Conservation agriculture is a set of soil management practices that minimize soil disruption and maintain permanent soil cover. It includes no-tillage or zero tillage, maintaining crop residues as soil cover, and crop rotation. Adopting conservation agriculture provides several benefits like increased soil moisture retention, reduced soil erosion, and decreased production costs. It also improves soil structure and fertility while reducing the need for chemical fertilizers and pesticides. However, understanding and implementing the new system poses challenges that require long-term research and technological developments. Overall, conservation agriculture helps ensure sustainable soil and farm management for increased and improved agricultural production.

1. CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE: A Paradigm
Shift in Sustainable Farming Practices
Mr.Arpit Shashank
Roll No:2621110
sem- 4th(B2)
B.sc (Hons) Agriculture

2. Threat to the Natural Resources
Land Degradation
• About 5 billion tonnes soil
and 6 million tonnes of
nutrient loss reported every
year. The loss of precious
topsoil is comparatively
higher in dry land areas due
to low moisture and poor
soil covering vegetation and
residues
• Hence protection of top soil
especially in rain fed areas is
most crucial for sustainable
agricultural production
Sources:United Nations in India and TERI

3. Threat to the Natural Resources
Groundwater Depletion
• The average groundwater
levels have been declining
at a rate of 2.6 cm per year
between 1996-2017(Gravity
Recovery and Climate
Experiment).

5. Conventional practices
Excessive soil tillage
• Runoff loses
• Soil erosion
• Nutrient leaching
• CO2 emission
Straw burning
• Loss of micro organisms
• Environment pollution
Adverse consequences of burning of crop residues
Emission of :
Methane
Carbon monoxide
Nitrous oxide
sulphur dioxide

6. Conservation
Agriculture
What is Conservation Agriculture (CA) ?
CA is a set of
• Soil management practices
• It minimize the disruption of the soil's structure, composition and
natural biodiversity.
Agronomic practices included in CA are based on three core principles
Permanent Soil
Cover
No Tilling the Soil Crop Rotation and
Cover Crops
(Derpsh, 2001)

7. Why Zero or Minimum Tillage?
Reduction in costs, time
and power consumption
Reductions in weeds
Reduction in soil erosion
Avoid release of CO2

8. Why soil cover?
• More soil organic matter and available nutrients
• Promotes biological activity
• Soil enrichment & improved soil structure
• Increased water infiltration
• Better root penetration and crop growth
• Less soil erosion
• Less weed pressure

9. Why Crop rotation?
• Breaks pest and disease
cycle
• Enhances nutrient cycling
and reduces nutrient
imbalances
• Improves soil fertility and
reduces the need for
synthetic fertilizers
• Increases biodiversity and
ecosystem resilience
source:blogspot.com

10. Water infiltrates rapidly
The long term trial of the soil conservation service of Bern, Swiss, compares ploughing and direct drilling
Conservation Agriculture since 12 years
1
2
3

11. Tillage effects on water infiltration and ground cover
Tillage type Water Infiltration
(mm/minute)
Ground Cover
(%)
No-till 2.7 48
Chisel Plough 1.3 27
Moldboard
Plough
0.8 12
No-till field Conventional tillage No-till field
Conventional tillage

12. Water management in Conservation Agriculture
Intensive and deep tillage
• Practiced in our farming systems for thirty years
• Quick degradation of the soil surface and
structure
• Repeated tillage, heavy traffic on the field and the
lack of organic matter and bioactivity lead to a
horizontal layering of the soil.
• The rainfall infiltration is reduced and bare soil is
exposed to erosion and run-off.
• The water is not stored in the soil
Conventional tillage

13. No/zero tillage
• No/zero tillage preserves the natural cover
on the soil surface
• The vertical organization of the profile due
to roots, earthworms and biological activity
• Better infiltration and the reduction of run
off and erosion is achieved
• The soil is capable to store water quickly
during the rainy season and to release it
during growing season
• The farmer saves inputs, avoids pollutions
and reduces flood risks.
Water management in Conservation Agriculture
No-till field

14. OLD PARADIGM NEW PARADIGM
Soil tillage is good for crop production Tillage is not necessary for crop production
Crop residue is a waste product burn/bury
them with tillage implement
Crop residues are valuable products and
must remain on soil surface as mulch
Bare soil for months and years is good farm
sanitation
Permanent soil cover is essential
Focus on soil chemical processes Focus on biological soil processes
Chemical pest control is the first option Biological pest control be first option
Soil erosion is acceptable and unavoidable
risk in farming
Soil erosion is a symptom that unsuitable
methods are being practiced at the source
Concepts of Agricultural production and management

15. Benefits of Conservation Agriculture(CA)
Increased crop yield(200-500 kg per ha) in IGP(Indo Gangetic Plain) region
Cost reduction by about Rs. 5760 per ha(5-10 prcent)
Conservation of moisture and nutrients of soil(up to 20-30%)
Energy saving,especially of tractor time saved by 60-90%
In IGP 1 million barrel oil saved if zero-tillage practice adapted in about 3.5 mha area
Reduces air pollution,soil erosion,soil compaction
Increase beneficial microbes that harm by burning residues
Reduced incidence of weeds
Crop diversification opportunities
Sources:S.Bhan and U.k Behera, 2014.International soil and water
conservation research.International Soil and Water Conservation Research,
Vol. 2, No. 4, 2014, pp. 1-12

16. Challenges in Conservation Agriculture:
Understanding
the system
Building a
system and
farming
system
perspective
Technological
challenges
Long -term
research
perspective

17. • In agriculture, the only way to improve production in terms of both
quality and quantity is to conserve or to improve soil fertility.
• Good soil structure and permanent cover allow the reduction of
mechanization, fuel consumption and irrigation.
• Good soil fertility can reduce the need of fertilizers.
• Conservation Agriculture is an effective way to ensure soil
protection and fertility and therefore to reduce inputs without
compromising yields, or even achieving better production level.

18. References
 Atsuko M, Hirofumi U and Maki K (2017) Synergistic effects of light quality,
carbon dioxide and nutrients on metabolite compositions of head lettuce under
artificial growth conditions. J:Food Chemistry 218: 561-568
 Deng X and Dou Yingtong, H (2018) Robust closed-loop control of vegetable
production in plant factory J Computers and Electronics in Agriculture 155: 244-
250
 Dong C, Shao L, Fu Y and Wang M (2015) Evaluation of wheat growth,
morphological characteristics, biomass yield and quality in Lunar Palace-1, plant
factory, green house and field systems J Acta Astronautica 111: 102-109.
 Hu P, Lin B, Yang Y and Hwang S (2018) A Frame work of intelligent plant factory
system. J Procedia Computer Science 131: 579-584

19. Contd…
 Joshi J, Zhang G, Shen S, Supaibulwatana K A, Watanabe C and Yamori W
(2017) A combination of downward lighting and supplemental upward
lighting Improves plant growth in a closed plant factory with artificial
lighting J HortScience 52: 831-835
 Keat C K and Kannan C (2015) Development of a Cylindrical Hydroponics
System for Vertical Farming J Agri Sc. and Tech. 5: 93-100
 Ohashi K, Imai and Kobayashi, W (2015) Yield and fruit quality of several
wild and domestic tomato cultivars grown in an environmentally controlled
agricultural facility (plant factory) ISHS J Acta Horticulture 1170: 989-994
 Kozai T, Takagaki M and Niu G (2016) Plant Factory Pp. 297-315.
Academic Press

20. Contd…
• Nishikawa T, Fukuda H and Murase H (2013) Effects of airflow for lettuce
growth in the plant factory with an electric turntable J IFAC Proceedings 46:
270-273
• Shimizu H, Saito Y, Nakashima H, Miyasaka J and Ohdoi K (2011) Light
Environment Optimization for Lettuce Growth in Plant Factory J IFAC
World Congress Pp 605-609
• Touliatos D, Dodd I C and McAinsh M (2016) Vertical farming increases
lettuce yield per unit area compared to conventional horizontal hydroponics
J Food and Energy Security 5: 184-191
• Wikipedia https://en.Wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertical_Farming Date of access
2/12/2018

21. THANKS !