Bio-irrigation: A Drought Alleviation Strategy through Induced Hydro-parasitization under Bi-cropping Practices of Rainfed Agro-ecosystem: A Review

Abstract

Exploring ecosystem services for environment sustainability is the trending area of research in the field of natural resource management (NRM). Water is an important entity of agro-ecosystem, dryland agriculture greatly suffers due to want of moisture. Bi-cropping is one practice where different crops are grown in proximity to realize various benefits under uncertainties of dryland agriculture. Literacy among multifarious benefits of bi-cropping over monoculture is fairly rich among the researchers as well as growers. However, bio-irrigation is one such co-benefits which address about drought alleviating strategies under bi-cropping practice. In this technique, deep rooted plants suck up water from deep moist sub-soil and deposit part of that sucked water in the upper dry soil layers due to water potential gradient, during this hydraulic lift and redistribution shallow rooted neighboring crops in close proximity gets due benefits of this lifted water in alleviating drought. This is high time to device cropping systems of water limited environment to unlock the potentiality of dryland production units. Based on the published studies Piliostigma reticulatum, Guiera senegalensis, Panicum maximum, Festuca arundinacea and Cajanus cajan were identified as potential bio-irrigator arid agro-ecosystem.

​Impact of Media, Market and Monsoon on Agriculture Sector: A Review

“…In India about 40 per cent of the population involved in agriculture are being supported by dryland agriculture and are mostly small and marginal farmers concentrating mainly on cereal based crop production with high risks of drought (Kumar et al 2022). According to Kumar et al (2013), the failure of monsoon and small size of holdings, these farmers (Aggarwal et al, 2004).…”