[Terrapreta] Greetings

[adkarve]

Dear Juergen,
literally thousands of farmers in the state of Maharashtra, India, are
following a practice called Amritpani. It consists of applying a mixture of
25 kg sugar, 25 kg fresh cowdung and 25 litres of cow urine to a hectare of
the field, once every three months, and nothing else.Two students of mine
verified this fact by visiting and interviewing these farmers. 125 kg leaves
per ha was just a modification of the same technique, evolved by me, after I
came to know that sugar and green leaves had about the same calorific value
for the microbes that can digest cellulose. I later discovered that farmers
on our western coast were already using this practise too. They apply the
leaves of Gliricidia to their paddy fields at the time of an operation
called puddling. So it was quite plain that I had rediscovered the wheel.
I would like to add here that the farmers who use the Amritpani technique do
not use any insecticides or fungicides. They claim that pests or diseases do
not attack their crop.
Using high calorie, non-composted biomass as manure is a controversial
issue. The science establishment in India does not believe in it, while a
large number of farmers swear by it. I myself tested the application of
green leaves (125 kg per ha) in my own farm and got excellent results.
Yours
A.D.Karve
----- Original Message -----
From: Juergen Botz <jurgen at botz.org>
To: adkarve <adkarve at pn2.vsnl.net.in>; <terrapreta at bioenergylists.org>
Sent: Friday, April 20, 2007 9:04 PM
Subject: Re: [Terrapreta] Greetings


> Dear Dr. Karve,
>
> I find your methods interesting, and will certainly experiment with
> them.  I am also eager to learn more specifics about how and where
> this approach is being used... can you point me to further reading?
>
> adkarve wrote:
> > Do not apply compost to the soil.  [...]  We found in
> > our experiments that non-composted green leaves, applied at the
> > rate of 125 kg per ha, once every 2 to 3 months, gives as high
> > yield from crops as application of recommended doses of chemical
> > fertilizers.
>
> Definitely something for me to experiment with, but I should add
> that I'm making compost not only to replace fertilizer, but also
> to produce humus for improved soil structure.  Perhaps charcoal
> will reveal itself to be sufficient in improving soil structure,
> but I'm trying to turn hardpan into something I can in the future
> plant without tillage.
>
> :j
>
>