What is Organic and Natural Farming?

Organic farming sustains itself with minimum human intervention and does not use inorganic fertilizers or toxic pesticides and Natural farming is farming as nature itself meant it to be. In nature, each creature, leaf, and blade of grass helps to moderate the environmental balance. And when these die, they leave behind their contribution of fertility for generating new life.

How to do Organic Farming?
  • No Excessive Tilling - Since deep ploughing is harmful; the best way is to “let it happen”. The armies of insects like earthworms and ant, by their tunneling actions, tills the soil efficiently, increasing its porosity and capacity to hold oxygen and moisture.
  • No need for excessive water - Plants, grown without chemicals, needs only slight wetness, not heavy irrigation. A simple, low cost, labour-saving and maintenance free system of irrigation is “platform & trench” system, which increases water utilization efficiency and also act as drainage channels during monsoon.
  • Avoids use of inorganic fertilizers - the nutrients required for soil and the plant comes from the castings of worms, microorganism, organic wastes & garbage.
  • Avoids use of toxic pesticides - Insects aid genetic up gradation of plants over time by feeding on weak and decaying plants & by their excreta. Mixed cropping is done to help check the growth of pests by growing neem shrubs and tulsi.
  • Weeds and grass are nature’s blessing, so they should not be uprooted. If they are coming in between the growth of the crop, then only they should be cut off.
Benefits
  • Economic Savings of foreign exchange, which would have been spent on import of chemical fertilizers, pesticides and machinery.
  • Less water costs as no excessive irrigation is done. There is 30-40% saving in the water used for irrigation.
  • Little or less irrigation results in saving of labour costs.
  • Increasingly higher yields like 300-350 coconuts per tree per year as compared to the normal 100-125. Average yield of a mixed orchard of coconut, chikoos and bananas is 20,000 – 25,000 kgs with profitability ranging from 850-900%
    without any extra effort.
  • Tastier and more nutritious crops. Products under organic farming retain its original characteristics and fetches very good price. Eg- Bananas fetch Rs 2.50 instead of Rs. 1.75 per kg
  • Protection of soil and environment
  • Minimizes incidence of diseases like cancer, diabetes, and rheumatism.
  • After the organic farming base, one can switch over to natural farming.
REMARKABLE INNOVATION DONE BY JAMNALAL BAJAJ AWARDEE:

SHRI. BHASKAR HEERAJI SAVE
KALPAVRUKSHA, P.O. DEHERI
TALUKA UMARGAON 396170
DISTRICT VALSAD
GUJARAT

Website: www.savesanghavi.com