Dry land Farming and Watershed Management
(AGRON-512)
UNIT- I
Definition, concept and characteristics of dry land farming
;dryland versus rainfed farming; significance and
dimensions of dryland farming in Indian agriculture
INTRODUCTION
o Agriculture is the single largest livelihood source in India with
nearly two-thirds of people depend on it. Rainfed agriculture is as
old as agriculture itself.
o Growing of crops entirely under rainfed conditions is known as
dry land agriculture.
o According to the World Atlas of desertification (UNEF 1992),
Dry land is a ratio of average annual precipitation (P) to potential
evapotranspiration (ET) of less than 0.65.
o It is also referred as application of techniques which enhance crop
production and water resources under dry land ecosystem for
livelihood security of dry and farmers.
o Depending on the amount of rainfall received, dry landagriculture
can be grouped into three categories: Dry farming, Dry land
farming and Rainfed farming.
DEFINITION
Dry farming: is cultivation of crops in regions with annual rainfall
less than 750 mm. and growing season less than 75 days. Moisture
conservation practices are necessary for cropproduction.
Dryland farming: is cultivation of crops in regions with annual
rainfall 750 to 1150 mm. These are semi arid tracts with a
growing period between 75 and 120 days.
Rainfed farming: is crop production in regions with annual
rainfall more than 1150 mm. Crops are not subjected to soil
moisture stress during the crop period. Emphasis is often on
disposal of excess water. These are humid regions with growing
period more than 120 days.
Classification of Dry land Acc. to
(FAO 1993) and Extension (UNEP 1992)
S.No Category P/PET ratio Rainfall (mm) Area in
World
(M ha)
1. Hyper arid <0.05 200 1.0
2. Arid 0.05 to 0.20 <200 winter 1.62
<400 summer
3. Semi-arid 0.20 to 0.50 200-500 winter 2.37
400-600 summer
4. Dry sub- 0.50 to 0.65 500-700 winter 1.32
humid 600-800 summer
Dryland Area in different region of India
Region States Rainfed Area
(%)
Cold and Moist Region Jammu & Kashmir, 60 to 81
Uttaranchal and H.P.
Arid Western Region Rajasthan, Gujrat 66 to 88
Semi Arid to Arid M.P., A.P., 76 to 82
Central and Southern Karnataka
Region
Sub-humid to Humid Easter UP, Bihar, 30 to 73
Eastern Region Jharkhand, Odissa WB
Humid to Per Humid Assam & North Eastern, UP to 90 %
Northern Eastern Hill State Source
Regions
Classification of Agro-climatic
condition based on rainfall
S.No. Agro-climatic class Rainfall
1. Arid >500 mm
2. Semiarid 500-700mm
3. Sub-humid 750-1150mm
4. Humid >1150mm
Dry land Vs Rainfed farming
Constituents Dryland farming Rainfed farming
Rainfall (mm) < 750 >750
Moisture Shortage Enough / Sufficient
Growing season <200 >200
Arid and Semiarid &
Humid and slub
Growing regions up lands of sub humid
humid regions
& humid regions.
Single crop or Intercropping or
Cropping system
intercropping double cropping
Wind and water
Constraints Water erosion
erosion
IMPORTANCE
• Rainfed agriculture production systems in the country are
diverse and heterogeneous.
• This sector currently produces 40% of the food grains and
supports two-thirds of the livestock population.
• Nearly 40% of the population depends on rainfed
agriculture, and its performance is critical to enhancing
production and achieving and sustaining high agricultural
growth.
• Average per-hectare productivity levels have increased
from 0.6 tones in the 1980s to 1.2 tones (CRIDA, Vision
2050).
Advance practices for improving yield in dryland
o Decision support systems for contingency planning
o Agro-advisories & pest and disease forewarning
o Integrated systems simulation modeling
Main Constraints of Dryland areas for Improving Productivity
There are following constraints of dryland areas for enhancing
productivity:
1. Inadequate and uneven distribution of rainfall
2. Late onset and early cessation of rains
3. Dry spell is common feature either, early, mid and terminal
situation
4. Prolonged Dry spells during the crop period
5. Low moisture retention capacity
6. Low Fertility of Soils
7. Soil degradation
8. Choices of the crops
9. Intensity of rainfall is high leading to soil and water losses
10. Lacking of timely operation viz., seed bed preparation, sowing
and weeding etc.
Main Constraints of Dryland areas for Improving Productivity
11. Poor fertility status and water retention proportions of soil
12. High wind speed and high evaporative demand
13. Communication gap or lack of awareness
14. Poor water resources management
15. Inefficiently utilization of harvested water
16. Value addition of Agro-bi products or Agro water
17. Poor livelihood security of dryland farmer s and
18. Climate change impact on agriculture
Policy Issues in Dry land Farming
Singh (1990) suggested the following points to strengthen the
research and development of rain fed agriculture:
1. Undertake a significant shift in investment from irrigated
areas to rain fed area, with a major emphasis on forestation
and soil conservation projects organized on a watershed
basis.
2. Investment in soil conservation practices including creation
of appropriate infrastructure as well as water harvesting
systems such as farm ponds have to be undertaken on a
village–by–village basis. This expenditure will only be a
fraction of what the government already is spending on
irrigation. Otherwise, without such government investment,
the high cost and the time delay in realizing immediate
benefits will prohibit farmers from engaging in rain fed
agricultural practices.
3. Weather aberrations continue to plague dryland farmers. Since
seed is the primary input in the adoption of improved farm
technology, seed banks must be established with government
support in order to help farmers to adopt contingent strategies,
whenever the weather becomes aberrant
4. Draft power is a serious contingent in dryland farming.
Individual farmers can not afford to purchase mechanical
implements such as tractor. Therefore, a system of custom
hiring in the villages would help farmers to complete their
operations in a timely way at an afforadable cost.
5. One of the principal factors explaining the non-adoption of
improved crop production technologies is the element of risk
involved in rain fed farming. Therefore, the availability of crop
insurance for drought protection involving selected dryland
crop would go a long way in installing confidence in farmers
and in establishing crop production.
6. Since farm holding are exclusively fragmented, further
division of land should be minimized by means of weaning
away some population from agriculture. This can be done by
encouraging the development of small scale, agro-based
industries and services in the rain fed regions.
7. In additions to low productivity in rain fed areas there is also
an acute scarcity of fodder . Sivli–pastural systems on
marginal lands should be encouraged through liberal
financing, and fodder banks should be established to cope
with scarcity during drought years.
CHARACTERISTICS OF DRY LAND AGRICULTURE
Dry land areas may be identified by looking at the following
features:
(i) Low rainfall
(ii) Soil degradation
(iii) Uncertain and limited annual income
(iv) Extensive climatic hazards
(v) Undulating soil surface
(vi) Extensive agriculture
(vii) Relatively larger plot size
(viii) Similar type of crops
(ix) Lower crop yields
(x) Poor market of the produce
(xi) Poor farmers’ economy and cattle health
(xii)Widespread deficiency diseases in human beings
There are three types of agriculture possible in Dry land areas
(i) Crop Production
(ii) Animal husbandry with pasture management and
(iii) Agro-forestry
Dry farming areas are characterized by very low and highly
variable and uncertain yields. Problems of dry land
agriculture are:
(i) Inadequacy and uncertainty of rainfall and its erratic distribution.
Expected rainfall in a year is 650 mm but 80% of it is received in
75-90 days of the monsoon season
(ii) Late onset and early cessation of rains
(iii) Prolonged dry spells during the crop period
(iv) Low moisture retention capacity
(v) Poor soil fertility conditions
(vi) Socio-economic constraints particularly because of the pre-
dominance of small and marginal farmers. 54% of the holding
is less than one hectare
(vii) Technological and developmental constraints
(viii) Limited infrastructure development and improper and untimely
availability of credits and agriculture inputs
SUMMARY
• Dry farming, dry- land farming and rainfed farming are often
used interchangeably, but they exclude irrigation, beyondthat,
they can differ significantly. Dry-land farming is a special case
of rainfed agriculture practised in arid and semiarid regions in
which annual precipitation is about 20- 35% of potential
evapotranspiration (PET).
• Rainfed systems, although they include dry-land systems, can
also include systems which emphasise disposal of excess
water, maximum crop yields, and high inputs of fertilizer.
• There are three components of a successful dry-land farming
system: (i) retaining the precipitation on the land, (ii) reducing
evaporation from the soil surface to increase the portion of
evapotranspiration used for transpiration, and (iii) utilizing
crops that have drought tolerance and that fit the precipitation
patterns.
• Rainfed agriculture plays, and will continue to play, an
important role in global food production as 80% of agriculture
is rainfed and contributes about 58% to the global food basket.
• Arid and semi-arid regions comprise almost 40 percent of the
world land are an are inhabited by some 700 million people.
• India ranks first in rainfed agriculture globally in both area (86
M ha) and the value of produce
• The characteristic feature of rainfed agriculture is
demonstrated by aberrant climatic condition marked by
erratic and uncertain rainfall coupled with problematic soils
and resource poor farmers and inadequate marketing system.
• Dry-land agriculture plays as distinct role in Indian agriculture
occupying 60% of cultivated area and supports 40% of human
population and 60% livestock population.
• Many international and national programmes have been
initiated for better utilization of resources, particularly
water, for augmenting agricultural production in these
regions.
• In India, CRIDA at Hyderabad, Central Arid Zone Research
Institute (CAZRD) at Jodhpur and AICRPDA at various
locations of the country along with various locations of the
country along with Soil Conservation Research., Demonstration
and Training Centers are working in the field of rainfed
agriculture.
