Pakistan is the heartland of agriculture. Pakistan consists of a wide variety of soils which have significant variations in characteristics and distribution. The total arable land in Pakistan is 79.61 million hectares, out of which, only 22 million hectares is used for crop production There are almost 750 different kinds of identified soils in Pakistan which are grouped in classes I-IV by the Soil Survey of Pakistan. The lands for arable use are recorded in the first four classes (I to IV), and the last four (V to VIII) are for non-arable use e.g. for forestry.
Pakistani soils have below than desirable organic
matter content. According to international standards a healthy soil has 1.29%
organic matter (Carbon level), but Pakistani soils have recorded 0.52-1.38%
Carbon content in different soil series. Most of the soils have even less than
1% mainly
because Pakistan exists in the semi-arid environment, climate
variations, low economic state of Pakistani farmers, practice of soil tillage
and many more. Agriculture in Pakistan accounts for almost
24% GDP, contributes 60% to our export earnings. and employs 48 percent of the labor force.
The Soil Zones in Pakistan
The
soil of Pakistan is divided into nine major Ecological zones.
i.
Northern Mountains Region
ii.
Western Mountains Regions
iii.
Potwar Plateau
iv.
Sandy Deserts
v.
Piedmont Plains
vi.
Old River Terraces
vii.
Sub-Recent River Plains
viii.
Recent River Plains
ix.
Indus Delta
These ecological zones vary greatly in soil
texture and composition which leads to different types of crops suitably
growing in them.
Crop Productivity and Use of Fertilizers in Pakistan
In 1970/71,
total crop production in Pakistan was 10 million tonnes while in 2002/03 it
reached to level of about 25 million tonnes. In this period use of fertilizers
also increased by 13-fold, to reach the three million tonnes of total
nutrients. Fertilizers are very widely used in Pakistan but still some of them have
undefined nutrient ratios. It is an interesting fact that, the per
hectare fertilizer consumption in Pakistan is approximately 133 kg, which is
higher than the world average i.e., 94.1 kg per hectares, but the yield
productions are significantly lower. The major reason for this is that local
farmers do not get their soils tested and follow the traditional knowledge of
the crops sown on an area and their nutritional requirements. There is low productivity
because the soil composition may have changed over the years.
Major
Agricultural drawback in Pakistan
The
world's sixth most populous country, Pakistan, is a developing country. According
to 2020 stats the current population of Pakistan is
230 million and is subjected to two percent annual growth.
Almost 67% Pakistanis live in the rural areas of the country and are primarily
dependent on agriculture. About 32% of the total Pakistani population are
recorded below the poverty level. Due to lack of resources, high poverty index
and low literacy level, the present use of land is not quite in accordance with
its potential.
Major Crops and use of Manure as
Fertilizer
In our country, wheat,
cotton, sugar cane and rice are the major crops upon which
fertilizers are used mostly. Nitrogen application (manure/ fertilizer rich in
N) on these crops is more common. Micronutrient deficiencies in crops is also
very common but less than 5% farmers use micronutrient fertilizers. The
most common fertilizers used in Pakistan are urea, calcium ammonium nitrate
(CAN) and ammonium sulphate (AS).
Due
to lack of resources and knowledge local farmers of Pakistan also use manure as
a fertilizer. Manure is rich in nutrients and provide basic elements like
Nitrogen and Phosphorus to the soil but many harmful features are also
associated with it.
·
When applied in excess or for long term can
led to the excessive buildup of unnecessary nutrients. It can increase
phosphorus buildup more as compared to nitrogen which is more needed by crops.
This excessive buildup can affect soil fertility.
·
This can also lead to the degradation of
water quality when elements are leached and thus can have adverse impacts on
human health and environment.
·
Animal manure may also contain additional hormones and antibiotics applied
to animals for milk and meat production and also for curing animal’s diseases.
·
It also contains certain bacteria like Salmonella,
E. coli, Clostridium, Mycobacterium which are mainly responsible
for human diseases like Food borne illnesses, diarrhea etc.
Primary Treatment of Manure
The
spread of these pathogens can be controlled by simply treating the manure with
lime (Calcium Oxide/ Calcium hydroxide). High pH of lime kills pathogens as
well as prevents soil acidity. Manure can also be heated at high temperature or
stored in an anaerobic tank. Both of these treatments kill excess human
pathogens and can be helpful in preventing human diseases.
CONCLUSION
Pakistan
lack resources and literacy level is below average. Awareness among local
farmers, more research and organization is needed in Pakistan to affectively use
the potential of the diverse ranges of soils in Pakistan.
References
1.
Spiehs, M., & Goyal, S. (2007). B est M
anageMent P racticesfor Pathogen control in M anure M anageMent s ysteMs.
Control.
2.
https://www.pakissan.com/english/advisory/organic.farming/organic.matter.status.of.pakistan.shtml
3.
http://www.fao.org/3/y5460e/y5460e02.htm#bm02
4.
Azam, F., M. M Iqbal, C. Inayatullah and K.
A. Malik. 2001. Technologies for sustainable agriculture. Nuclear Institute for
Agriculture and Biology, Faisalabad.
Ahmed, N. and M. Rahid. 2003. Fertilizers and Their Use in Pakistan. National
Fertilizer Development Center. Islamabad.
5.
Khan, S. R.A. 2001. Crop Management in
Pakistan with Focus on Soil and Water. Directorate of Agricultural Information,
Punjab, Lahore
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This article has been shared by
the following authors to PAKAGRIFARMING.
Authors: Rida Tariq,
Mohadsa Zainab, Saba Mushtaq, Amna Azhar
Authors’
Affiliation: Capital University of Science and Technology
