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Beyond pest control: Calotropis for sweeter melons |
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| Abstract |
The Honey Bee Network has been documenting organic practices of farmers for over three decades. Having reconnected with hundreds of farmers over the last few years, we have found that they retain a healthy appetite for experimentation. Farmers across regions test and disseminate each others’ practices, often localizing a solution. They must navigate growing climate change concerns, loss of commons, and resource unavailability. Therefore, it is vital to uncover new solutions, or find ones from the vast realm of traditional knowledge, to maintain a symbiotic balance with nature. The practices presented here have been compiled by Ms. Alka Raval of the SRISTI team. |
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"34301 A wide range of remedies for livestock
Vanrajbhai Chaganbhai Janadiya
Sukhpar, Tk. Babra, Dist. Amreli
Vanrajbhai is an organic farmer. He is careful not to water crops more than needed, since that is a sure way to invite disease. He maintains about 1-1.5 percent soil organic carbon,and recommends a range up to three
percent. He has observed that though the proportion decreases on hotter days, practicing mixed cropping has been beneficial.
He rears oxen and cows. To treat them for uterine prolapse, he applies the juice of panaphat flowers (Tridax procumbens L.). Panaphat flowers are similar to, but smaller than sunflowers. He keeps animals suffering from repeat breeding syndrome cool with a dose of isabgol (psyllium husk), neem, and sugar. For the first week after conception, the animals are fed 250 g isabgol, 50 g neem juice, and 250 g sugar. Giving the animal 100 g of aloe gel for three days after conception helps as well. During the breeding season, he induces heat in animals by feeding them two nutmeg seeds with roti or fodder for three days.
Animals ailing from mastitis find it difficult to lactate, and milking them may cause the swollen udders to bleed. He soaks 50 g of indigo powder in water and applies it on the udders twice a day for at least three days to reduce swelling. To increase their milk production, he adds shredded gilloy leaves (Tinospora cordifolia (Willd.) Miers) and 50 g of black sesame seeds to their daily feed.
Another remedy for mastitis involves aloe vera, curry leaves, garlic, quicklime, turmeric and oil. After extracting 250 g of aloe gel, he makes a paste using eight to ten cloves of garlic and a handful of curry leaves. He mixes the paste with the aloe gel, a pinch of lime, two tablespoons of turmeric, and one tablespoon of oil. After washing the udders with water in which neem leaves have been boiled, he applies the mixture thrice daily. He has found it effective to treat various udder problems.
When his bullocks develop yoke gall, Vanrajbhai applies guar or cluster bean leaf juice thrice a day for three days on the inflamed area. He then rubs the area with butter or ghee for two days.
Feeding his animals boiled neem leaves has helped cure fevers. For diarrhoea, he administers 50 g of tea leaves with roti to help animals recover within three days.
(Guar is known for its anti-diabetic and cytoprotective properties (https://japsonline com/admin/php/uploads/17_pdf.pdf). Its seeds may have anti-cancer applications (https://www.rjpbcs.com/pdf/2014_5(3)/ [46].pdf).
We have previously published a variety of treatments for yoke gall: HB 11(2):15,2000; 20(2):19,2009; 27(1):11,2016; 31(3-4):9,2020; 34(1):14,2023; Eds.)
34302
Moringa and guava help protect crops
Jagubhai Nathubhai Patel
Ganthiyol, Tk. Idar, Dist. Sabarkantha
Jagubhai cultivates wheat and vegetables for which he uses jeevamrit (organic fertilizer), ghanjeevamrit (dry jeevamrit), fermented buttermilk, and cow dung ash. He spreads cow dung ash on crops to prevent diseases. He mixes and boils one kilogram each of the leaves of sahijan (Moringa oleifera L.), guava, neem, and aak (Calotropis gigantea (L.) Dryand) in ten litres of water. Once the liquid is reduced to half, he cools it and adds 150mL to 15 L of water. Spraying this on crops every 15 days keeps them disease-free. The solution can be used for six to nine months after preparation.
(Guava leaves have been effective in slowing weed growth while boosting yield of wheat (https://www.cabdirect.org/cabdirect/ abstract/20153180042). Crushing guava leaves releases sulfur volatiles that prevent citrus greening disease. (https://pubs.acs. org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf801735v)
see HB 27(1):12, 2016 to know how moringa could enhance the nutritive value of soil; Eds.)
34303
Waste to biofertilizer - made easily at home
Digvijay Singh Bhupendra Singh Jadeja Moti Mau, Rajeshwari Farm andNursery, Tk. Mandvi, Dist. Kutch
Digvijaybhai is an organic farmer, growing a variety of horticultural crops. For his mango orchard, he creates a concoction with 50 L of cow urine, 35 L of one-month-old sour buttermilk, one kilogram of asafoetida, and five kilograms of jaggery in a one kilolitre tank. Spraying it on the trees prevents fungal diseases, and helps them bear new fruit.
He also grows watermelons and muskmelons. He sprays them with a solution made by soaking 400 g of akda (Calotropis gigantea (L.) Dryand) leaves in 150 L of water. It provides necessary potassium to these cucurbits, resulting in sweet and thin-skinned fruits that do not split even when they grow large. During their flowering stage, he applies a mixture of 300 g of milk and 500 g of jaggery. After two days, he also applies a solution of 500 mL of sugarcane juice in five litres of water to increase the yield and sweetness of the fruits.
After harvesting bananas, he crushes the remaining part of the stem and mixes it with water. Applying this solution to banana trees enriches their calcium content, and improves the flavour and sweetness of the bananas.
During the monsoons, he uses organic fertilizers made by drying and powdering materials like kitchen waste, fresh cow dung, chicken manure, fish waste, crab shells, etc. Every mango tree is given ten kilograms of fertilizer twice a year. In the winters, he adds a little more chicken manure to enhance flowering.
He uses liquid biofertilizer to increase soil organic carbon. In a five kilolitre tub filled halfway with water, he ferments 150 kg of cow dung, 20 kg of kitchen waste, two kilograms of spoiled fruits, five litres of rice steep, 40 kg of rice flour, and certain bacterial strains. After 54 days, the fertilizer is ready. It increases soil organic carbon and can improve crop root development. Every week, he applies ten litres of the fertilizer per acre of his field through drip or drenching.
To control thrips, he soaks 80 kg of neem leaves in 50 L of water for eight to ten days. He mixes five litres of this solution in 45 - 50 L of water, and sprays crops.
(Ritz and Merka recommend using poultry waste optimally to provide phosphorus and nitrogen, and supplement with other fertilizers for all nutrient requirements of the crops (https://tinyurl.com/UGpltrymnr). Due to high risk of pathogens, chicken manure should not be applied to soil without pre-treatment; Eds.)
34304
Organic ways to keep okra disease-free
Ajit Singh Laxmansingh Jadeja
Makda, Tk. Mandvi, Dist. Kutch
Ajitbhai cultivates okra (bhindi), among other crops, for which he uses a decomposer to prevent wilt disease. He combines two litres of sour buttermilk, five kilograms of jaggery, and two litres of cow urine. He adds about 200 mL of this solution to one pump, and sprays the surface of okra plants every five days.
This practice keeps okra green, and free from diseases. He supplements this with a decoction of aak (Calitropis gigantea (L.) Dryand) and neem under the guidance of Bhupendrabhai. He has 14 cows and 25 buffaloes who provide 80 L of milk daily. He grows sorghum for their fodder. To reduce swelling in the udders, he feeds them camphor with bananas.
(see other methods to control diseases and pests in okra: HB 13(2):8,2002 to counter mosaic disease; 20(4)&21(1):20,2009 & 2010 for white fly prevention; and 32(1-2):22,2021 to control stinging caterpillars; Eds.)
34305 Feed goats kangasi seeds to increase strength
Natvarbhai Ninama
Junawadia, Tk. Limkheda, Dist. Dahod
Natvarbhai mainly cultivates okra and cluster beans. He applies solutions of neem, sour buttermilk, and jeevamrit in water to his crops. He found that intercropping pigeon pea (tur) in his cotton field controlled thrips, helping him earn a profit.
He has a few home remedies to keep his cows, buffaloes, and goats healthy. For bloat, he feeds cattle ripe kachare fruits (Cassia tora L.). Kachare plants grow on the ground, and its small round fruits turn yellow when ripe. He crushes eight to ten fruits in water, and administers this paste to animals twice a day. Another remedy for bloat involves feeding cattle 10-15 fresh okra pods crushed in 500 mL of water, which is also given twice a day. He places a piece of wood in their mouths to prevent them from panting due to gastric discomfort.
His goats sometimes fall ill and are too weak to move. He extracts and grinds the kernel from two kangasi seeds (Caesalpinia bonduc (L.) Roxb.). He mixes them in water and feeds this to goats for four days to help them become stronger and regain their vitality. Kangasi, also known as kachka, has yellow flowers and thorny fruits.
To make a diarrhoea remedy for goats, Natvarbhai grinds the barks of the simal tree (Bombax ceiba L.) and lac tree (Schleichera oleosa (Lour.) Oken.). He mixes ten grams of this powder with ghee, and feeds it to his goats. This provides them relief within two days. He also uses the gum of sahijan trees (Moringa oleifera L.) to effectively treat diarrhoea in cattle and humans. He administers ten grams of the gum directly to cattle, or with roti for humans.
(Kangasi shrubs have an extensive range of functions including as anxiolytics, antidiabetics, anthelmintics, antimalarials, and antifilarials (https://globalresearchonline.net/ journalcontents/v64-2/01.pdf); see HB 6(1):17,1995 for a diarrhoea cure for cattle using kangasi; 26(2):18,2015 where simal or silk cotton bark remedies uterine prolapse; Eds.)
34306 Regrow horns with kukarpada
Lattaben Patel
Tk. Olpad, Dist. Surat
Lattaben employs a host of herbal and traditional remedies for her cattle. She uses palash flowers (Butea monosperma L.) to help cattle with urine retention issues. She soaks two fistfuls of the flowers in a bucket of water for an hour. The water is fed to the cattle twice a day for four days. Palash flowers are abundant during summer, so she collects and dries them for later use.
Cattle sometimes overeat green fodder, or their fodder becomes contaminated, causing bloat and discomfort. Lattaben blends 500 g of crushed aaval leaves (Senna auriculata (L.) Roxb.) in two litres of water. After drinking this, cattle feel better within two or three hours. She also gives them buttermilk tempered with a pinch of black salt after half an hour to further aid digestion.
She crushes eight to ten leaves of kukarpada plants (Luffa acutangula (L.) Roxb.) with a handful of fenugreek seeds into a paste. She applies this on the horns of her cattle to help them regenerate and heal within four to five days. It is imperative to swiftly and carefully treat fractured or damaged horns to prevent permanent damage.
(Kukarpada or ridge gourd flourishes during the monsoon. It has been used in treatments for jaundice and kidney stones, and also in an at-home remedy to prevent grey hair. http://impactfactor.org/PDF/ IJCPR/7/IJCPR,Vol7,Issue3,Article3.pdf)
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| Volume No. |
Honey Bee, 34(3)12-14 , 2023 |
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