Q1.
How is neem useful to farmers?
Answer
Neem protects a farmer's crop from insects at almost every stage, and it costs him very little.
- It keeps locusts away. “If the powder of neem seeds is mixed in water and sprayed on plants and trees, then locusts don't eat them.”
- It saves the crop from termites, “which eat roots of the crop”, and “stops breeding of other insects that eat crops”.
- It increases the yield. Used in rice fields where water stands, it “stops mosquito breeding and helps to increase crop yield”.
- It protects the harvest after it is stored. “People save their stored grains from insects by adding neem seed powder to them.”
Why this matters: The farmer gets all this from seeds that fall free from a tree in his own field. That is what Amber means when she calls neem a cost-effective method — a good result for very little money.