farming-climate

Dr. Anuja Kenekar

July 03, 2020

Agriculture

How Farmers Can Combat Erratic Weather Conditions Using Magic Gro Plus

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farming-climate

Various studies across the world have pointed out that climate change and variability in weather conditions have an adverse impact on farming, food production, and food security on a global scale.

The indifference in intensity, frequency, and duration of weather extremes further influence crop production, growth, and crop yield.

Also, the subsequent effects are certainly complex as they are often different for different types of crops. For example, undesired climates, like too-dry or too-wet conditions, can affect crop intensity.

Extreme weather can be defined as a weather event that goes out of bounds. In other words, weather events like rain become extreme, like drought or flood.

The same is the case with the wind, which becomes a storm, or the heat turning into a heatwave, or snow into a blizzard. It is a rare event, and it affects farming differently depending on the location.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) suggests that “rare” means in the bottom 10% or top 10% of severity for a given event type in a given location.

Global warming is considered one of the phenomena causing climate change.

The Effects of Erratic Weather on Farming

The main parameters that are at play include temperature, carbon dioxide, nutrient levels, nutrient uptake by plants, soil moisture, and water availability.

Let’s see how these components of farming are affected.

  • -Many times, extreme conditions like floods drown plants and seedlings at a time when the soil is most fertile for farming. Moreover, these weather extremities may come like a flood one year and return as a drought the next year. The extreme nature of events makes it unpredictable, and farmers are unable to be proactive in protecting the crops.

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  • A slight increase in temperature and extra carbon dioxide help plant growth in certain locations and, in some instances, can boost yield. But at another location, the temperature fall may lead to stunted growth and damage to the crop due to the creation of an environment best suited for the growth of weeds, pests, and fungi. Also, in some cases, severe temperature and heat lead to a higher transpiration process and water evaporation, thereby stressing the plants and causing damage.
  • It has been found that a carbon dioxide percentage increase promotes plant growth, but at the same time, it reduces the nutritional value of important crops like wheat, rice, and such crops. This greatly affects human health as well when such food is consumed.

See Also: https://organicabiotech.com/coffee-plantation-how-plant-growth-promoter-can-boost-crop-yield/

In 2019, we have seen the drastic effects of climate change and erratic weather conditions creating havoc in different countries around the world.

It only destroys farming yield but directly affects the economy of a country.

Australia lost 8.4 million hectares of land due to the worst fires, extreme drought, and heat intensity caused by climate change.

India is another country where extreme heat, floods, sandstorms, and other extreme natural events destroy agriculture, leading to a financial loss of millions of dollars every year.

Climate risk is a concept that shows how extreme weather events affect a country, taking into consideration deaths and economic losses.

It is measured annually by the Germanwatch Observatory via the Global Climate Risk Index. It clearly shows the vast difference in the way climate change affects different countries differently.

India is currently placed in 5th place on the climate risk index.

As most economies in the world rely on agriculture, it is important that farmers consider erratic weather conditions as a major challenge and embrace modern solutions to tackle it.

At the same time, government authorities should look to transform the way farmers do farming with better farm-friendly and environment-focused policies.

  • Water conservation – It is one of the best methods to counter the effects of drought. This can include better and more efficient irrigation practices and management or biological solutions that help in water retention in plants.
  • Organic farming methods – The increasing world population has led to massive industrialization of farming. The need for sufficient food supply has stressed and damaged the soil quality with the use of pesticides, fertilizers, and herbicides. Opt for organic farming methods and sustainable techniques.
  • Government initiatives that support local farmers and putting in place stringent laws that prohibit the use of extensive farming practices and the use of chemicals that can damage soil quality should be encouraged. This will prevent soil erosion during extreme weather conditions and protect the harvest area as well as crops.
  • Boost soil health – There is an urgent need for reversing the effects of industrialization and chemicals in soil. The natural microorganisms that are beneficial to plant growth must be promoted for better growth and yield from crops.

Organica Biotech’s range of Magic Gro products are made of advanced formulations of beneficial microbes.

These are highly capable of adapting to different geo-climatic conditions, which in turn keeps the ecological balance in the soil healthy.

The salient features of Magic Gro include boosting immunity against biotic and abiotic stress, improving crops, and keeping up the overall crop productivity.

It is, therefore, high time to use microbial biostimulants as they are one of the best solutions for sustainable farming and plant growth promotion.

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