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Home / Agriculture / The Importance of Neem For Sustainable Coffee Productionby Dr. Anand Titus and Geeta N. Pereira Shade grown coffee plantations are one of India’s best kept secrets. These coffee farms are located in tropical belts, where the sun shines strongly, warming the coffee mountain. As such, the coffee farms receive abundant sunlight. The photosynthetic machinery of the three tiered tree canopy makes maximum use of solar radiation with the help of chlorophyll in synthesizing carbohydrates and sugars.
Due to the interplay of various biotic partners inside the coffee forest the biomass production at any given time is relatively high. It is an established fact that organic wastes are building up rapidly in every acre of coffee because of the multi diversity of trees, herbs and shrubs. However, coffee farmers are not in a position to harvest the locked up energy in these substrates. It is not clear just how much of these wastes are now converted into organic fertilizers, or are likely to be converted in the future. Coffee farmers need to be aware that the limitation to the increased productivity of coffee is not the soil nutrients, but the rate of recycling of biomass within the confines of the coffee mountain. The strength of this article is based on three core ideas.
Neem (Azadirachta indica) also known as Melia azadirachta belongs to the family, Meliaceae and is a native of the Indian subcontinent. The agricultural and medicinal importance of this multi purpose tree was known to Indians since centuries. The use of neem in coffee Plantations is not something new. For ages, Coffee farmers have taken advantage of Neem as a soil amendment and insect repellant without understanding its true nature. It is only off late with the latest advancement in science and technology that the various components of neem and its active ingredients have been isolated , thereby enabling the coffee farmers in appreciating the role of neem in regulating the living processes inside the coffee habitat. Today, scientists are of the opinion that every part of the tree has a well defined use. The coffee farmer has two advantages with respect to neem, namely availability of large quantities at a reasonable cost and secondly, since neem is available in areas surrounding plantation districts, the transportation cost is minimized.
FUTURE TRENDS OF NEEM & ITS BY-PRODUCTS
POLICY MATTERRight from patents, commercialization of neem has flooded the market with thousands of formulations and an even greater number of products. A detailed data base of the various products and the concentration of active ingredients need to be established before field application of neem is carried out. The various parts of the neem tree, including the seed are bitter and some parts have a sharp pungent taste. The tree as such is a treasure house of different biologically active compounds which are chemically diverse and structurally stable and complex. The active ingredient Azadirachtin is active against a whole range of harmful insect populations. Coffee farmers are under a spell to grow exotic trees like mangium, mesopsis, etc, which mine the precious nutrients from the coffee mountain. Instead, they could grow neem in either paddy fields adjoining the coffee belts or grow it along the bio-fence. Neem is known to have a wide adaptation and tolerance to varied soil and climatic conditions. It does not demand rich soils for its growth and development. It grows successfully on dry stoney, clayey soils and can thrive well in leached sandy soils. CONSTITUENTS OF NEEM FRUITNeem fruit is a berry which is green when unripe. As ripening progresses the color of the outer skin; pericarp changes from green to yellow. On maturity the fruit is very fleshy and fresh fruit has 40 to 50 % moisture. 40 kilograms of fresh fruit yields 24 kilograms of dry fruit, yielding in turn 11.52 kg pulp, 1.10 kg seed coat, 4.0 kg husk and 5.48 kg kernels. The kernels are the richest source of oil as well as oleo chemicals. Oil and cake constitute nearly 45 and 55 % respectively of neem seed kernels. ACTION OF NEEM AGAINST PEST & DISEASE INCIDENCEResearch data suggests that more than 300 species of insects can be controlled with the help of neem products. In addition neem has promising nematicidal and fungi toxic activity. In India, neem has been evaluated against 125 species of pests of agricultural importance. All parts of the tree are known to be biologically active. The maximum insecticidal activity is in seed kernel. Scientific review of papers shows that neem also possesses insect growth regulatory effect.
AGRICULTURAL FORMULATIONSNeem is known to contain over 100 biologically active constituents that can be used in various agricultural formulations like Insecticides, Fungicides, Bactericides, Nematicides, , & Antiviral compounds. According to B. N. Vyas and K.B. Mistry, there is considerable emphasis placed on the development of neem pesticides based on AZADIRACHTIN, which is the most widely evaluated neem compound. However, they are of the opinion that, it may not be advisable to develop a product based on pure azadirachtin alone because of the following reasons.
JOE’S SUSTAINABLE FARM: KIREHULLY ESTATE
It has been an age old tradition to use various neem products on this farm for the past four decades. Neem has been a central organic amendment in our farm. Oiled as well as deoiled neem cake has been mixed with compost and synthetic urea and the same applied to the farm. However for the past three years we have been procuring fresh neem seeds directly from the farmers and broadcasting the same to the field. The idea behind this change is to stabilize the carbon: nitrogen ratio such that the microbial activity increases and provides for better utilization of organic wastes. The application of neem stimulates soil micro flora. The dense mulch and organic matter on the floor bed of the plantation together with neem increases heterotrophic microbial activity and organic matter decomposition.
VARIOUS NEEM COMBINATIONS
[P.N. Points 1 to 7: After broadcasting neem, scuffle digging or deep digging was undertaken, to accelerate the rate of organic matter decomposition] LOW COST TECHNOLOGY FOR RAPID MULTIPLICATION OF INDIGENOUS MICROFLORAIn order to multiply the native micro flora, the following experiment was carried out. For every barrel {180 liters} of water, 10 kilograms of fresh cattle dung was added and the same was allowed to ferment for just one week with constant rotation to facilitate aeration. Also, fresh soil from fertile (trenches) blocks was kept in a shaded place under moist conditions. At weekly intervals, the mixture in the barrel was sprinkled over the neem seeds together with a thin layer of moist soil. The entire heap of neem was manually turned upside down and accordingly broad casted to the coffee farm.
THE FARM AS A COMPOST BIN: CONCEPT OF EXTENDED COMPOST UNITA new experiment is unfolding at Joe’s Sustainable farm. Instead of having location specific compost pits we are experimenting in considering the entire farm as a single extended compost unit. To begin with we have considered 25 acres as one working unit. In time this concept will be extended to the entire farm. Our hypothesis is based on five key ideas.
MODIFICATION OF SOIL MICROFLORA BY ADDITION OF NEEMSince Indian Coffee Plantations are greatly influenced by the FOREST FACTOR, there is a tremendous amount of well scattered biomass which needs to be recycled for the periodic release of nutrients. The unfortunate part is the non availability of a large number of beneficial strains of soil microbes to act on this raw material. Our idea is to create a suitable environment for the accelerated growth and multiplication of different strains of indigenous beneficial microbes which are already present on the farm by the application of neem in different forms. Our experiments prove beyond doubt that it is possible under field conditions to stimulate the micro flora composition by adding neem.
Our past experience has pointed out very clearly that the micro flora within the coffee mountain is in equilibrium with the environment and that introduced microorganisms must compete with indigenous micro flora. Hence, our idea of providing a niche for the native soil flora by the addition of neem, was to enable them to multiply without stress. NEEM AND THE VALUE OF WEEDSA healthy soil consists of diverse species of weeds, both monocots and dicots. Indian coffee farms mimic nature and as a result during the monsoon, the farms are covered with an amazingly diverse species of weeds. Our objective is to help coffee farmers realize the value of weeds as an excellent base for the build up of both beneficial microbes and native flora. We manually trim the weeds by the slash method and then broadcast the same, followed by neem application. Our observations point out that this practice increases the macro and micro flora resulting in the availability of mineral nutrients to the soil in a gradual and continuous manner. The most important observation is that the weeds and neem combine together in a symbiotic relationship, changing the soil, leading to the natural progression of different kinds of weeds that are succulent in nature. POSITIVE TRENDS OBSERVRED DUE TO REPEATED NEEM APPLICATION
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR RESEARCHApplication of various forms of neem has been a regular practice at Joe’s Sustainable farm for many decades. Our remaining task is two fold. To evaluate the past work and to indicate what the future requires. In the search for methods to enhance neem application, only practices and schemes that have a chance of adoption by a large number of coffee farmers should be seriously considered. Most importantly, the practice of applying neem should fit into the coffee farmer’s package of practice. CONCLUSIONIn the 21st century the world is considered a global village. However, as the world is shrinking, agriculturists in the developing world are fighting many loosing battles because of the onslaught of multinationals. Every seed or the bio components there in are patented and farmers need to pay a hefty price just to buy them. It’s a small world with big battles. John Vidal reports in the GUARDIAN that Global food companies are aggravating poverty in developing countries by dominating markets, buying up seed firms and forcing down prices for staple goods including tea, coffee, milk, bananas and wheat. Just 30 companies now account for a third of the world’s processed food; five companies control 75 % of the international grain trade; and six companies manage 75 % of the global pesticide market. Two companies dominate sales of half the world bananas, three trade ; 85 % of the world’s tea, and one, Wal-mart, now controls 40 % of Mexico’s retail food sector. Monsanto controls 91 % of the global GM seed market. In short, the report highlights how power in the world agriculture and food industry has become concentrated in a few hands. John Samuel of Action Aid says that it is a dangerous situation when so few companies control so many lives. Earlier, the story was different. Nature’s wisdom book was open for all of humanity. Coffee farmers were a satisfied lot. They used to try out traditional methods and by word of mouth communicate the success of their ingenious experiments. There were no secrets to hide. It took years of patient work to understand the coffee habitat and its needs. Infact, the Indian coffee habitat is a living laboratory which provides a great opportunity to study nature’s patterns. With the advent of commercialization, farmers have to pay a hefty price to acquire basic knowledge. Due to the global dip in coffee prices, the relationship between the coffee farmer and the coffee habitat too is under stress. In the coming years, due to high pest and disease incidence, we won’t be too surprised to see Arabica farms being wiped out from the map of India. Scientists and coffee farmers have no clue as to what needs to be done to resurrect Arabica farms! World wide, coffee farmers need to think logically towards the balanced exploitation of the coffee mountain resources in accordance with the requirements of the coffee habitat and the biotic partners associated with it. We also need to carefully examine the requirements of the plant environment, internal and external, natural and artificial, short term and long term in achieving a sustainable balance. Technology should aim at strengthening sustainability by building the natural resource base. NEEM and its useful role in coffee farms will definitely help to answer the difficult questions of tomorrow. REFERENCESInvisible Communications in Coffee Plantations Organic Matter Decomposition In Coffee Plantations The Fine Art of Composting In Coffee Plantations Global Warming in Coffee Plantations Biodiversity In Relation To Coffee Plantations Significance of Microbial Interactions Within Coffee Plantations Role of Bacteria in Coffee Plantation Ecology Role of Fungi in Coffee Plantation Ecology The Role of Actinomycetes in Coffee Plantation Ecology Role of Ectomycorrhizae In Coffee Plantations Coffee Plantations A Multidisciplinary Approach Arora. R. & G.S. Dhaliwal. 1994. Botanical pesticides in insect management ; Ecological perspectives. In: Management of agricultural pollution in India. (Eds. G.S.Dhailiwal 7 B.D.Kansal ). Commonwealth Publishers. New Delhi. Battu. G.S., Dhaliwal.G.S. and A.K.Raheja. 1994. Biotechnology; Perspectives in insect pest management. In: Trends in agricultural insect pest management. (Eds. G.S. Dhaliwal and Ramesh Arora). Commonwealth Publishers, New Delhi. Benge. M.D. 1988. In: Focus on photochemical pesticides. Vol-1. The neem tree. (Ed. Martin Jacobson) CRC Press Inc., Boca Raton, Florida. Chiu, S.F. (1984), Proc. II Int. Neem Conf. FRG. Coffee Guide. 2000. Central Coffee Research Institute, Coffee Research Station. Chikmagalur District. Karnataka. India. Claude Alvares. 1999. The Organic Farming Source Book. The Other India Press, Mapusa 403 507 Goa, India. Hegde. N. G. 1992. Neem: Silviculture and production. Neem Newsletter 9: 1-4. IARI. 1993. Neem in agriculture. Eds. B.S. Parmar & R.P. Singh. Res.Bull No.40. Indian Agriculture Research Institute. New Delhi. Jacobson, M. (1986) 3rd Intern. Work, Conf. Stored Prod. Entomol, Kansas. Jacobson, M. (Ed) 1988. Focus on photochemical pesticides. Volume-1. The neem tree. CRC Press, Inc. Boca Raton, Florida. U.S.A. Karim, A. (1980) Proc. 1st Inter, Neem Conf. Rottach - Egern., FRG : 223 - 250. Kraus. W. 1991. Constituents of neem and other Meliaceae Species in pest control. Symp. Resources for Sustainable Agriculture: The use of neem and other plant materials for pest control and rural development. East –West center. Honolulu, Hawaii 96848. U.S.A. Neem Newsletter 8 (3-4): 25. Lewis, W. H. and Elvin - Lewis, M.P.E. (1983) Eco. Bol. Vol. 37 (1): 69 -70 Locke. J.C. & R.H. Lawson.1990. Neem’s potential in pest management programs. Proceedings of the USDA Neem workshop, Beltsville, Maryland. Meisner, I; kehi, M; Zur, M. and Eizick (1978) Phytoparositica vol. 6:85-88. National Research Council. 1992. Neem: A tree for solving global problems. National Academy Press. Washington. D.C. U.S.A. Randhwa. N.S. and B.S. Parmar. (Eds) 1993. NEEM. Society of Pesticide Science, India. New Age International (P) Limited, Publishers. New Delhi. Randhwa. N.S. and B.S. Parmar. (Eds) 2000. Neem research and development. SPS Publication No. 3. Society of Pesticide Science, India. Schmutterer, H. (1984) Mitteil, ungin aus der Sio, sound. Fur and forst Berlin- Dahlem: 233-333. Tweari. D. N. 1992. Monograph on neem ( Azadirachta indica A.Juss). International Book Distributors, Dehra Dun, India. Vyas B. N. and K.B. Mistry. 2000. Processing and Standardization. In NEEM Edited by. N.S. Randhwa and B.S. Parmar. Society of Pesticide Science, India. New Age International (P) Limited, Publishers. New Delhi. |
