Soil Management and Fertilizer Use:
Preserving the Soil Resource

Excerpt from Agronomy Guide for Field Crops (Chapter 2)

Order OMAFRA Publication 811: Agronomy Guide for Field Crops

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
   • Maintaining or Improving Soil Quality - Table 2-1
2. Updates on Soil Management and Fertilizer Use: Preserving the Soil Resource
3. Related Llinks...

Introduction

The soils of Ontario vary greatly in their make-up due to the scraping and mixing action of glacier movement. As the glaciers melted, wind, water and time contributed to further differences in soil development. Some soils are very shallow to bedrock, others are more than 100 m (328 ft) to bedrock. The depth of topsoil varies as conditions for soil formation have varied. Intensive crop production has caused further changes in the topsoil depth. Soil erosion by wind, water and tillage has reduced the amount of topsoil in many fields. In some fields, the topsoil has been lost totally from areas. Quite commonly, deep plowing has mixed topsoil with less fertile subsoil.

The quality of many soils in Ontario has declined over the last 4 to 5 decades. Soil quality is the measure of a soil's health and its ability to resist erosion, compaction and other stresses, while maintaining economic productivity. Many factors are assessed to determine a soil's health. A healthy soil will:

• have good soil structure, resist crusting and have minimal compaction
• have an abundance of earthworms
• smell good
• readily decompose residue
• have good drainage, water movement and water-holding capacity
• encourage seedling emergence and root growth
• produce uniform crop growth and colour
• have nutrient levels, pH and organic matter in the optimal range
• have suffered little wind, water or tillage erosion, and be resistant to it

Assessing the soil quality for each field and taking steps to maintain or improve it will ensure continued productivity. Maintaining soil quality is a long-term process. Some measures are easy and relatively inexpensive to implement, while others require more effort and commitment to put in place. Table 2-1. Maintaining or Improving Soil Quality, displays a variety of measures that can be used to help maintain or improve various aspects of soil quality.

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It is important to keep in mind that soil and its management are part of the overall crop production system. Soil is also a central part of the agricultural ecosystem. Changes made in the crop production system over the years have far-reaching effects on all other systems. When taking steps to improve soil quality, think about the changes being made and how they may affect other components of the crop production system.

An example of this impact is demonstrated by adding a cover crop into the rotation to reduce wind erosion. The cover crop may affect the following crop by acting as a host for nematodes, by acting as a weed or by leaving a mat on the soil surface that could harbour slugs or keep the soil cool and wet. These problems can be minimized by choosing a cover crop that is a non-host, does not produce seed, is easy to kill and only protects the soil for the critical time frame.

For further information on soil management refer to OMAFRA/Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada booklet Best Management Practices - Soil Management or to order Best Management Practices - Soil Management (1997), Order No. BMP06.

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Updates on Soil Management and Fertilizer Use: Preserving the Soil Resource

No updates available at this time.

Related links...

• Soil Management

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