Innovative Approaches Enhancing Input Use Efficiency of Horticultural Crops

The term ‘Input use efficiency of horticultural crops’ may be defined as the concepts of technical, spatial, chemical and environmental efficiency for sustainable production of horticulture crops. An efficient farmer maintain his land, water and other resources in an optimal manner, so as to maximize his income, at lowest cost, on sustainable basis. However, there are many studies indicating that farmers often use their resources sub-optimally, whereas, some farmers may attain maximum outputs at a high cost, some others achieve maximum profit per unit of inputs used. Logically all enterprising farmers would try to maximize their farm returns by allocating inputs in an efficient manner by incorporating innovative approaches. But as inputs and managerial efficiency of different farmers vary widely, the net returns per unit of inputs used also vary significantly from orchard to orchard. Also a farmer’s access to technology, credit, market and other infrastructure and policy support, coupled with risk perception and risk management capacity under erratic weather and price situations would determine his orchard efficiency. Moreover, a farmer knowingly or unknowingly may over-exploit his land, water and other resources for maximizing orchard income in the short run, thereby, resulting in soil and water degradation and rapid depletion of ground water and also posing a problem of sustainability of horticulture in the long run. Furthermore, a farmer may not be often either fully aware or properly guided and aided for alternative, albeit best possible uses of his scarce resources like drip irrigation and fertigation, high density planting, (HDP) mulching, bio fertilizers and plant bio regulators (PBRs). Thus, there are economic as well as environmental aspects of input use efficiency in horticulture. Besides, appropriate risk management policy would be crucial for stabilizing orchard income, which would encourage the farming communities to take proper interest in farming and maintain input use efficiency.