Sloping Agriculture Land Technology
Soil erosion, declining agricultural productivity, and increasing dependence on external inputs on Meghalaya's sloping farmland.
90
Acres
3
Demonstration Plots
3
Hills
About
Across Meghalaya, much of the cultivated land lies on slopes and receives high rainfall. Traditional shifting cultivation once relied on long fallow periods to restore soil fertility, but shortened fallow cycles and increasing monoculture have contributed to soil degradation and declining agricultural productivity.
During field visits across Garo Hills, Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills, farmers reported declining yields and increasing dependence on chemical fertilisers, pesticides and herbicides. Soil erosion was particularly evident in areas where adequate soil and water conservation measures were absent. In some areas, farmers also reported the mortality of mature trees over the previous decade.
The Sloping Agriculture Land Technology (SALT) approach offers a low-input method for managing sloping agricultural land. The technology uses vegetative hedgerows of nitrogen-fixing plants established along contour lines. These hedgerows help control soil erosion and surface run-off while adding nitrogen to the soil. Regular pruning provides biomass and mulch for the cultivated strips between the hedgerows, where farmers can grow field crops, vegetables and tree crops.
Small livestock such as goats can also be integrated into the system, with animal dung composted and returned to the soil. The approach requires fewer external inputs and less labour than conventional terracing while supporting both household food production and marketable agricultural produce.
SALT was introduced in Meghalaya drawing on experience from Manipur, where the approach had been implemented since 2017. The project sought to demonstrate how the technology could be adapted to Meghalaya's diverse agro-ecological conditions.
Project Partners
Approach
The team collaborated with district and block-level government staff, while drawing on technical expertise from SALT practitioners who had implemented the approach in Manipur since 2017, strengthening local capacity and supporting effective implementation.
Farmers who volunteered to establish demonstration plots received practical field training. The demonstrations were designed to show how contour-based hedgerows could be established on their own agricultural land.
Nitrogen-fixing seeds were sown along marked contours. Each participating farmer received a seed kit containing 500 grams each of Tephrosia candida and Indigofera anil, sufficient for approximately one acre of local farms.
One-day seminars across Meghalaya’s districts brought government staff and farmers together to share experiences and understand SALT principles through technical presentations, videos, and case material from Manipur, including field-based examples and work.
Farmers were trained to construct simple A-frames using locally available bamboo to accurately identify and mark contour lines across sloping land, building practical skills to apply SALT techniques independently on their own farms.
​Follow-up visits provided farmers and government staff with technical guidance on contour layout, seed germination and weeding, building confidence in the approach while strengthening practical skills and supporting wider adoption across communities.
SALT Across Meghalaya
Garo Hills
Betelnut, banana, cashew, cardamom and pepper are among the crops observed in the region. SALT was considered well suited to the warm, humid climate, with hedgerows potentially integrated into existing plantations and jhum fields.
Khasi Hills
​Potato, squash, betelnut, banana, pineapple, ginger and turmeric are cultivated across different elevations. SALT was considered suitable particularly in warmer areas such as RiBhoi and lower elevations, while further work was required to identify nitrogen-fixing species suitable for colder, higher-elevation areas.
Jaintia Hills
Ginger, turmeric and vegetables are major crops. Hedgerows could be established along contours or existing terrace ridges to help address soil loss associated with rhizome cultivation.