TOWARDS DEVELOPING AN AGRICULTURAL MODEL BASED ON BIOLOGICAL CYCLES FOR PERPETUALLY PROFITABLE AGRICULTURE

Agriculture as a profession for small time farmers is hand to mouth subsistence, perpetual poverty generations after generation. This always results due to failure of crops if we leave aside human mistakes in managing money.

The crops fail because of three main reasons. 1. Inclement weather 2. Diseases 3. Markets which plunge after good crops. It’s a kind of no win situation irrespective of whether you get good or bad crops. Various ways of insuring farmer’s investment have been tried. They do not work because human beings tend to take undue advantage of any given facility and crop insurance fails. The real insurance is crops that give money whatever happens.

However if we devise a system which ensures that at least a few crops will cross the above mentioned hurdles and be profitable each year for the farmer. To develop this concept one needs to understand the variables in agriculture. These variables have to be some how controlled to our advantage without damaging the flora and fauna.

Too much attention and resources are spent on predicting rains. It is impossible to predict rains on a single farm and that is what really matters. Instead we should be managing farms in such a way that whatever the rainfall some crops do well and give money to the farmer. This system will spread crops in a better way and monoculture will be avoided to a reasonable extent.

Variables in Agriculture:

1. Land : Size, shape, quality, slope, axial direction vis a vis sun’s path
2. Water : Dependant on Rain, canal, river, well, tube well, salt content of water, quantity available, distribution system,
3. Crops : Seasonal : underground, just below ground , just above ground, few feet above ground, many feet above ground, leafy, nonleafy, perishable in hours, perishable in days, perishable in months, nonperishable,twines
4. Crops : Annual : same as above, grains of various types and varieties, legumes, oil seeds,
5. Crops : Perennial : Spices, fruits
6. Crops : Requiring minimal water, medium water, lot of water
7. Crops : Requiring dry, moist, wet weather
8. Crops: Requiring shed, semi shade, mild sun, sunny weather
9. Crops : Requiring land with good drainage, medium drainage, poor drainage, water logged land
10. Crops : Requiring poor soil, sandy soil, rocky soil, medium soil, rich soil,
11. Air : Windy, moderately windy, still, dry, medium moisture content, high moisture content
12. Altitude: Sea level …………………. To up to 12,000 feet.
13. Diseases : Viral, bacterial, fungal, insects, seasonality
14. Damage : Animal, human, birds, fire, flood, hurricanes, earthquakes, market variations
15. Labor : One to many, only household, hired labor, permanently employed labor
16. Money : Zero to ?
17. Animals : Bulls, cows, buffaloes, goats, pigs, chickens, any other
18. Mechanical contraptions : Tractor, thresher, two wheeler, four wheelers, none
19. Energy : Solar, wind, electricity, animal, human, bio gas, wood
20. Fertilizers : Inorganic, organic, micronutrients, compost, slurry from biogas, green manure, animal and human waste
21. Transport : Human, bullock cart, tractor, truck, hired, poor availability
22. Education : None to agricultural graduate, any other graduate , primary, secondary, school drop outs.
23. Number of family members : Males, females
24. Availability of day light : Hours Year round, due to positioning in a valley or mountain
25. Market : Local, regional, national, international
26. Crop : Cash crop or otherwise
27. Crop : Genetically modified or otherwise
28. Crop : Normally grown farm produce in the region. Planting schedule each month
29. Storage : Small capacity, medium, large capacity, Cold storage
30. Processing Units : Juices, powders, wines, spice combinations, dry fruits,
31. Market trends for crops over the years
32. Seeds : Quality, availability, continuity
33. Seeds : Friends with each other, Enemies of each other
34. Availability of rain predictions : Range within hours to months, years, about quantity
35. Trees : Fruits, fodder, leaf shedding pattern
36. Presence of insect predators, insect diseases, animal predators like snakes and owls for mice
37. Land : Location in latitude
38. Air Pressure : Seasonal variations
39. Carbon dioxide levels
40. Capacity of plants to use carbon dioxide
41. Transpiration rates of plants, crops
42. Soil : pH, organic carbon content, azo rhizo bacteria content, fungus and nematode content, micro rhiza content
43. Earthworm population and type
44. Density of crops per sq. meter of soil
45. Bird and animal population: Migratory, resident
46. Temperature variations throughout the year
47. Sun spots, ,magnetic storms

If we are able to develop a model based on this variables it will work in the following way. Any farmer can submit the above variables in his land and we should be able to provide him with a list of crops, plants, trees that should theoretically yield him 52 harvests per year. Even if two thirds of these harvests are damaged one third should see him through.

Theoretically he should be able to plant each week of the year and harvest each week of the year. In doing so a biological cycle is to be set up which will start rolling. One crop will leave the conditions best suited for the next crop. The crops will be planted in such pairs that if it rains too much one of the pair will be damaged but one will thrive. If it does not rain again one will be damaged but one will thrive. This pairing will be done in all permutations and combinations suitable for that given case.

Plants will provide for humans, birds and animals; humans, birds and animals will provide for microbes, microbes will provide for plants. The cycle goes on enriching the environment more and more over the years and then the yields from this cycle will be in the form of grain, fruit, vegetables, animal products and money accrued from their sale, energy, clean air, clean water, living soil.

These biological cycles will include animal birds and microbes in the sense nothing will be taken as “pest” prima facie. The droppings of birds and animals will automatically enrich the soil by providing food to the microbes and earthworms in the soil.

Once the biological cycle starts turning the inputs for doing agriculture start tending towards zero. This leads to reduction in physical efforts and doing nothing kind of effortless effort take place.

If the farmer is rich he will be able to sustain vagaries of weather and all other damaging influences on his crops far better. An economically healthy farmer will be more likely to be physically, mentally and spiritually healthy.
A strong farmer is a strong society. A rich farmer is a rich society.