, cleared by testing labs, and then packed, tagged and sealed. Mainly, seeds of wheat, paddy, cotton and potato are certified.
Scope Certified seed is a basic input in agriculture. The Centre has fixed a seed replacement target of 10 per cent in wheat and paddy for Punjab. This target has been achieved in paddy, but not in wheat (5 per cent so far). Similarly, targets have been fixed in other crops as well. Sustained efforts are needed to achieve these targets; hence, a huge quantity of certified seeds is required. Because good seed if free from disease, it leads to a healthy crop with a high yield. Such crops need low use of chemicals. Though certified seeds are costlier, these give much better yields than ordinary seeds. Thus, certified seeds prove more profitable. |
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Fighting black scurf in seed potato BLACK scurf, caused by Rhizotonia solani, is a common fungal disease. It is found in seed potato in several states, including Himachal Pradesh, which affects the quality and market value of the produce. Symptoms There are two distinct phases of the disease — the stem canker and web blight and the black scurf of tubers. The stem canker phase causes necrosis of sprouts during germination, which results in poor and delayed emergence. The most common phase of the disease is the formation of chocolate-coloured, hard body sclerotial masses on the skin resulting in black scurf of tubers. The infected plants are killed and the tubers start rotting in the field and storage. The black scurf phase of the disease is more common than the stem canker phase.
Disease cycle The pathogen is found in soil and seed. The soil-borne infection is more virulent than the seed-borne infection. When the infected tubers are planted, fungus attacks the growing sprouts or young shoots. These are killed, which results gaps in the stands. Other plants may also get diseased near the ground level, producing dark brown cankers at the cellar. The girdling effect results in wilting and death of the plants. The downward movement of manufactured food material from the leaves is interfered, which causes stunting and purpling of leaves.
Control measures — Seed tubers should be taken from healthy areas. —
Good drainage, shallow planting, weed eradication and use of grain crops in long rotations reduces damage by Rhizoctonia. —
The soil application of sawdust @ 25 q/ha, with 120 kg/ha of nitrogen, at least 15 days before planting, reduces the incidence of the disease. Chemical control: —
The seed tubers (after harvesting and before sprouting) should be treated with Agallol or Emisan (0.5 per cent solution) for 10 minutes before planting. —
Dipping of tubers in 1.75 per cent solution of sulphuric acid for 20 minutes gives very good suppression of sclerotia. —
Dipping of tuber in 2 per cent solution of boric acid for 30 minutes keeps the disease in check. —
Akhilesh Singh, Dhanbir Singh and H.L. Thakur |
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Tree talk Asia has some 25,000 known plants having food value, which can a save man lost in the wilderness from famishing. Karoda is one such. It grows naturally in temperate regions of the Indian subcontinent, comprising Shiwaliks and lower, outer and middle Himalayas. Its scientific name is Carissa opaca, its family Apocynaceae. The natural habitat starts from Nepal and extends up to Afghanistan. Phenology:
Karonda is a medium-sized, wild, thorny shrub growing gregariously in scrub forests of its habitat from an altitude of 300 to 1800 m. It has a greenish white bark on young shoots and greyish brown on mature stems. The spines are straight and 1-3 cm long. At times, these are also forked. Its leaves are opposite, generally 2-3 cm x 1-1.5 cm, and ovate. They are green with shine above and a dull green shade below. Old leaves keep shedding throughout the year. New buds also keep sprouting through the year, though more during spring. Karonda flowers from February to June. The flowers are white and scented. The corymbose cymes appear at the ends of twigs. Children at times suck the base of the calyx of individual florets for it has traces of nectar. The fruit is a globose berry. It appears from March to August and ripens between May and December. Raw fruit is green while the ripe one is purple to shining black, depending on the state of ripening. These are full of sweet, though slightly acidic, juice when fully ripe. The wood:
Karonda wood is hard, straight-grained and weighs about 20-22 kg to a cubic foot. If the plant attains a sufficiently big size in well-protected situations, its wood is used for carving and turning for making articles like combs, toys, etc. However, karonda rarely matures fully and remains just a shrub. Its wood hardly attains any significant size, the use of which, therefore, is restricted to firewood. The green plant serves as a protective hedge around agricultural holdings. Its dry branches are highly prized for a fence to secure crops against cattle. Sheep, goats and camels browse on karonda foliage greedily. Its ripe berries are also eaten by humans, especially children. A paste of karonda root is used by villagers as a first-aid measure for healing small cuts and wounds. Regeneration:
Karonda regenerates itself profusely out of the seed dispersed by birds. Research organisations are working on the species for better varieties. The fruit of the improved varieties is preserved as a tasty pickle. |
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