1. You have learnt from the Lessons in the earlier Modules that soil properties influence soil health. These soil properties in turn are affected by the agricultural practices followed by a farmer. Good agricultural practices not only help in managing the soil but also improve soil health. What are these good agricultural practices? Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management

2. The good agricultural practices that help in improving and managing soil health focus on: Improving and maintaining organic matter in the soil; Avoiding tillage practices that harm the soil structure; Conserving the soil from erosion and other soil degrading effects; Adopting integrated nutrient and pest management practices, Rectifying soil problems like acidity and alkalinity. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management

3. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management After successful completion of this Lesson, you will be able to answer: 1. What are the practices that improve soil organic matter? 2. What type of organic manures are available for improving soil organic matter? 3. How farm yard manure or compost applied to a soil? 4. How green manuring is practiced? 5. What are the crops used for green manuring? 6. How green manuring helps in improving soil health?

4. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management After successful completion of this Lesson, you will be able to answer: 7.What is green leaf manuring? 8.Which are the popular plants/trees used for green leaf manuring? 9.What is a cover crop? 10.Name some useful cover crops? 11.How cover crops help in improving soil health? 12.What is crop rotation? 13.How proper crop rotation helps in improving soil health? 14.How do you select a suitable crop rotation for your farm?

5. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management The organic matter in the soil can be improved by the following practices: A.Use of organic manures B.Adding off-field organic material C.Growing of cover crops D.Adopting suitable crop rotation

6. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management A. Use of organic manures Organic manures are natural products used to provide food (plant nutrients) for the crop plants. Organic manures applied in good quantities increase the organic matter in the soil. Organic matter in turn releases the plant food into available forms for use by crops.

7. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management A. Use of organic manures However, organic manures should not be seen only as carriers of plant food. These manures also enable a soil to hold more water and also help to improve drainage in clay soils. They provide organic acids that help to dissolve soil nutrients and make them available for the plants.

8. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management A. Use of organic manures There are a number of organic manures like: Farmyard manure, Compost prepared from crop residues and other farm wastes, Vermicompost, Oil cakes, and Biological wastes – animal bones, slaughter house refuse etc.

9. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management A. Use of organic manures Compost Vermicompost

10. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management A. Use of organic manures One can apply as much quantity as possible even though the availability of these material is limited in a farm. Excess application of organic manures do not harm the soil unlike fertilizers. These organic manures are applied 2 to 3 weeks ahead of sowing a crop so that these material will have time to further decompose in the soil to provide the benefits from their application.

11. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management A. Use of organic manures Green manuring The application of limited quantities of available organic manures can be supplemented by green manuring. Green manuring is the practice of growing a short duration, succulent and leafy legume crop, and ploughing the plants in the same field before they form seeds. Sesbania, Crotalaria, ‘Pillipesara’ (Phaseolus trilobus), Cowpea etc are good green manuring crops.

12. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management A. Use of organic manures Green manuring Sesbania Crotalaria

13. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management A. Use of organic manures Green manuring A green manure crop not only enhances the organic matter of a soil but also: Reduces loss of nitrogen and other nutrients; Suppresses weed growth; Provides material for composting; Shelters the soil from beating action of rains.

14. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management B. Adding off-field organic material To further supplement the availability of limited quantities of organic manures, one can also incorporate the green loppings brought plants/trees in and around the farm. This practice is called green leaf manuring. It will be a good practice to establish plants like Glyricidia, Pongamia etc on the field bunds so that the loppings from these plants can be used for green leaf manuring.

15. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management B. Adding off-field organic material Glyricidia Pongamia

16. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management C. Growing of cover crops Cover crop refers to a field or forage crop grown particularly to cover the soil. The cover crop also can be later incorporated as green manure. Cover crops mainly acts as a live mulch protecting the soil from erosion possibilities. Cover cropping is also practiced to benefit from any fertilizer residues and available moisture in the soil.

17. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management C. Growing of cover crops Cover crops provide significant benefits to soil including providing nutrients, nutrient cycling, weed control, soil protection and soil improvement. These benefits vary mainly based on the management practices, and climate affecting the quantity and timing of biomass produced.

18. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management C. Growing of cover crops The popular cover crops are short duration legume crops like horse gram, black gram, green gram, cowpea etc.

19. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management C. Growing of cover crops The dominant forage species are: Sehima nevosum, Dichanthium annulatum, Iseilema laxum, Ischaemum indicum, Themeda triandra, Chrysopogon fulvus and Heteropogon contortus.

20. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management C. Growing of cover crops Cover crop of cowpea Forage grass as cover crop

21. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management D. Adopting suitable crop rotation Crop rotation refers to planned way of growing crops in a sequential and systematic manner on the same piece of land so that the farmer, as well as the soil will be benefited. The planned crop rotation sequence may be for one to two- or three-year or longer period. For example: One-year rotation – sorghum followed by chickpea Two-year rotation – cotton in the year one and chilies in the year two.

22. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management D. Adopting suitable crop rotation Some of the more important beneficial effects that can be obtained from a well planned crop rotation are: Improved soil fertility Improvements in soil tilth and aggregate stability Reduced insect and disease problems Soil water management Reduction of soil erosion Reduction of any toxic effects from crops grown continuously every year in the same field.

23. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management D. Adopting suitable crop rotation When selecting a rotation, the long-term viability of that rotation to reduce weed, insect and disease pressure, as well as its income potential must be considered. A well developed plan should consider alternate crops when necessary. For example, if rains are delayed planned sorghum crop need to be replaced with a pearl millet crop for better yields under such conditions.

24. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management D. Adopting suitable crop rotation The following are important to consider when designing a crop rotation, regardless of location. How will the previous crop affect subsequent crop production?

25. Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management D. Adopting suitable crop rotation Will the previous crop increase or decrease concerns in the following areas? Disease management Insect management Weed control and volunteer crop control Residue management Soil moisture returns Seedbed preparation Harvest and planting schedule Gross economic returns

26. This concludes the Lesson 1: Improving and maintaining organic matter- in this Module. Next, Lesson 2 in this Module is about tillage practices that affect the soil health and how to improve soils affected by such wrong tillage practices. Soil degradation and practices to improve the degraded soils are discussed in the subsequent Lessons in this Module. Select Lesson 2 in Module III contents Virtual Academy for the Semi Arid Tropics Course on Soil and Soil Health Module III: Soil Health Management