It s very alarming issue for us that day by day OM is decreasing and no management practices are done for improvement. So that I want to know the procedure that how can we improve the OM content for better growth and yield of crops.
Generally we know that ideal soil contain 5% OM. But it also depends on temperature and humidity of a area. If temperature is high like Bangladesh than added OM is easily decomposed by the microbial activity. So it is difficult here to increase Om in soil upto 5%. But you can use compost or other organic compounds to maintain soil health and increase crop productivity.
A fertile and healthy soil is the basis for healthy plants, animals, and humans. And soil organic matter is the very foundation for healthy and productive soils. Understanding the role of organic matter in maintaining a healthy soil is essential for developing ecologically sound agricultural practices. The rate of decomposition of organic matter depends on the soil's temperature, moisture, aeration, pH and nutrient levels. The source of soil organic matter is photosynthesis resulting in plant growth – either root or aboveground.
The warmer and wetter the climate, the faster the rate of organic matter breakdown. Cooler areas have higher levels of soil organic matter because it does not break down as quickly in low temperatures.
How to increase soil organic matter levels
1. Grow perennial pasture.
2. Grow cereal crops.
3. Grow green manure crops.
4. Spread manure.
5. Use organic fertilizers.
6. Keep cultivation to a minimum.
7. Concentrate organic matter
Benefits of organic matter
Improve soil structure. As organic matter decays to humus, the humus molecules 'cement' particles of sand, silt, clay and organic matter into aggregates which will not break down in water. ...
Improves drainage. ...
Holds moisture. ...
Provides nutrients. ...
Improves cation exchange capacity.
Many studies indicated that addition of organic manure into soil lead to an increase in organic matter of soil. Several factors such as temperature and humidity of area affect organic matter.
We can produce compost from the animal and plant residues to increase the soil organic matter.
Yes indeed agricultural development can cope with current climate changes through the sustainable agriculture and Permaculture.
Plant residue management and retention beside the frequent application of organic fermented manure are recommended good agriculture practices for increase the soil organic matter.
To enhance the OM level in soil you should use organic fertilizers and green manures instead of Chemicals. organic includes compost, FYM
The decomposition of plant and animal residues into Soil Organic Matter can provide all the nutrients needed by plants and lower/replace the need for synthetic chemical fertilizers, especially nitrogen fertilizers that are responsible for numerous environmental problems.
We can enhance the OM by adding the industry organic wastes like a spent grain they are very excellent, I have used them for many experiments, and they have been the best ways to keep organic matter in the soil for a long time to increase the soil organic matter.
SOM can be improved by deliberately increasing measures that enrich the capacity of the soil to carry more organic materials. In a nutshell, organic materials include microbial biomass, plant root mass and other material of organic origin. Cover crops, crop rotation, addition of both organic inputs and inorganic materials all contribute SOM build either directly or indirectly.
The problem is therefore, especially in tropical soils, the high turnover of SOM occasioned by soil type, soil management practices, climatic conditions and cropping systems. Improving SOM could thus depend on increasing SOM input and protecting it from the rapid turnover by practicing suitable agricultural practices such as reduced tillage and maintaining permanent ground cover.
best method to increase organic matter to soil was by incorporation of crop residue and green manure biomass. application of FYM will also help to achieve the desired goal.
Organic farming is highly recommended to improve the organic matter content of the soil
Cover crops provide multiple potential benefits to soil.
The more residue you return to the soil, the better the effect on soil organic matter.
Organic matter of the soil can be increased by adopting "conservation agriculture".
Start your program to increase soil organic matter with a detailed soil analysis.
This would include a complete analysis of pH, SOM OC NPK Ca S Mg and complete micronutrients.
Select a holistic program with a SOM goal in mind.
Include in the soil analysis soil trench to understand the profile of the soil and any physicial issues.
Soil analysis should also include the textural analysis of sand, silt and clay. In addition a soil mapping needs to undertaken to understand the variability of the fields in question. Mapping can use soil experts and surveys and acute farmer observations. In a precise farming the idea is improved uniformity is related to bringing the bad spots up to the analysis of the best areas. Precision farming identifies the weak areas and concentrates any input into areas which will have most response. In this setting of goals it is equally important to have a program of periodic monitoring and modification to reach the SOM and other soil goals.
Conservation agriculture may start at taking the soil pH analysis and adjusting the pH to optimize it across the field which may imply liming in acid zones and acidifying by sulfur in the alkaline areas.
soil analysis for acid soil should determine the need for Magnesium and if the soil is less than 100 the use of dolomitic limestone is the preferred remedy or otherwise the calcitic limestone with be preferred. In the alkaline condition the sodium and salt issue would be addressed using sulfur for reducing pH and gypsum for saline issues.
Many organic practioners believe Calcium is a fundamental key to soil fertility as it needed to stabilize the soil aggregate which protects from rapid decay of soil organic matter. Eliminating unnecessary tillage is critical for conservation agriculture. In addition the use of diversified agricultural cropping is critical.
Tillage can be a source of soil degradation.
The control of soil degradation is focused and keeping the soil constantly covered with living cover. In building soil organic matter for a certified organic system with improved soil organic matter the soil is tested and adjusted and small grain crops are planted as nurse crops of forage crops with a mixture of legumes and grasses which are perennial.
This organic transition weans the system for agrichemical inputs and by the 3 year the soil organic matter is substantially increased weaning the system from a "need" of supplemental nitrogen.
In addition this sequence give conclusive weed control which allows farmers not to depend on herbicides for weed control. In a row crop phase the winter season in temperate areas are used for cover crops which maintain the accrual of soil organic matter and provides continuing weed control.
The soil organic system depends on mulches and biomass and the use of plant residues are used with feeding of corralled animals and the use of residues and manures for developing composts which represented stabilized soil organic matter. The animal and plant systems are mutually supportive.
The legume crops are critical to building soil organic matter the use of ammoniated fertilizers both acidifying soils and stimulates too rapid loss of organic matter. Use of legumes is critical to weaning the system from inputs with long term deleterious effects.
Legumes crops and grasses optimally feed the master builders of soil which are the earth worms which need a well adjusted soil pH and the abundant roots and residues for their health. A single earthworm can provide 5 kg of earth worm casting in one year and in the pasture intensive stage of organic transition the populations of earthworms can easily exceed millions per hectare. This effectively represents a way of both building the soil organic matter in the top soil layer both also expanding the depth of the top soil which harbors the greatest amount of soil organic matter reserves.
Bottomline 1) analyze soil completely 2) map the soil 3) have a soil conservation plan 4) establish a diversified crop rotation plan 5) make sure you soil is limed or pH adjusted and toxicities and deficiencies addressed 6) set a soil organic matter and fertility goals, 7) monitor your results 8) track and develop a log 9) modify your plans as needed 10) develop a crop and animal rotation for mixed farming 11) use the resides of plant and animals for compost to return to the system 12) reduce and eliminate tillage 13) use cover cropping and mulching 14) use the small grains to perennial mixed legumes and grasses as the key mechanism of improving soil organic matter and transition to an organic system 15) eliminate agrichemical inputs and 16) stimulate earthworms as a foundational soil improver.
Thank you for a very important question. Organic matter directly controls soil fertility which affects crop yields. Simple cultivation techniques incorporating use of manures (animal), return and ploughing back crop residues after harvest, use of biochar, fallowing to allow vegetation regeneration (may not be feasible due to population pressure on land) are suitable management practices. In addition to these practices, inorganic fertilizer use are recommended to supply crop nutrient demands. Organic materials will decompose and release nutrients, improve soil physical, chemical and biological properties for sustainable agricultural production. I hope this helps. Thank you.
1. Minimize physical, chemical and biological disturbance to soil by practicing no tillage agriculture
2.keep the soil covered by leaving crop residues using cover or cash crops
3. Grow diversified crops like grass crops, legumes etc
4. Improve soil structure that will make the soil more resilient to extreme conditions
We can increase organic matter in the soil and reduce environmental pollution through the use of animal residues and food waste for cities, as well as the cultivation of legume crops and plowed them in the soil or through the tillage of the remnants of the previous crop in the soil.
for Crop lands, leaving crop residues on the land surfaces and using other organic composts including animal manures help in increasing soil organic content.
Consider also a robust plan for rotating the cultivated crops (7-9 years), which includes fallow cropping and an integration of grazing livestock. Design a farming system which includes riparian buffer zones with native perennial trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants. These areas will serve as refugia for pollinators and beneficial insect species and provide indirect ecological services such as pollination and biological control that will also contribute to an enhancement of organic matter in the soil. Finally, the management of crop residues is very important and it is strongly connected to crop rotation. A good crop rotation will produce a diverse type of residues and these will contribute to the microbial diversity of the soil which is necessary to convert crop residues in stable organic matter, at the end of the process of humus formation and mineralization.
Thank you Mr. Bir Jahangir Shirazy for raising an important question!. So, you can improve the OM of your soil through the application of organic farming/conservation agriculture, including retaining of crop residue, stubble mulching, application of farm yard manure, organic wastes, bio-fertilizer, growing of green manure/cover crops etc.,
Dear Patrick S. Michael It is sometimes frustrating that although there is abundant information on the importance of soil organic matter there are few concrete incentives or much education on the application of this fundamental knowledge. I wonder if the vast majority of world farmers are analyzing soil for organic matter and have a program to conserve and improve it.
Kindly, can you take a look to this link:
http://www.fao.org/3/a0100e/a0100e07.htm#bm07.1.1
Plantation -- resulting in generation of litter and detritus increases organic carbon
There are are so many methods to increase soil organic matter as mentioned by all above Scientists and Profs. Vast thanks to all of them for valuable explanations. In my opinion, along with these,we should have to think about the type of soil texture and soil particle size distribution. If fractions of finer particles like silt clay are adequate, only then application of all these ingredients may be fruitful as these finer particles having large surface area can adsorb the organic matter in the soil and increases other physical and chemical properties. So, soil retaining ability of organic matter must have to looked into,otherwise, added organic matter may be removed during irrigation and increase in soil organic matter would be in vain.Besides, other physical parameters like, humidity, temperature, soil moisture retaining capacity must have to consider to undergo easy release of nutrients present in organic matter through microbial degradation.
I could suggest to follow the initiatives de Claude et Lydia Bourguignon.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dD5eBwxC_PA
https://www.ft.com/content/01ff2424-94bc-11e1-bb0d-00144feab49a
Use crop rotations and reduce tillage practices. Plant crops that are known to be good soil builders such as sorghum sudangrass and pearl millet.
The following practices can be adopted:
1. Crop residue addition
2. Adopting reduce or zero tillage
3. Changing cropping system
Dear Ajay Yadav You are correct In your assessment of the importance of crop residue, reduced and zero tillage and changing cropping systems. The use of residues and animal manures can be stabilized in a compost which favors the reduction of mass for application and gives a more stable and pleasant product that eliminates pathogen potential. Rotation and a plan of soil conservation all work together.
Just like Paul, Ajay and others have alluded to, practices such as conservation agriculture that calls for minimum tillage, maintenance of soil cover and crop associations/rotations may be some of the techniques that may enhance O.M in the soil. You can possibly even take a visit to any nearest agriculture training school and observe how this is done and pick a leaf. I understand that seeing is believing.....
food waste undergoes biological process can get nutrient to use for that as natural fertilizer
food waste can be converted by composting worms in worm casting a worm manure which is quite useful. It is producing an excellent organic starter amendment. The nitrogen is converted from toxic ammonia into a good quantity of less toxic nitrogen the manure high in nitrate but also having high carbon is rich in phosphorus favoring early growth potassium secondary nutrients and the high humic acid gives an optimized early germination rooting and seedling development. It has all the trace minerals needed for optimized plant nutrition. Unlike chemical synthetic nitrogen fertilizer this can be applied directed with the seeds or transplanted without acute toxicity issues. It also is part of an excellent foliar compost tea preparation.
One of the many possibilities, after the harvest of wheat, for example, do a very light tillage and grow plants species such as Phacelia tenacetifolia and Sinapis alba. Let them grow for a few months and plow the field. This has 3 advantages: protect the soil against erosion and desiccation, increase the biomass in the soil and kill the nematodes.
It does not happen so quickly and takes time. Adding vermicompost or organic manure, mulching and other such methods when adopted will make a difference.
Emmanuel Vijayanand Murray makes a very good point while composting is extremely powerful it does take time and space. The best system is to make compost during one year and use it the following year and keep it going as a part of a system. For the use of vermicompost in commercial operation manure which is raw is given a quick pre compost and then fed the worms. As many have started effective composting is a method to address the disposable issues and reduce reliance on expensive land filling operations.
Dear Bir,
In a tropical environment like Bangladesh where biomass is abundant I would learn how to make biochar from any carbon rich material (wood, crops chaff, weeds) and more. A direct application of biochar (especially if inoculated with compost, vermicompost, compost tea) should show very quickly its benefits on soil fertility.
The soil environment is physical chemical and biological in its totality. The high fertility soil is of excellent physical chemical and biological characters. The Cornell University holistic soil quality indicators are excellent for looking at this holistically.
In the sense of physical characters the soil can be either too retentive and sealing as in the finely particulated clays or non retentive as in the sand soils which predominant under many desert environments. The mechanical analysis shows the almost equal sand silt and clay produce loam soils of optimum physical characters.
In terms of chemical character the pH is highly important which about one half of soils too acid and about one third as being too alkaline or salty. The chemical factors need to be addressed to optimize the soil potential.
The vast majority of soils have lost the majority of the soil organic matter which was originally over 5% in virgin soils and in many cultivated soils it is less than 2% many lower than 1%. The soil organic is the source of the biological potential of the soil and must it optimized along with physical and chemical properties in order that potential productivity and environmental services of the soil can be optimized.
I would suggest all these categories should be analyzed physical chemical and biological and goals be set of each. The development of the plan of improvement should be monitored and as the goals are met many of problems and issues previously which were limiting will decrease and be eliminated.
Great discussion. Soil organic matter is crucial in crop production. It is said that everything begins with the soil. Poor soil definitely contributes to low yields......
Good discussion indeed.
Please refer to the Chapter 3 :Organic carbon sequestration and ecosystem service of Indian tropical soils in the book published by Springer in 2019.
Dilip Kumar Pal
Chapter 3 :Organic carbon sequestration and ecosystem.
Important information, Thanks for that.
If you want to improve the soil organic matter in the soil, crop residues and animal dung are the best choices. A judicious combination of crop and animal component will help to improve crop yields in the current season from the fast decomposing organic materials while slow decomposing material will facilitate organic matter buildup in the soil.
Following are some options to enhance the soil organic matter:
1. Incorporation of crop residues and their in-situ decomposition
2. Application of organic manures such as FYM/Vermicompost/Biogas slurry/Poultry manure/NADEP compost/City waste compost/Municipal solid waste compost etc.
3. Green manuring both In-situ as well as Ex-situ
4. Application of Biochar/Fly Ash
Management options:
1. Organic farming
2. Conservation agriculture
3. No tillage/reduced tillage/minimum tillage
4. Integrated nutrient management
Maintenance of Soil organic matter:
1. Balanced fertilizer application with periodic organic matter addition based on soil testing.
Hope this will serve your purpose!
Crop residue retention, addition of FYM, soil cover, zero tillage sowing, poultry manure, pressmud of sugar mills, mushrooms waste can help in increasing the organic matter in soil.
Dear Mehar Chand Very good recommendations I would like to add that liming and the present of sufficient clay or silt help stabilize organic mineral complex and are also important in building organic matter of particular interest is biochar and compost which represent stabilized forms of organic matters which are not easily lost back to air by decomposition.
I agree with Dr. Paul Reed that addition of stabilized form of organic matter is more important for increasing the organic matter content of soil.
You can add compost, biochar, and plant residue to the soil to increase the organic matter.
Much of the organic matter potential is lost due to erosion we need to start with soil analysis and a soil conservation program and follow through on our integrated productive strategy.
The processes leading to humus (stable OM) formation depend also on soil air and soil water. Therefore, agronomic techniques that promote/conserve oxygen and moisture in the soil should be considered as very important components for increasing SOM.
I agree with you Prof Paul Reed Hepperly........all soil fertility improvement strategies must begin with soil analysis
In increasing soil organic matter the problem is more the respiration or decay not so much the production of plant biomass. The soil organic matter is stabilized in the soil organo clay complex. Isolated organic matter is easily and quickly while the organoclay complex is much more persistent.
The organic matter and clay are overall anionic charged matter and will tend to repel each other in solution or suspension. The presence of multiple charged cations work to precipitate both the clay and the organic matter in a precipitated and aggregated form.
Soil aggregates are the key to excellent aeration and water retention and the promotion of the soft and loose friable tilth is a key to good plant results.
In a sand the aggregation can be limited by lack of organic matter and the soils which lack key calcium will not aggregate properly.
The equilibrium soil organic matter can be found as a function of the clay and calcium content which works to aggregated and conserve the organic matter fraction.
The liming of acid soils will work to improve the pH the soil aggregation and increase the soil organic matter. The use of mixed ley or hay with grasses legumes and composites are ideal for mimicking the prairie conditions which favors the best organic matter content and high plant productivity.
Prairies are the source of the most highly productive soils around our globe.
All suggested application of different organic manures and crop residue. Cover cropping may also be considered in summer fallows.
Activated biochar in my opinion is the most feasible approach to increase soil organic matter whether or not livestock manure, or compost from crop residues are available. Also, it is important to employ an agronomic plan which includes:
crop rotations (with fallow cropping)
cover crops
green manuring
as these practices will maximize the effect of microbial diversification and efficacy of biochar applications to the land.
I agree with you Bruno especially on the agronomic plan aspects. This is crucial to have.......
The overuse of chemical fertilizer is the main reason causing the decrease in soil OM, which affects the activity of soil microorganisms and limits the yield and quality of crops. Therefore, using the compost together with chemical fertilizer is a better choice. Also, the liquid fertilizer rich in soluble OM is an alternative.
The excessive use of chemical rich fertilizers disturbs the pH of soil which ultimately results in reduction of soil microorganisms and hence poor organic content. Firstly soil should be analyzed for its pH. As per the requirement soil pH should be balanced which will allow the better survival rate of soil microbes. Afterwards the addition of vermicompost, biochar to the soil can help to enhance the organic matter of the soil.
There are four general strategies for organic matter management. First, use crop residues more effectively and find new sources of residues to add to soils. New residues can include those you grow on the farm, such as cover crops, or those available from various local sources. Second, try to use a number of different types of materials—crop residues, manures, composts, cover crops, leaves, etc. It is important to provide varied residue sources to help develop and maintain a diverse group of soil organisms. Third, although use of organic materials from off farm can be a good source for building soil organic matter and adding nutrients, some farmers overload their fields with excess nutrients by excess imports of organic materials. Crop residues (including cover crops) as well as on-farm-derived animal manures and composts help to supply organic materials and cycle nutrients without a buildup of excessive levels of nutrients. Fourth, implement practices that decrease the loss of organic matter from soils because of accelerated decomposition or erosion.
1. Grow perennial pasture. A period under perennial, grass-dominant pasture is an effective way of increasing organic matter in farm soils.
2. Grow cereal crops.
3. Grow green manure crops. ...
4. Spread manure. ...
5. Use organic fertilisers. ...
6. Keep cultivation to a minimum. ...
7. Concentrate organic matter.
There are many options to increase SOM, some are applicable everywhere and strictly linked to pedoclimatic conditions and local biomass source availability. But I would like to stress more the affordable options to decrease or stop SOM losses. We all know how much is important the role of soil management techniques to affect soil organi matter levels. There is a large accumulated experience about the role of conservation agriculture to protect soil from erosion processes and from oxygen action on SOM, lets start from spreading Conservation principles and that start to add new SOM to soil.
Cultivate green manuring and leguminous crops, follow the crop rotation, maintain mulching activities, avoiding chemical fertilizer and use compost fertilizer.
There are several ways in which the organic matter of the soil could be enhanced. This may be through application of cattle manure, green manuring, conservation agriculture, crop rotation, inter-cropping practices etc. This should also be coupled with timely proper management practices to ensure the organic matter is maintained or enhanced......
Bir Jahangir Shirazy
Many RG members have already posted very good answers to this question. I believe there is no need to repeat them here. The amount of SOM at any given time is a function of the addition of organic materials, and the losses of organic matter due to decomposition and erosion. Any crop and soil management that will increase the amount of biomass that is added to the soil and/or that will reduce the losses, will increase the amount of SOM.
In some countries, we have observed smallholder farmers use anthill soil to enrich the soil with organic matter. This has been observed in Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe etc. This is a low input technology.......
Inclusion of legume in the system
Zero tillage operations instead of conventional repeated tillage
Inclusion of intercropping system in the cropping system
Use of organic amendments
Use of cover crop
Growing of green manuring crops
1. By cultivating green manuring crops, leguminous crops, mixing crop residues
with soil.
2. Using compost, vermicompost, cow dung, biogas slurry/effluent, poultry litre,
biochar etc. and avoiding of chemical fertilizers.
3. Sometimes lands have to allow for keeping rest without cultivating crops.
4. Crop rotation, cropping pattern, cropping scheme etc. should be followed in
time.
5. Mulching, intercultural operations, intercropping etc, should be followed.
The program needs to start with soil analysis and correction of pH and toxicities and deficiencies.
The program needs to target set goals on soil organic matter to monitor and adapt.
Besides manure compost, there is an opportunity to use biochar.
We had a focus on no-tillage but tillage can also be part of the systematic practice as for instance eliminating hard pans sub soil liming and the development of permanent raised beds.
Eliminating agrichemicals can be important as well as became weaned off synthetic ammoniated nitrogen sources.
The integration of mixed animals and plant systems are known to optimize organic matter.
Savannahs with large ruminants and mixed grasslands with high calcium is the environment known to associate with the biggest soil carbon and nitrogen reserves.
The organic matter can be assessed based on the dairk coloration of the humic materials. These materials are heterogeneuous mixture the intensity of the coloration is a good assessment and the 0l1 M potassium hydroxide is used for making the extraction.
The darker high organic matter soils are known throudh aniquity for have the soft texture and moisture and aeration capacity to optimize plant growth and to serve as the habitat and nutrition for the soil microbial masses.
Using organic manure(Compost, Green manure, poultry litter, cow dung etc), Crop rotation, Mixed cropping, Cultivate legumes, Mulching, add biochar, using cover crops etc
Degrading soil health because of decrease in soil organic carbon (SOC) and resultant decline in overall soil fertility is a major threat to sustenance of crop and fodder productivity. It is a well-established fact that SOM has a close and direct relationship with soil health and crop production, and also plays an important role in carbon sequestration and nutrient cycling. Thus, SOM has gained tremendous importance in Indian agriculture. Due to harsh climatic conditions, improper soil management practices, poor socio-economic status of the farmers and lack of awareness, SOM in Indian soils has declined to a low level, which in turn has resulted in deterioration in overall soil health. Despite having high-yielding cultivars and other available technologies, we are unable to achieve the desired yield targets in different crops.
Restoration of SOM contents in the soil to optimal levels will not only improve the soil health of agro ecosystem, but will also significantly contribute towards boosting crop production. Tillage improves the aeration of the soil and causes a flush of microbial action that speeds up the decomposition of organic matter. The land should not be left open to sunlight. Only then the bio-activity will pick up in a phenomenal way and you will have the needed carbon content in the soil. One way is to grow trees and smartly prune them whenever you have to, pulverize them and put organic content back into the soil. Some of these options include: integrated nutrient management, addition of the organic amendments, and addition of crop and weed residues, cover crops, and no or minimize tillage in the crop production system, appropriate crop production system/ cropping system, incorporation of biomass of green manuring crops, mulch-cum-manuring with tree leaf, biofertilizers, tank silt applications, etc. If these practices are followed systematically, the organic matter status of soils can be enhanced on a long-term basis and overall soil functions can be significantly improved. As a result, potential of high-yielding varieties/cultivars of crops available in the country can be capitalized and yield barriers in crops can be broken.
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