Ecological Agriculture

Introduction

In 1968, when the first Aurovilians came to this area, they found an expanse of barren red earth scarred by gullies and ravines, with only an occasional palm tree or lone Banyan to dot the horizon. Land reclamation – involving bunding, windbreaks and water harvesting - was needed to make the soil more fertile. Nitrogen-fixing hedges were planted in and around agricultural lands as live fences and soil builders, and for use in making mulch and compost.

Traditionally, by way of dry-land cultivation, a variety of millets, grains and pulses were grown, as the area was suitable for monsoon season cultivation before borewells were introduced. Average annual rainfall is now around 1200 mm, 65% of this usually falling in the season of the 2nd monsoon, between October and December. When in the 1960s the Indian Government joined in the promotion of industrialised agriculture, cropping patterns changed from mixed farming to monoculture and from food-crops to cash crops such as casuarina trees, coconut and cashews. Heavy use of chemical fertilisers, and also open grazing, have been the main causes of ongoing environmental degradation.

In 1971, when asked if chemical pesticides could be used on Auroville farms, the Mother emphatically replied in the negative. She insisted:

 "Auroville should not fall back into old errors which belong to a past that is trying to revive."

Thus, since 1968, Auroville has strongly encouraged natural approaches to farming and endeavours to create ecologically sound agriculture, using agro-forestry techniques. Some farmers follow the example of traditional farming, without chemicals, working in harmony with the seasons to grow those crops, which have proved suitable for hundreds of years. Others are more concerned with the process of adaptation, evaluating introduced species for their suitability to the arid semi-tropical climate. Inter-cropping of leguminous plants and fodder trees is also practiced. Orchard plantations of mango, jackfruit, tamarind and cashew are common, as are a large variety of other tropical fruits.

Organisation

The Auroville Farm Group takes collective responsibility for the management of Auroville farms. Since 1993 the group has been meeting monthly and working to ensure that optimal use is made of available assets, to address financial and other problems, and to define policies for land development. One initiative taken has been the setting up collective funds for the farmers, to meet shortfalls and guarantee investments, while cultivating a better understanding of policies as they relate to sustained growth and a sustainable future. The group strives to collaborate with Pour Tous (Auroville's community food shop), a number of food-processing units, and with the Solar Kitchen community dining hall to deal more effectively with fluctuations and surpluses in produce.

The Farm Group has continuously promoted awareness about farming within the community, by making the minutes of their monthly meetings public in the AV News, demonstrating the benefits of using traditional and locally suited crop varieties, localising production and economics, and encouraging more people to take up farming and gardening. It has also created a quarterly newsletter, which is available on the “What’s New” page of this website.

The farms: human & energy resources

The earliest of Auroville’s farms began its activities in 1968. Today, Auroville’s farms comprise approximately 400 acres of cultivated land, co-managed by around 35 Auroville residents and employing around 200 full-time workers from the surrounding villages. The farms vary in their focus of activities. While all practice a combination of cultivation - fruit trees, field crops, vegetable gardening and animal husbandry, as well involvement some on-site food processing - each farmer produces according to their area of interest and ability, taking into consideration previous experience, the quality and type of soil, water availability and investment potential. Also, there is a concerted effort to coordinate cropping strategies to best meet the requirements of the community for locally grown organic produce.

In the circle surrounding the City, known as the Green Belt, there is a region on the western side targeted for the expansion of farming, as it is most advantageous in relation to water availability and conservation. However, existing farms are diversely located, and range in size from 2 acres to 135 acres in overall area. There is very little topsoil, due to “dry scrub” subtropical climatic conditions, with soil types identified as sandy red, red laterite and black cotton. In many locations, particularly on larger land holdings, water catchment ponds are strategically placed and tracts are set aside for the encouragement of regenerating natural forest cover, as well as some timber cultivation.

At present the mix of cultural backgrounds participating in agricultural activities (and hence of languages spoken) includes American, Australian, Austrian, Belgian, British, Columbian, Dutch, French, German, Indian, Swiss and Tamil.

Energy needs are met in a wide variety of ways, with the emphasis on alternative technologies. A major challenge is to provide adequate irrigation without falling into dependency on unsustainable practices. These include: open wells and borewells, solar panels as power sources for solar electric pumps, submersible pumps and booster pumps, and windmills (sometimes with standard electric or diesel generators as back-ups). Water catchment ponds and underground water storage tanks are increasing. As water-saving devices, sprinkler irrigation, micro sprinklers and drip systems are being used wherever possible. Many farms have biogas converters in use to provide a natural and cheap source of cooking fuel for domestic on-farm use.

A variety of crops & produce

Where field crops are being grown traditional varieties are favoured, such as:

• varagu, cambu, ragi (millets)

• red rice, samai, tenai (grains)

• kulu, ulundu, (pulses)

• peanuts, sesame (oilseeds)

Some wetland (or irrigated) rice, soybean and sugarcane is grown, and vegetables are cultivated both of local and imported varieties. Cow fodder (pennisetium) is grown extensively in irrigated plots for the dairies, alongside alleys of fodder trees (gliricidia, leucena).

Fruits requiring irrigation include: papaya, coconuts, banana, guava, sapota, lemons, limes, pomelo, grapefruit, guava, chikoo, starfruit, avocado, bullocks heart, acerola, pitanga, passionfruit, bhelfruit, pineapple, kumquat, and breadfruit (as well as numerous unusual trial varieties). Mango, tamarind, jackfruit and cashew are also cultivated with limited inputs and generally without irrigation.

Animal husbandry is practiced on nearly all farms, providing substantial quantities of milk, cheese and eggs for consumption within Auroville. Within the Farm Group there is a total of around 100 herd cattle (including milk cows, heifers, calves, bulls & bullocks), and around an equal number of birds (chickens) in the various poultries at any given time. Breeds vary between indigenous, indigenous-crossbreed and exotic.

An important aspect of cultivation, both ecologically and economically, is the use of areas for firewood crops, timber, regeneration fodder and forest.  Most farms maintain crops of dry orchards or cashew for annual contract harvesting (selling in bulk at a low rate to middlemen), and often also casuarina (also called matchwood pine or ironwood) and bamboo for which there is local demand for fencing, scaffolding and fuel. Stands of 'work tree' (acacia auriculaformis) also grow rapidly to meet demand for furniture and construction timber, while many farmers will keep small groves of standing indigenous hardwoods, such as teak, as an investment for the future. Coconut trees and banana plants yield important by-products, while the indigenous palmyra and neem, plus some other naturally occurring species, are harvested seasonally for their “minor produce”, providing small but useful incomes.

Contact: isha@auroville.org.in