OpenFields

1609: Improving soil ecosystems

This paper is taken from the executive summary a Natural England Commissioned Report, NECR100 “Managing soil biota to deliver ecosystem services”

Year of Publication2012

Modern agriculture has largely negative impacts on soil organisms and their function. Approaches most likely to produce improvement included increasing organic matter inputs, reduced tillage and/or diversified cropping systems. They are likely to support the development of larger or more diverse communities of soil organisms by increasing the energy supply, substrate diversity and opportunities for plant symbiotic relationships, as well as by improving soil structure and resilience. Farmers reported constraints to uptake including the lack of advice or guidance, and lack of field-trial evidence. Behaviour change could be encouraged through available or new ELS/HLS groups of options.

This item is categorised as follows

• Subject Collection > Soils & water > Soil management

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