Restoring the productivity of marginal soils with organic amendments
- 1 January 1987
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Cambridge University Press (CUP) in American Journal of Alternative Agriculture
- Vol. 2 (2), 64-68
- https://doi.org/10.1017/s0889189300001594
Abstract
The mining of sand and gravel deposits and excavation oftopsoil in urban areas have left extensive tracts of exposed subsoils that do not support plant growth because of adverse soil chemical and physical properties. Such degraded and marginal soils, or spoils, are infertile, low in organic matter, often acidic, and subject to severe erosion and surface runoff Many of these lands are owned by small and part-time farmers who wish to restore their aesthetic value and agricultural productivity. Research has shown that with liming and the proper use of organic amendments such as animal manures and sewage sludge compost, these lands can be restored to a high level of productivity in as little as three years. The methods and techniques for improving the productivity of marginal soils described in this paper can be of considerable benefit to some farmers in developed and developing countries where there is no other choice but to farm marginal soils because of the lack of highly productive agricultural lands. With increased efforts to restore the productivity of degraded and marginal soils through the use of organic amendments, conservation tillage, and crop rotations, future research should address the effect of best management practices on crop yields, the nutritional quality of crops, and the bioavailability of plant nutrients to both animals and humans.Keywords
This publication has 5 references indexed in Scilit:
- Agricultural chemicals in ground water: Extent and implicationsAmerican Journal of Alternative Agriculture, 1987
- Recycling of Organic Wastes for a Sustainable AgricultureBiological Agriculture & Horticulture, 1986
- Effect of different levels of nitrogen and farmyard manure on yield and quality of spinach (Spinacea oleracea L.)Plant Foods for Human Nutrition, 1981
- Nutritional value of crops as influenced by organic and inorganic fertilizer treatmentsPlant Foods for Human Nutrition, 1974
- Effects of Vertical Mulching and Subsoiling on Soil Physical Properties1Agronomy Journal, 1959