Abstract

At the present juncture, the Indian Union is faced with the need of maximising food production. With the natural resources available in India, it should be possible to achieve this object, of obtaining the maximum yield from each crop and meeting the food requirements of the population, both human and cattle, in full. The subject of this paper is how to harness the weather to suit the Weather has to be utilised to the best advantage for the maximisation of crop production. Forestry is generally referred to as the Handmaid of Agriculture as its influence on the climate of a locality is far-reaching. Forests equalise and regulate tempera- tures. Inside the forests the temperature all through the year will be lower than in the open, and in summer this difference may even be 4°F. The difference between the relative humidity inside and outside forests may be anything upto 12%. Transpiration from forests increases the relative humidity of the locality and brings it nearer the precipitation point. Hence, it is often said that forests create rain. The influence of forests on rains is due to convection currents caused by local heating of the surface air. In addition, forests break the force of high winds and restore moisture to the atmosphere. Data are available to indicate that if the wind penetrates through a dense forest to a distance of 100 feet, it retains only 60 to 80 per cent of its original velocity; if the distance is 200 feet only 50 per cent and for 400 feet only 7 per cent. Reduction of wind velocity means creation of favourable climatic influences, such as reduction of evaporation, lowering of temperature, increasing relative humidity of the air and accumulation of moisture. All these influences will increase the yields of crops, raised under the protective shelter-belts. Most important of all, forests check soil erosion and flooding. They help in the conservation of soil moisture. The water-holding capacity of forest soils is four to eight times that of an open soil in the same locality, due to its high humus content. Further, water enters through the cleavages in the forest soil formed by the roots of trees and gets soaked in the deeper layers of soil, thereby creating environments favourable for the formation of subterranean springs. Later on these springs form streamlets and rivulets which coalesce into a river. Thus, forests are helpful in the formation of perennial streams. This is perhaps the reason for the belief that forests improve the local climatic conditions and also serve as a great adjunct even for dry-farming. Planned afforestation is, therefore, the means of reclaiming lands for agricultural purposes, otherwise threatened by floods and the spread of desert conditions.

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