7 Strategies to Improve Soil Fertility

What is Soil Fertility?

Soil fertility refers to the capacity of soil to provide essential nutrients and favorable conditions for plant growth, ensuring optimal yields and healthy crops.

Soil fertility plays a pivotal in the development and production of crops. Therefore, fertile soil is an invaluable asset to farmers. To manage soil fertility, proper field practices should be adopted that are appropriate and ensure sustainable soil productivity. And the strategies to improve soil fertility should be employed.

The cultivation methods that are friendly to environment and preserve soil fertility should be prioritized. The farmers who possess this knowledge can maximize their yield for a long time. And the improper field practices that can potentially deplete soil fertility must be avoided.

Strategies to Improve Soil Fertility

Importance of Soil Fertility

Soil fertility is the foundation of successful agriculture and gardening. Fertile soil provides plants with the necessary nutrients, water, and air to thrive. It directly impacts the plant's ability to absorb nutrients, resist diseases, and produce high-quality yields. Therefore, maintaining optimal soil fertility is crucial for sustainable and productive farming practices.

How To Measure Soil Fertility? 3 ways

There are three ways to assess soil fertility. They include Soil Testing, Tissue testing, and Field trials. They are briefly discussed below:

1)      Soil Testing: Soil samples are taken from a specific field and are analyzed in the laboratories. The results show about the presence and absence of plant nutrients. Based on the results, farmers are prescribed specific amounts of each fertilizers to be added into soils to fulfill the deficiency of nutrients in soil.

2)      Tissue Analysis: Tissue analysis is carried out after the cultivation of crops. Samples are taken from plants and tested in the laboratory where concentration of nutrients is determined. It gives the estimate that how much nutrients taken up by plants.      

3)     Field Trials: Various nutrients are added to soils as part of experiments. If the addition of a particular nutrient brings increase in crop yield, it shows the deficiency of that nutrient.  

     Causes of Decreased Soil Fertility

    Soil fertility starts declining when the removal of the essential nutrients exceeds the addition of these nutrients to soil (Nutrients removal > Nutrients addition). As a result plants start extracting nutrients from the soil reserves. This way depletion of reserves continues until no more resources are available for plant to develop.   

      The following are the some of the major causes behind the depletion soil fertility:

•  Usage of fertilizers regardless of field conditions
• Improper Cropping system
• Cultivation of Exhaustive crops
• Intensive or maximum tillage;
• Monoculture cultivation (Growing only one type of crop at a time in a specific field)
• Complete removal of Crop residues;
• Soil erosion
• Uncongenial climate conditions.

      How to Improve Soil Fertility

It must be noted that even fertile lands undergo depletion with the passage of time. Therefore, ways to improve soil fertility are of paramount importance. The following are the 7 strategies to improve soil fertility:

1.   Soil Testing: 

      Soil testing is highly important to know about the soil of your field. It shows that which elements are present in sufficient amount and which are deficient. Soil testing also tells us about that what sort of microorganisms are present in soil and their activities. Therefore, soil tests must be carried out on regular basis in order to have a record of our soil. It will be helpful in tackling the challenges on time.    

2.     Crop Rotation: 

      Continuous cultivation of the same crop on a land contributes to the reduction of soil fertility. Crop rotation is a palatable solution to this problem. Because it will not only help to slow down the removal of nutrients but also help in boosting soil fertility by returning essential nutrients to soil. Also, given the fact that each plants has it’s unique preferences when it comes to microbiology, it will also promote microflora diversity. Some of the crops that will help in improving soil fertility are hay plants and legumes.    

3.     Cover Crops:  

      If soil is left bare, nature will cover it with weeds. As a result, they will eat away the soil reserves leaving it less fertile. Therefore, to cover the soil as well as to make it fertile and resistant to erosion, cover crops are a perfect fit. It must be noted that growing cover crops is long-term strategy. Following are the benefits that can be noted in a couple of years:  

•       Erosion will be controlled.
•       Slow rate of leaching of nutrients
•       Moisture will be retained for long time (in Sandy soils)
•       Irrigation requirements will be increased.
•       Less infestations by insects and weeds
•       Habitat for useful insects and pollinators

4.   Fertilization: 

      Normally legumes provide nitrogen but that is not always. Also, there are also some vital elements on which fertility of field is dependent. Therefore, fertilizers are needed. The presence of mineral content is necessary for fertile soil. Plants require six elements that are essential for their growth. There are two types of elements: 1) Macro elements: The elements that are required in high quantity. E.g. NPK (Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium), Calcium, Magnesium, and Sulphur. 2) Microelements: the elements that are required in low quantity. E.g. Iron, Manganese, Zinc, Boron, Copper, Molybdenum, Chlorine and Silicon.

5.   No Tillage: 

      No-till farming enhances soil structure, reduces erosion, increases organic matter, lowers carbon dioxide emissions, preserves beneficial microorganisms, and saves farmers time and resources. It improves soil fertility, benefits the environment, and allows farm workers to focus on more productive tasks.

6.    Green Manure Seeding: 

      Green manures offer many benefits. They include controlling erosion and moisture retention. But the most notable of them is enhancing soil fertility. Actually they are rich in essential nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, starch, and protein. Some of the green manure crops are buckwheat, radish, mustard, barley, wheat, rye, and legumes.

7.     Use IPM (Integrated Pest Management): 

      Utilize beneficial bugs for pest control. Ladybugs are well-known for eating aphids and other bug pests. Growers need to identify and preserve the various beneficial insects that are already present on farm to maximize their impact. The presence of beneficial insects decreases pest populations, reduces the need for chemical sprays, and boosts activity of microorganism. IPM is closely linked to soil fertility because every pesticide spray ultimately enters the soil body and destroys microorganisms.

Conclusion

Maintaining soil fertility is essential for successful farming and gardening. By measuring soil fertility through soil testing, implementing practices to preserve soil health, and applying strategies to improve nutrient availability, farmers and gardeners can ensure the long-term productivity and sustainability of their land. The above are the 7 strategies to improve soil fertility. Remember, healthy soil leads to healthy plants, higher yields, and a more sustainable agricultural system.