How to practices sustainable agriculture?
Published on by christine adam, Water front - Project cordinator
Lots of people confuse sustainable agriculture with organic farming. Both are aimed at using more ecologically sensible practices, but they are judged by a distinct set of standards. Let discuss how to practice sustainable agriculture effectively .
4 Answers
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Sara, there are some disadvantages of sustainable agriculture like it requires more knowledge than required for traditional methods. (technical knowledge). It also requires higher initial investments. At the last but not the list initially these practices reduces the productivity which is a big issue for small farmers.
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Is there any disadvantages of sustainable agriculture?
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It is such a wonderful explanation Mr. Gema. But this also gives rise to some discussion, like why to follow Polyculture over Monoculture in terms of Agril field? Marginal farmers do not have the capacity for polyculture and they prefers going for a single crop. The reasons are different for them from the big farmers, then how to convince them? And is it really worth following polyculture over the monoculture?
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I am tabulating some of the core steps which lead the concept of SA, group members would like to add some more, Understand that being certified organic doesn't guarantee sustainable practices. Become familiar with how sustainable agriculture is defined: Farming a single area so that it produces food indefinitely. In order to move in this direction, a farm has to avoid irreversible changes to the land (for example, erosion), withdraw no resources from the environment that cannot be replenished (for example, not using more water than can be replaced regularly by rainfall), and produce enough income to remain a farm in face of worldwide farm consolidation and infrastructure development. Consider the source. Where are your resources and inputs coming from? Think specifically about water, energy, soil amendments, and feed (if you have livestock). Also think about long-term, capital investments, such as structural building materials, tools, etc. Determine where your resources come from and whether you're taking more than can be replaced, either through natural processes or your own practices. Keep in mind that no farm is an island: complete self-sufficiency is not a requirement of sustainable agriculture. Long-term stability and productivity is. The more renewable and varied your resources are, the longer your farm will last. Eliminate waste. There is no "away" to "throw" to. Everything is connected. The three "R"s apply here more than ever: reduce, reuse, recycle. It'll not only be more sustainable, but it's cheaper, too. Examine every bit of garbage and waste that your operation produces and ask "What else can I do with this?" If you can't do anything to do with it, try to think of ways someone else in the community can use it. Be creative. Diversify ecologically. Choosing "polyculture" over "monoculture" results in less waste and often, reduced fossil fuel consumption. Diversify financially. An ecologically sustainable farming operation won't do anybody much good if it can't generate a profit and keep itself running. Unless you or someone else is willing and able to sponsor the farm with an off-farm day job or another external source of income, you're going to have to crunch the numbers until you're in the black. Find good, reliable labor.