Bangladesh Landscape System Analysis

Bangladesh Landscape Panoramic view

SNU | Professor Kuitert Wybe | 12th June’ 2015

Shamsad Firdous | 2015-22177

CONTENTS • INTRODUCTION • GEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND • HISTORY OF FARMING • FARMING IN BANGLADESH • THIS FARMING ECOLOGY • CONCLUSION



Officially name is Republic of Bangladesh



Situated in the South Asia



Geographically its land is flat, low-lying, alluvial plain



230 rivers and rivulets have passed through and has a coastline of about 580 km along the bank of the Bay of Bengal



British-rule period (1757-1947) and East Pakistan period (19471971)



Following a bloody liberation war It achieved independence from Pakistan in 1971.

People’s



One of the most densely populated countries with more than 155 million people



The land area is gradually decreasing because of population growth, industrialization and other infrastructure development



70% of the population depends on agriculture

CONTENTS • INTRODUCTION • GEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND • HISTORY OF FARMING • FARMING IN BANGLADESH • THIS FARMING ECOLOGY • CONCLUSION

CLIMATE OF BANGLADESH

REGIONAL OVERVIEW



Climatically, the location is influenced mainly by latitude



The hill region, being comparatively of low altitude

in

tropical

and

subtropical

zones,

http://capitalbd.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/CLIMATE.gif

REGIONAL OVERVIEW 

The annual rainfall varies as low as 1500 millimeters in the western region to as high as 4000 millimeters in the northeast and eastern region



About 80% of the rainfall in the country occurs during monsoons

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/05/bangladesh/bendiksen-photography

REGIONAL OVERVIEW



In spite of being a riverine country, droughts are not uncommon, and are seen to occur in a cycle of five to ten years especially in the northern and northwestern part of the country

REGIONAL OVERVIEW

Bangladesh occupies the delta plain of the Ganges (Padma) and the Brahmaputra (Jamuna) rivers

SOIL TRACTS OF BANGLADESH

SOIL TRACT

Seven Soil Tracts



Madhupur Tract or Red Soil Tract



Barind Tract



Tista Silt



Brahmaputra Alluvium



Gangetic Alluvium



Coastal Saline Tract



Hill Tracts

SOIL TRACT

Madhupur tract 

The area is around 10,000 sq. km.



Represents the red lateritic soils, a highland tract above flood level



The soils have clayey texture and large quantity of iron and aluminum



The soils are deficient in organic matter, nitrogen, phosphorus and lime.



Its origin in the late Miocene, when Bengal basin was being filled in rapidly

contain

the

SOIL TRACT

Barind tract 

Occupies a total area of around 13,000 sq. km.



The largest Pleistocene era physiographic unit of the Bengal Basin



Lime nodules and pisolitic ferruginous concretions occur throughout the soil.



Locally the soils are rich in lime

Terraced paddies on the border of the “High Barind Tract”

SOIL TRACT Tista Silt Tract 

Covers an area of approximately 16,000 sq. km.



The predominant soil texture is sandy loam



The soils are in general fertile and are rich in potassium and phosphorus.

SOIL TRACT

Brahmaputra Alluvium 

Covers an area of 40,000 sq. km.



The dominant soil texture is sandy loam



The soils are naturally fertile and are recharged every year by fresh deposition by the floodwaters.

SOIL TRACT

Gangetic Alluvium 

This tract occupies an area of 27,000 sq. km.



It represents the riverine lands of the Gangetic plains



Soil is moderately fertile and texture varies from clay loam to sandy loam

SOIL TRACT Coastal Saline Tract 

Around 20,000 sq. km area is under this tract



It represents the flat low-lying areas along the coastal belt and the estuarine islands



The soils are saline and are well supplied with potassium and phosphorus



The Sundarbans is located in this tract.

A layer of salt has covered this dried up canal

SOIL TRACT

Hill Tracts



Hill Tracts cover an area of around 15,000 sq. km.



The soils consist of hard red clay with a mixture of fine sand of the same color



The soils are moderately to strongly acidic



The soils have a low natural fertility



Hills are mainly under natural and plantation forests

CONTENTS • INTRODUCTION • GEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND • HISTORY OF FARMING • FARMING IN BANGLADESH • THIS FARMING ECOLOGY • CONCLUSION

HISTORY OF FARMING

The farming of Indian sub-continent began by 9000 BCE as a result of early cultivation of plants, and domestication of crops and animals.

•

Early history (8000-6000 BCE)

•

Vedic period (1500 BCE – 200 CE)

•

Early Common (200–1200 CE)

Era

–

High

•

Late Middle Ages (1200–1757 CE)

–

Early

•

Colonial British Era (1757–1947 CE)

•

Pakistan Period (1947-1971 CE)

•

Republic of Bangladesh (1971 onwards)

Middle

Ages

Modern

Era

Early history (8000-6000 BCE)

•

Mesolithic Age: use of sharp and pointed tools and the beginning of plant cultivation appeared

•

Neolithic Age: began to domesticate animals and cultivate plants, settling down in villages to form farming communities.

•

The wheel was an important discovery

http://www.indianetzone.com/43/rock_art_mesolithic_period.htm

Vedic period – Post Maha Janapadas period (1500 BCE – 200 CE)

•

There are repeated references to iron

•

Cultivation of wide range of cereals, vegetables and fruits

•

Cow dung provided the manure

•

Irrigation was practiced

Early Common Era – High Middle Ages (200–1200 CE)



Systematic ploughing



Manuring



Weeding



Irrigation



Crop protection



Sustained agriculture was practiced



Water storage systems were designed during this period.

Grand Anicut dam on river Kaveri (1st-2nd Century CE) is one of the oldest water-regulation structures in the world still in use

Late Middle Ages – Early Modern Era (1200–1757 CE)



Agricultural 'zones' were broadly divided into those producing rice, wheat or millets



Mughal period (1526-1707): The cropped area in certain parts of Bengal doubled

Colonial British Era (1757–1947 CE)



The agricultural sector experienced a marked expansion

Colonial British Era (1757–1947 CE)



Certain proportion of the land was sown with commercial crops as sugarcane, rape, mustard and other oilseeds.

Colonial British Era (1757–1947 CE)





Cotton and mulberry plants were the two most important industrial crops of the province

Cotton and silk were the principal industries of Bengal

https://alochonaa.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/bengal-map-21.jpg

Colonial British Era (1757–1947 CE)



The best quality of cotton suitable for the famous muslin, also known as ‘The-Magic-Yarn’, industry was grown in Dhaka and Mymensingh districts.

A woman in Dhaka clad in fine Bengali muslin, 18th-century

Colonial British Era (1757–1947 CE)



John Taylor, an agent of the East India Company around 1800 AD, mentioned that the cotton produced around Dhaka city and along the banks of the Meghna was the ‘finest’ that was to be found in ‘any part of the world’

Marie Antoinette in her famous "muslin" portrait, 1783

Colonial British Era (1757–1947 CE)



With the decline of the cotton textile industry during the rule of the East India Company, cotton and mulberry cultivation virtually came to an end in Bengal

Colonial British Era (1757–1947 CE)



Several new crops were introduced like tea, tobacco, maize and indigo



Similarly, new fruits, for example, pineapple, papaya and guava were received from the west

Colonial British Era (1757–1947 CE)



Towards the end of the 18th century vast tracts of land in Bengal were cultivable wastes due to the famine of 1770, which was caused by the change of dramatic ownership due to colonial policies

Colonial British Era (1757–1947 CE)



Later in 1770 good rainfall resulted in a good harvest and the famine abated



During the succeeding century or so crop acreage expanded fast and by the turn of the 20th century it virtually reached its natural limits



Expansion of farming land was most concentrated in the territories that today constitute Bangladesh during the 19th century.

Pakistan Period (1947-1971 CE)



‘Green Revolution’ appeared in 1960s



New crop variety, chemical fertilizers and pesticides, irrigation was introduced

Republic of Bangladesh (1971 onwards)



During the post-liberation period use of chemical fertilizers, the proportion of irrigation area and the rice land sown with improved varieties of seeds increased

CONTENTS • INTRODUCTION • GEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND • HISTORY OF FARMING • FARMING IN BANGLADESH • THIS FARMING ECOLOGY • CONCLUSION

AGRICULTURAL LAND

LAND OVERVIEW



Among the land use categories, agriculture accounts for about 64 per cent of the total land area and forest area, which includes classified and unclassified village woodlots and rubber gardens, accounts for 17.8 per cent of the country’s land area

SCHEMATIC DRAWING

Figure: Schematic profile of a typical landscape in Bangladesh

http://earth.esa.int/workshops/ers97/papers/vanleeuwen1/

AGROFORESTRY OF BANGLADESH

CONTEXT



Agroforestry home gardens are age-old and traditional and sustainable land use systems maintained by at least 20 million people throughout rural Bangladesh

CONTEXT



Deliberate planting and management of multipurpose trees and shrubs is followed in intimate association with annual and perennial agricultural crops and, invariably, livestock, within the compounds of individual houses

CONTEXT



The whole crop-tree-animal unit being intensively managed by family labor

CONTEXT



Usually homegardens occupy the highest flood-free land adjacent to the homestead

CONTEXT 

A typical homegarden consists of bare space, cultivated space, pond and agricultural land.



The cultivated space is located surrounding the house- in front of the house as a front yard and behind the house as a back yard.

BIODIVERSITY AND ITS CONSERVATION

BIODIVERSITY



The homegardens of Bangladesh are the greatest reservoir of biodiversity and thus frequently referred to as ‘Biodiversity Islands’ of the country



The various habitat and vegetation types produce an abundance of plants, animals, birds and insect biodiversity

BIODIVERSITY 

A total of 149 tree species and 419 plant species in 109 families is recorded in homegarden. A detailed taxonomic enumeration of 148 trees and 45 shrubs is, available in Bangladesh homegardens

BIODIVERSITY 

Vegetation of ponds

Eichhornia crassipes



Pistia stratiotes

Lemna perpusilla

Trapa bispinosa

Basella rubra

Tinospora cordifolia

Piper betel

Climbers and twiners

Lablab purpureus

BIODIVERSITY 

Vegetable crops

Colocasia spp



Vigna sinensis

Cucumis sativus

Amaranthus gangeticus

Cestrum nocturnum

Codiaeum variegatum

Jasminum sambac

Ornamental plants

Canna indica

BIODIVERSITY 

Timber producers

Albizia procera



Carallia brachiata

Cassia fistula

Calophyllum inophyllum

Artocarpus heterophyllus

Cocos nucifera

Anacardium occidentale

Edible fruit bearers

Mangifera indica

BIODIVERSITY 

Medicinals

Melia azadirachta



Aphanamixis polystachya

Cicca acida

Feronia limonia

Casuarina equisetifolia

Eucalyptus camaldulensis

Bamboos

Fuelwood producers

Areca catechu

BENEFITS OF THE SYSTEM



Homegardens with a number of components such as fruits, vegetables, bamboos, spices, poultry and fishery products ensure a year round supply of a wide spectrum of food and construction materials as well as contributes to income security when sold in the nearby market during economically hard times

Ecosystem services provided by the agroforestry homegardens

CONTENTS • INTRODUCTION • GEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND • HISTORY OF FARMING • FARMING IN BANGLADESH • THIS FARMING ECOLOGY • CONCLUSION

SUSTAINABILITY ISSUES

CHARACTERISTICS OF SUSTAINABLE HOMEGARDEN



It should be able to maintain productivity through diverse crops for meeting subsistence and cash needs of the households



Should enhance social and gender equity



Should be based on traditional wisdom



Should ameliorate environment

the

surrounding

http://www.rickshaw-paint.net

SUSTAINABLE HOMEGARDEN

http://www.banglapedia.org/

The homegardens are a result of the traditional human- nature relationship within the rural landscape and their contribution to the country’s overall food security and poverty alleviation through sustainable management and utilization of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, poultry and fishery is immense

SUSTAINABLE HOMEGARDEN



The management of these socioecological integrated production systems is mostly based on Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) base that has been passed on from older generations.



In poultry, animal husbandry and fishery, however, modern scientific knowledge has been integrated with TEK.

SUSTAINABLE HOMEGARDEN



Farmer’s dependency on internal inputs is another indicator of system sustainability such as cow dung, corn straw and kitchen and agricultural residues are sources of organic manure for the agricultural lands

http://www.agriculturesnetwork.org

Integration of several components on the farm – a schematic representation

CONTENTS • INTRODUCTION • GEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND • HISTORY OF FARMING • FARMING IN BANGLADESH • THIS FARMING ECOLOGY • CONCLUSION

CONCLUDING REMARKS

Major threats underpinning biodiversity and sustainability of homegarden systems include





Land fragmentation due to population increases

An affinity for exotic species





Decreased land area for infrastructure development

homegardening

due

to

household

http://www.agriculturesnetwork.org

The impact of urbanization and migration to urban centers

CONCLUDING REMARKS





As a strategy to halt such transformations in homegarden ecosystems, it is important to raise awareness among the farmers through adequate education on sustainable maintenance, conservation and utilization of the resources

Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs) with their strong grassroot-level networks can mobilize their capacity for such awareness-raising and provide environmental education

http://www.agriculturesnetwork.org

NGO school providing free education

CONCLUDING REMARKS



Finally, activities and projects for implementation of Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) obligations, now mostly confined in national forests of the country, should be extended to rural landscapes, which are important reservoirs of biodiversity for plants, animals, insects, birds and for human as well.

http://www.agriculturesnetwork.org

REFERRENCES



www.banglapedia.org/



www.fao.org/



www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1579/00447447%282003%29032%5B0307%3APCAFST%5D2.0.CO%3B2



agridr.in/tnauEAgri/eagri50/AGRO101/lec05.pdf



www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/History_of_agriculture



www.rickshaw-paint.net



pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNACA537.pdf



gcs.isp.unu.edu/db/sites/default/files/16.Are%20tropical%20agroforestry %20home%20gardens%20sustainable.pdf



www.nytimes.com/2014/11/19/business/energy-environment/bangladeshfarming-on-water-to-prevent-effect-of-rising-waters.html?_r=0



www.hindawi.com/journals/isrn/2013/124103/



www.agricultureandfoodsecurity.com