Written by Saneesh P.B., Field Coordinator, Translation into English and Edits by Bijishna T.K., Project Implementation Coordinator, Community Wellbeing
Rice is the staple food of the people of Keralam. Across the state, paddy farmers are cultivating many traditional varieties of paddy. Paddy cultivation plays a vital role in the local economy and it’s a versatile, high yield crop that needs relatively low input. We are working with 550 paddy farmers across Wayanad, and Distributed 27500 kg of Lime shells to 550 Paddy farmers across 5 Grama panchayath and 1 Municipality of Mananthavady Block of Wayanad District Kerala.
Lime is a soil conditioner: it controls the soil acidity by neutralising the effects of acids. If the soil is too acidic, none of the nutrients will be available to the crops, even if nutrients are present in the soil. For better yield and pest resistance, we have to test the soil and add the fertilizers according to the elements/ contents in the soil. It is necessary to apply 2 tons of organic manure per 1 acre to provide the required organic matter to the soil.
Cultivation of cow pea and using bio-manures will help the soil to absorb nitrogen from the atmosphere as well as provide the necessary organic matter to the soil. The adequate Ph (Potential of Hydrogen) value of the soil is 5.5 Ph to 6.5 Ph. If the Soil pH falls below 5.5 it is necessary to add lime or dolomite to reduce the acidity. If the pH falls between 5.5 and 6.5 then addition of lime/dolomite is desirable. For 1 acre of paddy field, it is desirable to add 150 Kg of Lime at the time of plowing the ground, and to add 100 kg of Lime after 1 month of sowing seeds. Fertilizers and other inputs should be added only one week after adding lime.
As the Agriculture Department conducted soil tests for random paddy fields across Wayanad, it found that the Ph value of soil is less than 5 in this area. These tests showed us the importance of distributing the lime shells to the paddy farmers we are working with. With the help of the Agriculture Department, Grama Panchayath and Pada Sekhara Samiti’s (Paddy Farmers Collectives), and the support of Axis Bank Foundation, Keystone Foundation found and distributed 50kg of lime shells to 550 farmers, resulting in a total of 27,500 kg of lime shells distributed free of charge.
