NOVELHERBAL HYDROGEL COATING SEED TECH. IN CROPS

FOR :-

-AGRI. SUSTAINABILITY -RESILIENCE TO CLIMATE VARIABILTY -WATER CONSERVATION -FARMER FRIENDLY WEEDS CONTROL

Dr VIRENDER SINGH LATHER

ICAR-IARI,REGIONAL STATION

KARNAL-132001, Haryana

HYDROGELS / Super Absorbent Polymers ?

Hydrophilic Polymers:WHC many times(g/g)

(minimum H2o absorption : 30 times)SOURCES OF HYDROGEL

Natural:Plant raisin Herbal Gum Katira etc. Organic: XANTHAN GUM produced by bacteria

Semi synthetic Polymers: Pusa Hydrogel etc.

Majority Synthetic polymers: PAM/Poly vinyl-alcohol

Regularly used: emulsifier-additive in food-medicine Multi-billion dollar Food- Pharma industry since ages

In INDIA , Introduced for Agri uses in 1980’s

BUT, NOT ADOPTED BY FARMERS IN AGRI.CROPS

HYDROGEL : PROVE AS MIRACLE TECH. FOR AGRI. BENEFITS OF HYDROGELS IN AGRI: GLOBALLY DOCMENTED

• DELAY THE WILTING OF PLANT UNDER MOISTURE STRESS REGIME

• Increase water use efficiency, permeability- WHC of soils,

• Reduce irrigation frequency by control erosion-runoff.

• Help plant to perform better under moisture stress environments

ICAR-MOA ALSO DOCUMENTED BENEFITS OF HYDROGELS :

• 10-30 % Yield increased of crops (Potato, wheat etc)

• Saving irrigation Water

• HIGHLY USEFUL Economically with high Profits & B:C ratio: 7:1Crop / Hydrogel (Kg/ha) (%)Yield increase Irrigation Saved benefit (Rs/ha) * B:C Ratio*

Groundnut: 2.5 kg 12.68 4-5 4,000 1.7:1

Potato(autumn):5 Kg 21.04 4 33,328 6.5:1

Wheat: 2.5 kg 18.23 1-2 4,198 1.8:1

Sugarcane:2.5 kg 13.08 - 8,300 3.5:1

Mustard:2.5 kg 14.3 Rainfed 2,880 1.3:1

(ICAR-DAC Interface Group Meet dt. 30.8.2013) * Pusa Hydrgel @ Rs 1000 / kg price

MAJOR BENEFITS CLAIMED: BUT, FARMERS HAS NOT ADOPTED HYDROGELS

WHY FARMERS THINK HYDROGEL : HOAX TECH ?

HOAX TECH : @ PRESENT RECOMMENDATIONS

HOAX DOSES - 2.5 kg/ha : 2ppm (inert material)- 2 g HYDROGEL / t. SOILS MASS- 350 ml WHC / t SOILS @180 g/g

MAGICIAN JOB : MAKING ONE TONNE SOIL MOIST FOR 20 DAYSBY A GLASS OF WATER

HOAX METHODS : HYDROGEL MIXING in SOILS @ 2g/t. soils

HOAX-PROHIBITIVE PRICE : Rs 2000/kg

SELF CONTRADICTORY DOSES / BENEFITS CLAIMS ICAR-IARI DOSES : 20,000 kg/ha (Narjary 2012) - 2.5 kg/ha Now

BENEFITS CLAIMED , NOT RELIASED EVEN IN ICAR INSTITUTES(Meena et al. 2015)

GUM KATIRA GUM KARAYA PUSA HYDROGELDRY SAP /GUM Astragalus-

Tragacanth sp.Sterculia Sp. Semi-synthetic Polymer

patented by ICAR -IARI

EU food code E-413 E-416 Can’t use as food item Local Name /Patent name

GOND KATIRA, Tragacanth gum

Sterculia,BassoraKullo, Kadaya,

PUSA HYDROGEL

Cost in India Rs 250 /kg ~Rs 100/ kg Rs 2000/ kg WHC (g/g H20) ~100 times ~80 times Confusing claim (150 - 500 times)

Locally Available India & World India & World Available through MNCMONOPOLY PRICE- SUPPLY

TO MAKE HYDROGEL USEFUL FOR AGRI USES :

HERBAL HYDROGEL COATED SEED TECH. (Lather (2015) International . J Tropical Agri.: 33; 1167)

1) IDENTIFICATION OF COST EFFECTIVE HERBAL HYDROGEL

.

TO REDUCED COST : ORGANIC XANTHAN GUM @ Rs 50 /kg

2) DEVELOPMENT OF HYDROGEL COATED SEED TECH- for efficient delivery of Hydrogel to root zonesIngredients/ha :30 kg Rice Seed for DSR 3 kg gum powder Katira gum 200 kg gum Acacia & 200g Jiggery

PROTOCOL 1) Prepare adhesive solution by putting acacia gum+

jiggery in one liter of boiling water for ~20 minutes.

2) Make Rice seed sticky by pouring adhesive solution after cooling and mixed it well with hand.

3) Mix Hydrogel powder of Katira @ ~10% of seed wt. mixed it with by hand/rotating drum to sticky seeds

4) Dry the hydrogel coated seed in shade for 6 hr before use

Dry powders of fungicides/insecticides/bio-fertilizer/ micro-nutrient etc. may also added to the powder of gum Katira

SOWING: HERBAL HYDROGEL COATED SEED

Prepare field with lazer leveler fb irrigation

Sowing in Second week June with seed rate of 30 kg seed /ha by seed drill on wet bed fb immediate application of 2.5 liter/ha Pendimethalin in 500 liter H2O

Delayed first irrigation by 15-21 DAS on the basis of soils types (Light-loam-Clay)

Apply AWD (Alternate wetting- drying) irrigation cycle of 15 days interval (TWO WEEK ) based on rains and soil types.

If got rain before seed germi., then apply light irrigation to break the soils crust.

If got rain after 7-14 DAS, then apply Nomieegold+Saathifor weed control (Bispyribac Sodium 10% SC+ PyrazosulfuronEthyl 10% WP)

BENEFITS : HERBAL HYDROGEL COATED SEED

• Eco-Farmers friendly as ingredient are herbal, cost

effective, locally available globally & ITS SIMPLE OPERATIONS

• Efficient hydrogel delivery system with slow depletion –

evaporation of soil moisture around root zone.

• Better germination & root-shoot & Initial seedling growth

• Delay, seedling wilting in moisture stress regime(2-3 weeks)

• Facilitate delaying of first irrigation by 2 weeks in summer &

4 weeks for winter crops which help in suppression of

weeds germination & growth & saving of irrigation water.

• Facilitate AWD(Alternate wetting-drying) irrigation cycle for less incidences of weed, pests-diseases & better N use efficiency

Success Story

PROVE AS GAME CHANGER TECH in RICE-DSRDSR-HHCS: - NO SEED YIELD PENALTY

• SAVING : WATER- CULTIVATION COST

• ECO-FRIENDLY: USING HERBAL ITEM

• ENV-FRIENDLY: NO RELEASE OF GHG

BETTER ‘N’ USE EFFICIENCY

• BETTER LUSTER & QUALITY OF SEED

• COST EFFECTIVE WEED CONTROL :-

Delayed first irrigation fb Alternate wetting-drying

(AWD) of 2 weeks cycle on the basis of rains frequency

• Less weeds, disease-pest incidences.

DSR – TRADITIONAL

• Heavy weeds infestation: weekly irrig.

• No water saving (~25 irrigation) if rains fail.

• Not adopted by Farmers despite cash

incentives of Rs 8500 / ha by Govt.

Success Story – DSR

WEED FREE RICE CROP MATURE : 5 IRRIGATIONSAPLICATION : HALF ‘ N’ & CULTIVATION COST

SUCCESS STORY : DSR- HHCST

NO SEED YIELD PANELTY : EVEN IN DROUGHT YEAR (2015)

SAVED : HALF IRRIGATION WATER & COST OF CULTIVATION HALF ‘N’ APPLICATION : SHOW BETTER ‘N’ USE EFFICIENCY

NO WEED- BAKANNAE & LESS OTHER DISEASES–PESTS

Mr Gyan Singh Chawala,Karnal): PB 1509

• Seed yield : 21q/acre(5.4 t/ha) • Only 4 irrigations against 25 IN TP rice

Mr. Gurcharan Singh, Karnal: PB 1509

• Seed yield: 24q/acre(6 t./ha)• Only 5 irrigations against 25 TP rice

•

WHY SUCCESS STORY IN RICE-DSR ? RICE : TAKEN AS PRIORITY-CHALLENGE CROP

IMPORTANT: Global food security & climate change

• WATER GUZZLING CROP: Need 3000 Liter water/ kg Rice production. (Water submerged farming)

• NOT FARMER FRIENDLY BUT HIGH COST-INPUTS CROP (Rs 40,000/ha) with BC raio : < 2:1 )

• ENVIRONMENTAL HAZZARD-POLLUTING CROP:-o Rice accelerate global warming & accounts for 11% out

of 12% total global anthropogenic GHG(CH4) emissions due to water submerged farming

o DEGRADE GROUNDWATER IN QUALITY & QUANTITY.

HHCST : STRATEGIES FOR MITIGATING CHALLENGES

• ADOPT DSR(Direct Seeding Rice) fb• Altering water management, such as • Delayed first irrigation for weed control 15-21 DAS

• Alternate wetting-drying(AWD) of two weeks.

HHCS: SUCCESSFUL IN ALL CROPS

• Wheat & Barley (2015-16):

• 150 farmer’s field demonstrations In Haryana in Collaboration State admn. in rainfed areas of Gurgaon& high moisture zone of Karnal

• Weed free crop without post emergence herbicides & first irrigation at 35-45 DAS

• Saving Half irrigation & Cultivation Cost

WHEAT HHCST Farmers Fields Demo., KARNALNO WEEDS: PHALARIS MINOR etc.

NO SPRAY : POST EMERGANCE WEEDICIDES- HERBICIDES

ONLY TWO IRRIGATION : 105 DAYS CROP

WITHOUT HHCSTFULL OF WEEDS (PHALARIS MINOR)

TWO SPRAY: Post emergence herbicide

Four Irrigation till date

SUCCESS STORY OF HHCST IN WHEAT Weed Free Crop without any post emergence

herbicide application & 2-3 irrigations

Variety C-306 Variety HD-3086

HHCST PROTOCOLS POSTERS DEVELOPED IN VARIOUS LANGUAGES FOR THE BENEFITS OF FAMERS & STAKEHOLDERS

CONCLUSIONS

GAME CHANGER TECHNOLOGY IN RICE-DSR & other crops

FOR SAVING HALF IRRIGATION & CULTIVATION COST

• Freedom from puddling -Seedling raising & transplating in rice

farming

• FIRST IRRIGATION 21 DAS fb TWO WEEKS ‘AWD’ IRRIG. CYCLE

• WEEDS FREE CROP BY APPLICATION OF Pendimethalin fb DELAYED

• No bakkanae disease & less incidences of others diseases-pests

• NO SEED YIELD PENALITY : DELAYED & REDUCED IRRIGATION

• HIGHER ‘N’ USE EFFICIENCY

COST EFFECTIVE; Rs 100-800/ha@ 15 % hydrogel/kg seed @ crop seed rate

CONTROL OF GLOBAL WARMING : REDUCED RELEASE GHG(CH4)

HHCS Tech: VALUE ADDITION RCT for Saving: Water, Energy, cultivation cost

Ensure: Sustainability of Agri. & Resilience to Climate Changes

CONCLUSIONS : HHCS TECH.NOVEL HERBAL HYDROGEL COATED SEED TECH

WHAT IS HHCST ?

DEVELOPMENT & UTILIZATION OF HERBAL HYDROGEL COATED SEED FOR AGRI. USES.

WHY HHCST ?

FOR SAVING IRRIGATION WATER

FOR COST EFFECTIVE WEED CONTROL

FOR SAVING ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION

FOR MAKING AGRI. SUSTAINABLE

FOR MAKING AGRI. RESILIENCE TO CLIMATE CHANGESFINALLY : HHCSTech : FOR MORE CROP PER DROP OF WATER

THANKS FOR PROMOTING:

HERBAL HYDROGEL COATED SEED TECH NOVEL GAME CHANGER TECH

IN AGRI. CROPS

FOR SAVINGWATER, ENERGY,LABOR,

CULTIVATION COST,WEEDS CONTROL ,

MAKING AGRI SUSTAINABLE & RESILIENCE TO CLIMATE CHANGES