Crop Planning and Contingency Planning in Agriculture
Crop Planning – Concept
Definition: Crop planning is the systematic scheduling of crops and cropping patterns to optimize production, efficiently use resources (land, water, labor), and reduce risk, especially in rainfed and dryland agriculture.
Objectives:
- Maximize yield and income from available land.
- Efficient use of water, nutrients, and labor.
- Minimize risk due to drought, floods, or crop failure.
- Ensure sustainability and soil fertility maintenance.
Key Considerations for Crop Planning:
- Agro-Climatic Conditions: Rainfall, temperature, humidity, growing season length.
- Soil Type & Fertility: Matching crops to suitable soils.
- Water Availability: Irrigation facilities or rainfed conditions.
- Cropping Systems: Single, multiple, intercropping, or rotational crops.
- Market Demand & Economics: Profitability and marketability of crops.
- Farm Resources: Labor, machinery, seeds, fertilizers.
- Pest & Disease Incidence: Crop rotation to reduce pest/disease buildup.
Steps in Crop Planning
- Assessment of Agro-Climatic Conditions; Rainfall: Amount, distribution, and variability. Length of Growing Season (LGS). Temperature range and frost risk.
- Selection of Crops & Varieties; Drought-tolerant crops in drylands (millets, sorghum, chickpea). Early-maturing or short-duration crops for areas with uncertain rainfall.
- Determination of Cropping Pattern; Based on rainfall, soil type, and risk of drought/flood.
- Example:
- Arid (<500 mm): Millets, pulses, oilseeds.
- Semi-arid (500–1000 mm): Sorghum, chickpea, sunflower.
- Sub-humid (1000–1150 mm): Maize, soybean, groundnut, cotton.
- Example:
- Scheduling Sowing and Harvesting; Early sowing to utilize onset of rains. Harvesting timed to avoid drought, frost, or floods.
- Resource Allocation; Efficient use of fertilizers, irrigation, labor, and machinery.
Contingency Crop Planning
Definition: Contingency planning is the preparation for alternative crops or practices in case of rainfall failure, drought, floods, or other adverse conditions.
Key Elements:
- Alternate Crops: Keep drought-tolerant or short-duration crops as alternatives. Example: If monsoon is delayed → sow short-duration millet instead of long-duration maize.
- Flexibility in Sowing Dates: Adjust sowing based on monsoon onset or early/late rainfall predictions.
- Moisture Conservation Practices: Fallowing, mulching, contour bunding to retain water for contingency crops.
- Diversified Cropping System: Intercropping or mixed cropping reduces risk of total crop failure. Example: Sorghum + Pigeon pea, Maize + Cowpea.
- Emergency Measures: Supplemental irrigation if possible. Re-sowing or gap filling after crop failure.
Importance in Dryland Agriculture
- Dryland farming is highly rainfall-dependent and risky.
- Contingency planning ensures food security, income stability, and resource efficiency.
- Helps in minimizing drought and climate risk.
Fact:
- ~55% of India’s cultivated area is rainfed; contingency planning is crucial to mitigate crop failure risks.
- ICAR-CRIDA develops crop planning models for semi-arid tropics (SAT), including contingency schedules.
Example – Contingency Crop Planning Table for Semi-Arid Region
Scenario |
Normal Crop |
Contingency Crop / Measure |
Timely monsoon |
Sorghum, Groundnut |
Standard sowing |
Delayed monsoon (>2 weeks) |
Maize, Chickpea |
Short-duration millet, early sowing |
Rainfall deficit (<75% of normal) |
Sorghum |
Drought-tolerant varieties, mulching |
Post-monsoon excess moisture |
Pulses, Oilseeds |
Improved drainage, select tolerant crops |
Quick Facts
- Crop planning reduces yield gaps in rainfed agriculture.
- Contingency crops ensure minimum income during erratic monsoon years.
- Dryland crops: millets, pulses, oilseeds → backbone of contingency planning.
- LGS + rainfall prediction → key criteria for contingency crop selection.