Download Importance of soil conditioners/ Amendments

Next
End
Characteristics of soil conditioners
Manure shouldn't be too fresh.
It should be at least six months old.
Compost manure from horses, cows and sheep.
Peat moss should be wet, its mix well with
the soil by improving physical, chemical
and biological environment of the soils.
Previous
Next
End
Functions of soil conditioners
•
•
•
•
They help to improve the amount of minerals in the soil.
Soil that is rich in minerals will produce much healthier vegetation.
Leaves work by attracting earthworms which create a healthy soil .
Soil improved by
•
•
•
Physical
Chemical
Biological
Previous
Next
End
Characteristic:
Manure shouldn't be too fresh.
It should be at least six months old.
Compost manure from horses, cows and sheep.
Peat moss should be wet, its mix well
with the soil by improving physical,
chemical and biological environment of
the soils.
Previous
Next
End
Importance of soil conditioners
•
Soil conditioner is a product which is added to soil to improve the soil
quality.
•
Soil conditioners can be used to rebuild soils which have been
damaged by improper management, to make poor soils more usable,
and to maintain soils in peak condition.
•
A wide variety of products can be used to manage soil quality, with
most being readily available from nurseries and garden supply
stores.
•
People can also generate their own soil conditioner with materials
from home.
Cont.
Previous
Next
End
Many soil conditioners are designed to improve soil structure in some
way.
Soils tend to become compacted over time, which is bad for plants, and
soil conditioners can add more loft and texture to keep the soil loose.
They also add nutrients , enriching the soil and allowing plants to grow
bigger and stronger.
Soil conditioners improve the water retention in dry, coarse soils which
are not holding water well, and they can be added to adjust the PH of the
soil to meet the needs of specific plants or to make highly acidic or
alkaline soils more usable.
Previous
Next
End
Soil physical conditions and soil conditioners
Soil physical condition is one factor that
can limit crop productio
Poor soil physical condition can restrict
water intake into the soil and subsequent
movement, plant root development, and
aeration of the soil.
These goals can be accomplished in part
through the use of good management
techniques
Producers and researchers alike are
interested
in
improving
the
physical
condition of the soil and, thus, enhance
crop production.
Previous
Next
End
Vital role of soil conditioners
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Improved soil structure and aeration
Increased water-holding capacity.
Increased availability of water to plants
Reduced compaction and hardpan conditions.
Improved tile drainage effectiveness
Alkali soil reclamation
Release of “locked” nutrients
Better chemical incorporation
Better root development
Higher yields and quality
Previous
Next
End
Role of Soil Conditioner
•
Soil conditioners may be used to improve water retention in dry,
coarse soils which are not holding water well, and they can be added
to adjust the pH of the soil to meet the needs of specific plants or to
make highly acidic or alkaline soils more usable. Examples of soil
conditioners
• Peat
• Compost
• Coir
• Manure
• Straw
• Vermiculite etc.,
Previous
Next
End
Compost
•
•
Composting is comes naturally to plant materials.
They return to the earth to supply nutrients for the next cycle of
seeds.
•
•
kitchen scraps can be recycled and yard waste composting them.
Instead of throwing out produce scraps, egg shells and coffee
grounds, can be compost of along with the leaves raked up and the
dead plants cleared out of the garden.
Previous
Next
End
Importance of composting
Improve the soil quality to reap their benefits and vitality by releasing the rich
nutrients in the compost into the soil
Prevent greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging the aerobic breakdown
of organic material and reduces the amount of garden and kitchen waste
going to Landfill.
Recycle valuable nutrients and reduce the use of artificial fertilizers
Cont.
Previous
Next
End
Adding raw material to compost
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Vegetable and food scraps
Fallen leaves (in layers)
Tea leaves and tea bags
Coffee grounds
Vacuum cleaner dust
Soft stems
Dead flowers
Old potting mix
Used vegetable cooking oil
Egg shells
Old newspapers (wet)
Grass cuttings in layers
Weeds
Sawdust (not from teated timber)
Wood ash
Previous
Next
End
Benefits Of Composting
•
Compost that are stable in nature, possessing significant amounts of
humic acids, have the ability to bind nutrients and heavy metals, as
moisture passes through the product layer.
•
Organisms found within compost have the ability to degrade organic
contaminants such as hydrocarbons found in petroleum based materials.
Green manure:
•
The practice of ploughing or turning into soil under-composed green plant
tissue for the purpose of improving physical condition as well as fertility of
the soil is referred to as green manuring and the manure obtained is
known as green manure.
Previous
Next
End
The green manure crop should possess the following desirable
characteristics :
•
•
•
•
•
have profuse leaves and rapid growth early in its life cycle.
have abundance and succulent tops
be capable of making a good stand on poor and exhausted soils.
have a deep root system.
be legume with good nodular growth habit
Previous
Next
End
Benefits of Green manuring
Supply of Organic Matter
Green manure supplies organic matter to the soil.
The organic residues from green manure also help to provide the
stability of soil structure needed for optimum plant growth.
Humus formed from green manure increases the absorptive capacity of
soil, promotes aeration, drainage and granulation, which help the plant
growth.
Green manuring improves the structure of the soil. Organic matter
stimulates the activity of soil micro-organisms.
Previous
Next
End
Addition of Nitrogen:
•
The green manuring crop supplies additional nitrogen to organic matter, if
it is a legume crop, which has the ability to fix nitrogen from the air with
the help of its root nodule bacteria (e.g. Rhizobium).
•
•
The legume crop adds nitrogen for the succeeding crop.
So all the legumes crop leave the soil in better physical condition and
richer in nitrogen content.
•
They return the plant nutrients of deeper layers to the upper top soil
Previous
Next
End
(iii) Nutrient and Soil Conservation
Green manuring crops act as cover crop.
They protect the soil from erosion and nutrient loss by taking up
soluble nutrients which might otherwise have been lost in drainage
water or due to erosion.
Green manuring crops make available phosphorous and other
nutrients for the succeeding crops.
Green manure has a marked residual effect also.
Previous
Next
End
Green manuring increases crop yield:
•
Green manure increases the organic matter and nitrogen
content (in case of leguminous green manuring crop) of the
soil.
•
It is proved that if green manuring is done properly, it always
results in increased yields of the succeeding crops.
Previous
Next
End
Crop Residues
Composting leaves for your garden is
a great way to use them, much better
than sending them to the landfill to
take up space.
Leaves make dark, rich compost that
add nutrients to your soil and help
keep your plants strong and disease
free.
Fall cleanup is a great time to start a
compost pile and put those leaves to
work
Composting leaves can be as simple
as piling them up in an unused corner
of the yard and letting them rot or as
complex as building a tumbler and
spinning them every day. Both work.
Previous
Next
Compost is going to happen with
or without your help.
End
Home compost
Composting
is
the
controlled
decomposition of organic material such
as leaves, twigs, grass clippings, and
vegetable food waste.
Compost is the soil amendment product
that results from proper composting
composting helps to keep the high
volume of organic material out of
landfills and turns it into a useful
product
Previous
Next
End
Application
•
General
application rates
for compost or
other organic soil
amendments are based on the salt content of the materials and soil
and on the depth to which it is cultivated into the soil.
•
Ideally, cultivate the soil amendment into the top six to eight inches of
the soil.
•
On compacted/clayey soils, anything less can lead to a shallow rooting
system with reduced plant growth, lower vigor, and lower stress
tolerance.
•
Compost, which includes manure or biosolids as a component, has a
potential for high salts
•
Excessive salt levels are common in many commercially available
products sold in Colorado.
Previous
Next
End
•
Compost needs to be thoroughly mixed into the upper six to eight inches
of the soil profile.
•
Do not leave compost in chunks, as this will interfere with root growth
and soil water movement.
•
As the soil organic content builds in a garden soil, the application rate
should be reduced to prevent ground water contamination issues.
•
A soil test is suggested every four to six years to establish a base line on
soil organic matter content If using a green manure cover crop, till the
cover crop in before it reaches four inches in height.
•
In the vegetable garden do not plow in woody materials such as bark or
woodchips.
•
They may interfere with seedbed preparation and may result in soil
nitrogen depletion.
Previous
Next
End
To sum up:
Soil conditioners are amending materials that claim to improve the soil
physical condition.
Soil conditioners are improve the minerals in the soil, water retention
capacity of the soil and also improve physical, chemical and biological
environment of the soil.
Some of the soil conditioners viz., compost, green manure, crop
residues like leaves, home compost etc.
Previous
Next
End