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(6) Seed-preservation : The farmer, whether Kaliparaj
or Ujaliparaj, understands the value of using good seed.
He generally selects the best ears or sheaves, as the case
may be, from his fields and preserves them for seed. But
a greater number of farmers, especially the Kaliparaj,
are too poor to select and preserve good seed. They gen-
erally borrow it from the local Bania sowkars or bring
it from their relatives staying in some villages near by.
(7) Introduction of new crops : While studying the na-
tural environment of the farmer of this village, we noticed
that there is a great element of uncertainty about his occu-
pation, which depends on uncertain factors like rainfall
and climate. In spite of these discouraging circumstanc-
es, one is happy to find that two new crops—new to this
area—namely cotton and wheat are introduced in this
village. Cotton was first introduced by Mr. Manibhai *
in 1916. It has now become one of the usual crops raised
by a good number of cultivators of this area. Wheat
was successfully grown only last year by a Dhodia farmer
and has been continued this year also by him and imitated
by another farmer.
(8) Economy and leakage ; It is often said by the far-
mer "Ek kasar and so safar" i.e. 'a single act of econo-
my in agriculture enables one to acquire as much wealth
as one's hundred commercial ventures in foreign coun-
tries can/ This characteristic love of economy is really
a remarkable feature about the agricultural practice of
these farmers, The straw of paddy, the leaves and stems
of wal, cotton-seed and the upper shoots of sugarcane
plants when green are used as fodder crops. The chafi of
paddy is pulverised and used along with guar and cotton-
seed as a concentrated food to cows and she-buffaloes
in milk. The upper shoots of sugarcane, when dry, are
used for roofing houses. The raw mangoes blown off
from their parental trees by violent, winds are used in
1 The present Police Patel of Atgajn and Honorary Organiser of Co-opera-
tive Societies for Bulsar Taluka*