Dryland Practices for Crop Sustainability and Productivity

The productivity of dryland crops is low because, the onset, intensity and distribution of rainfall is highly unpredictable. To conserve natural resources for enhancing productivity and profitability, five dryland technologies during the rainy season (1. Ridge planting in pearl millet, 2. Compartmental bunding in pearl millet, 3. Pearl millet + Sesame Strip cropping, 4. Pearl millet + Cluster bean strip cropping and 5. Split application of N in pearl millet) and four technologies during the winter season (1. Deep tillage in mustard, 2. Tillage after each effective rains in mustard, 3. Chick pea + Mustard intercropping and 4. Mustard proceeded by green manuring were demonstrated at farmers field in NICRA village Nagla Dulhe Khan, Agra. Improved agro technologies resulted in an overall increase in crop yield from 4.65 to 76.22% over the traditional practices. Higher net return and B: C ratio were also observed with improved practices. The results of the study revealed an increase in yield ranging from 8.35 to 76.22% in pearl millet, 8.33 to 76.22% in sesame, 7.41 to 74.00% in cluster bean, 4.65 to 43.94% in mustard, 14.24 to 43.94% in chick pea and 7.74% in barley under demonstration plots as compared to traditional practices.