Scientists are increasingly of the belief that the age-old practice of ploughing soil before sowing crops is damaging farmland’s topsoil, which is already struggling to retain nutrients due to overuse – and have come up with a handy solution to solve the problem: to leave it alone as much as possible.
With some estimates claiming that there may be only 60 harvests left worldwide due to the global degradation of the planet’s topsoil, agricultural researchers are now advocating ‘conservation tillage’, whereby the previous harvest’s leftover matter is left in the ground and no mechanical turning takes place.
This practice has been shown to improve soil nutrient content, reduce soil erosion and runoff, and increase water retention and drainage.
The UK’s National Farmers Union has pointed out that ploughing will remain necessary for certain crops, but the new research opens a fresh avenue in the debate about how best to stop soil erosion and ensure continuous future food production.
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Scientists are increasingly of the belief that the age-old practice of ploughing soil before sowing crops is damaging farmland’s topsoil, which is already struggling to retain nutrients due to overuse – and have come up with a handy solution to solve the problem: to leave it alone as much as possible.
With some estimates claiming that there may be only 60 harvests left worldwide due to the global degradation of the planet’s topsoil, agricultural researchers are now advocating ‘conservation tillage’, whereby the previous harvest’s leftover matter is left in the ground and no mechanical turning takes place.
This practice has been shown to improve soil nutrient content, reduce soil erosion and runoff, and increase water retention and drainage.
The UK’s National Farmers Union has pointed out that ploughing will remain necessary for certain crops, but the new research opens a fresh avenue in the debate about how best to stop soil erosion and ensure continuous future food production.