1. soil conservation methods
1.1. Blanket of dead plants on soil
1.1.1. prevents soil erosion (water and wind)
1.2. slow the downhill flow of water
1.2.1. planting tough crops ; wheat, rye
1.3. fabric / wall to prevent erosion
1.3.1. Geotextiles- permerible fabrics used with soil that has the ability to separate, filter, reinforce or drain.
1.4. plant trees- block the wind from harming plants
1.5. Mulch
1.5.1. keep weeds out
1.5.2. keeps soil in place
1.5.3. keeps soil moist
1.6. strip cropping; contour strip cropping
1.6.1. Buffer strips/ gully stabilization
1.7. Contour Farming- not planting in straight lines with the movement of the landscape
1.8. Terrace Farming
2. Soil and Soil Food Web
2.1. soil consists of 45% minerals; 25% water: 25% air: 5% organic matter
2.2. greatly reduces flood risk- stores up to 9,200 tons of water per acre
2.3. Soil Food web
2.3.1. macro organisms
2.3.1.1. their excertment
2.3.2. micro organisms
2.3.2.1. Nitrogen fixing bacteria
2.3.2.2. actino bacteria- decompose tough materials
2.3.2.3. actino mycetes bacteria- grow similiar to fungi
2.3.2.4. Soil is composed of millions of organisms: There are more micro organisms in one hand full of soil than there are humans on Earth
2.3.3. Soil organisms: live on roots, in litter,on soil aggregates, in space between aggregates, in humus
2.3.4. When are they active?
2.3.5. sustaining biological activity, diversity, and productivity;
2.3.6. regulating the flow of water and dissolved nutrients; storing and cycling nutrients and other elements;
2.3.7. Organisms can play a small role in the food web
2.3.8. mutualism relationship- organisms benefit from each other
2.3.9. grazer- feed on fungi and bacteria
2.4. Food web is fueled by primary producers
2.5. soil organisms: support plant health as they decompose organic matter, cycle nutrients, enhance soil structure, and control the populations of soil organisms including crop pests
3. Perservation of soil
3.1. Techniques used by farmers
3.1.1. Tilling up the field
3.1.1.1. adds air and mixes nutrients
3.1.2. blanket of dead plants on soil
3.1.2.1. Seaweed, Hay, Grass, leaves
3.1.2.2. transfers nutirents to the soil
3.1.3. Add compost/ manure
3.1.4. Crop Rotation
3.1.4.1. swtiching out crops where you put them
3.1.4.1.1. crops suck the nutrient from soil
3.1.4.1.2. Beans add nitrogen back into the soil
3.1.5. Waterways between fields
3.1.6. Fertilizer
3.1.6.1. Chemical
3.1.6.2. Organic
3.1.7. Fencing
3.2. Degradation prevents- reduced watering soil- can speed up erosion/ leach nutrients out of the soil
3.2.1. Planting the same crops year after year