What Is Contour Farming? Contour Farming Process & Benefits

Contour Farming
60 percent of the people rely on agriculture to maintain their way of life and their homes. The two farming techniques of terrace farming and contour farming are taken into consideration when it comes to cultivating crops. Our main focus or area of interest in this article is contour farming.
Contour farming is a style of farming that conserves soil by working with the natural contours of the land and building ridges that act as water breaks, preventing soil erosion even further. Furrows that don't follow the soil's natural contours when it rains contribute to rapid runoff because they give water an easier way to flow downward.
Contouring is the process of farming in almost level row patterns around hills as opposed to up and down. The rows produce several tiny dams that encourage infiltration and reduce water flow to lessen erosion.
Contouring is the process of horizontally plough over a piece of land's contours. This type of ploughing prevents soil erosion in areas with hills and contours by capturing the water flow. Additionally, during times of heavy rainfall, the contour lines create a water break that reduces the formation of gullies and rills, allowing water to soak into the soil. Contour farming is a type of agriculture that is sustainable in hilly and sloping terrain.
The US Soil Conservation Service, which is now the Natural Resources Conservation Service, vigorously promoted this method in the 1930s. The US Department of Agriculture established the Soil Conservation Service in 1935 during the Dust Bowl after understanding that soil erosion and desertification were both serious problems.

Process of Contour Farming
Contoured regions or hills is first leveled by farmers who use contour plowing. As a result, the hill where crops are produced has a set of steps. To stop the water from flowing downward, water breaks small ridges or raised platforms are constructed around the edges of these steps. These water breaks to aid in keeping the water contained in distinct step levels, giving the earth more time to absorb the water.

How contour farming is done:

• The contour of the soil acts as a guidance for the plough.
• As a result, the ground is raised, creating a furrow on the slope.
• The width of the furrow is determined by the length of the land and the gradient of the slope.
• The soil from the furrow is then used to create a ridge on the opposite side of the hill.
• Continue doing this until the entire field has been ploughed.

In what ways can contour farming help in reducing soil erosion?
In addition to reducing soil erosion by up to 50%, controlling runoff, increasing moisture uptake and retention, and reducing crop damage from floods, storms, and landslides, contour ploughing also enhances soil quality and composition.
Contour ploughing is a technique for conserving soil. In order to prevent reduced fertility brought on by excessive use, salinization, acidification, and other chemical soil pollutants, soil conservation entails preventing the loss of the topsoil due to erosion.

Contour farming advantages
1. Preventing soil erosion is contour farming's main advantage. Traditional farming techniques that produce along straight, long, and flat slopes parallel to the flow of water speed up erosion when it rains since all the water flows in one direction (downhill). The crop frequently "washed away" with the soil as a result. Contrarily, farming on slopes that run counter to the direction of the water's flow creates a barrier that allows runoff water to move more slowly and fully soak the soil.

2. Provides more evenly distributed water for irrigation. When the water flows across the hill in almost level furrows, the water is more evenly distributed throughout the furrows.

3. Conserves water-  When the entire length of the furrow is irrigated shortly after irrigation begins, less water is lost below the root zone at the head of the runs. Using natter irrigation slopes also improves water control and reduces waste runoff at the bottom of the furrows.

4. Reduces energy costs- Your equipment will often be used over the slope. This requires less power than climbing and descending the slope.

5. Leads to increased crop yields and higher-quality crops with more uniform crop stands.

Terrace Farming
Terrace farming prevents soil nutrients from being washed away by rain. This leads to healthy crop growth. It also prevents plants from being swept away by rivers of water that are moving quickly. Rainwater can sometimes wash away crops, reducing agricultural productivity. Thirdly, terraces help to lessen soil erosion and water loss. The fourth benefit of terrace farming is that it has made use of previously underutilized hillside terrain. 

Some Drawbacks or Disadvantages of Contour Farming
Even though contour farming offers many benefits, there are also negatives that go along with it.

• The larger area of land has too many ridges on it. A waste of land is involved.
• Check basin irrigation has a substantially greater layout demand for both irrigation and land preparation than other systems.
• The ridges must be repaired, and the watering procedure must be properly observed.
• The property's water distribution is unequal.