Business Opportunities in Agriculture: 150 Field Interviews (Book)

Mr. Sundaram Verma - Grows trees with one litre water in his farmland at Sikar, Rajasthan

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Grows trees with one litre water in his farmland at Sikar, Rajasthan

It sounds impossible to grow the sapling with just one liter water in scorching heat and extremely dry soil in Rajasthan! But it is the innovation by a progressive farmer Mr. Sundaram Verma residing in Sikar district, Rajasthan. “I analyzed every small aspect of growing the sapling meticulously hence could come up with this solution of using minimum water in transplanting the sapling in the farmland. It is in alliance with the nature therefore doing well,” he shares humbly.
Sundaram Verma engrossed in his on-field experiments.jpg
Mr. Sundaram Verma

He explains, “Rainwater absorbed in the soil is crucial in farming but it is lost due to the two reasons, one evapo-transpiration through weeds and secondly upward movement of water due to capillary action of soil. These are the major causes of water loss from the soil.” Soil can hold back sufficient water if these losses are prevented.


In order to prevent the losses Mr. Verma details out his practice, “First and foremost the farmland must be leveled to stop the rainwater runoff. After receiving the first rain, 5-6 days later the weeds grow naturally. To remove these weeds deep ploughing is done. It also helps in breaking capillaries of upper soil layer. This checks the upward capillary movement of water. Similarly just after last rain of monsoon once again deep ploughing is done in the farmland. It is usually done during the end of September.” Deep ploughing implies turning the upper soil surface to atleast 10 inches deep in the field. In this way the water is held back 10 inches deep inside the soil.


After second deep ploughing, the saplings are planted in 60-70 cms deep pits in such a way that their root zone remains in soil layer below 30 cm. After planting, approximately one liter of water is poured in the pit and the sapling is allowed to grow naturally. “When the saplings are planted in September last week or first week of October the temperature drops as a result the upper soil surface is cold hence the roots of the sapling penetrates as deep as possible. Consequently it survives as roots get tight grip of the soil till February-March. Finally in April season, when summer season begins the top soil surface begins to dry and moisture content moves to deeper levels so the roots further moves down towards the moisture. In this way the plants gets accustomed to absorb water from deeper levels in the soil and survives in less water on the top surface. It is ideal to plant the sapling during the end of rainy season instead of other seasons else water required for irrigation shall be quite more,” Mr. Verma elaborates the science behind the plant growth in his innovation.


He invested 10 years to develop this technique to grow all the forest trees. When asked about planting fruit trees he clarifies, “Fruit saplings can also be planted following this mentioned process and it shall survive but later the irrigation is mandatory for fruiting. Forest trees are left without water because there is no fruiting but for other trees top water irrigation is must.”


Mr. Verma holds ownership of 6 hectares farmland. Using the same technique of planting sapling with one liter water he has planted varied forest trees, fodder plants and fruit trees. Results are phenomenal with plant survival rate close to 100%. “I have planted 400 pomegranate saplings in one hectare area. My pomegranate trees are 8-9 years old. I water it only for fruiting. The pomegranate fruits produced are supreme in quality and quantity also because I use organic farming inputs. I use chemicals in minimum quantity for protection from the pest attack/disease spread out. Soon I will turn into 100% organic. Experiments are in process,” he adds.

In time to come Mr. Verma shall be introducing two new varieties of chick pea. These varieties shall be cultivated in minimum water yet the size of channa will be remarkably big. These have been approved by the Government certifying agencies. “I am also working on new high yielding variety of deshi wheat and mustard that too will be grown using minimum water. It shall be ready in next 2-3 years,” he reveals.


Water scarcity is increasing day by day but it can be managed if the tree saplings are grown in alliance with nature. Mr. Verma has proved it! “Agriculture is just like any other industry that needs constant improvement with experiments. Success shall be attained on a long term if the work is done in accordance to the universal foundation and fundamentals!” he concludes.

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Mrs. Bhagwati Devi Verma

Controls termite in the farmland with eucalyptus log


Termites can cause agricultural damage due to their voracious appetite for cellulose. Besides it can infest the crop itself and limit the yield. Termite can even interfere with farming infrastructure such as by destroying poles that support fencing. Commonly the cereal crops like wheat and maize are vulnerable to termite. To control the termite in the farmland, Mrs. Bhagwati Devi, wife of Mr. Sundaram Verma invented a technique using the eucalyptus wood pieces.
Bhagwati Devi Verma.jpg
Mrs. Bhagwati Devi Verma

“She observed that termites are always attracted to the gum trees like eucalyptus. Hence she kept eucalyptus wood pieces in farm and all the termites got stick on to it leaving the crop. In this way the crop was protected from the termites without any use of the pesticide or other chemical based medicine,” shares Mr. Verma proudly on the innovation made by his wife.


Wood piece- 1.5 feet long and 2.5 inches wide should be left in the middle of the farm after sowing the seeds. “One eucalyptus piece in every 100 meter works extremely well for the termite control,” he adds. This termite control method has been tested for three years consecutively by Agriculture University Bikaner and certified the claimed result.


Contact details:

Mr. Sundaram Verma

‘Dhabaya Wali Kothi’, Post- Danta, District Sikar - 332702, Rajasthan

Mobile: 09414901764

Email: sundaramverma@yahoo.co.in, swabhiman51@gmail.com
 
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Business Opportunities in Agriculture: 150 Field Interviews (Book)

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