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8/9/2019 Ecological Soil Management for Organic Gardeners
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All About Soil!!Ecological Soil Management For
Organic Gardeners
Wendy Sue Harper, Ph.D.Vegetable and Fruit Technical Assistance
AdvisorNortheast Organic Farming Association of
Vermontwww.nofavt.org
o : e oun a on othe Garden
WSH
Todays Presentation
Ecological Soil Management of The Whys and Hows of Organic Matter
Management
Soil Tilth: Nothingness is most important,here.
Bio-diversity: It is more interesting than youmight think!
To achieve healthy soil, healthy plants,and ecological balance.
A Plant & SoilEcosystem Light
Air
Water, etc
Nutrients
pH
CEC
Moisture
Microbes,Earthworms etc
TemperatureAir
Texture
Structure
Pollutants
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a t o s etc
CEC
Soil Air
icrobes
ganicMatter
Stru
ctur
e
Texture
pH
Pollutants
A Simplified Soil Ecosystem
A Good Loam Soil:
50% Solids
(Hard Stuff)
50% Pores
(Nothingness)
45% Mineral5% Organic Matter
(Once Alive or Stil
Alive Stuff)25% Air
Big Pores
25% Water
Small Pores
So why is this important?
Roots:
1 Support the plant
2 Absorb water and nutrients
3 Exchange gases
4 Store starches and sugars
5 Transform nutrients
6 Produce plant hormones
7 Interact with microbes to activate diseasesuppression mechanisms and plant immunity
An Undisturbed Soil Profile:
Ap
Zone of accumulation
Zone of biological activity
Organic matter
= = =
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Tunbridge VT State Soil
Soil Fertility is
The ability of a soil to provide a physical,chemical, and biological environment for
the plant that is health sustaining.
This is a long-term ecosystem based or
ecological agriculture perspective!
Seven Principles to Maintain SoilFertility
1. Maintain a Proper Air to Water Balance2. Maintain Soil Tilth
3. Prevent Erosion
4. Maintain Soil Organic Matter Levels
5. Maintain Biological Diversity
6. Maintain a Proper Soil pH7. Maintain a Balance of Nutrients
A systems approach means you gotta do them all.
Each alone will not make a fertile soil.
Maintain Soil OMWhy Bother?
Versus
Organic matter makes structure and feeds the biology!
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1. Source of Nutrients - N P S & micronutrients
2. Acts as a chelating (binding) agent for the micronutrients
3. Has high CEC; holds cations in soil (ex. K+, Ca2+, Mg2+)
4. Chelates potentially toxic elements (ex. Al3+, Cd2+, Zn2+)
5. Extracts base nutrient cations from minerals
6. Buffers soil pH reaction
7. High water holding capacity
8. Promotes aggregation & improves structure
9. Improves drainage (less erosion) & aeration
10. Affects soil temperature w/ dark color
11. Provides food, energy & nutrients for organisms
12. Stimulates plant root growth13. Active OM helps maintain a diverse group of soil
organisms = less pests and diseases
Soil Organic Matter Profoundly Influences Soil Fertility
The Thin Skins of Water that Coat
Everything.
RootHa
irRAIN
CationExchangeCapacity +
++
+++ We are
positive!
Cations
K+ Mg2+ Ca2+ H+ Al3+
pH near neutral Acid pH
NO3-
**OnlyClay
andHumushaveCEC**
CEC = Plant Pantry
DO YOU KNOW
Whats In Your Dirt?
How Much OM Should You Add?
What have your past OM additions
done?
pH??
HeavyMetals??
N-P-K??
%OM?
?
Micro
nutrients??
Take a Soil Test and Use Soil Test Recommendations
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tp://p
ss.uv
m.edu/
ag_testi
ng/fo
rms.h
tml
Soil TestReport
Soil Test Results
Recommendation
Limestone
Nitrogen
Phosphorus
Potassium
Management Info
Who to call
Make and Maintain Soil Structure
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Ohio State University
Think about being a root. Which soilcan you grow through best! Get your
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What Building Structure Does for You
Drainage in clay soils (macropores)
Water holding capacity in sandy soils(micropores)
*Building structure with OM Creates thePores You Aint Got!*
Macropore hold air and drain (in-between)
Micropores hold water (inside)
OM = Drought Prevention Insurance
Pores Are Different!Air is storedinbetween theaggregatesafter
water drains.
Water is storedinside theaggregates.
Little inside space =less water. Little in-between space= less air
Cornell University
Saturationafter asoakingrain.
Soil thathasdrained.
Sand Clay
Making Soil Structure:
Improves: drainage, air exchange, moisture
holding capacity, root penetration and seedgermination!
Lowers bulk density and reduces erosion!
It ameliorates natural textural properties!
!Dont Destroy Your Structure
!Wait and work your soil when it has dried outenoughno mud patties
!Add OM to improve soil structure
!Keep soil covered to protect soil structure
Create Great Soil Tilth
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How to Identify Compaction
Compaction densely packs the soil together,destroying tilth, structure and increasing bulkdensity.
Soil has higher proportion of solids to pore space. Compaction: Surface Crusting Surface Compaction Subsoil or Deep Compaction Plow or Tillage Pan
Symptoms Drainage and Moisture Issues
Temperature Issues Plant Stress- N & K Erosion
University of Minnesota ExtensionUniversity of Nebraska
DFW
Why feed the soil?
In Soil Organisms:Decompose plant and animal residuesreleasing nutrients and making humus
Change nutrients to plant available formsImprove soil structure and tilth (thru 1)Improve plant nutrition (thru 1,2, & 3)Diverse populations increase biologicalstability and balance& resistance to system degradation& resilience or the bounce back factor
Create self-sufficiency (Emergentproperties)' internal system nutrient cycling'beneficial mutualistic organism relationships' internal system pest population management
SMB
SMB
SMB
Microbes dissolve
Interesting Relationships!Population control for nematodes and fungi
Fungal
Hyphae
Parasitized
Nematode
Captured
Nematodes
Interesting Relationships and
Population Checks and Balanc
DFW
DFW
SM
SMB
SMB
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Relationships!! Phoresy:Detritivore Hitchhikers
Sucker Disc
ImmatureMites
Phoretic
Nematodes
DFW
DFW
DFW
DFW
Plant - Microbial RelationshipsRhizobium and Legumes: Mutualism
SMB
Plant - Microbial RelationshipsMycorrhizal Fungictomycorrhizae Endomycorrhizae
B
SMB
Brady
and
Weil,
2002.
Brady
and
Weil,
2002.
www.profileproducts.com
Plant to Plant
Mutualistic
Relationships
Bra
and
Di S i M h i
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Disease Suppression Mechanisms The process of OM breakdown from OM additions:
compost, cover crops, manures, etc.
Antagonists
Bacillus, Entrobacter, Trichoderma, Streptomyces,Pseudomonas, and more! Single strains are not as effective as mixtures of
microbes! Antibiosis, Nutrient competition, Parasitism Induced systematic resistant- plant vaccination (less
common)
Doesnt suppress all diseases: some easy,some hard
Lasts about 6 months
s s oSMB
SMB
fungal-jungle.blogspot.com
www.profileproducts.com
& SOIL
The Foundation of Food Web is FOOD.DFW
How Can You Get OM IntoYour Soils?
Animal Manures
Composts
Cover Crops
Mulches
Peat Moss
Others?
Any Cautions? C:N Ratio or Carbon to Nitrogen Ratio
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Aerobic Methods
Small piles and bins
Windrows
Passive aeration
On-Farm Compost Handbook
u c ar en ng -
WSH
Cover Crops in the Garden 2008
WSH
Cover Crops in the Garden
Oats Buckwheat
Annual Ryegrass Rye-Vetch
Serial planting after onions
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Cover Crops in the Garden
Before and
After Cutting
WSH
WSH
Food Means.
Soil OM( Biodiversity( Ecological Balance
Efficiency of Soil Processes Resistance: Systems Resistance to Degradation
Resilience: Systems Ability to Bounce Back Self-Regulation or Self-Sufficiency (Emergent Properties)
Nutrient Cycling Mutualistic Organism Relationships Pest Checks and Balances(Disease Suppression)
Stability
Which is why organic farmers and gardenersfeed the soil.
Create Great Biodiversity Create Functional BiodiversityProvide Diverse Food: Organic Matter
Add Organic ResiduesAdd Manure or CompostGrow Cover Crops
Provide Diverse HabitatRotate CropsGrow Cover CropsPlant Mixtures of Species
Interplant, Under-sow, Companion Plant, PolycultureAdd CompostUse MulchesPlant Biological or Ecological Islands; Habitat and Food For
Beneficial OrganismsBio-strips, Flower Strips, Beetle Banks, Strip InsectaryIntercropping, Vegetative Corridors, Hedge RowsSelective Weeding
Reduce Tillage, Bare Land, and Chemical InputsChange Tolerance Levels for Pest Some
o a e ro s Biological or Ecological Islands
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o a e ro s
ATTRA
To breaking pest cycles: insects, weeds, diseasesTo manage nutrientsTo reduce erosionTo build Soil OMTo improve yields
Biological or Ecological Islands
www.sare.org
Syrphid Fly
Lacewings
Parasitic Wasp
www.attra.orgwww.sare.org
www.sare.org
NCSU-IPM
NCSU-IPM
NCSU-IP
www.sciencemuseum.org.uk
Refugia or Conservation Head Lands
www.sare.org
University of Minnesota Extensionwww.sare.org
www.ukagriculture.com
Hedge Rows as Habitat
Wind Shelter BeltVegetative Corridors
Spined Soldier Bug
USDA/NRCS/NAC
National Corn Growers Association
Texas A&M University
University of Idaho
www.sare.org
u c as a a ee e a s: r a
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u c as a a
Ground Beetles
Spiders
DFW
DFW
WSH
WSH
ee e a s: r a
Ground Beetles
and other
Predatory Beetles
http://www.orc.govt.nz/
Oregon State University Extension
www.snh.org.uk/
DFW
Intercropping: Living Mulches
Bigeyed BugRover Beetle
Minute Pirate BugNCSU-IPM
www.omafra.gov.on.ca/
ww.dereila.ca
www.sare.org
More Questions on Soils or Compost
WSH
WSH
WSH
WSH
Resources Resources
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Resources) Start with the Soil.1993. G. Gershuny. Rodale Press.) Building Soils for Better Crops. 2000. F.R. Magdoff
and H. van Es. Sustainable Agriculture Network.Handbook Series Book 4.
) Managing cover Crops Profitably. 2007. Sustainable
Agriculture Network. Handbook Series Book 9.) Manage Insects on your Farm: A guide to ecological
strategies. 2005. M.A. Altieri and C.I. Nicholls withM.A. Fritz. Sustainable Agriculture Network.Handbook Series Book 7.
) The Rodale Book of Composting. 1992. D.L. Martin &G. Gershuny. Rodale Press.
) Tales From The Underground. 2001. D. Wolfe.
Perseus Pub
SARE
Resources( A Whole-Farm approach to Managing Pests.
Sustainable Agriculture Network.( Farmscaping To Enhance Biological Control. 2000.
R. Dufour. Appropriate Technology Transfer forRural Areas.
! Soil Organic Matter in Sustainable Agriculture.2004. F.R. Magdoff and R.R. Weil. CRC Press.
! The Nature and Properties of Soils. 2008. N.C.Brady & R.R. Weil. Prentice Hall.
* ATTRA: (Soils and Composting)* NE-SARE:
SAR
Biological Slide References
DFW: The Decomposer Food Web:Ecology of organisms of compost and
soil litter byDr. Daniel Dindal, Professor Emertius,Soil Ecologist, SUNY-Syracuse
SMB: Soil Microbiology and Biochemistry
from Soil Science Society of America
WSH: Wendy Sue Harper, Ph.D.
The End