SALT: Sloping Agricultural Land Technology

SALT:  Sloping Agricultural Land Technology

                             In the Nepalese history, one of the indigenous ethnic groups, the Kiranti, were ruled in Kathmandu valley. However in battle, the Kiranti king and his associates were finally chased to eastern hills of Nepal from Kathmandu valley. Among the Kiranties, Some stayed in Sunkoshi river area, later they were called 'SUNUWAR' as left Kirants, other as Rai in mid Kirants and others as Limbu in east Kirants. Primitively, they used to make some terrace and kitchen gardens for the planting of medicinal plants only but later they started terrace farming as the livelihood sustaining. They prepared the agricultural area by devastating the huge natural jungles through the help of local tools or weapons and made sun dried as well as burned. After that the remaining ashes were used as the sources of Potash or fertilizers. Then they made some checked bars or dams on the sloppy terraces to control the water erosions from the sloppy lands and adopted other different local plantation activities which was used to called as KHORIA (as Slash and burn technology). Later, most of the terraces were changed into rice fields or plan land after regular leveling it in every years where the land are irrigation facilities. Even still in bucolic Nepalese context, KHORIA is existing. However, it can be explored simultaneously with 'slish and burn' technology which is locally called ' KHORIA PHADNE' and this Sloping Agricultural Land Technology or SALT is also a derived form of the KHORIA making tradition as the improved technology. 
SALT is a way of farming that can turn a sloping parcel of land into a highly productive upland farm. As a proven system of upland farming, SALT has certain advantages over both the traditional techniques of slash-and-burn (Nepalese agriculture) and conventional terrace farming. SALT enables farmers to stabilize and enrich the soil and to grow food crops economically. There is also a reduced need for expensive inputs like chemical fertilizers. In like manner, the SALT scheme is tailored for small family farms and for raising both annual food crops and permanent crops. Also, it is culturally acceptable because the farming techniques are in harmony with the beliefs and traditional practices of local people. Furthermore, it has proven applicable to most of the regions throughout the hilly mahabharat region. In addition, SALT also conserves soil moisture and reduces pests and diseases. Moreover, it replaces an ugly eroded hillside with a terraced and green landscape. But most important of all, to a financially harried farmer, the technology can increase the annual income to almost threefold after only a period of five years.

How to use SALT

SALT is a simple, applicable, low-cost but effective way of farming hilly lands without losing top soil to erosion. It consists of ten basic steps as discussed briefly below:

1.   Making the A-frame. The A-frame is a simple device for laying out contour lines across the slope. It is made of a spirit level and a three wooden or bamboo poles (two should be about one meter long each and one about one-half meter long) nailed or tied together in the shape of a capital letter A with a base of about 90 centimetres. The spirit level is mounted on the crossbar.

2.   Finding the contour lines. One leg of the A-frame is planted on the ground, then the other leg is swung until the spirit level shows that both legs are touching the ground on the same level. A helper drives a stake beside the frame's rear (first) leg. The same level finding process is repeated with stakes every 5- meter distance along the way until one complete contour line is laid out, and until the whole slope is covered. Each contour line is spaced from 4 to 6 meters apart for a steep hill, and 7 to 10 meters apart for a more gradual one.

3.   Cultivating the contour lines. One-meter strips along contour lines are ploughed and harrowed until ready for planting. The stakes serve as guide during ploughing.

4.   Plant nitrogen-fixing trees. On each prepared contour line, make two furrows one-half meter apart. Plant the seeds of leguminous trees like Leucaena leucocephala, Flemingia congesta, Leucaena diversifolia, Calliandra callothyrsus, or Sesbania grandiflora. Branches of Gliricidia sepium can also be used. One furrow can be planted with say, L. leucocephala, and other furrow with F. congesta. Always use a combination of various tree species to minimize the risks of pest attacks like e.g. by psyllids. The seeds are firmly covered with soil. Where time is of no importance, the trees can be left to grow until they are four to five meters high, which by then should form a shade that will kill the grasses and eliminate the need for cutting grasses.

5.   Planting the permanent crops. The space of the land between the thick double rows of nitrogen-fixing trees is called a strip, where the crops are planted. Permanent crops may be planted at the same time the seeds of leguminous trees are sown. Only the strips for planting are cleared and dug; and later, only ring weeding is employed until the nitrogen fixing trees are large enough to hold the soil for full cultivation to commence. Permanent crops are planted in one strip out of every four. This refers to strips 1, 4, 7, 10 and so on. Coffee, banana, citrus, cacao, and others of the same height are good examples of permanent crops. Tall crops are planted at the bottom of the hill and the shorter ones are planted at the top.

6.   Cultivating alternate strips. The soil can be cultivated even before the nitrogen-fixing trees are fully grown. Cultivation is done on alternate strips, on strips 2, 5, 8 and so on. The uncultivated strips collect the soil that erodes from higher cultivated strips. When the nitrogen-fixing trees are fully grown, every strip can be cultivated.

7.   Planting the short-term crops. Short- and medium-term income producing crops are planted between strips of permanent crops as source of food and regular income, while waiting for the permanent crops to bear fruit. Suggested crops are pineapple, ginger, sweet potato, peanuts, sorghum, corn, melons, squash, and up land rice, etc.

8.   Trimming the nitrogen-fixing trees. Once a month, the continuously growing nitrogen-fixing trees are cut down at a height of one meter from the ground. Cut nitrogen-fixing leaves and twigs are always piled at the base of the crops. They serve as an excellent organic fertilizer for the plants. In this way, only minimal amounts of commercial fertiliser, if any, are necessary.

9.   Management. The non-permanent crops are always rotated to maintain productivity, fertility and good soil formation. A good way of doing this is to plant grains (sorghum, corn, upland rice, etc.), tubers (sweet potato, cassava, etc.) and other crops (pineapple, squash, melons, etc.) in strips where legumes (beans, peanuts, pulses, etc.) were planted previously and vice versa. Other crop management practices such as weeding, insect and weed control, are also done regularly.

10.  Building green terraces. To enrich the soil and effectively control erosion, straws, stalks, twigs, branches, leaves, rocks and stones are piled at the base of the thick rows of nitrogen-fixing trees. As the years go by, strong, permanent and naturally green terraces will be formed which hold the soil in place.

Many agricultural research centers, agricultural organizations, colleges and universities in the Nepal are putting up their own SALT farms as the demonstration. Beside Nepal, other countries like Philippines, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Korea, Bangladesh, New Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, the Solomon Islands, Taiwan, Ghana, Thailand, Australia and Japan have also adopted this SALT for the possible management of hillside landscapes in their countries.