Book of Extended summaries ISDA

International Conference on Reimagining Rainfed Agro-ecosystems: Challenges &
Opportunities during 22-24, December 2022 at ICAR-CRIDA, Hyderabad
T2-06R-1116
Livelihood Sustainability of Rainfed Farmers: Impact of Various Fodder
based Cropping Systems in Rainfed Regions of Telangana
V. Visha Kumari, S.S. Balloli, K. Srinivas, D.B.V. Ramana V. Manoranjan Kumar, V.
Maruthi, M. Prabhakar, M. Osman, A.K. Indoria. M. Manjunath, G. Ravindra Chary,
Purabi Banerjee, S.K. Yadav and V. K. Singh
ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture, Santoshnagar (P.O.), Hyderabad 500059
In drylands, we have a restriction with very narrow sowing window apart from land
degradation and poor productivity. Thus, to reduce the risk of crop failure and to have a
sustainable farming, the farmers often prefer intercropping rather than single crop. However,
at least for six months in a year there is no vegetal cover on cultivated soil. Even though dairy
is an important component in dryland, availability of fodder from natural grasses or fodder
crops are negligible. Growing perennial forage legume or grass viz., Desmanthus and Guinea
grass with proved and existing promising cropping system of dryland is recommended. They
grow fast and cover the land surface quickly even under low rainfall situations and provide
considerable amount of green fodder. They can help in increasing the crop yield and resource
use efficiency through their vegetation cover. The perennial system can also help in soil
conservation and reducing water and soil runoff. It is possible to enhance the productivity of
the livestock by integrating fodder production into the farmers’ cropping systems. Thus, a
project was initiated to explore options for integrating quality fodder production into exiting
cropping systems of rainfed areas.
Methodology
The field experiment was conducted during 2015–2021 at Gungal Research Farm of ICAR-
CRIDA (17°40' 40.4" N latitude and 78°39', 55.7” E longitude and at a mean sea level of 626
m), Hyderabad, Telangana, India with seven cropping systems involving conventional crops
either alone (100% area) or in combination with annual or perennial fodder species (50% area
for crops, 50% for fodder species). The 7 treatments are: Sorghum + pigeonpea: desmanthus,
sorghum + pigeonpea: guinea grass, castor: desmanthus, castor: guinea grass, sorghum:
Fodder-clusterbean- Fodder-cowpea- Fodder-horsegram, Sole Sorghum and Sole pigeonpea.
The standard crop management practices like uniform application of fertilizers, pest and
disease management were followed.
Results
Results of seven-year long experiment revealed that sorghum + pigeonpea/guinea grass can
produce on average 1350 kg of sorghum, 790 kg of pigeon pea from half hectare of land.
Also, another half hectare can give 26500 kg of fresh fodder in 4-5 cuts. On the other hand,
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Ecosystem based approaches for climate change adaptation, ecosystem services, integrated farming system models,
Land degradation neutrality