Top 5 Practices for Mitigating ‘Soil degradation’

 Soil degradation occurs due to decreased fertility of the soil. Various underlying reasons could be loss of humus (top layer of soil) due to water runoff, overgrazing and unhealthy land management practices.  

5. TERRACING: mostly practiced on slopes or hilly lands, they effectively slow down the speed of water ensuring the topsoil doesn’t wash away. This involves cutting of slope into series of ridges or platforms which resemble steps thus also termed as step farming.    

4. CROP ROTATION: It is contrary to monoculture (cultivation of a single crop only), crop rotation implies planting of different crops on the same piece of land in a particular order. Like if we plant legumes after suppose say wheat then legumes would help in restoring nitrogen content in the soil that wheat has utilized. Thus, it helps in replenishing nutrients in the soil. 

3. WIND BREAKS: They could be natural or artificial and act as barriers to the flow of wind so the topsoil doesn’t blow away, thus preventing wind erosion. For example, shrubs, in addition, hold the soil too. 

2. STRIP FARMING: It is a method of growing different crops in systematic lanes or narrow strips on the same piece of land (like alternative rows of cotton and alfalfa) Mostly practiced on land with steep slopes. This checks soil erosion and also improves agricultural productivity.

1. REFORESTATION: Planting more and more trees like plantation drives in the deforested areas. The underlying motive is to maintain vegetative cover to reduce wind and water-induced soil erosion. Some studies show bamboo plantation helped restore degraded land, as it generates biomass underground, has long roots to bind the soil together (a single bamboo plant can hold up to 6 cubic meters of soil) and also helps the soil to retain moisture. 

 

• Wind breaks
  Artificial and natural windbreaks, such as shrubs, reduce the erosion effects of wind. Plants also have the added benefit of “anchoring” the soil, reducing the effects of erosion from water.
• Terracing
  Terracing of slopes reduces the effects of water runoff and helps conserve rain water.
• Strip farming
  Alternating strips of different types of crops helps reduce the effects of erosion.
• Crop rotation
  Crop rotation is the planting of different crops in the same field in a specific order; monoculture is the planting of the same crop. Crop rotation has been shown to increase the nutrients of the soil, as well as reduce pests and crop disease.