#Improve soil fertility organically

[bharatvarsh22]

In the world of organic farming, soil health is of utmost importance. Organic farmers understand that healthy soil is the foundation for a successful and sustainable farm. Soil that is rich in nutrients, microorganisms, and organic matter creates an ideal environment for plants to thrive and resist diseases and pests. However, maintaining soil health in organic farming requires careful and strategic soil management practices.

Do Visit: https://bharatvarshnaturefarms.com/soil-health-in-organic-farming/

[androfyi]

100% Pure Organic Worm Castings Fertilizer, 15-Pounds - Improves Soil Fertility and Aeration for Houseplants, Vegetables, Gardens, and More – OMRI-Listed and Mineral-Dense

Price: (as of – Details) Soon to be known as the “World’s Greatest Organic Fertilizer!” Wiggle Worm Soil Builder pure earthworm castings are surely mother nature’s best kept growing secret. You need only use a small amount in or around your houseplants, vegetables and flowers. The miracles of the earthworm are easily seen in the beautiful growth and yields of your plants. The nutrients in our…

[wnewsroom365]

পেঁয়াজ শুধু মাত্র যে মসলা হিসেবে ব্যবহৃত হয়, তা কিন্তু নয়! বরং আপনি জানলে অবাক হবেন যে, যদি সঠিক নিয়ম মেনে আপনি এর সঠিক ব্যবহার করেন দতবে আপনি আপনার বাড়ির ফেলে দেয়া পেঁয়াজ থেকে পাবেন উৎকৃষ্ট মানে কম্পোস্ট সার। তাহলে আর দেরি কেন, এখনই জেনেননি পেঁয়াজের এক বিশেষ গুণ!

[farmerstrend]

How Farmers in Kenya Are Boosting Yields with Rabbit Urine

Farmers in Kenya are increasingly turning to rabbit urine as a natural alternative to synthetic fertilisers. They are finding it to be a healthier and more sustainable way to improve soil fertility and boost crop yields. Benedicta Nkirote, a farmer from Marurui in Meru county, swears by rabbit urine as an effective foliar fertiliser. Unlike conventional chemical fertilisers, rabbit urine…

[brandandbranch]

Plant Fertilizer

Boost your crops’ health and yield with BG-BIO 520, a premium liquid plant fertilizer designed for modern agriculture. Formulated with advanced nutrients, it promotes strong root development, faster growth, and higher productivity.

[gardenholic]

Best Use Organic Fertilizers and It's 3 Benifits for Gardening

Organic fertilizers are derived from plant, animal or mineral resources and are used to improve the health and productivity of soil and plants. They are a major component of organic gardening and farming. The importance of organic fertilizers in gardening lies in their many benefits: 1. Supply of Nutrients: Organic fertilizers provide essential nutrients to plants, including nitrogen,…

[wachinyeya]

When Stockholm’s Traffic Office conducted a general assessment of street traffic in the Swedish capital in 2001, it came to the shocking conclusion that two-thirds of all trees in the city center were dead or dying.

City authorities agreed that an urgent response was needed to nurse these leafy urban ecosystem pillars back to health.

Enter Björn Embrén, Stockholm’s first “tree officer.”

Under his leadership, various technologies and materials were tested in an attempt to create a more suitable living space for trees in the urban environment.

“I knew that they could grow if the circumstances were right,” says Embrén, a former professional gardener.

“It’s like putting a plastic bag over your head and tightening it over your neck,” says Embrén. “That’s what happened to the trees in Stockholm. They were dying.”

Eventually, inspired by railroad embankments — which require only a small amount of organic matter for healthy trees to grow — Embrén concocted what was to become known as the “Stockholm tree pit” model.

By 2002, Embrén had drawn up designs. And by 2003, they were already building.

The design involves digging a pit and constructing a frame underground around the tree’s roots, and then filling said pit with a mixture of soil and stone, sometimes including biochar, to both aerate and fertilize the soil. These permeable layers are very strong and physically adaptable but also allow stormwater to flow in, meaning the trees are provided with sufficient air and water naturally. They also allow rainwater to be soaked up — a necessity amid more extreme weather brought on by climate change.

“We found that the more breathable the materials we used, the happier the trees were,” adds Embrén.

Proponents say the method has a number of benefits, including the fact that pits can be installed around existing trees, they can bear the weight of heavy-vehicle traffic, they require little topsoil — a resource that is becoming scarce — and they need less watering than traditionally-planted trees.

This approach, which allows tree roots to thrive beneath hard surfacing, ergo allowing healthy trees to grow within the modern built environment, is particularly relevant as cities attempt to re-green and reforest in the face of climate change.

According to the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, urban forests can help “future-proof” cities, which are responsible for about 75 percent of global CO2 emissions. Sustainable urban forestry, it says, can bring multiple benefits, such as lowering temperatures, improving public health, creating habitats for biodiversity, sequestering carbon, generating green jobs, and mitigating risks of floods and landslides.

“It’s more important now than ever before,” says Ryan Klein, an assistant professor in the Department of Environmental Horticulture at the University of Florida. “We have these massive populations in urban areas. And we’re seeing more extreme weather like hurricanes, wildfires and prolonged droughts. Trees can help to offset some of these negative effects.”

However, amid the rush to rapidly reforest cities, experts like Klein warn that due to ineffective methods and techniques being used, it’s common to see urban trees in poor health, and trees planted in cities often have very high mortality rates.

“We have the understanding of how to grow healthier, more sustainable and resilient forests,” says Klein. “The research backs it. Unfortunately, we don’t always invest the time, money or internal know-how on implementing this.”

A review of 16 scientific studies on urban tree mortality, published in 2019, found that in the first five years after planting, 6.6 to 7 percent of trees died annually.

“Urban soils are not very tree-friendly currently,” says Rik De Vreese, leader of the Urban Forestry Team at the European Forestry Institute. “It’s quite a serious threat.”

When trees aren’t properly anchored, De Vreese adds, it can also lead to other issues, such as trunks falling over and causing damage or roots warping sidewalks.

However, the Stockholm Tree Pit method — and the way that it’s been implemented in Sweden — is helping urban forests genuinely take root.

One of the first locations where Embrén introduced a tree pit was Erik Dahlbergsallén street in Stockholm, not far from the popular Swedish Museum of Natural History.

There, according to research by the municipality, the circumference of a selection of those planted trees increased from 30 to 35 centimeters to 70 to 83 centimeters between 2004 and 2013, even surpassing that of trees without the tree pits that have been there for more than 80 years. The latest figures from 2024 saw them reach between 100 and 136 centimeters.

“It’s easy to see how effective the pits have been,” says Embrén.

The municipality estimates that 2.3 million liters of rainwater are managed by the trees per year, and consequently, 4,600 square meters of roofs and sidewalks have been disconnected from the sewage system, reducing the burden on water treatment services.

This technique has proven so successful that it has become the standard for all other development projects in the public spaces of Stockholm. Embrén says he has been directly involved in constructing more than 3,000 tree pits, and while he has since retired, there are now three “tree officers” who have taken on the expanding role. 

Britt-Marie Alvem, one of the current tree officers, estimates that the city now builds between 500 and 1,000 tree pits a year.

These days, the tree pits are also in almost every Swedish city — with a few variations.

“Some have copied and changed a little bit, like adding pumice to the stone mix,” says Embrén.

Stockholm’s tree pits are now spreading across Europe, too. In Budapest, Hungary’s capital, the tree pits can be found all over Bartók Béla Boulevard and Arany János Street. Embrén says the Spanish city of Madrid has implemented the method using local materials. And it’s become increasingly popular in the U.K.

Ben Rose, the principal arboricultural consultant at U.K. tree service Bosky Trees and the founder of Stockholm Tree Pits, a U.K.-based company that produces the equipment required to make tree pits, says that he has planted about 500 trees using the Stockholm model in the U.K. since he began in 2019, mostly as part of small-scale pilot projects.

“The approach is very suitable for use in urban situations, particularly in car parks, in plazas, and beside walkways or cycle paths,” says Rose.

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Yet there are some drawbacks to the system. Installation costs can be high, the pits can require a large amount of space to install, and it is impossible to reuse existing soil. In addition, for now there is a relative dearth of professionals who know how to construct tree pits.

“Our main concern is the price,” says De Vreese, whose team is currently studying the importance of “structural soils” like those deployed by the tree pits. “Excavating the soil surrounding the tree and refilling it is no small job.”

And while Professor Klein praises the Stockholm Tree Pit’s use of structural soil and how effective it’s proven to be, he notes that the long-term success of urban forestry also relies on other factors such as the supply of high quality nursery stock and proactive tree management such as routine pruning by municipalities.

“If we don’t have these we are setting ourselves up for failure,” he says. “Some cities do the bare minimum. In the U.S.A., it’s the wild west. But others, like Stockholm, are proactive, and they have public officials seriously behind it. That’s what we need.”

By: Peter Yeung, March 4, 2025

[reasonsforhope]

"Marginal improvements to agricultural soils around the world would store enough carbon to keep the world within 1.5C of global heating, new research suggests.

Farming techniques that improve long-term fertility and yields can also help to store more carbon in soils but are often ignored in favor of intensive techniques using large amounts of artificial fertilizer, much of it wasted, that can increase greenhouse gas emissions.

Using better farming techniques to store 1 percent more carbon in about half of the world’s agricultural soils would be enough to absorb about 31 gigatons of carbon dioxide a year, according to new data. That amount is not far off the 32 gigaton gap between current planned emissions reduction globally per year and the amount of carbon that must be cut by 2030 to stay within 1.5C.

The estimates were carried out by Jacqueline McGlade, the former chief scientist at the UN environment program and former executive director of the European Environment Agency. She found that storing more carbon in the top 30 centimeters of agricultural soils would be feasible in many regions where soils are currently degraded.

McGlade now leads a commercial organization that sells soil data to farmers. Downforce Technologies uses publicly available global data, satellite images, and lidar to assess in detail how much carbon is stored in soils, which can now be done down to the level of individual fields.

“Outside the farming sector, people do not understand how important soils are to the climate,” said McGlade. “Changing farming could make soils carbon negative, making them absorb carbon, and reducing the cost of farming.”

She said farmers could face a short-term cost while they changed their methods, away from the overuse of artificial fertilizer, but after a transition period of two to three years their yields would improve and their soils would be much healthier...

Arable farmers could sequester more carbon within their soils by changing their crop rotation, planting cover crops such as clover, or using direct drilling, which allows crops to be planted without the need for ploughing. Livestock farmers could improve their soils by growing more native grasses.

Hedgerows also help to sequester carbon in the soil, because they have large underground networks of mycorrhizal fungi and microbes that can extend meters into the field. Farmers have spent decades removing hedgerows to make intensive farming easier, but restoring them, and maintaining existing hedgerows, would improve biodiversity, reduce the erosion of topsoil, and help to stop harmful agricultural runoff, which is a key polluter of rivers."

-via The Grist, July 8, 2023

[probablyasocialecologist]

RPTU University of Kaiserslautern-Landau has shown for the first time, in a joint study with BOKU University, that permaculture brings about a significant improvement in biodiversity, soil quality and carbon storage. In view of the challenges of climate change and species extinction, this type of agriculture proved to be a real alternative to conventional cultivation—and reconcile environmental protection and high yields. Permaculture uses natural cycles and ecosystems as blueprint. Food is produced in an agricultural ecosystem that is as self-regulating, natural and diverse as possible. For example, livestock farming is integrated into the cultivation of crops or the diversity of beneficial organisms is promoted in order to avoid the use of mineral fertilizers or pesticides. In a study, published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, researchers from RPTU and BOKU have now, for the first time, comprehensively investigated the effects of this planning and management concept on the environment.

[...]

"Permaculture appears to be a much more ecologically sustainable alternative to industrial agriculture," said Julius Reiff . At the same time, the yields from permaculture are comparable to those of industrial agriculture, as the researchers' not yet published data shows. "In view of the challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss, the observed improvements would represent a real turnaround when applied to larger areas," says ecosystem analysis expert Martin Entling from RPTU.

4 July 2024

[cognitivejustice]

Learning from the land: Using indigenous knowledge for climate-sensitive circular lifestyles

Indigenous techniques like natural resource renewal, tree-based farming, traditional mud-and-wood housing, and consuming local, uncultivated foods, can address some aspects of climate change and also bring about a sense of responsibility and connection with nature. Promoting agroforestry and integrating trees into farms can improve biodiversity and soil health. Adopting drought-resistant crops and traditional methods like rainwater harvesting, mulching, and using organic manure is vital for conserving moisture, enhancing soil fertility, and minimising external inputs. Building on these approaches, there is a powerful social dimension that further amplifies their impact.

But before proposing viable solutions, we need meticulous landscape mapping: understanding community environments, traditional knowledge systems, and specific vulnerabilities. Fully understanding these dimensions can pinpoint exact strategies to reduce our ecological footprint, and promote lifestyles that minimise electricity consumption and resource use, while drawing on ancient wisdom to enhance our modern lives.

[ts-wicked-wonders]

1. George Washington Carver (1864–1943):

An agricultural chemist, Carver developed alternative farming methods and is best known for his work with peanuts, introducing crop rotation techniques to improve soil fertility.

2. Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson (b. 1946):

A theoretical physicist, Dr. Jackson was the first African-American woman to earn a doctorate from MIT. Her research in physics led to advancements in telecommunications, including developments in caller ID and fiber-optic cables.

3. Katherine Johnson (1918–2020):

A mathematician whose calculations of orbital mechanics were critical to the success of U.S. crewed spaceflights, including John Glenn’s orbital mission in 1962. Her story gained widespread recognition through the book and film “Hidden Figures.”

4. Dr. Gladys West (b. 1930):

A mathematician whose work on satellite geodesy models was instrumental in the development of the Global Positioning System (GPS).

5. Roy L. Clay Sr. (1929–2024):

Known as the “Godfather of Silicon Valley,” Clay was a computer scientist who led the team that developed Hewlett-Packard’s first minicomputer and was instrumental in breaking racial barriers in the tech industry.

6. Dr. Mae Jemison (b. 1956):

A physician and NASA astronaut, Dr. Jemison became the first African-American woman to travel in space aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour in 1992.

7. Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson (b. 1958):

An astrophysicist and science communicator, Dr. Tyson has made significant contributions to the public’s understanding of space and science through his work at the Hayden Planetarium and various media appearances.

8. Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett (b. 1986):

An immunologist who played a leading role in the development of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, contributing to the fight against the global pandemic.

9. Dr. Daniel Hale Williams (1856–1931):

A pioneering surgeon, Dr. Williams performed one of the first successful open-heart surgeries in 1893. He also founded Provident Hospital in Chicago, the first non-segregated hospital in the United States.

10. Dr. Patricia Bath (1942–2019):

An ophthalmologist and inventor, Dr. Bath was the first African American woman to receive a medical patent. She invented the Laserphaco Probe, a device used to treat cataracts, significantly advancing eye surgery.

11. Dr. Charles Drew (1904–1950):

A physician and medical researcher, Dr. Drew developed improved techniques for blood storage and organized large-scale blood banks during World War II, saving countless lives. He was also the first African American to earn a Doctor of Medical Science degree from Columbia University.

12. Dr. James E. West (b. 1931):

An acoustician and inventor, Dr. West co-invented the electret microphone, a device used in approximately 90% of modern microphones, including those in telephones and hearing aids. He holds over 250 patents and has been a strong advocate for diversity in STEM fields.

13. Dr. Thomas Mensah (1950–2024):

A chemical engineer, Dr. Mensah made significant contributions to the development of fiber optic technology, which revolutionized telecommunications. He held 14 patents and was inducted into the National Academy of Inventors in 2015.

14. Marian Croak (b. 1955):

A computer scientist, Croak pioneered Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology, enabling voice communication over the internet. She holds over 200 patents and was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2022.

15. Dr. David Blackwell (1919–2010):

A renowned mathematician and statistician, Dr. Blackwell was the first African American inducted into the National Academy of Sciences. He made significant contributions to game theory, probability theory, and information theory.

These individuals represent just a few of the many Black pioneers who have made groundbreaking contributions to science and technology. Their work continues to inspire future generations in STEM fields.

[bharatvarsh22]

The Importance of Soil Health in Organic Farming: Tips for Soil Management

In the world of organic farming, soil health is of utmost importance. Organic farmers understand that healthy soil is the foundation for a successful and sustainable farm. Soil that is rich in nutrients, microorganisms, and organic matter creates an ideal environment for plants to thrive and resist diseases and pests. However, maintaining soil health in organic farming requires careful and strategic soil management practices.

In this article, we will delve into the importance of soil health in organic farming and provide valuable tips for effective soil management. Whether you are an experienced organic farmer or just starting out, these tips will help you optimize your soil for optimal plant growth and yield. From incorporating organic amendments and compost to practicing crop rotation and cover cropping, we will cover a range of techniques to enhance soil fertility and structure.

Join us as we explore the key role soil health plays in organic farming and learn practical strategies for maintaining and improving the health of your soil. Together, we can nurture the earth and cultivate bountiful harvests in harmony with nature.

Continue Reading: https://bharatvarshnaturefarms.com/soil-health-in-organic-farming/

[americangrove]

79 Carolinian: Figures in the Land

I was startled by the rapaciousness of the passenger next to me, the way he leaned into his takeout food assuring every crumb of chip, shred of cheese and grain of rice was devoured. The remnant container, spent wrappers and stained tissues he balled up, compacted into one, and put to the side. He swept off his seat tray. He took out his laptop. Then he turned his appetite to his work. He leaned into a slide presentation of circles, some red some blue. In each he added pictures of politicians who seemed to fit as well inside either circle as his food had in its packaging. I thought to get into a similar mood: lean in, engage, consume, move on. But I could not—so often I halt, detour, rest, ponder, backtrack as if these were the main moves of my work, which in a way they are because what I work on does the same. Even at a steady 52 miles per hour landscape halts outside the window. All only seems to veer towards abstraction but I see the many figures along the way that leap into stillness and in the half seconds that I see them they are overlaid with decades…

—in a vanishing midground a wolf tree’s outspread arms catch me as they stay raised in resistance to the forest of sticks arising around it. It is the only remnant of a house and field that once were there. In the spot (already out of sight) I can see the dream of an 1868 article from the Southern Cultivator, “Our Home”, which urged its readers to “develop the aesthetic” of a homeplace by “spar[ing] the trees” close to the house and organizing them—“We want large trees to overtower, or lead diminishing groups—to stand out singly to wave their strong arms in the winds, and break out the broad sun-light of heaven.” The tree still waves, but the broad-light of heaven lessens around it a little more each year. 

—miles down the track an abandoned farmhouse still stands intact, surrounded by working fields which that house’s family once owned but long since sold to a larger operation. Imagining the generation or two that tried to hold onto that land I think about an essay in the 1852 issue of the Southern Quarterly Review whose writer hoped that “under the improved systems of agriculture” old worn lands “might become quite as valuable as the virgin soil, which is now for the first time, relieved from the shadows of the primeval forest, by the axe of the sturdy pioneer.” And these new “improved systems” of farming (fertilizers, crop rotation, etc.,) did make it possible for farmers to stay on the land rather than just exhaust it and move to “virgin soil” but only for a while longer before the land was exhausted again and then the next “improved systems” of farming (tractors, better fertilizers, pesticides) came but was too expensive for a small holder to implement so they sold.

And many such other “figures” arose along the way: a fire behind a trailer seemed a remnant of Southern burn culture only slowly reigniting these days, a plantation of loblolly stood firm where longleaf once presided and floating in the canals that run beside the rails are the voices of so many calls to drain land that despite such efforts still fill with water. 

I have taken the 79 Carolinian from Washington DC to North Carolina about once if not twice a month since fall. And still the journey does not get old. Still my neck hurts when I disembark at Rocky Mount because I turned my head so much from window to book, window to screen, window to my hands as my sight, my learning, and my life all shift the flow of the journey into something other than A to B, start to finish, even something more than a stable figure ground distinction, for on my next journey what stood out to me prior may very likely recede as something else, a background before comes toward me next and makes me halt awhile in a moment of understanding this land.

[gardeningloverfamily]

🥥🥥What’s your favorite organic fertilizer recipe?

🥥 My Favorite Organic Fertilizer Recipe Secret:

One of my favorite organic fertilizer recipes is Banana Peel and Coffee Grounds Fertilizer. It’s easy to make, full of essential nutrients, and great for vegetables, houseplants, and flowers.

🥄 Ingredients:

🍌 2-3 banana peels (potassium and phosphorus)

☕ 1 cup used coffee grounds (nitrogen)

🧂 1 tablespoon Epsom salt (magnesium)

💧 Water (enough to fill a 1-liter container) 🛠 Instructions: 1️⃣ Cut the banana peels into small pieces. 2️⃣ Combine the peels, coffee grounds, and Epsom salt in a blender. 3️⃣ Add water and blend until smooth. 4️⃣ Use immediately or store the mixture for up to a week in a sealed container. 5️⃣ Apply it to your plants by pouring the mixture around the base once every 2-3 weeks.

This recipe feeds your plants organically while improving soil health. It’s ideal for those seeking eco-friendly and chemical-free gardening solutions.

🌱 Boost your garden naturally with this easy-to-make organic fertilizer recipe using banana peels, coffee grounds, and Epsom salt. Perfect for healthy vegetables, houseplants, and flowers!

[farmerstrend]

A Comprehensive Farming Guide on Tomato Fertilization

Tomato farming in Kenya is one of the most profitable agricultural crops due to the growing demand for tomatoes in both local and international markets. With the country’s population expanding, the consumption of tomatoes, a staple in Kenyan dishes, has increased, making it a viable option for many farmers looking to diversify their farming activities. Kenya’s climate is suitable for tomato…

[brandandbranch]

Grow Nutrients

BG Bio520 Grow Nutrients provide a balanced formula for optimal plant growth. Rich in essential minerals, it enhances root development, boosts yield, and ensures vibrant, healthy plants. Ideal for hydroponics and soil-based farming, it’s the key to thriving crops!

https://www.scribd.com/document/799221060/Liquid-Plant-Fertilizer-BG-Bio520