Improving and controlling soil health /
Hardeep Sharan Singh.
- New Delhi, India : Random Publications, 2017
- 298 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Introduction -- Improvement of the soil -- Soil temperature and its importance -- Management steps to improve soil quality -- Development and functions of soil system -- Health nutrition of soil and plant -- Soil analysis in plant ecosystem -- Composition of the soil organic matter.
"Soil, a fragile ecosystem, has been cultivated for at least 10000 years. About 99% of our food comes from land and roughly 80% of our food is provided by grains. Similarly, the need of water is very clear. But unfortunately the rapid growth of human population is posing many problems to our soil and water: the enormous waste generated are contaminating the sol, air and water; the increased emission of greenhouse gases causes global warming which lades to flooding, drought, soil erosion; indiscriminate use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides and weedicide and use of heavy farm machinery make the soil sick. Soil biotic systems are extremely complex, and assessment of soil health and ecosystem function by direct measurement of overall biodiversity is impractical. Therefore, the need to develop indirect assessment methods is compelling. In order to be practical for use by practitioners, extension workers, scientists and policy-makers the set of basic soil health indicators should be applicable over a range of ecological and socio-economic situations. The functional capabilities of soil deteriorate from activities related to agriculture, forestry, and industry. On the other hand, urban sprawling and infrastructure development cause loss of available land. Natural events such as cyclones and floods cause land loss, and can also deteriorate functional capabilities of soil."--Back cover