Technological profile of agriculture in the area of responsible of KVK
The Geographical area of this district is 2,68,750 ha, out of which total cropped area is 1,27,792 ha. About half of the area of the district (1,55,214 ha.) is under forest.
The details in respect of the land use pattern are given below:
| 1. Total Geographical Area | - | 2,68,750Ha |
| 2. Forest | - | 1,55,214Ha |
| 3. Land out to non-agricultural uses | - | 13,894Ha |
| 4. Barren and Uncultivable land | - | 461Ha |
| 5. Permanent pastures and other grazing land | - | 461Ha |
6. Land under miscellaneous tree corps not
included in net area sown | - | 99Ha |
| 7. Cultivable waste | - | 415Ha |
| 8. Fallow other than current fallow | - | 528Ha |
| 9. Current fallow | - | 1,668Ha |
| 10. Net area sown | - | 96,470Ha |
| 11. Are sown more than once | - | 20,129Ha |
| 12. Total cropped area | - | 1,16,591Ha |
Considering the favarouble soil and agro-climatic conditions of the district there is immense scope for growth of agricultural and allied fields.
The major crops grown in this district are coconut, pepper, rubber, banana, Areca nut, tuber crops, ginger, vegetables, cocoa, paddy, pineapple, cashew nut etc.,
The average maximum temperature is 33.07oC and minimum temperature is 21 .07o C .The mean annual rainfall of this district is 3134 mm. The important four seasons are the hot weather from March to May, South-west monsoon from June to September, the retreating North-East monsoon during October to November and dry weather from December to February. The soil type of this district are laterite, alluvium and clay loam.
Agro-climatic zones:
Among the twenty agro-climatic zones identified in Kerala by superimposing six moisture availability regimes over seven soil groups, the classification specified for Pathanamthitta district is given below:
| Types |
Zones |
Farming situations/ crops grown |
| Type 1 |
Humid laterite |
Vegetables, nut mug, cashew, fodder grass, pineapples and banana |
| Type 2 |
Humid forest loam |
Pepper, banana, rubber, ginger, paddy, jack and coffee, |
| Type 3 |
Wet laterite |
Paddy, rubber, pepper, tapioca, ginger and banana |
This district has 5 Taluks, with 63 villages, 4 Municipalities and 9 Community Development Blocks with 53 Panchayats.
The major crops grown in this district are coconut, pepper, rubber, banana, Areca nut, tuber crops, ginger, vegetables, cocoa, paddy, pineapple, cashew nut etc.
Suggested suitable land use for sustainable
use of Land resources in Pathanamthitta district
Based on soil, terrain and agro-climatic characteristics of AEZ suitable land use for sustainable use of land resource for the Pathanamthitta district has been suggested. These suggestions were made on the resource characteristic and requirement of different land use. The spatial extent of suggested land use map given as fig: 16 and the area and percentage of different crops are given in the following table and diagrammatically represented in the figure above.
| Crops |
Suggested Area |
Percentage |
| Paddy |
5767 |
5% |
| Vegetables |
4524 |
4% |
| Coconut |
35703 |
29% |
| Arecanut |
2254 |
2% |
| Banana |
22555 |
18% |
| Spices |
14714 |
12% |
| Pulses |
2454 |
2% |
| Fruit Crops |
9990 |
8% |
| Tuber Crops |
2047 |
2% |
| Rubber |
14789 |
12% |
| Cocoa |
6325 |
5% |
| Cashew |
1427 |
1% |
| Agroforestry |
1860 |
1% |
FUTURE THRUSTS
Following thrust areas identified by KVK in the district are:
- Utilization of barren non remunerative paddy fields
- Increasing productivity in banana cultivation
- Increase in area and production of paddy
- Organic farming
- Introduction of medicinal plants which are having high market value and harnessing indigenous knowledge of tribals
- Increasing production of Mushroom
- Value addition of locally available fruits like papaya, jack fruit and pineapple
- Water harvesting and conservation
- Production of highly adaptable, resistant and improved variety of crossbred goats
- Production of improved strains of poultry
- Popularizing rabbit farming as an income generating avenue
