Course Overview

Course Overivew

    India is an agriculture based nation and the population of India is growing with a very fast rate. India’s present population is about 125crores; 70% of this population lives in villages. The main occupation of the people is farming and animal husbandry. To meet out the diversified needs of the household in terms of food, fruit, timber, fodder, fuel etc. forest and trees play important roles. Most of the villagers depend on natural forest for timber, fuel etc. But these forests are disappearing at an alarming rate of 2.7% per year. To overcome these problems tree based farming systems can be one of the viable option in order to meet out the diversified needs and also help to check forest degradation. Tree based system synonym agroforestry land use systems have been designed as the multi-faceted viable and profitable option which is able to address the multiple needs of the rural peasants and industries too. The decreasing profitability from agriculture production system, cattle rearing have very far reaching consequences influencing socioeconomic and environmental conditions of developing countries like India. Risk management through diversification is a common strategy for medium farmer. The recent agroforestry system involves combination of crops, trees and sometime animal to the land use in such a way so as to obtain maximum production of food grain, fodder, fuel-wood, fruit and other products and also provide financial returns. It has been realized that monoculture involving either agriculture crops or forest and forage crops do not give maximum production. Agroforestry systems on contrary provide maximum production as they are able to tap solar radiations and soil more efficiently. These systems hold a viable option to face the challenges and fulfil the demand of growing human population in a sustainable manner. Agroforestry is one of the important alternatives for diversification and gaining importance in agro-ecosystem for production and economic upliftment of the farmers. This course generates interest among teachers, students, researchers and extension workers working in the field of agroforestry sector as it highlights agroforestry-definition, objectives and potential; distinction between agroforestry and social forestry; status of Indian forests and role in Indian farming systems; agroforestry system, sub-system and practice: agri-silviculture, silvipastoral, horti-silviculture, horti-silvipastoral, shifting cultivation, taungya, home gardens, alley cropping, intercropping, wind breaks, shelterbelts and energy plantations; planning fro agroforestry- constraints, diagnosis and design methodology, selection of tree crops species for agroforestry; agroforestry project-national, overseas, MPTS their management practices and also economics of cultivation-nursery and planting (Acacia catechu, Delbergia sissoo, Tectona, Populus, Grewia, Eucalyptus, Quercus spp., bamboo, Tamarindus and Neem, etc.)

Last modified: Monday, 30 July 2012, 10:17 AM