MIXED FARMING

ABSTRACT
Mixed farming is an agricultural system in which a farmer conducts different
agricultural practice together, such as cash crops and livestock. The aim is to increase income
through different sources and to complement land and labor demands across the year. It depends
upon land size, type of crops and animals, geographical distribution, market orientation. This
practice involves multiple cropping or keeping different types of animals together. For example,
grain-legume association can provide grain with nitrogen. By selecting plants and cropping
formations that maximize the advantage of light, moisture and soil nutrients. Examples of mixed
animal systems include chicken-fish production where chicken dung serves as fish fodder. Mixed
farming can also give a more stable production because if one crop or variety fails, another may
compensate. This technology also allows greater food security and improved household nutrition
levels. Mixed farming systems maintain soil fertility by recycling soil nutrients and allowing the
introduction and use of rotations between various crops and forage legumes and trees. It helps to
do multiple cropping at a time and minimize additional time and cost.

Keyword- Mixed farming, cropping, cash crops, livestock, agriculture

Reference-Text book of Animal Production and Health, Livestock & the environment: Finding a balance

Name-Nihar Ranjan Dip Name of the guide

Registration no.-1401105497
Roll no.-33934
Bramch- Production Engg.
Place- Sambalpur
Mission-
Become the leader provider of foot by which people fulfil their need. This will be
accomplished by providing quality food product at fair prices while exceeding customers
expectation. Avail food product in less amount of time. Maximize production efficiency.
Vision-
My vision is to become a leading supplier for food requirements. Satisfy all customers
needs with the purchased product.

Market Analysis:-
Now in this time price gradually increasing of food items. Mixed farming helps to
reduce that cost by having two or more product at a time and fulfil the requirement of market.
Livestock play an important role in human society. In mixed farming systems in particular, they
are able to utilize products that are not achieved by humans: kitchen wastes, grass from roadsides
and wastelands, and crop residues from the cereal harvest. Animals give multiple products in
return, such as meat, eggs, milk, fibres, social status and income, while dung and urine are valuable
for fertilizing gardens, fields and fish ponds. Because of this market requirement is fulfil rapidly.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has access to experiences
regarding agricultural change across the world. Together with the Japanese Government it was
decided to compile experiences from different locations, categorized by farming system, to make
it easier for interested people to select ideas for their own conditions. By this people can easily do
mixed farming without any problem and made more items for future purpose.
Agro Ecological Zones and Mixed Farming Systems in Asia
Sl. Agro ecological zone Growing Crops Animal Mixed farming benefits
No. period (days)
1. Rain fed temperature <110 Barley, millets, Yak, cattle, Traction, transport,
and tropical highlands potatoes, fruits sheep manure, reduced risk,
(MRT) survival
2. Rain fed humid and sub 180-365 Maize, rice, Buffalo, Traction, transport,
humid tropics (MRH) wheat, cattle, pigs, income, manure, crop
sugarcane, chicken, residues
plantation crops ducks
3. Rain fed arid and 75-180 Sorghum, rice, Camels, Traction, transport,
semiarid tropics (MRA) millet, donkey, income, manure,
groundnuts, cattle, reduced risk, survival
soybeans, goats,
pigeon pea, sheep,
cotton chicken
4. Irrigated humid/sub 180-365 As MRH As MRH As MRH
humid tropics (MIH)
Requirement Analysis:-
It required good environment, good climate, good soil that can be used for growing
livestock. Some technologies are useful to an individual, others to a group of farmers, some are
inherently more sustainable than others, and some depend on use of more inputs while others can
help to reduce dependency on external inputs. Good quality of area is required with less dusty
environment.

The major determinants of the mixed farming system in a particular location are the agro-
ecological conditions. Climate and soil determine which crops can be grown. Feed resources
provide a direct link between crops and animals and interaction of the two, largely dictates the
development of such systems.

The factors determining mixed farming are of two kinds i.e., (i) physical factors, (ii) economic
factors. The important determinants under physical factors are climate, soil and topography.

a) Climate:-

The distribution of rainfall, sunshine, temperature and other climatic conditions greatly
determine which enterprise the farmer should choose.

b) Soil:-

Different soils suit different enterprises, depending upon the different qualities possessed
by them. It is due to variations in soil that different crops are localized in different areas in India.

c) Topography:-

It greatly tells upon the temperature and soil fertility and hence it has a significant bearing
upon the choice of farming that is practised.

Economic factor:-

The important determinants under economic factors are marketing costs, changes in
relative value of farm products, availability of labour and capital, land value, cycles of over and
under production, competition between enterprises.
Production Planning:

For good production, good economic planning is required. There are mainly four types
of economic planning may be required with in a farm, i.e.-
(1) Short-term planning only, within each seasonal or annual phase:-
Here the problem is to select the best mix of short-term crop and livestock production
activities in each phase. The necessary resources are either initially present or internally
generated within each phase or held over from some previous phase or obtained externally by
purchase.

(2) Long-term planning only:-

This is required in selecting those production activities which have a lifespan

extending over several phases, or possibly even over the household's entire time horizon, as in
the case of selecting the best single or best mix of perennial tree crops having lives of 30, 40...
100 years.

(3) Both short- and long-term planning:-

This is required, e.g., when the problem is to determine the best mix of corn,
citronella, cassava etc. to grow under a permanent stand of coconut palm. It is essentially the
same problem as (1) except that growing/agronomic conditions (particularly shade effects and
moisture requirements) for the short-term crops might change from year-to-year with changing
development of the long-term crop.

(4) Either short- or long-term production planning combined with long-term farm
development planning:-

In new intensive settlement areas the planning emphasis is often on farm

development rather than current production. A common objective is to produce some minimum
level of cash income or food in each short-term planning phase while devoting most effort to
land clearing, water supply etc.

For better production it is required to have good resource which are must needed i.e. land,
water and feed. Here I am discuss some examples and its requirements,
Example showing Components of a Base Table for Whole-farm Planning

(i) Planning objective (e.g., maximization of net cash income)

(ii) Activity unit budgets
(iv) Resources, constraints Soybeans Paddy Cows
Land 8 units 1 1 0
Water 6 units 0 3 0
Feed 10 units 0 0 5
(iii) Activity output 5 10 12