AGROFORESTRY PRACTICES IN THE SEMI- ARID SOUTH - EASTERN RAJASTHAN

Abstract

IN THIS PAPER, THE AUTHORS ANALYSE AND DISCUSS THE FINDINGS OF A SURVEY CONDUCTED IN 1993 IN A WATERSHED LOCATED AT CHHAJAWA IN SOUTH- EASTERN RAJASTHAN REPRESENTING TYPICAL DRY SUB- HUMID TRACT. THE SURVEY REVEALED THAT EUCALYPTUS TERETICORNIS WAS THE MOST PREFERRED TREE IN THE AREA, FOLLOWED BY PSIDIUM GUAJAVA AND CITRUS SPP. ACACIA SPP. AZADIRACHTA INDICA WHICH REGENERATED NATURALLY WERE ALSO MAINTAINED ON FIELD BUNDS. FARMERS WERE RELUCTANT TO PLANT ACACIA NILOTICA TREES AS IT HAD ADVERSE EFFECT ON ASSOCIATED CROPS THAN EUCALYPTUS TERETICORNIS AND ACACIA LEUCOCEPHALA . ON AN AVERAGE, THE DENSITY WAS 6.6 TREES/ha MOSTLY SEEN ON FIELD BUNDS EXCEPT HORTICULTURE SPP. WHICH FOUND PLACE IN MID FIELD BUNDS ALSO. SORGHUM PROVED TO BE THE MOST COMPATIBLE CROP WITH TREES. ALL THE TREE SPECIES HAD SOME ADVERSE EFFECT ON THE ASSOCIATED CROPS. THE AVERAGE CROP YIELDS REDUCTION WAS 44.5% UP TO 4.4 m DISTANCE FROM TREE DURING KHARIF AND 60.7% UP TO 6.6 DISTANCE DURING RABI SEASON. THE YIELD REDUCTION WAS PRIMARILY ATTRIBUTED TO SOIL MOISTURE STRESS.