In agriculture, the state of the soil -its fertility- is the most essential to have optimal crops. In addition, since it is not frequent to talk about it, this time we want to give you five reasons why you should soil correctors in agriculture. It is simple, because it is essential to take care of the fertility of agricultural soil and its ability to support the growth of the crops.
Soil fertility includes three aspects [Click here]
- Physical aspects: In other words, it has adequate structural conditions, such as porosity, ability to retain water, density and resistance to penetration.
- Chemical aspects:So that the soil can provide essential nutrients and chemicals to crops.
- Biological aspects:As the presence of decisive organisms in the biological processes of the plant.
Basically, the soil regulators or conditioners serve to guarantee that the substrate (soil, land) of our crops has the nutrients and has an adequate pH, salinity, acidity and alkalinity suitable for the growth of the plant or tree.
Therefore, it may be necessary to use pH correctors, pH buffers or fixatives, acidifiers or salinity correctors. All of them are designed to improve the structure and cation exchange capacity of the soil, favor microbiological activity and achieve the best pH to absorb the other zero residue agriculture products we use.
We give you five reasons to use soil regulators in agriculture. PHOTOS: PX HERE (CC0)
The five reasons to use soil regulators in agriculture are
1. Make your crops sustainable and productive.
Soil conditioners or regulators are essential for your land to have it in good health. An oxygenated soil with a structure that facilitates the growth of a plant strong enough and with the necessary nutrients to benefit the plant is a guarantee for the farmer. If the soil is poor -without adequate acidity, excessively salinity etc.- crops are unlikely to be successful, despite the farmer’s effort and all other factors – such as weather or irrigation – together.
In other words, the use of conditioners corrects the deficiencies of the soil in terms of the structure and nutrients necessary for the growth of plants, thus optimally performing their vital functions.
2.They contribute to the production of healthy foods.
As the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of UN) states, the quality of the soil is essential to produce healthy food. Healthy soil supplies essential nutrients, water, oxygen, and root support for our plants. In addition, it protects the crop against temperature fluctuations and the soil creates optimum place for microorganisms that help control plant diseases.
WHAT FAO SAYS ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF TAKING CARE OF AGRICULTURAL SOIL
- 95% of our food is produced directly or indirectly on our soils.
- Lack of any of the 15 nutrients necessary for plant growth can limit crop yield.
- Up to 1.000 years are necessary for one centimeter of soil to form.
- Sustainable soil management would allow up to 58% more food to be produced.
3.Healthy soil also helps to decrease the consequences of climate change.
As FAO also specifies, soil organisms provide a series of essential services for the sustainability of all ecosystems. In other words, they contribute to the conduction of the nutrient cycle but also the regulation of the dynamics of soil organic matter and the sequestration of carbon in the soil and greenhouse gas emissions. For this reason, also using soil regulators supposes a sustainable management of the substrate, as far as it guarantees biodiversity.
4.The use of conditioners helps to optimize the management of problematic or degraded soils.
Especially the soils that are excessively clayey, gypseous, calcareous, sandy or highly saline substrates requires a natural solution with the help of soil regulators. Precisely because of those conditions that are not helpful for cultivation and at the same time, harmful to biodiversity.
5. They are essential to maintain the health of the soil and therefore guarantee the future of agriculture.
A healthy soil is one that is balanced perfectly. It must has a structure that facilitates normal root development, and it cannot be excessively compact. At the same time, it must has organic matter in sufficient quantity and quality to facilitate cation exchange and provide energy to the plant.
Taking into account that we are in a historic moment of environmental impacts. Soil protection with natural solutions is essential if we want agriculture to take its natural course. Why? Because soil conditioners behave like a natural protector and a shield against those influences, such as temperature changes, excessive rain or scarcity of water. Issues that, as all farmers know, can ruin any crop.
