How do you indicate soil fertility and which soil characteristic is an indicator of fertility?
The organic matter in the soil, PH level depending on what you're planting and microbial activity for nutrient recycling plays a crucial role in soil fertility.
I suppose you could look for cation exchange capacity (CEC), its ability to store nutrients needed for plants. If I'm not mistaken it can be estimated from soil texture and colour, with a tendency for dark coloured clays and loams to have higher CEC values
La fertilidad química de un suelo esta determinada básicamente por el valor de la capacidad de intercambio catiónico o sea el contenido de materia orgánica y el % de arcilla , de un suelo agrícola, pero ahora no solo importa estos componentes solidos del suelo sin ahora es crucial evaluar la población microbiana del suelo que están involucrados directamente con el rol de los nutrientes y la nutrición vegetal, como es el caso de los biofertilizantes, o el papel que cumplen las micorrizas y otros organismos como el tricoderma y otros que ayudan a la solubilización de nutrients del suelo
Soil pH is very important factor for soil fertility to determine the soil reactions and processes and it is indicated as the acidity and the alkalinity of the soil through measuring on pH scale from 0 to 14; pH 7 is considered neutral, pH lower than 7 is counted acidic and above 7 is considered alkaline. The basic method for measuring soil fertility consists of mixing a soil sample with water and chemically extracting the N, P, and K as nitrate, phosphate, and potassium. The N, P, and K amounts in the sample are determined by comparing the solution to a color chart. Thus, a naturally fertile or productive soil usually possesses the features: good soil tilth or workability and adequate organic matter content in the surface layer and adequate permeability. Fertile soil has the following characteristics: It is rich in nutrients necessary for basic plant nourishment. This includes nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. It consists of adequate minerals such as boron, chlorine, cobalt, copper, iron, manganese, magnesium, molybdenum, sulphur and zinc. Soil with a pH between 6 and 6.5 is still considered fertile and suitable for most plants. This range tends to support the availability of good nutrients for plants, including important nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.
There are certain methods to determine soil fertility such as determination of various parameters like pH, electrical conductivity, organic matter content measurements, specific tests for determination of nutrients like N, P, K etc available to plants in inorganic forms mostly.
CEC (cation exchange capacity) is could be an indicator of soil fertility.
Soil with a pH between 6 and 6.5 is still considered fertile and suitable for most plants. This range tends to support the availability of good nutrients for plants, including important nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. In addition, various alternative techniques for helping to reduce soil fertility, e.g. straw/stubble burning, topsoil stripping, specific fertiliser additions to increase crop yield and hence increase the removal of other nutrients with the crop, and grazing. Soils of higher organic matter content are generally less reflective or darker in color than those soils with lower organic matter content; therefore, soil color has long been associated with native soil fertility. Cation exchange capacity (CEC) is a useful indicator of soil fertility because it shows the soil's ability to supply three important plant nutrients: calcium, magnesium and potassium. Fertile soil has the following characteristics: It is rich in nutrients necessary for basic plant nourishment. This includes nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. It consists of adequate minerals such as boron, chlorine, cobalt, copper, iron, manganese, magnesium, molybdenum, sulphur and zinc. The ability to supply essential plant nutrients and water in adequate amounts and proportions for plant growth and reproduction; and absence of toxic substances which may inhibit plant growth e.g. Fe2+ which leads to nutrient toxicity. Soils of higher organic matter content are generally less reflective or darker in color than those soils with lower organic matter content; therefore, soil color has long been associated with native soil fertility.
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