Agriculture in the Himalayas of Nepal
Sam Boss
According to some estimates, as much as 90% of NepalÕs population relies on agriculture for its sustenance.[1] The significant climactic variations between NepalÕs sub-tropical Terai region, hills region, and Himalayan mountain region lead to a variety of different agricultural models. Within the northern Himalayan region, additional variations in agricultural style exist because of changes in the qualities of available soil and quantities of moisture at different altitudes. Some researchers remark that it is even possible to anticipate the ethnicity of a group in a rural Himalayan village by glancing at an altimeter, as the traditional lifestyles maintained by the Nepali-speaking caste Hindus and sub-Tibetan peoples require the climactic conditions present at certain altitudes.[2] This paper will introduce a variety of agricultural systems and practices found in the Himalayas, and it will also explore the relationships that the HimalayasÕ Nepali inhabitants have with weather conditions and the climate.
In his article ÒEcology, Economy, and Social System in the Nepal HimalayasÓ, Dr. Shigeru Ijima identifies several altitude zones in the central Nepal Himalayas and the lifestyles associated with them.[3] Up to 2,000 meters above sea level, agriculture typically focuses on rice production, although farmers also produce maize and millet. Slightly higher, between 2,000 to 2,500 meters, barley, wheat, and buckwheat can also be found with regularity. The Hindu peoples that inhabit both of these zones have sedentary agriculture communities where rainfall and mild temperatures allow the growth of two crops during the year. Many of the people in these regions come from lower castes, and they believe that maintaining the vegetarian diet followed by Brahmans can give them status closer to that of the elites. As they rely heavily on their crops to sustain themselves, they tend to remain in areas where agriculture can continue throughout the year.
In midland mountainous regions from 2,500 to 3,200 meters above sea level, sub-Tibetan groups (or groups of Tibetan ethnicity and culture) grow one crop of wheat or barley per winter and one crop of buckwheat during the summer. The climate in this region is cool and dry, and the dry-field agriculture used requires less labor than rice cultivation. This allows them to raise cattle, water buffalo and goats to supplement their diet.[4]At even higher altitudes, where low levels of moisture permit only a single crop of wheat or barley, yak, which are well suited for high altitudes, become a major component of the lifestyle.[5] In the northern areas of Nepal, Tibetan pastoralists travel to altitudes reaching up to 5,200 meters as they seek out pasture for their animals during the summer monsoon season, although few permanent habitations can be found above 4,000 meters. Where possible, these groups make up for shortages in grain and other goods by trading wool, butter, meat, and draught animals. They may also hunt, fish, and forage for wild plants, although habitat destruction from deforestation has caused a decline in the availability of game and fish resources in much of Nepal, making it increasingly difficult to rely on these assets for food.[6]
Unlike many third-world countries, no strong landowning class exists in Nepal. However, inequality does exist within the population because of different nutrient qualities in the soil. The vast majority of the population works on the land, but more than 50% of the population struggles to meet its needs, as population increases in the past century have placed tremendous strain on the limited land resources available on NepalÕs hill and mountain regions. Settled agriculture has grown increasingly common in the past century, at the expense of shifting cultivation and pastoralism in the higher altitude regions. Migration out of these regions demonstrates the tremendous strain that overpopulation has put on limited resources, as people seeking easier agricultural conditions on plots of land opened in the warm and wet sub-tropical Terai region abandon their strong kinship connections and traditional lifestyles. [7]Those who cannot produce enough to support themselves can earn money by working for others, and they may also trade surpluses of one type of good to obtain products necessary to support other dietary needs. Farmers also attempt to satisfy dietary needs by diversifying the crops that they produce. In addition to the staple crops of maize, rice, millet, and wheat, they also grow potatoes, sweet potatoes, and oats, all of which can survive in cold conditions. Lentils, soybeans, mustard, and sesame help to balance the diet as well. The current struggle with overpopulation has led to movement away from such diverse crops, as farmers focus on maximizing caloric yield with staple grains, and a general decline in nutrition has resulted. Nevertheless, they continue to recognize the need for some crop diversification because excessive dependence on one crop promotes the risk of famine from crop failure. [8]
Rural farming communities buy almost all of the tools and other items they need for farming at local markets in Nepal, and they have adopted few of the technologies that have led to rapid agricultural growth in other parts of the world. This may be partially attributable to a level of poverty that prohibits investment, but it also results from the fact that some foreign technologies do not perform well on the rocky inclines of the Himalyas. For example, modern ploughs are ineffective on the small terraces used high altitudes. Humans continue to do much of the field preparation and maintenance with simple hand tools, and they sometimes employ oxen, yaks, and buffalo for the more strenuous plowing. Dr. Robert SchroederÕs studies in Nepal have shown that farmers consider a variety of factors when selecting crops and management approaches for a given season, including soil type, fertility, drainage, temperature, and water availability.[9] Irrigation is rare throughout the hilly and mountainous regions, and this results in heavy reliance on monsoon rainfall and snow melted in mountains at the warmest period during the year.[10]
NepalÕs reliance on agriculture makes the countryÕs relationship with the climate and weather readily apparent. Historically, the complexity and variation between the conditions at different altitudes in the Himalayas have promoted diverse lifestyles ranging from settled agriculture to shift cultivation and pastoral herding supplemented by trade. As the demands on limited agricultural resources grow with NepalÕs ever increasing population, it will be interesting to observe how such demands affect the crop choices and agricultural techniques employed by farmers.
Naudanda, a village in NepalÕs Himalayas
(Available: http://concise.britannica.com/ebc/art-38166/Naudanda-village-in-the-Annapurna-Range-of-the-Himalayas-Nepal, accessed December 9, 2007).
Terracing for agriculture in a village in the Himalayas of Nepal (Available: http://azeotropic.freeservers.com/. Accessed December 9, 2007).
WORKS CITED
Iijima, Shigeru. ÒEcology, Economy, and Social System in the Nepal Himalayas.Ó Developing Economics, 2 (1964): 91-105.
Berreman, Gerald. ÒPeople and Cultures of the HimalayasÓ, Asian Survey, 3, no. 6 (1963): 289-304.
Lindsay, Harry, and D.G. Lowndes, ÒExplorations in the Nepal Himalayas: Discussion.Ó The Geographical Journal, 117 (1951): 273-274.
Savada, Andrea, ed. Nepal:
A Country Study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress, 1991.
Schroeder, Robert F. ÒHimalayan Subsistence Systems: Indigenous Agriculture in Rural Nepal.Ó Mountain Research and Development, 5, no. 1 (1985): 31-44.
Whelpton, John. A History of Nepal. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005.