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Natural farming is about keeping the long-term health of the soil in mind. Soil health is an active state or condition in which soil functions as a vital living ecosystem, enhancing plant, animal, and human health. Healthy soil has a good balance of minerals, organic matter, and moisture. With life processes occurring constantly, it has many complementary internal resources that allow it to be less reliant on external inputs. Natural farming helps to build this soil health, so that many years down the line, soil is in good health without being weakened by prolonged input redundancy. Regular tillage, which turns the soil over and breaks up the mycorrhizal fungi that connect the plants, is unnecessary in natural farming. We do not till. When we encourage life in the soil, it produces better soil heading towards fertility. Feeding the soil is the goal of natural farming. Ensuring robust health in the soil will, in turn, produce healthy plants, and by extension, a nutritious offering of produce. Soil health is a critical factor for natural farming. In every action we take to improve the health of the soil, we are addressing a component of healthy farming and being kind to the land. Soil health is the foundation of natural farming. The following sections detail the importance of organic matter, the role of microorganisms, water conservation, and preparation of natural inputs. By understanding these facts, we can truly understand soil health. Commercial inputs like pesticides, herbicides, and chemical fertilizers cost money. Natural farming aims to avoid the profit-zapping reliance on these costly inputs. Healthy soil produces hardy crops; strong plants do not get sick. Kept at their peak of health, strong, lifefilled soils have a congress of life in their root zones, providing steady food and balance to crops. There are no external inputs constantly taxing the health of these crops. By tending to the farm as a living system, soils and plants are helped to be as healthy as possible, of their own accord.

Soil is a dynamic, vital living natural resource. Soil health is the condition of the soil and its potential to sustain biological functions, maintain environmental quality, and promote plant and animal health. It is qualitative trait of soil. Healthy soil is the foundation for profitable, productive, and environment friendly agricultural systems.

SOIL WATER

Soil water and oxygen share the pore space in soil and generally the oxygen content is determined by the water content, which is added by irrigation or rains and then keeps on changing due to evapotranspiration. Water is the vehicle by which most nutrients move from the soil to root surface. But for the lowland rice, nutrients are most available to plants at ?eld capacity moisture (about 0.3 atmosphere soil water tension) and the availability decreases as the moisture content decreases to wilting point (about 15 atmosphere tension). That is why rainwater or irrigation increases nutrient availability, while extremely dry condition decreases it. There is thus a signi?cant interaction between water and nutrient availability in soil (Singh et al., 2014). In a study in India (Singh et al., 1980) the yield of wheat was signi?cantly affected by irrigation water and nitrogen treatments; maximum yield was obtained with irrigation at 50% available soil water in 60 cm soil depth and 120 kg ha ^–1 nitrogen addition. A study on wheat at Delhi (Kumar et al., 2015) very well shows the effect of irrigation water on yield and uptake of nutrients (NPK) (Table 5.1).

Genesis of Soil

World’s geography is very widely diversified in relief showing various features like mountains and hills covered with snow and trees, glaciers, higher altitudes to plain to lowest valleys, forests to barren lands, fertile fields to waste lands, plateaus, deltas, swamps, lowlands, deserts etc. Temperature varies from arctic cold to scorching hot of equator, Rainfall from aridity to per humidity. All these situations and conditions under different sets of combinations generate and develop numerous types of soil from a single type of parent material. Therefore, many types of soils may develop at a smaller area.

Physical, chemical and biological weathering processes disintegrate and decompose various rocks and minerals to make asymmetrical soil parent material. This parent material is converted in to the soil profile by soil forming processes in the presence of soil forming factors. Soil genesis is defined as mode of formation of the soil from the parent material due to the action of soil forming factors and processes. Parent material, Factors of soil formation and Processes of soil formation, are three main part of soil genesis. These are described here:

1. Parent Material,

2. Classification of parent material,

3. Factors of soil formation,

4. Processes of soil formation,

5. Types of soil forming processes.

Soil is a biologically active porous medium that has developed in the uppermost layer of the earth’s crust which serves as a natural medium for the growth of plants. It is one of the principal substrata of life on earth, serving as a reservoir of water and nutrients, and as a participant in the cycling of carbon and other elements through the global ecosystem.

Introduction

Soil management refers to a set of practices and strategies employed by farmers and land managers to maintain, improve, and sustain the health, fertility, and productivity of soil in agricultural systems. It encompasses a range of activities aimed at optimizing soil conditions for crop growth while minimizing environmental degradation. Soil management practices include soil testing to assess nutrient levels and pH, the application of fertilizers and soil amendments to correct deficiencies, erosion control measures to prevent soil loss, and conservation practices to enhance soil structure and health. Additionally, soil management involves the integration of organic matter, such as compost and crop residues, to enhance soil fertility and microbial activity. The overarching goal of soil management is to ensure the long-term sustainability of agricultural systems by preserving soil health, supporting crop productivity, and minimizing environmental impacts.

Method of Soil Management 1

. Soil Testing and Analysis: Soil testing and analysis play a pivotal role in soil management for agricultural crops, providing farmers with critical information about soil health, fertility, and nutrient status. By understanding the composition of their soil, farmers can make informed decisions about fertilization, soil amendments, and crop selection to optimize yields and minimize environmental impacts. For example, soil testing can reveal deficiencies or excesses of essential nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, enabling farmers to tailor their fertilizer applications accordingly. If a soil test indicates low levels of phosphorus, for instance, farmers can apply phosphorus-rich fertilizers to replenish the nutrient and support healthy crop growth. Conversely, if soil pH is too high or too low, amendments such as lime or sulphur can be applied to adjust pH levels and create optimal growing conditions for crops.

Introduction Soil management in horticultural crops refers to the deliberate and systematic approach of caring for soil to optimize its health, fertility, structure, and overall quality to support the growth and development of horticultural plants. It involves a range of practices aimed at preserving and enhancing soil resources, including soil testing, nutrient management, irrigation scheduling, erosion control, and organic matter addition. The goal of soil management in horticultural crops is to create and maintain an environment in which plants can thrive, maximizing crop yields, quality, and sustainability while minimizing environmental impacts such as soil erosion, nutrient runoff, and soil degradation. By implementing effective soil management strategies, horticultural growers can ensure the long-term productivity and viability of their farming operations, while also promoting soil health and resilience in agricultural ecosystems.

Current Soil Conditions

A study conducted in 2016 over 75 fields revealed that soil compaction was present in 70% of annual crops and 60% of perennial crops. Most of the soils used for both annual and perennial cropping were in a moderate condition. However, the soil condition for established crops was improved by performing cultivations before planting. Nevertheless, some soil formations exhibited instability, especially on soils with a lighter texture and a low content of organic matter. The majority of soil cultivations successfully alleviated compaction, however some cultivations had little impact or even exacerbated compaction due to spreading, puddling, or compression when performed in damp or wet field conditions. Tillage pans may greatly diminish productivity and overall efficiency of production by impeding drainage and root development. Approximately 60% of fields cultivating annual crops and 50% of areas cultivating perennial crops had a well-established tillage pan. Approximately 10% of fields underwent deep cultivation without any evidence of soil compaction, indicating a lack of consideration for soil conditions and the need for subsoiling. The abundance of earthworms in the topsoil may serve as a valuable measure of soil health, and is primarily influenced by the intensity of farming practices and the presence, nutritional value, and consistency of earthworm food sources. Earthworm populations exhibited a general scarcity in both annual and perennial crops, while they were relatively more plentiful in areas with ample crop waste and apple orchards. The regular tilling of the soil is believed to be a significant contributing factor to the very low population of earthworms found in places where crops are grown every year. Fields that had a mustard cover crop reported the greatest populations of earthworms.

Carbon is found in all living organisms and is the major building block for life on earth. It exists in many forms, predominantly as plant biomass, soil organic matter, and as the gas CO₂ in the atmosphere and dissolved in sea water. Carbon cycles globally among five distinct pools among which the largest oceanic poolis estimated at 38000 Pg (Pg= petagram =1x10¹⁵g=billion tonnes) and is increasingat the rate of 2.3 Pg C yr^-1 (Fig. 1). The geological C pool, comprising fossil fuels, is estimated at 4130 Pg, pedologic, estimated at 2500 Pg to 1m depth, atmospheric pool comprising 760 Pg of C with nearly all of it as CO₂, and the smallest among theglobal C pools is the biotic pool estimated at 560 Pg. The pedologic and biotic C pools together are called the terrestrial C pool estimated at approximately 2860 Pg.

1. Introduction
As climate change advances, risk of managing soil and atmosphere with regard to emission and pollution is going out of hand. Many researches and reports say that currently the global warming is 1.1°C more than the pre-industrial levels, which is not far behind the target of 1.5°C which was agreed by nations under the Paris agreement in 2015 (Janki M, 2023). Achieving that will likely involve removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. But strategies like capturing and storing the carbon emissions from biofuel-burning power plants, or planting new forests to absorb carbon, can create their own problems. Recently UN security general said we are shifting to the “Era of global boiling” from global warming. Globally countries are witnessing unbearable heat waves, forest fires, irregular rainfall, flashfloods, coral bleaching and unpredictable weather patterns which often resulting in devastating effects on the coastal and hilly regions of the country. Around nine tipping points have been identified so far globally. Climate tipping points are threshold that when crossed leads to irreversible changes in the climate system and will have a severe impact on the living organisms on the earth. All these variations in climate are driving by increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and global warming. We cannot change the state of atmosphere to as existed thousands or millions of years ago. Only option left with us is to reduce emissions and prevention of further global warming and climate change. As we are already existing in some level of changed climate, responding to climate change involves a two-pronged approach, reducing emissions of and stabilizing the levels of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere through mitigation and secondly, adapting to the climate change. Because climate change is irreversible process.

Is it possible to feed a world population projected to reach 8.5 billion by 2030, 9.7 billion by 2050 and exceed 11 billion in 2100? India expected to surpass China as the most populous country in the world within seven years (UN report July 2015). Besides that there is an immense decline in yield and quality over the past three decades may be at the point of diminishing returns (Bouis 1993; Cassman et al. 1995; Flinn and De Datta 1984). Furthermore, the soil is partially under tremendous pressure to sustain yield and production. The excessive and exhaustive agriculture practices have not only declined the soil quality but it’s also reported for different human and animal health issues. Thus, keeping pace with population growth and health safety appropriate soil management practices must be addressed. Now burgeoning population load, declining yield, soil health diminution, and effect on human and animal health arises the opportunity for sustainable soil management to cater the problem at the right time. Figure 1 clearly indicates the tremendous load on soil and subsequent results. Burgeoning increase in population and a load of food production intensification, sustainable soil management will become increasingly important in future. Soil being the powerhouse of the mineral nutrients also retains most living organisms within it. The appropriate soil management practices ensure the critical level of mineral elements which finally come into the human body.

Soil mechanics as a distinct branch of soil science is comparatively of recent growth. Its need arose from the fact that the requirements of the engineer are very often quite different from those of the agriculturist. Whereas the former would as a rule require hard, compact, impervious soil, the latter would have no use for it for the growth of his plants which require soft, friable and porous soil. The agriculturist generally has to look up to nature to help him out of his difficulties, the engineer has to depend on his scientific skill to modify the soil to suit his requirements. In this chapter an attempt will be made to explain in a simple language the requirements of the building, road, and irrigation engineer for particular types of soils and how they are met by modifying the soil if the required properties already do not exist.

Soil is the largest terrestrial ecosystem where a wide variety of relationships exists between different types of soil organisms. The associations existing between different soil microorganisms, whether of a symbiotic or antagonistic nature, influence the activities of microorganisms in the soil. Microflora composition of any habitat is governed by the biological equilibrium created by the associations and interactions of all individuals found in the community. In soil, many microorganisms live in close proximity and interact among them-selves in a different ways. Some of the interactions or associations are mutually beneficial, or mutually detrimental or neutral.

Introduction

Soil is a complex system consisting of physical, chemical and biological components. These components dynamically interact making it functional to sustain life. All life forms rely on soil microbial processes for their survival. Microbial diversity in the soil is greater than the diversity of any other group of organisms existing in the earth. Microbes as inhabitant of soil are responsible for diverse metabolic functions that affect soil and plant health (Table 1).

Abstract

The traditional forage production systems and grazing lands are under extreme pressure due to the population growth of both human and livestock, decreasing area and inputs. In the central India, especially the Bundelkhand region, the soil is highly weathered, degraded and have low inherent nutrient, which was further worsened due to use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, for enhancing crop production to meet the escalating demand of the population.

Introduction

Microorganisms generally present in all the environments are the most abundant and diverse living organisms present on earth. Microorganisms have great impact on the biosphere due to their inbuilt ability to transform the key elements of life into forms usable by other organisms and plants. Because of heterogeneity in nature of soils from variations in physical, chemical and biological properties the various natural habitat are microbially most diverse environments on the earth maintaining the stability between complex microbial communities and their function (Daniel 2005). One gram of soil contains about 10 billion microorganisms of possibly thousands of different species but microbial diversity in general, and particularly in extreme environments, and its role in ecology is poorly understood (Rossello-Mora and Amann 2001).

Deserts present a unique environment with very little precipitation and large variations in day and night temperatures, making it inhospitable environment for living organisms. Still a number of microbial species do survive in those harsh environments. The populations of aerobic bacteria in deserts across the world are reported to vary from < 10 in Atacama desert to 1.6 × 10⁷ cfu g^–1 in soils of Nevada (Skujnis 1984), and India is not exception to that with the bacterial population in the range of 1.0 × 10³ to 8.35 × 10⁶ cfu g^–1 sediment or ml^–1 water in the samples collected from cold deserts of north western Himalayas (Yadav et al. 2015).

Soil is a living entity having dynamic physico-chemical and biological properties. Besides supporting the growth of various biological communities, it also serves as a medium on which the organic residues, in the form of dead plant and animal or their excretions, are degraded and decomposed. The biological properties to soil are endowed through the interactive activities of plant root, soil microbes and soil animals. The soil organisms live in a constant state of competition and have to struggle hard for their survival. In this struggle some species become dominant and some remain sub-dominant and others perish or remain in very low profile. So a sort of dynamic equilibrium is the net result of wide range of interactions occurring both at organism and population levels amongst different components of soil biota. Many interactions are short-lived and sporadic and others are more stable.

Soil is inhabited by incredibly diverse living microorganisms that are significant to plant growth and development. Soil microorganisms produce a variety of metabolites, probably several thousands, which influence the plant growth either positively or negatively. Therefore, in such a complex situation, identification of any one metabolite or a compound as active phytohormone or phytotoxin is really an uphill task. Appropriate extraction procedure, knowledge about the proper site for its action, appropriate conducive physiological environment and the effective intensity or concentration is of prime importance. Compounds, in general, are inhibitory to growth at higher concentrations but usually stimulatory at lower concentrations. All growth regulators, irrespective of their provenance or structure, may be divided into two groups.

Definition : Soil microbiology is the study of microorganisms living in soil which complete whole or some part of their life cycle in soil. They include both beneficial as well as deleterious microorganisms but as a specialized branch main thrust is laid on their metabolic activities and the role they play in energy flow, cycling of nutrients associated with the primary productivity and soil ecosystem development. Besides, it focuses on environmental impact, whether favourable or unfavourable, on soil microorganisms and the various soil biochemical processes mediated by various microbes. A clear understanding of the interactions between soil microbial communities and elemental soil components is imperative to comprehend total ecosystem function. Atlas and Bartha have defined the soil microbiology as ‘the study of organisms that live in soil; their metabolic activity; their roles in energy flow; their roles in nutrient cycling’. As per Tate soil microbiology involves ‘the study of soil ecosystem which is the product of intricate interactions between physical and chemical matrix of highly variable composition and living communities of all form’.

1. Amoeba are unicellular organisms that feed on

a. Bacteria and algae     b. Bacteria and fungi

c. Fungi and algae        d. Nematode and fungi