Deep Roots

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between north-east and north-west Himalayan regions. In the

north-east region shifting cultivation is the most extensive

agriculture land use, which on an average involves the cultiva-

tion of 8-35 crops together including cereals and grains, leafy

vegetables, tubers and rhizomatous crops.

Those are harvested

sequentially from July to December; the crop compositions vary

with the site and fallow-length of the jhum fields. Grain- and

seed-yielding crops give high yield after a longer jhum cycle

(60 years), although leafy vegetables, tubers and rhizomatous

crops perform better in areas with shorter jhum cycles (5-10

years).

However, in recent decades the jhum cycle has been

shortened to 5-10 years due to growing population and food

demand.

Other than jhum cultivation, the region also supports

wet rice cultivation in the valleys. An excellent innovation in

wet rice cultivation is the introduction of fish that maximize

crop output.

In the north-east region home gardens are also

maintained to meet diverse household needs.

In the north-west region of IHR agriculture is carried out on

terraces carved out of hill slopes. The cropping patterns, up to

2,000 metres, are built around the two major cropping seasons

of kharif (April-October) and rabi (October-April). As most of

the agriculture is rain-fed and generally three crops are taken

in two years in low hills, and just one crop annually in mid and

high hills. However, in the valley bottom where irrigation is

possible, two or three crops of cereals and vegetables are taken

in one year with limited use of hybrid crop varieties and ferti-

lizers. The average crop yield ranges from 1-2 ton per hectare

per year. To maximize production multi-cropping is a common

practice with as many as 40 crops including cereals, millets,

pseudocereals and pulses cultivated to ensure food secu-

rity.

The huge traditional agrodiversity has been maintained

through a variety of crop compositions, cropping patterns and

crop rotation favoured by enormous variations in the edaphic,

topographic and climatic conditions.

Cereals, pseudocere-

als and pulses are the main crops of the kharif season while

wheat, barley, mustard, lentils and peas are cultivated in the

rabi season.

In shifting cultivation area, a collective decision is made over

the selection of land for cultivation and the distribution of suit-

able pieces to each family in a village. In the north-west IHR

land belongs to individual family heads, and crop cultivation

and associated practices are solely the choice of the land owner.

However, the entire farming community systematically divides

the entire agricultural land into two halves, each area locally

called as ‘sar’. One sar is brought under cultivation while the

another is left fallow to recover soil fertility status. The system

thus exhibits a remarkable crop rotation trend. In the north-

west region farmyard manure is applied to the agricultural

fields which is derived from composting livestock excreta and

leaf litter. However, this practice is not prevalent in jhum fields

in the north-east. All over the farm families maintain their own

seed banks for various crops although there is also exchange of

such seeds among them. A large variety of agroforestry trees is

maintained in and around the agricultural fields for diverse uses

such as firewood, fodder, fibre, food and for natural fertilizers

to maintain farm fertility.

Many commercial crops are grown by farming families in the

IHR – for example, saffron and tulip in Jammu and Kashmir,

and seed-potato, ginger and vegetables in Himachal Pradesh and

Uttarakhand. Also, fruits such as apple, pear, cherry, apricots,

walnuts, mango, litchi and almonds are grown on a large scale

in the north-west region of IHR although the level of produc-

tion varies from state to state. Sikkim state is well known for

cardamom production, whereas the Darjeeling district of West

Bengal and Assam are famed for tea cultivation. In various north-

east states orange, lemon, pineapple, guava, litchi, banana, black

pepper, rubber, areca nut and betel vine are being promoted as

cash crops. Cultivation of medicinal plants has also been intro-

duced in recent years throughout the IHR. It is notable that

niche-specific commercial crops perform much better in the

region. The majority of family farming practices in the IHR are

carried out by smallholders who contribute immensely to the

food security, livelihoods, social protection and well-being of

Himalayan farming communities. Some highlights follow.

Food security and enhanced livelihoods

Family farmers contribute immensely to maintaining agrobio-

diversity (300-500 crop-plant varieties and their wild relatives

with 5,000-10,000 crop cultivars) in the IHR. An individual

farmer grows 20-40 crops and fully understands various agro-

nomic operations and economics to manage them. Thus these

farms can be considered as a source of important genetic mate-

rial. Mixed cropping and the maintenance of genetic diversity are

key features of traditional family farming as diverse production

of mixed crops provides insurance against crop failures. Family

farming contributes significantly to food security as 30-40 per

cent (sometimes more) of the food requirement of small and

marginal farmers is met from their farms. Besides, farmers meet

most of their fodder, fuel and fibre needs from their farms and

surrounding areas. There is continuous use of land with suitable

crop rotation, and high emphasis is placed on the recycling of

crop residues and other resources. Crop residue fed to animals

Mix-cropping in jhum fields, north-east India

Image: G.B. Pant Institute

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