soil fertility News
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Wageningen soil expertise portrayed in a film
The soil expertise of Wageningen sets the tone. As much as in describing the physical properties of the soil, the relationships between the soil and climate, the improvement of soil fertility, as well as in gaining insight into soil life, and its interactions: ‘Wageningen’ delivers the views that local and global parties are looking for to improve the use of the soil on behalf of the ...
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EPUK launches website outlining the vital Importance of Healthy Soil to mark World Soil Day 2011
Healthysoils.org launches on 5th December to mark 2011 World Soil Day – an annual event set up to advocate the use and need of soils for human survival and the importance of its sustainable management. Healthysoils.org sets out the importance of soils to key aspects of human life including climate change, food, water, biodiversity and health. Soil produces food, provides nutrients, cleans ...
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Sustainable agricultural partnerships
American Business Conferences will be hosting its 4th in the global series of Sustainable Agriculture Summits in San Francisco on 10-11 August. This established forum where incisive and detailed strategies on how to measure and reduce water and carbon impacts throughout the agricultural supply chain is quickly filling up due to the exceptional value building qualities the summit promotes. ...
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Effects of chemical fertiliser and animal manure on soil health compared
Fertilising crops with cattle manure can lead to better soil quality than when synthetic fertiliser is used, recent research indicates. The use of cattle manure in the study led to greater soil fertility by encouraging higher microbial activity, and the researchers suggest that it could potentially improve soil’s ability to cope with periods of difficult growing conditions. The complex ...
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Farmers and Nonprofits Sue Trump`s USDA Over Organic Soil-Less Loophole
Today, Center for Food Safety (CFS), along with a coalition of organic farms and stakeholders, filed a lawsuit challenging the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) decision to allow hydroponic operations to be certified organic. The lawsuit claims that hydroponic operations violate organic standards for failing to build heathy soils, and asks the Court to stop USDA from allowing ...
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Cranfield collaboration with business recognised at Knowledge Transfer Partnership awards
Cranfield has been shortlisted in three categories for two of its business projects at this year’s prestigious Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) Awards, which celebrate the achievements of outstanding individuals and organisations. The University’s work with Produce World, one of the UK’s largest vegetable growers and suppliers, has been nominated for the RCUK Research Base ...
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Interactive Center Brings Agriculture History, Innovation & Exploration to the Public
The young and young at heart will be at home inside the IQhub, a 9500-square foot center for agriculture history, innovation and exploration. The facility features 23 museum-quality exhibits chronicling the changes in agriculture over roughly four-hundred years. Beginning with Squanto's interactions with the pilgrims and the contribution made when he taught them to plant seeds alongside fish for ...
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Why choose organic fertilizer?
Organic fertilizers contain a lot of organic matter. The state strongly advocates the application of organic fertilizers. The biggest advantage of organic fertilizers is that they are rich in organic matter! 1. Organic matter promotes the growth and development of crops. Humic acid in soil organic matter can enhance plant respiration, improve cell membrane permeability, and enhance the ...
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Using rotation crops to improve soil quality
Soil quality issues are being researched within two crop rotation experiments that started in 1994 at Narrabri. They compare several crop rotations that include or exclude legume phases. The data presented here relate to the most recent 2-year cycles of these experiments. Following cotton harvest at the end of the previous cycle, rotation crops are sown (winter cereal, faba beans (grain) or vetch ...
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Grassy field margins enhance soil biodiversity
Grass strips at field margins are almost as valuable as hedgerows in encouraging diversity of soil creatures, according to new research. Six metre wide margin strips increase the number and variety of species such as earthworms, woodlice and beetles, and may act as corridors between isolated habitats. The study analysed the presence of invertebrates of three main feeding types - soil ingesters ...
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How To Work Of The Fertilizer Mixer Machine
Fertilizer mixer machine is an organic fertilizer making machinery equipment that uses mechanical force and gravity made two or more materials mixing evenly. During mixing, the contact surface area of materials can increase to promote the chemical reaction. It also speeds up physical changes. Fertilizer is a type of substance that provides one or more essential nutrients for plants, improves soil ...
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Increasing diversity through crop rotation boosts soil microbial biodiversity and productivity
Planting a variety of crop species in rotation in agricultural fields increases the diversity of soil microbes below ground, recent research has found. This in turn positively affects soil organic matter, soil structure and aids the healthy functioning of the soil. The researchers say that rotational diversity can help farmers to grow crops in a more sustainable way that promotes soil stability. ...
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Cassava for food and energy security
The tropical root crop cassava could help protect the food and energy security of poor countries now threatened by soaring food and oil prices, FAO said today. At a global conference held in Gent, Belgium, cassava scientists called for a significant increase in investment in research and development needed to boost farmers’ yields and explore promising industrial uses of cassava, including ...
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Rice paddies synergise with fish farming
By combining aquaculture with wet paddy farming in its coastal areas Bangladesh can meet food security and climate change issues, says a new report. The approach promises more nutritious food, without causing environmental damage, and has the potential for a 'blue-green revolution' on Bangladesh’s existing crop areas extending to about 10.14 million hectares and an additional 2.83 million ...
By SciDev.Net
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Clean-burning Cookstoves, Technology for Local Electricity Production to Be Developed for Africa
Development of clean-burning technology for household cooking and medium-scale electricity production in Sub-Saharan Africa is the focus of a new multiannual project by Bio4Energy researchers in collaboration with African actors, the Swedish Environment Institute (SEI) and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. As the researchers acknowledge in an application for funds to the Swedish ...
By Bio4Energy
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Bolivian researchers sound alarm over quinoa farming
Bolivian scientists have warned that growing international demand for quinoa is endangering local farming practices and the environment, as well as denying access to local consumers. Their caution follows the UN's kick off last month (20 February) of a year-long series of cultural, artistic and academic activities — along with scientific research — to celebrate 2013 as the ...
By SciDev.Net
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New soil map for African farmers
Responding to sub-Saharan Africa's soil health crisis, the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) announced this week an ambitious new effort to produce the first-ever, detailed digital soil map for all 42 countries of the region. This project combines the latest soil science and technology with remote satellite imagery and on-the-ground efforts to analyze thousands of soil samples ...
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Climate-smart farming takes root in Kenya
Like most African countries, Kenya is highly vulnerable to the impact of climate change. There is growing concern about potential stress on fragile ecosystems and rural communities, especially in the arid and semi-arid agro-ecological zones and some humid highland areas of the country. In keeping with the Strategy for Revitalizing Agriculture (SRA) of Kenya 2010-2015 and Kenya's vision 2030, ...
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Soil carbon storage is not always influenced by tillage practices
The practice of no-till has increased considerably during the past 20 yr. Soils under no-till usually host a more abundant and diverse biota and are less prone to erosion, water loss, and structural breakdown than tilled soils. Their organic matter content is also often increased and consequently, no-till is proposed as a measure to mitigate the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide ...
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From butter beans to pigeon peas: UN launches International Year of Pulses
Pulses, including all kinds of dried beans and peas, are a cheap, delicious and highly nutritious source of protein and vital micronutrients that can greatly benefit people’s health and livelihoods, particularly in developing countries -- that was the UN's message at the launch of the International Year of Pulses 2016 today. “Pulses are important food crops for the food security ...
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