Organic Farming

For a long time, humans have changed the way they sow crops in the field, from natural to chemically enhanced ones. But in pursuit of quantity, humans forgot to care about something more precious — the balance with nature. Organic Farming is a modern method to bring that balance back. This article will talk about this innovative and modern masterclass of scientific invention, from methods to benefits, to the debate between organic and inorganic farming.  

1.0What is Organic Farming?

Organic farming is a modern agricultural approach backed by ecological principles and biological processes. The method works specifically on the principle of abandoning chemical-based products in farming. That is, this approach believes in the natural inputs to increase soil fertility, pest control, and crop health. 

These inputs include interactions among living and non-living components of the biosphere, such as soil, microorganisms, plants, and animals. This method forms the base for not just a good yield but a healthy ecosystem as well. 

2.0Principles of Organic Farming

Organic farming goes beyond just abolishing the use of chemicals in farming; it is a deep philosophy rooted in biology, ecology, and ethics. Organic farming works on the foundation of four major principles, which are: 

A. Principle of Health: Organic farming encourages soil, plant, animal, human, and ecosystem health as a whole. It eschews chemicals such as synthetic pesticides and fertilisers that can hurt biological systems.

B. Principle of Ecology: It relies on nature's ecological cycles. Organic methods imitate nature—conserving biodiversity, soil life, air, water, and climate through sustainable land use.

C. Principle of Fairness: This principle promotes justice and equity in agriculture. It sustains access to resources fairly, ethical trade, and institutions that measure real environmental and social costs.

D. Principle of Care: Farming is carried out with responsibility and care, safeguarding present and future life through long-term considerations and community involvement.

3.0Organic Farming Methods

The above-mentioned principles of organic farming are not just theory; various methods are implemented to put them into practice. These methods of organic farming include: 

• Crop Rotation: Growing different types of crops every season helps prevent pest buildup, eventually maintaining soil nutrients and fertility. 
• Green Manuring: Green manuring refers to planting crops that fix nitrogen into the soil after ploughing. One of the most famous examples of this method is leguminous plants, which have roots associated with rhizobium bacteria that enrich soil with biologically available nitrogen. 
• Composting: Organic waste materials such as crop residues, kitchen waste, and cow dung are broken down by decomposers like fungi and bacteria into humus. This humus, in turn, increases soil fertility. 
• Biological Pest Control: Introducing natural enemies of pests, like ladybugs and parasitic wasps, keeps the population of these bugs in check by mimicking the natural ecosystem and food chain. 
• Mulching: Mulching is the layering of the outer layer of soil with organic materials like straw, dry leaves, grass clippings, etc. This helps in moisture retention, temperature regulation, weed control, and soil enrichment. 
• Intercropping: It is basically growing different types of crops together to make proper use of the land and resources.
• Integrated Farming Systems (IFS): Combining living and non-living components of the ecosystem in farming as per their potential is known as IFS. This includes a combination of crops, livestock, fish, and poultry farming in a mutually beneficial setup to enhance resource efficiency.

4.0Components of Organic Farming

To function perfectly and in sync with sustainable protocols, organic farming uses several key components that make it a practical approach. These tools include: 

• Organic Manure: Manure is a major component of organic farming. It increases microbial activity and provides slow and steady release of nutrients without harming the fertility of the soil. 
• Biofertilizers: These are the living components of the environment that naturally fix nitrogen into the soil. Examples of biofertilisers are Rhizobium, Azospirillum, and Azotobacter. 
• Biopesticides: Natural components or organisms that fight against the growing pests in the field. 
• Earthworms: Also known as the friend of farmers, they enhance the aeration in soil by creating vermicompost. 
• Mycorrhizae: This is a symbiotic relationship between fungi and the roots of plants, used for better water or nutrient uptake from the soil.  

5.0Benefits of Organic Farming

Organic farming gained popularity in recent times due to the large number of benefits it has for soil and other ecological systems. Some of these benefits of organic farming include: 

• Enhanced Soil Microbial Activity: Compost and green manure activate microbial communities critical for nutrient cycling.
• Natural Disease Resistance: Polyculture and diversity minimise the likelihood of widespread disease outbreaks.
• Lower Chemical Contamination: Prevents nitrate leaching and pesticide residues, safeguarding water bodies and wildlife.
• Increased Carbon Sequestration: Organic soils sequester more carbon, contributing to greenhouse gas reduction.
• Improved Nutritional Quality: Some research indicates organic foods potentially have more antioxidants and less pesticide residue.

6.0Organic vs Inorganic Farming