Bhagyaresha Gajbhiye

Soybeans and safflowers are grown as major kharif and rabi crops, respectively, in the region. Low soil fertility and inadequate manuring are the major causes of low yield of both crops. Higher dose of chemical fertilizers and agricultural chemicals and insufficient use of organic manures, leads to a negative impact on the fertility and productivity of soil. By and large, Indian soils showed either deficiency or inadequacy in a cluster of major and micronutrients. Higher doses of chemical fertilizers and agricultural chemicals, but insufficient use of organics, lead to negative results on fertility, productivity and sustainability of soil. There is a negative relationship between the use of fertilizers and their rising prices, particularly for small and marginal farm holders. Indian soils showed either deficiency or inadequacy in a cluster of major and micronutrients.

Lemongrass (Cymbopogon flexuosus) was the second Indian foreign exchange-earning essential oil plant. The world demand for plant-based raw materials of essential oils for drugs and pharmaceuticals is increasing rapidly. Cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants for their active principle and essential oils is usually highly remunerative. There is enough prospect of these oil-yielding plants to bring about diversification of cropping patterns of such cash crops for the upliftment of the rural economy. Cultivation of essential oil-bearing plants on scientific and commercial lines was started in India about 80 years ago. During the last fifty years, the Indian essential oil industry has made excellent progress.