SUSTAINABILITY OF UNPRODUCTIVE CLASS IV LANDS THROUGH TREE BASED FARMING SYSTEM APPROACH IN ARID REGIONS OF ANDHRA PRADESH

B. SAHADEVA REDDY¹*, B. RAVINDRANATHA REDDY², Y. PADMALATHA³, C. RADHA KUMARI⁴, A. MALLISWAR REDDY^5
1AICRP for Dryland Agriculture, Agricultural Research Station, Ananthapuramu, 515001, Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University, Lam, 522034, Andhra Pradesh India
²AICRP for Dryland Agriculture, Agricultural Research Station, Ananthapuramu, 515001, Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University, Lam, 522034, Andhra Pradesh India
³AICRP for Dryland Agriculture, Agricultural Research Station, Ananthapuramu, 515001, Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University, Lam, 522034, Andhra Pradesh India
⁴AICRP for Dryland Agriculture, Agricultural Research Station, Ananthapuramu, 515001, Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University, Lam, 522034, Andhra Pradesh India
⁵AICRP for Dryland Agriculture, Agricultural Research Station, Ananthapuramu, 515001, Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University, Lam, 522034, Andhra Pradesh India
* Corresponding Author : sahadevardd@gmail.com

Received : 23-06-2018     Accepted : 10-07-2018     Published : 15-07-2018
Volume : 10     Issue : 13       Pages : 6550 - 6552
Int J Agr Sci 10.13 (2018):6550-6552

Keywords : Class-IV lands, tree based farming system, Agri-Horti agroforestry system
Conflict of Interest : None declared
Acknowledgements/Funding : Author thankful to Agricultural Research Station, Ananthapuramu, 515001, Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University, Lam, 522034, Andhra Pradesh India
Author Contribution : All author equally contributed

Though Ananthapuramu district of Andhra Pradesh falls under semi-arid tropics, the climate is arid with an aridity index of -72.3. This rain shadow district receives low, uneven distribution of rainfall besides prolonged dry spells during cropping season leading to frequent crop failures. There is a large area of Class IV lands (25% area) in Ananthapuramu district which is not suitable for arable farming and remained unproductive with thorny shrubs. There is a necessity to improve the productivity of such lands by designing a appropriate farming system module and thoroughly identifying suitable tree species which includes horticultural trees, pasture crops and animal component to make unproductive lands to productive and sustainable over a long period of time. In this direction, two experiments were conducted during 2000-01 to 2012-13 and one experiment during 2010-11 to 2015-16 at Agricultural Research Station, Ananthapuramu, Andhra Pradesh for identification of suitable tree species, to develop suitable farming system module and to evaluate Agri-Horti agroforestry system under the three experiments respectively. Four tree species i.e., tamirand (Tamarindus indica, Linn.), ber (Zizyphus mauritiana, Lamk), custard apple (Annona spuamosa L) and soapnut (Sapindus mukurossi L) were planted during Kharif 2000. There was only 88% ,45% and 18% survival in soapnut,tamirand and ber plantation after a span of thirteen years. Hundred per cent mortality of plants was recorded in custard apple. Among all trees species, soapnut alone gave fruits with average yield of 1.180 kg per tree. It could be inferred that soapnut is the only tree that withstands harsh climatic (low rainfall) and even in Class IV soils which prevailed in Scarce rainfall zone of Andhra Pradesh. Tamirand trees came to fruiting only during well distributed rainfall years with mean net returns of Rs.4600/ha with horti pastoral (Tamirand + Stylosanthes) and integrated with sheep farming system. It could be opined that growing tamarind alone under rainfed conditions in class IV lands was not remunerative. However, positive net returns could be recorded only when sheep component was integrated in the system under Class IV lands.

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