Organic mulch
Mulching means covering the soil. For example, we can cover the ground with agricultural waste, and cover crops, and plastic sheets. Agriculture waste and cover crops are organic mulch.
- Agriculture waste: Paddy straw, wheat straw, sugar cane straw, cattle feed waste, etc.
- Cover crops: soya bean, green gram, black gram, main legumes with small height.
Mulching by organic matter is possible in plantation crops and UHDP. Therefore, organic mulch is very beneficial to plantation crops.
Organic mulch maintains soil temperature as required by the root zone. During cold weather, it increases soil temperature, and during summer, it reduces soil temperature. Organic mulch retains soil moisture and avoids evaporation losses. Organic mulch controls weed growth and hence labor use efficiency.
Green manure crops
Sun hemp, dhencha, green gram, glyrecedia, and Green manure crops are incorporated into the soil at the flowering stage. At this stage, it contains maximum nutrition and maximum organic matter. Green manure crops are sown to improve soil fertility. By planting green manure crops, we can prepare tons of organic matter in the field itself. It helps to strengthen the C: N ratio of soil.
Benefits of green manure crops
- Conserve soil moisture.
- Suppress weed growth.
- Improve organic carbon and the fertility of the soil.
C: N Ratio
however, Agriculture and horticulture plantations mean nothing but helping plants to rotate the carbon cycle. Carbon is a natural resource available in the air in the form of gas. The leaves of plants absorb carbon from the air, and by the process of photosynthesis, it converts into carbohydrates in liquid form.
Plants uptake water and minerals with the help of roots. Minerals are many more. So, Nitrogen is one of the minerals which converts into an amino acid that is proteins. The ratio of these two minerals is called C: N ratio.
In conclusion, When plant parts like leaf foliage fall into the soil, it gets decomposed, and carbon is released in solid form.
Carbon in the air is in gas form; it is in liquid form, and soil is in solid form in the plant. Nature makes these changes in the form of carbon with the help of plants. This change in the state of carbon is called the carbon cycle.
The organic carbon of soil should be a minimum of 2 percent, and C: N ratio should be 2:3. Such types of soil are good fertile and productive soils.
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