GSLM - Soil Management (Lesson)
Soil Management
Click here to watch the Organic Farming video about conserving topsoil.
Links to an external site.
Soil Conservation
Soil is only a renewable resource if it is carefully managed. Drought, insect plagues, or outbreaks of disease are natural cycles of events that can negatively impact ecosystems and the soil, but there are also many ways in which humans neglect or abuse this important resource.
One harmful practice is removing the vegetation that helps to hold soil in place. Sometimes just walking or riding your bike over the same place will kill the grass that normally grows there. The land is also deliberately cleared or deforested for wood. The loose soils then may be carried away by wind or running water. In many areas of the world, the rate of soil erosion is many times greater than the rate at which it is forming. Soils can also be contaminated if too much salt accumulates in the soil or where pollutants sink into the ground. There are many practices that can protect and preserve soil resources. Adding organic material to the soil in the form of plant or animal waste, such as compost or manure, increases the fertility of the soil and improves its ability to hold onto water and nutrients. Inorganic fertilizer can also temporarily increase the fertility of the soil and may be less expensive or time-consuming, but it does not provide the same long-term improvements as organic materials.
Deforestation
Agricultural practices such as rotating crops, alternating the types of crops planted in each row, and planting nutrient-rich cover crops all help to keep the soil more fertile as it is used season after season. Planting trees as windbreaks, plowing along contours of the field, or building terraces into steeper slopes will all help to hold soil in place. No-till or low-tillage farming helps to keep soil in place by disturbing the ground as little as possible when planting.
Examine the following methods of soil conservation in the following presentation.
RESOURCES IN THIS MODULE ARE OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES (OER) OR CREATED BY GAVS UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. SOME IMAGES USED UNDER SUBSCRIPTION.