Aliya Mohydin came to Kansas looking for ideas on how to grow high-value vegetable crops using the best water management methods available. She left with plenty of ideas and a better understanding of U.S. and Kansas agriculture – and of Americans in general.
Mohydin, who grows off-season vegetables on 62.5 acres in Lahore, Pakistan, was one of nine Pakistani farmers, industry and government representatives who traveled to Kansas and Colorado in May on an 11-day educational trip hosted by Kansas State University. The training was funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in partnership with World Learning.
“There were several different types of irrigation methods that I saw, starting from basic gravity, gated pipes and siphon tubes to the more expensive sprinkler irrigation like the linear move, center pivot, mobile center pivot, subsurface drip irrigation systems, and surface drip pivot (or mobile drip) irrigation,” she said. “Personally, I think all (of the) irrigation methods can be successful in Pakistan, as each has the potential to allow the farmer to create a strong competitive advantage.”
Jonathan Aguilar, K-State Research and Extension water resource specialist, along with Dan Devlin, K-State agronomy professor and director of the Kansas Center for Agriculture and the Environment, and Dan Rogers, an extension irrigation specialist, coordinated the visit, working closely with Nina Lilja, associate dean in K-State’s College of Agriculture.
The education went both ways, Aguilar said, adding that he learned Pakistan has some of the oldest functional gravity irrigation systems in the world. They excel in delivering water from the reservoir to the farm, he said, but are eager to learn different application practices, as they are still mostly flood irrigating.
Similarities between Pakistan and Kansas
Kansas and Pakistan are close to the same latitude and both have semi-arid regions, said Aguilar, who is based in Garden City, Kansas. Farmers in both areas face the challenge of growing crops with limited water. Both grow wheat, corn and soybeans.
“Punjab, like Kansas, is a main source of agriculture and has generally flat or plain topography,” Mohydin said.
Kansas agriculturists hosting the Pakistanis made sense, as K-State researchers are finding the best crops to grow, as well as improving crops and looking for the most effective water management practices, Aguilar said. Their findings are relevant for Kansas growers, as well as those in other states and countries.
“My late mother, Gulshan, was one of the few women who actively practiced intensive agriculture in Punjab and was renowned as a major producer of wheat seed, cotton and sugarcane in the region,” said Mohydin, whose family has farmed for generations.
Like Kansas, Punjab producers grow wheat, corn (maize), sorghum and cotton as part of their cropping pattern. Dairy farming is also common in Pakistan, especially in Punjab.
Differences also exist
Major differences, Mohydin said, are the size of farms, population and tillage practices. Most farmers in Pakistan own just a few acres and the majority use intense tillage – a trend many U.S. farmers are moving away from.
In 2009, 35.5 percent of U.S. cropland (88 million acres) planted to eight major crops used no tillage, and the rate was growing every year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service.
Also different is the source of irrigation water, Aguilar said. Pakistan’s crops are mostly irrigated with water from reservoirs filled by mountain runoff. Kansas farmers largely rely on irrigation from the Ogallala Aquifer in western Kansas and on precipitation in the eastern part of the state.
Pakistan also grows rice, olives and tree fruits.
Unlike in Kansas, physical labor is abundant in Pakistan, Mohydin said, but there is poor technical expertise. There are few vendors of highly automated machinery as well as a lack of resources and after-sales services to maintain equipment that is available.
Frequent, unexpected power shortages and high electric and fuel costs also hamper farming, and adulteration is common, Mohydin said, including fake or non-certified pesticides and poor quality seeds.
Working together
K-State wanted to get involved to show countries like Pakistan how farmers in Kansas are using irrigation wisely and profitably, Aguilar said. “We want others to know what we do best and what lessons we have learned along the way. Although Kansas is relatively young compared with Pakistan in terms of irrigation system use, we have made a fast and significant change in our on-farm water management. In more than half a century, farmers have gone from dryland, to irrigated by flood, then to center pivot, and now to drip irrigation technology.”
Kansas has drastically improved its irrigation efficiency from a low of 50 percent efficient with flood irrigation, to as high as 95 percent using subsurface drip irrigation, he added.
“The training was designed not as typical classroom-type sessions but rather a mixture of lecture, discussion, field-tour and immersion,” Aguilar said. They started with a lecture and tour in Manhattan, then traveled to Scandia, Courtland, Colby, Garden City and back to Manhattan over the 11 days.
Although her family has farmed for generations, Mohydin just started in 2013. She applied for a USAID grant which funded four long-life high tunnels to cultivate high-value, off-season vegetables. She runs the farm with two staff members. Her farm is in a densely populated area surrounding Kasur. She plans to expand the area covered by high-tunnels from 0.5 acres to 5 acres by May 2016 and 15 acres by May 2017.
She grows tomatoes, cucumbers, bitter gourd, capsicum, turnips, cauliflower, tumeric, and green chilies as well as seasonal vegetables in open space. Vertical farming is done in the high tunnels where tomatoes, cucumbers, and bitter gourd are grown. Corn and wheat is also grown on the farm.
“Given the high growth rate of Pakistan’s fruits and vegetables industry, primarily due to urbanization and a growing middle-class segment coupled with high demand for exports, I am confident that I will be able to achieve my goals,” she said. Once the farm is sustainable and profitable, she plans to capitalize on all of her acreage and to contribute to the community.
Mohydin uses furrow irrigation, but plans to introduce surface drip irrigation.
Other changes she expects to make as a result of the training include checks on water quality and soil nutrients; understanding crop water requirements and irrigation scheduling; conserving water by lining open water channels; and efficient use of resources to minimize environmental degradation. She also learned the importance of identifying pests before choosing a pesticide.
She believes that irrigation systems used in the U.S. could be used in Pakistan, but that high energy and installation costs, as well as few vendors, could hinder the adoption of such systems.
“I am confident that if high-efficiency irrigation systems are customized, powered by cheaper energy and operational and maintenance technical assistance is provided, they could do wonders for the country,” Mohydin said. “Especially when we consider that Pakistan is expected to face a major water crisis in the future.”
USAID stipulated that the trainees “experience America,” Aguilar said, so the schedule included shopping plus water-related visits at Pike’s Peak in Colorado, a social evening in Garden City, Kan., and visits to Cheyenne Bottoms Education Center near Great Bend, and the Flint Hills Discovery Center in Manhattan.
“I was just awestruck by the landscape, the area known as the bread basket of USA,” Mohydin said in describing her visit. The sheer expanse of (Kansas) with its gentle undulating topography -- my first impression was wow! God is wearing green.”
“A visit to Kearny County Hospital, where the commitment of providing quality health care facilities along with taking care of the elderly by mimicking a home-like atmosphere was very enlightening,” she said.
“Kansas State University is beautiful and inspirational and it was a privilege to learn about water management and spend time with some of their esteemed faculty members,” Mohydin said.
Source:ksu.edu