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{{Short description|Application of methods to protect soil and enhance its performance}}
'''Soil management''' is the application of operations, practices, and treatments to protect [[soil]] and enhance its performance (such as [[soil fertility]] or [[soil mechanics]]). It includes [[soil conservation]], [[soil conditioner|soil amendment]], and optimal [[soil health]]. In [[agriculture]], some amount of soil management is needed both in nonorganic and [[organic farming|organic]] types to prevent [[agricultural land]] from becoming poorly productive over decades. Organic farming in particular emphasizes optimal soil management, because it uses soil health as the exclusive or nearly exclusive source of its [[fertilizer|fertilization]] and [[pest control]].

Soil management is an important tool for [[Climate change mitigation|addressing climate change]] by increasing [[soil carbon]] and as well as addressing other major environmental issues associated with [[Industrial agriculture|modern industrial agriculture practices]]. [[Drawdown (climate)|Project Drawdown]] highlights three major soil management practices as actionable steps for [[climate change mitigation]]: improved [[nutrient management]],<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-02-06|title=Nutrient Management @ProjectDrawdown #ClimateSolutions|url=https://drawdown.org/solutions/nutrient-management|access-date=2021-01-03|website=Project Drawdown|language=en}}</ref> [[conservation agriculture]] (including [[No-till agriculture]]),<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-02-06|title=Conservation Agriculture @ProjectDrawdown #ClimateSolutions|url=https://drawdown.org/solutions/conservation-agriculture|access-date=2021-01-03|website=Project Drawdown|language=en}}</ref> and use of [[regenerative agriculture]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-02-06|title=Regenerative Annual Cropping @ProjectDrawdown #ClimateSolutions|url=https://drawdown.org/solutions/regenerative-annual-cropping|access-date=2021-01-03|website=Project Drawdown|language=en}}</ref>

==Environmental impact==
According to the [[EPA]], agricultural soil management practices can lead to production and emission of [[nitrous oxide]] (N2O), a major [[greenhouse gas]] and air pollutant. Activities that can contribute to N2O emissions include [[fertilizer]] usage, [[irrigation]] and [[tillage]]. The management of soils accounts for over half of the emissions from the Agriculture sector. Cattle livestock account for one third of emissions, through [[methane emissions]]. Manure management and rice cultivation also produce emissions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www3.epa.gov/climatechange/ghgemissions/sources/agriculture.html|title=Agriculture: Sources of Greenhouse Gas Emissions|year=2015|publisher=EPA}}</ref> Using [[biochar]] may decrease N2O emissions from soils by an average of 54%.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Cayuela, M.L., van Zwieten, L., Singh, B.P., Jeffery, S., Roig, A., & Sanchez-Monedero, M.A.|date=June 15, 2014|title=Biochar's role in mitigating soil nitrous oxide emissions: A review and meta-analysis|journal=Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment|volume=191|pages=5–16|doi=10.1016/j.agee.2013.10.009}}</ref> the usage of artificial fertilizer in the agricultural field it leads to nutrition imbalance in the soil.

Soils can sequester [[carbon dioxide]] (CO2) from the atmosphere, primarily by storing carbon as [[soil organic carbon]] (SOC) through the process of [[photosynthesis]]. CO2 can also be stored as inorganic carbon but this is less common. Converting natural land to agricultural land releases carbon back into the atmosphere. The amount of carbon a soil can sequester depends on the climate and current and historical land-use and management.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/soil-carbon-storage-84223790|title=Soil Carbon Storage {{!}} Learn Science at Scitable|website=www.nature.com|access-date=2019-04-12}}</ref> Cropland has the potential to sequester 0.5–1.2 Pg C/year and grazing and pasture land could sequester 0.3–0.7 Pg C/year.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Lal|first=Rattan|date=2018-03-25|title=Digging deeper: A holistic perspective of factors affecting soil organic carbon sequestration in agroecosystems|journal=Global Change Biology|volume=24|issue=8|pages=3285–3301|doi=10.1111/gcb.14054|pmid=29341449|issn=1354-1013|bibcode=2018GCBio..24.3285L|s2cid=4307520 }}</ref> Agricultural practices that sequester carbon can help [[Climate change mitigation|mitigate climate change]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last1=Shennan|first1=Carol|last2=Krupnik|first2=Timothy J.|last3=Baird|first3=Graeme|last4=Cohen|first4=Hamutahl|last5=Forbush|first5=Kelsey|last6=Lovell|first6=Robin J.|last7=Olimpi|first7=Elissa M.|date=2017-10-17|title=Organic and Conventional Agriculture: A Useful Framing?|journal=Annual Review of Environment and Resources|volume=42|issue=1|pages=317–346|doi=10.1146/annurev-environ-110615-085750|issn=1543-5938|doi-access=free}}</ref> [[Intensive farming]] deteriorates the functionality of soils.

Methods that significantly enhance [[carbon sequestration]] in soil include [[no-till farming]], residue [[mulching]], [[cover crop]]ping, and [[crop rotation]], all of which are more widely used in [[organic farming]] than in conventional farming.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/July05/organic.farm.vs.other.ssl.html | title=Organic farming produces same corn and soybean yields as conventional farms, but consumes less energy and no pesticides, study finds | author=Susan S. Lang | date=13 July 2005 | access-date=8 July 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pimentel |first1=David |title=Environmental, Energetic, and Economic Comparisons of Organic and Conventional Farming Systems |journal=BioScience |volume=55 |issue=7 |pages=573–82 |year=2005 |doi=10.1641/0006-3568(2005)055[0573:EEAECO]2.0.CO;2 |last2=Hepperly |first2=Paul |last3=Hanson |first3=James |last4=Douds |first4=David |last5=Seidel |first5=Rita |doi-access=free }}</ref> Because only 5% of US farmland currently uses no-till and residue mulching, there is a large potential for carbon sequestration.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1126/science.1093079 |title=Ecology: Managing Soil Carbon |year=2004 |last1=Lal |first1=Rattan |journal=Science |volume=304 |issue=5669 |pages=393 |pmid=15087532 |last2=Griffin |first2=Michael |last3=Apt |first3=Jay |last4=Lave |first4=Lester|author4-link=Lester Lave |last5=Morgan |first5=M. Granger|s2cid=129925989 |url=https://semanticscholar.org/paper/74cc21770b9c10b2e4370818bb660af027e675fc }}</ref> Similar practices such as arable land conversion to grasslands, crop residues and cover crops have been proposed in Europe.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Lugato|first1=Emanuele|last2=Bampa|first2=Francesca|last3=Panagos|first3=Panos|last4=Montanarella|first4=Luca|last5=Jones|first5=Arwyn|date=2014-11-01|title=Potential carbon sequestration of European arable soils estimated by modelling a comprehensive set of management practices|journal=Global Change Biology|language=en|volume=20|issue=11|pages=3557–3567|doi=10.1111/gcb.12551|pmid=24789378|issn=1365-2486|bibcode=2014GCBio..20.3557L|doi-access=free}}</ref>

==Practices==
Conventional agriculture is driven by industrialization and aims to maximize efficiency. Practices include large-scale farming that specializes in monoculture and uses pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.foodsystemprimer.org/food-production/industrialization-of-agriculture/index.html|title=Industrialization of Agriculture|last1=Driver|first1=Kelly|last2=Health|first2=JH Bloomberg School of Public|website=Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health|language=en|access-date=2019-04-12}}</ref> Alternatives include conservation, regenerative, and organic agriculture, which can be broadly grouped as [[sustainable agriculture]]. Conservation agriculture has three main practices: minimizing soil disturbance, maintaining permanent soil coverage, and diversifying crop species.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fao.org/conservation-agriculture/en/|title=Conservation Agriculture {{!}} Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations|website=www.fao.org|access-date=2019-04-12}}</ref> Similarly, regenerative agriculture practices use minimal to no tillage, cover crops, crop rotations, compost, and grazing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://2igmzc48tf4q88z3o24qjfl8-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Regen-Ag-Definition-2.23.17-1.pdf|title=What is Regenerative Agriculture?|date=February 16, 2017|access-date=April 12, 2019|archive-date=April 12, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190412205331/https://2igmzc48tf4q88z3o24qjfl8-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Regen-Ag-Definition-2.23.17-1.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> Organic agriculture incorporates most of these practices and emphasizes biological, not synthetic, management.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sare.org/Learning-Center/Bulletins/Transitioning-to-Organic-Production/Text-Version/What-is-Organic-Farming|title=What is Organic Farming?|website=www.sare.org|access-date=2019-04-12}}</ref> There are three overarching practices that improve carbon sequestration in soils: increasing biomass inputs, decreasing SOC losses, and increasing the mean residence time (MRT) of SOC.<ref name=":1" />
[[File:Palau taro patch soil management.jpg|thumb|315x315px|Cover cropping and mulching practiced as soil management in Palau]]
Specific soil management practices that affect [[soil health]] include:<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://soilquality.org/management/soil_management_practices.html|title=Soil Quality: Management: Soil Management Practices|website=soilquality.org|access-date=2019-04-12}}</ref>

* Controlling traffic on the soil surface helps to reduce [[soil compaction]], which can reduce [[aeration]] and [[Infiltration (hydrology)|water infiltration]].
* Planting [[cover crop]]s that keep the soil anchored and covered in off-seasons so that the soil is not [[Erosion|eroded]] by wind and rain.
* [[Crop rotation]]s<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://extension.psu.edu/forage-and-food-crops|title=Forage and Food Crops|website=Penn State Extension|language=en|access-date=2019-04-12}}</ref> for [[row crop]]s alternate high-residue crops with lower-residue crops to increase the amount of plant material left on the surface of the soil during the year to protect the soil from erosion.
* [[Nutrient management]] can help to improve the [[Fertility (soil)|fertility]] of the soil and the amount of [[organic matter]] content, which improves [[soil structure]] and function.
* Tilling the soil, or [[tillage]], is the breaking of soil, such as with a [[plough]] or harrow, to prepare the soil for new seeds. Tillage systems vary in intensity and disturbance. Conventional tillage is the most intense tillage system and disturbs the deepest level of soils. At least 30% of plant residue remains on the soil surface in conservation tillage.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sare.org/Learning-Center/Books/Building-Soils-for-Better-Crops-3rd-Edition/Text-Version/Reducing-Tillage/Tillage-Systems|title=Tillage Systems|website=www.sare.org|access-date=2019-04-12}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/farm-practices-management/crop-livestock-practices/soil-tillage-and-crop-rotation/|title=USDA ERS – Soil Tillage and Crop Rotation|website=www.ers.usda.gov|access-date=2019-04-12}}</ref> Reduced-tillage or no-till operations limit the amount of soil disturbance while cultivating a new crop, and help to maintain plant residues on the surface of the soil for erosion protection and water retention.
* Adding organic matter to the soil surface can increase carbon in the soil and the abundance and diversity of microbial organisms in the soil.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Brennan|first1=Eric B.|last2=Acosta-Martinez|first2=Veronica|date=June 2017|title=Cover cropping frequency is the main driver of soil microbial changes during six years of organic vegetable production|journal=Soil Biology and Biochemistry|volume=109|pages=188–204|doi=10.1016/j.soilbio.2017.01.014|issn=0038-0717}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Baldantoni|first1=Daniela|last2=Bellino|first2=Alessandro|last3=Morra|first3=Luigi|last4=Alfani|first4=Anna|date=2015-05-17|title=Compost Amendment Enhances Natural Revegetation of a Mediterranean Degraded Agricultural Soil|journal=Environmental Management|volume=56|issue=4|pages=946–956|doi=10.1007/s00267-015-0539-4|pmid=25982619|issn=0364-152X|bibcode=2015EnMan..56..946B|s2cid=206945654 }}</ref>
* Using fertilizers increases nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, and potassium in the soil. The use of fertilizers influences [[soil pH]] and often acidifies soils, with the exception of potassium fertilizer.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cropnutrition.com/fertilizers-and-soil-acidity|title=Fertilizers And Soil Acidity {{!}} Mosaic Crop Nutrition {{!}} Mosaic Crop Nutrition|website=www.cropnutrition.com|access-date=2019-04-12}}</ref> Fertilizers can be organic or synthetic.
* Using a [[perennial grain]] crop such as ''[[Thinopyrum intermedium]]''.

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{wiktionary|soil management}}
{{Soil science topics}}
[[Category:Soil science]]
[[Category:Edaphology]]

Soil management - Revision history

Ajay Kumar: Created a new article