AGRO ECOLOGICAL ENGINEERING
-K. Amina Bibi
Agro Ecological Engineering is also Bio Intensive Integrated Pest Management. It is emerging as a new pest management strategy. It is an improved version of Agro – Eco System Analysis (AESA). It involves habitat manipulation of both below and above ground
level.
Below Ground Operations – Rhyzosphere Engineering – Living Soil concept
Organic Farming techniques like Crop Rotation, Organic Fertilizers, Seed Treatment / Bio Priming (Treating with Pseudomonas and Trichoderma), Biofertilizers including VAM & AM – Biofertilizers (induces Phosphatic utilization – Fungus & root symbiosis)
encourages the multiplication of beneficial organism and they naturally control the growth of harmful organisms.
Above Ground Operations – Multi Crop Concept
It involves many corps to grow in and around the field to get maximum biological activity. Growing right Border Crops according to the selected farm activity acts like an army to save the crop. Example is growing Bhendi (Okra / Lady’s Finger) in the border
of paddy fields acts as yellow sticky trap. As the bright yellow flowers attract harmful insects provided them food (pollen and nectar) and shelter and protect the food crops from the harmful pests. Some of the attractant flowering plants are Marigold, Gingelly
(Sesame), and Sunflower. Some trap crops are Mustard and Castor. Occimum spp plants are repellent crops including Tulsi (Hence it is known as mosquito repellent plant).
Okra flower harbours many insects
Canna plants bordering fields
When habitat manipulation is done so as to encourage naturally farm friendly organisms, the beneficial organisms live in the flowers and protect the main crop from intensive sunshine and cold winds as they act as barriers. When such crop situation prevails,
it is found that the populations of farm friendly organisms like Bracon and Trichogramma (Parasitoids), Spiders and Reduviid Bug (Predators), Pseudomons spp and Trichoderma spp (Bio pesticides). Entomopathogenic fungicontacts the cuticle, forms appresoria,
penetrates into the insect, proliferates, produces toxins and ultimately kills the insect. The proper selection of strains kills specific host range without disturbing non-target insects.
Butterflies are known to be the best gardeners on earth
This snake bird is almost a guardian angel protecting the crops from harmful insects, rodents etc
Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) are lethal pathogens of wide variety of insects. Biological control with the help of EPN is a very efficient organic insect control method. EPN are viable alternative to chemical pesticides. EPNs have a single free‐living
stage, the infective juvenile (IJ), carries bacteria in its gut. EPN and bacteria are harmless to humans and other organisms. EPN are also used as a foliar spray to control sucking pests and other foliar insects.
Such organic farming practices when done in a systemic manner we are ensuring the uninterrupted WEB of LIFE (Food Web). Interdependency of one organism feeding on the other and the balance results in conserving the biodiversity. As a result of the lives
conserved at micro level (from microbes, insects) and macro level (rodents, birds, trees) the mankind get the economic benefits. The same principle may be applied to the forest ecosystems. When the small animals and birds are provided opportunity to live and
multiply, the wild life will be conserved. Mere killing of rodents may result in the fall of the hawk population (which feed on rodents). Spraying of pesticides reflect in the fertility of men and immunity of mankind (as mother’s milk is found to have pesticide
residue)
(Text and photographs by Amina Bibi. K. Amina Bibi is a Post Graduate in Agriculture with specialization in Plant Breeding and Genetics. She is currently working as Agriculture Officer in Karaikal, Department of Agriculture, Government of Puducherry)