Research program :

Agroforestry System Research

Incharge :

Dr. Asha Ram

Mandates/target area : 

• Tree-Crop Combinations for Productivity, Profitability and Resilience including animal integration
• Package of Practices for efficient use of natural resources
• Tradable parameters for agroforestry produce
• Assessing the Ecosystem Services
• Watershed Management

Ongoing project/activities  : 

• Assessment of conservation agroforestr
• Assessment of ecosystem services in silvipastoral system in semi-arid conditions
• Agri-Drone Project

Major achievements   :

• Soil and moisture conservation measurers particularly contour staggered trenched resulted in higher growth parameters and yield parameters of trees and associated grasses. After third rainy season, soil erosion is reduced drastically from 15.25 t ha^-1 to 6.14 t ha^-1 in Teak+Mahagoni+Pasture+CST and from 3.19 t ha^-1 to 2.08 t ha^-1 in Teak+Mahagoni+Pasture +HMB.
• Due to better runoff trapping efficiency (56.3%) lowest runoff was recorded in Teak+Mahagoni+Pasture+CST and highest runoff was recorded in sole mahagoni. The soil loss as runoff sediment varied between 0.31 t/ha (Teak+Mahagoni+Pasture+ CST) to 0.72 t/ha (Sole mahagoni).
• The seven years study (2007 to 2015), recorded 2906 number of bamboo culms ha^-1  at 10m x 10m spacing compared to 2409 culms under 12m x 10m  spacing. The intercrop productivity started declining from third year onwards and the extent of reduction in productivity was to the tune of 26.1, 23.7, 24.2, 17.4 and 17.4% during the third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh year, respectively.
• Bamboo based agroforestry system (Bamboo+sesame-chickpea) planted at 12m x10m spacing was having high land equivalent ratio (1.95 to 2.14) and was more profitable than 10m x10m spacing, arable cropping and sole bamboo.
• Crop and leucaena residue retention under Teak and Bael based agroforestry has significantly increased the cropping systems. It was evident that in all the systems, the OC content was substantially more upto 45 cm depth in Minimum tillage treatments under greengram-barley cropping system.
• To find out promising agroforestry tree species, optimum spacing and compatible crops, 12 multiple tree species were evaluated with three tree spacing and four cropping systems during 1988-1997.
• Biomass production from the degraded lands can be enhanced to 8-10 t ha^-1 year^-1 from 2-3 t ha^-1 y^-1 introduction of leguminous trees, shrubs and herbs in natural rangelands.
• Under tree-crop interaction study in Albizia procera based AF, it was observed that tree did not affect the germination, growth of intercrops (black gram and soybean) upto two years, however, tree had an adverse effect on growth, yield and yield attribute from 3^rd year onwards. Among different treatments, pruning of tree up to 70% plant height had better growth, yield and yield attributes over unpruned trees.
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Publications  :

• Singh, R., Garg, K. K., Anantha, K. H., Akuraju, V., Dev, I., Dixit, S., & Dhyani, S. K. 2021 Building resilient agricultural system through groundwater management interventions in degraded landscapes of Bundelkhand region, Central India Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies 37 (2021) 100929        
• Dev, I., Ram, A., Ahlawat, S. P., Palsaniya, D. R., Singh, R., Dhyani, S. K., Kumar, N., Tewari, R. K., Singh, M., Babanna, S. K., Newaj, R., Dwivedi, R. P., Kumar, R. V., Yadav, R. S., Chand, L., Kumar, D., & Prasad, J. 2020 Bamboo-based agroforestry system (Dendrocalamus strictus + sesame–chickpea) for enhancing productivity in semi-arid tropics of central India Agroforestry Systems volume 94, pages 1725–1739 (2020)      
• Dev, I., Singh, R., Garg, K. K., Ram, A., Singh, D., Kumar, N., Dhyani, S. K., Singh, A., Anantha, K. H., Akuraju, V., Dixit, S., Tewari, R. K., Dwivedi, R. P., & Arunachalam, A. 2022 Transforming livestock productivity through watershed interventions: A case study of Parasai-Sindh watershed in Bundelkhand region of Central India Agricultural Systems 196 (2022) 103346 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2021.103346    
• Dev, I., Ram, A., Ahlawat, S. P., Palsaniya, D. R., Newaj, R., Tewari, R. K., Singh, R., Sridhar, K. B., Dwivedi, R. P., Srivastava, M., Chaturvedi, O. P., Kumar, R. V., & Yadav, R. S. 2017 Bamboo (Dendrocalamus strictus) + sesame (Sesamum indicum) based Agroforestry model: A sustainable livelihood option for farmers’ of semi-arid region. Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences 87 (11): 1528-1534
• Dhyani, S. K., Ram, A., & Dev, I. 2016 Potential of agroforestry systems in carbon sequestration in India. Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences 86 (9), 1103-1112