NEED FOR SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION AND ITS RELATION TO OTHER SUBJECTS

Soil conservation is a set of management strategies for prevention of soil being eroded from the earth’s surface or becoming chemically altered by over use, Salinization acidification, or other chemical soil contamination

Strategies of soil conservation  Choice of vegetative cover.  Erosion prevention.  Salinity management.  Acidity control.  Encouraging health of beneficial soil organisms.  Prevention and remediation of soil contamination.  Mineralization.

continue  No till farming.  Contour Ploughing.  Wind rows.  Crop rotation.  The use of natural and man-made fertilizer.  Resting the land.

Practices of soil conservation  Shelter Belts: reduce wind and evaporation, increase soil temperature.  Reduced Tillage: tilling only the areas that matter while minimally disturbing the soil. Tilling between furrows.

No-tillage: The ultimate in reduced tillage. Weeds are controlled by cutting or with herbicides. The natural soil organisms are allowed to rebuild the soil, increasing its porosity and resistance to compaction, while better retaining nutrients. Only where seeds are planted is the soil 'drilled'.

Stubble-mulching:  Leaving stubble on the field as long as possible to reduce evaporation, to catch snow in winter, to keep the soil covered. Rather than ploughing the stubble under, which would disturb the soil while inviting soil organisms to decompose the organic matter far too rapidly, the stubble is mulched to leave soil organisms the task of digging it under. This reduces weed growth and keeps the soil covered, while feeding the soil biota slowly.

continue  Contour ploughing: Works a bit like terracing, preventing moisture from running down-hill and reducing erosion considerably.  Strip cropping: Reduces the down slope length of the field considerably, reducing the chance of rilling. Increases biodiversity. Leached nutrients are used by neighboring strips. Shelters bare strips from wind and wind erosion. Makes better use of the land but is more labor intensive.

continue  Terracing: The ultimate in soil conservation on steeper hills. It is extensively Practiced in Padiculture where water is harvested at the same time. Terracing is common in viticulture (wine). Terracing can reduce erosion twenty-fold.  Reduced compaction: Using machinery and technology that spreads its weight over a larger area. Reduced tilling causes soils that resist compaction better.

Continue Optimal fertilizing :  Although fertilizer is an important ingredient for increasing profit and yield, it can also degrade the land in many ways. Regular soil tests are one way of overcoming this. Erring on the safe side, another.

Water harvesting: By keeping forests planted above the field, one prevents runoff from reaching the cropland. Trees also harvest water in their very porous soils. Water is slowly released into the water table, reaching the cropland down-slope. Ponds can be made by damming the upper catchments area of a creek. Water will flow through the water table to water cropland down-slope. Water can be used for irrigation and stock drinking water.

NEED FOR SOIL CONSERVATION Soil conservation is necessary to control soil erosion caused by wind and water. It is also necessary to control: loss of fine soil: fine soil is transported furthest away. The fine clay particles bind nutrients and are crucial to fertility. loss of crops: crops are lost because they are being dug out damage to soil: the composition of the soil changes; damage to buildings and infrastructure: roads are dug out and sand deposited over houses, fences and so on.

This cropland was severely damaged by rain.

Conservation tillage: Has shown its superiority beyond doubt, giving the advantages of increased profit, fuel savings, fewer trips more erosion control, conservation of moisture, reduction of compaction, reduced pest control and ease of management. Those resisting the method, mention the following reasons: increased effort in weed control, lack of finance to make the switch, inadequate equipment, loss of profit, increased insect and disease control and more clumsy fertilizer management.

In heavy wind, the sand is seen saltating away  In heavy wind, the sand is seen saltating away

RELATION OF SOIL CONSERVATION TO OTHER SUBJECTS  Many scientific disciplines are involved in these pursuits, including  Agronomy  Hydrology  soil science  Microbiology  Soil physics  Agricultural engineering  Forestry  Animal husbandry  Agricultural economics

Agronomy  appropriate crop rotation, cover crops, and planted windbreaks are central to the ability of surface soils to retain their integrity, both with respect to erosive forces and chemical change from nutrient depletion. Crop rotation is simply the conventional alternation of crops on a given field, so that nutrient depletion is avoided from repetitive chemical uptake/deposition of single crop growth.

Soil chemistry  Cover crops serve the function of protecting the soil from erosion, weed establishment or excess evapotranspiration; however, they may also serve vital soil chemistry functions. For example, legumes can be ploughed under to augment soil nitrates, and other plants have the ability to metabolize soil contaminants or alter adverse pH. The cover crop Mucuna pruriens (velvet bean) has been used in Nigeria to increase phosphorus availability after application of rock phosphate. Some of these same precepts are applicable to urban landscaping, especially with respect to ground-cover selection for erosion control and weed suppression.

Soil microbiology  Promoting the viability of beneficial soil organisms is an element of soil conservation; moreover this includes macroscopic species notably the earthworm, as well as microorganisms. Positive effects of the earthworm are known well, as to aeration and promotion of macronutrient availability.

It assists in organic decay

continue  Agricultural engineering : helps in soil conservation e.g. to control runoff.  Forestry : help in wildlife management watershed management.  Agricultural economics: it deals with net returns and land use according to economic capabilities.

Water conservation

Water conservation strategies To deal with the issue of declining water and greater demand, we should take into account the following without further delay 1. Immediate erection of new dams 2. Adoption of water management strategies 3. Implementation of water conservation and saving technologies.