Soil Management Challenges Facing Agriculture
Date
2021-03-16
Authors
Lobb, David
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Abstract
Soil management practices, tillage in particular, has changed a lot over the past 100 years or so on the Prairies. Tillage has contributed to the tremendous advances we have seen in crop production, but it has also contributed to the widespread and often severe soil losses throughout much of the region. With recognition of the degradation cause by soil erosion and the threat it posed to crop production, farm security and the environment, a transformation in soil management occurred in the 1980s and 90s with the development and adoption of conservation tillage techniques and the reduction is the use of summerfallow. Although the rates of soil erosion and degradation have decreased greatly with these changes, there is still considerable soil erosion, even in conservation tillage systems. Surprisingly, the cost of current and historical soil loss through lost crop yields has increased in the past few decades, rather than decreased. There is evidence to suggest that this threat to farm profitability and industry sustainability will continue to get worse. However, there are actions that can be taken to tackle this situation.
View video presentation: https://youtu.be/WdmhEvpFcVY
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Fertilizer, nutrient, surface application
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Soils and Crops Workshop