Detail:

Spread the leaves and twigs of Mahuda or butter tree (Madhuca indica) on the field and burn them. plough the field and irrigate before sowing. Alternatively, the leaves of Khakhra or Bastard teak (Butea monosperma) can also be used along with butter tree. Manilal Sartanbhai Damor from the Rena village in the Shahera taluka in Panchmahal district in Gujarat burns the leaves and twigs of Mahuda or butter tree (Madhuca indica) in the field to make it fertile for the turmeric and ginger crop. Turmeric and ginger require fertile and well-drained soil and are grown in rabi season in this district. To make the heavy soil easier to work with, Damor spreads the leaves and twigs of butter tree over the field and burns them. The field is then tilled and irrigated before sowing. This practice has existed for at least 25 to 30 years. Recently farmers have begun to use Khakhra or Bastard teak (Butea monosperma) leaves along with butter tree. Farmers also use butter tree seed cakes as soil amendments.

Knowledge Provider / Innovator: Manilal, Sartanbhai, Damor
Agro-Ecological Zone: Middle Gujarat Agro Climatic Zone (GJ-3)
Address: Rena, Shahera, Panchmahal
District: Panchmahal
State: Gujarat
PIN Code 389001

Crop: Ginger, Turmeric and Garlic
Crop Family: Zingiberaceae
Crop Scientific Name: Ginger (Zingiber officinale) and Turmeric (Curcuma longa)
Crop Vernacular Name: Ginger - Aadu, Adarak, Shing, Alha, Aale, Ingee, and Inji; Turmeric- Halodhi, Halud, Haldar, Haldi, Arishina, Arisina, Manjal, Halad, Haladi, Haridra, Marmarii, Yaingang, Haridra, Ai-eng, Yaingang
Ingredients: Leaves and twigs of Mahuda or butter tree (Madhuca indica) and Khakhra or Bastard teak (Butea monosperma).

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PAS 1:

"Potential Applications of Mahua (Madhuca indica) Biomass" -
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257792403_Potential_Applications_of_Mahua_Madhuca_indica_Biomass

PAS 2:

"Mahua has been known to improve soil fertility, help in reclamation and erosion control as well. Though not a legume, mahua develops mycorrhizal associations able to fix atmospheric N. Its extensive superficial root system binds the soil and limits erosion. In India, mahua was used in soil reclamation on hard lateritic soils. Fallen leaves on the soil provide organic matter but they do not break down as easily compared to teak leaves or Shorea robusta leaves (Bargali et al., 2015; Manna et al., 2004). Mahua seed cake is used as a fertilizer and to control root-knot nematode (Orwa et al., 2009; Yadav et al., 2005)."
https://www.feedipedia.org/node/131

PAS 3:

"Consequence of Butea monosperma plantation on the nutrient cycling in a semiarid grazingland, Rajasthan, India - The soil moisture content also showed significant increase under Butea plantation than in the open grazingland. Of the total uptake, about 85% of nutrients, were transferred to above ground plant parts and very little was transferred to below ground parts. At both sites, the nutrients return to the soil through root was lower than that of litter disappearance. The study reveals that Butea trees can increase the nutrient content of understorey grasses by their rapid leaf turnover and decomposition of nutrient rich litter, which can result in significant increase in soil fertility."
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/268212349_Consequence_of_Butea_monosperma_plantation_on_the_nutrient_cycling_in_a_semiarid_grazingland_Rajasthan_India

PAS 4:

"Vermicomposting of Dry leaf litter of Palash (Bastard teak) tree (Butea monosperma)"
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333965054_Vermicomposting_of_Dry_leaf_litter_of_Palash_Bastard_teak_tree_Butea_monosperma