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Crop Residues Management

crop residues managements

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Rajesh Kumar
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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
77 views21 pages

Crop Residues Management

crop residues managements

Uploaded by

Rajesh Kumar
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
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AGR503- MODERN CONCEPTS IN CROP PRODUCTION

Topic: Rice residue management under conservation agriculture. Discuss about the impacts on ecosystem

Submitted To: Presented By:


Dr. Rajesh Kumar Mia Kuriakose
Assistant Professor 12400385
What is crop residue?

Crop residues are left over materials in an


agricultural field after the crop has been
harvested. Or Remaining part of anything after
the main part is removed, taken or used.

These residues include stalks and stubble (stems),


leaves and seed pods.

In the past, farmers considered crop residue to be


trash, that was usually destroyed by fire.
• Crop residues are a resource constituting a readily available source of nutrients and
organic material for rice farmers.
• About 40% of the N, 30–35% of the P, 80–85% of the K, and 40–50% of the S absorbed
by rice remain in the vegetative parts at maturity (Dobermann and Fairhurst, 2000).
• Typical amounts of nutrients in rice straw at harvest are 5–8 kg N, 0.7–1.2 kg P, 12–17
kg K, 0.5–1 kg S, 3–4 kg Ca, 1–3 kg Mg, and 40–70 kg Si per ton of straw on a dry
weight basis (Dobermann and Witt, 2000).
• Residue removal can therefore have a significant effect on soil nutrient depletion.
Residue management also influences availability of micronutrients such as zinc and iron.
• According to the Directorate of Economics and Statistics, in 2012–2013, India generated
105 Mt of rice crop residues.
• Rice and wheat contribute nearly 70% of the crop residues.
• According to National policy for management of crop residues (NPMCR) Uttar Pradesh
generated highest crop residue (i.e. 60 Mt) followed by the Punjab (51 Mt) and
Maharashtra (46 Mt) with a grand total of 500 Mt per year out of which 92 Mt is burned.
• Traditionally crop residues have numerous competing uses such as animal feed, fodder, fuel, roof
thatching, packaging and composting.
• The residues of cereal crops are mainly used as cattle feed. Rice straw and husk are used as
domestic fuel or in boilers for parboiling rice. Farmers use crop residues either themselves or sell it
to landless households or intermediaries, who further sell them to industries. The remaining residues
are left unused or burnt on-farm.
• In states like Punjab and Haryana, where crop residues of rice are not used as cattle feed, a
large amount is burnt on-farm.
• The surplus residues i.e., total residues generated minus residues used for various purposes, are
typically burnt on-farm.
• More recently, the off-field uses of crop residues have tended to decrease in parts of Asia even as increasing
quantities of crop residues have been produced as crop yields and cropping intensity increase.

• The intensification of land use results in less time between crops for managing these residues, which can
interfere with tillage and seeding operations for the next crop.

• The lack of alternative uses for crop residues and lack of appropriate mechanization to handle
increasing quantities of residue have driven Asian farmers increasingly to burn crop residues as a method of
disposal.

• Crop residue (approximately 80 percent) was burned during the postharvest seasons of April-May and
November-December.
Why farmers burn crop residues?

• Lack of human labour


• The usage of combine harvesters
• The high expense of removing agricultural residue
from the field and mechanical crop harvesting.
• Difficulty in clearing of fields
• Pest and pasture management
• To make land preparation and subsequent crop
sowing/planting easier.
• For improving soil fertility: Burning enhances the
availability of nutrients like P and K in the near
term. Also diminishes soil acidity but, eventually
leads to loss of organic matter and nutrients like N
and S.
Effect of crop residue burning
• The main adverse effects of crop residue burning include the
emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs) that contributes to the
global warming, increased levels of particulate matter (PM) and
smog that cause health hazards, loss of biodiversity of
agricultural lands, and the deterioration of soil fertility.

• Crop residue burning significantly increases the quantity of air


pollutants such as CO2, CO, NH3, NO2, SO2, Non-methane
hydrocarbon (NMHC), volatile organic compounds (VOCs),
semi volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) and PM.

• This basically accounts for the loss of organic carbon, nitrogen,


and other nutrients, which would otherwise have retained in soil.
Managing crop residues with Conservation agriculture

• Management of crop residues with conservation agriculture is vital for long-term sustainability of Indian
agriculture.
• Burning of residues must be discouraged and utilized gainfully for conservation agriculture in improving
soil health and reducing environmental pollution.
• Regions where crop residues are used for animal feed and other useful purposes, some amount of
residues should be recycled into the soil.
• Recent estimates have revealed that conservation agriculture-based resource conserving technologies
(RCTs) with innovations in residue management avoid straw burning, improve soil organic C,
enhance input efficiency and have the potential to reduce GHGs emissions.
• Several technologies are available for efficient use of crop residues in conservation agriculture.
Retaining Rice Residue (Mulching)
• After rice harvest, leave the rice straw and stubble intact on the field.

Benefits:

• Rice straw or stubble left on the field acts as a natural mulch that
prevents evaporation, thus preserving soil moisture during dry
periods.

• Over time, the rice residue breaks down, contributing organic


matter to the soil. This improves soil structure, increasing the soil's
ability to retain water and nutrients.

• Mulching helps reduce surface runoff by creating a barrier that


slows water movement, allowing for better infiltration.

• The mulch layer left by the rice straw helps suppress weed growth,
control erosion, and reduce evaporation.
 Permanent crop cover with recycling of crop
residues is a pre-requisite and integral part of
conservation agriculture. However, sowing of a
crop in the presence of residues of preceding crop
is a problem.

 But new variants of zero-till seed-cum-fertilizer


drill/planters such as Happy Seeder, Turbo
Seeder and rotary-disc drill have been
developed for direct drilling of seeds even in the
presence of surface residues.

 These machines are very useful for managing crop


A ‘Happy Seeder’ for direct drilling of seeds in
residues for conserving moisture and nutrients. the presence of surface residues
Leaving of varying lengths of
stubbles for enriching soil organic
C content

In the areas, eastern India for example,


where crop residues have competing uses as
animal feed, roof thatching and domestic
fuel, at least some parts of the stubble should
be left in the fields to contribute to soil
organic C. This technology has been
successfully applied in several experiments
at Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya
(BCKV), West Bengal.
Growing of crop during post-rainy season with crop
residues under conservation agriculture in rainfed
condition

Due to less biomass productivity and competing uses of


crop residues, the scope of using crop residues for
conservation agriculture is limited in dryland ecosystems.
Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture
(CRIDA), Hyderabad, has shown that in dryland
ecosystems, where only a single crop is grown in a year,
it is possible to raise a second crop with residual soil
moisture by covering soil with crop residues.
Incorporating Rice Residue into Soil

• Chopping and mixing rice residue into


the soil increases organic matter
content, improving soil structure,
water retention, and aeration.

• The decomposing rice residues serve


as food for soil microorganisms,
enhancing the microbial population,
which contributes to faster nutrient
cycling.
Composting Rice Residues
• Composting rice residues enriches the soil with
nutrients and improves soil structure, promoting
better root growth, water retention, and microbial
activity.
• Compost provides slow-release nutrients, reducing
the need for synthetic fertilizers.
• It also increases the nutrient-holding capacity of the
soil, making it more resilient.
Livestock Integration
• Livestock (e.g., cows, goats) can graze on
rice stubble, helping to break down the
leftover rice residues and convert them into
manure, which can later be used to fertilize
fields.

• Livestock manure is an excellent source of


organic fertilizer, improving soil nutrient
levels and microbial activity.
There are three major benefits from conservation agriculture:
(1) increase in organic matter
(2) increase in water availability
(3) improvement of soil structure

• Zero-till drilling in crop residues keeps canopy temperatures lower by 1-1.5ºC during grain filling stage
and sustains soil moisture availability to the plants.
• Surface retention of crop residues increases N uptake and yield and improves the soil physical
properties in rice-wheat systems.
• Though residues incorporation leads to immobilisation of inorganic N but addition of 15-20 kg N with
straw incorporation increases the yield of rice and wheat.
Impact of crop residues on soil health
 Mulching with plant residues raises the minimum soil temperature in winter and decreases soil
temperature during summer due to shading effect.
 Increase hydraulic conductivity and reduce bulk density of soil
 Modify soil structure and aggregate stability.
 Retention of crop residues on the soil surface slows the runoff.

 Reduces surface crust formation and enhances infiltration.

 The crop residues act as a reservoir for plant nutrients, prevent leaching of nutrients, increase cation
exchange capacity (CEC)

 Leaving substantial amounts of crop residues evenly distributed over the soil surface reduces wind and
water erosions.
Impact of crop residues on pests
 Lower soil temperature and higher soil moisture content under crop residues would also affect pest
infestation.
 Residues change the type and density of weeds, which in turn influence insects and natural enemies.
 The surface residues may ensure survival of a number of insects, both harmful and beneficial.
 Reduced tillage systems may contain higher levels of pest inoculums than the conventional system.
 Since the zero/reduced tillage system reduces the fallow period among crops, it may result in altered
incidence of certain insects.
 Population of termite and white grubs generally increases under the reduced tillage. Also, may favour
snails and slugs, causing damage to crops.
 Increased pest and weed problems during the ‘transition period’ are major hurdles in adoption of
conservation agriculture by farmers.
Constraints of using crop residues with conservation agriculture
• Difficulties in sowing and application of fertilizer and pesticides, and problems of pest infestation.

• Requires more attention on timings and placement of nutrients, pesticides and irrigation.

• Lot of improvements have been done in the zero-till seed-cum-fertilizer drill system to give farmers a
hassle-free technology.

• Weed control is difficult.

• Application of fertilizers, especially N entirely as basal dose at the time of seeding may result in a loss in
efficiency and environmental pollution

• Specialized equipment are required for proper fertilizer placement, which contributes to higher costs.

• Additional management skills


THANK YOU

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