General Information

The term forage crops denotes plants used for feeding livestock viz. cattle, buffaloes, goats, sheep, pigs, poultry and horses. The term ‘grass’ in the context of feeding livestock and grassland agriculture is not limited to the narrow botanical sense alone, but also includes their common associates of the legume family. ‘Soiling crops’ are green forage crops that are cut and fed in fresh condition to the livestock.

For more details of the Medicinal & Aromatic Plants

Cut flowers cultivated under controlled conditions mainly for export, is growing in the world at around 6-10 per cent per annum. This is supported by the demand in the developed countries of Europe, America, Australia, Japan and Singapore.

The most important flower traded in the international market is still rose; however, others like chrysanthemum, carnation, gerbera, dahlia, poinsettia, orchids, lily etc. are also marketed in large quantities in these countries.

Vegetable farming is getting wide popularity at present. Vegetables play a significant role in human nutrition, especially as sources of vitamins, minerals and trace elements apart from being the major suppliers of dietary fibre. Including vegetables in the daily diet have been found to reduce risk for cancer, heart disease, stroke, and other chronic ailments. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has recommended a daily intake of 275g of vegetable per adult per day, however the actual consumption is less than 100g only.