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Effects of Agriculture on environment
Essay on the topic importance of fertilizer in agriculture
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With the population expected to grow there is more of a demand for food and other goods, which come from agriculture. Farmers depend on the land to reap the benefits of what can be grown in the soil. Although it is important to produce as much as possible there is also a fine line between what is produced and the amount of the soil will be depleted. Famers and agriculturists will have to work harder then ever in the future to maintain the equilibrium between yields and conservation. The ecosystem of nutrients in the soil is very fragile and if farmers are not careful they will harm the ecosystem, which will cause farmers to loose yields and the world to loose its resources. Nutrient management is important to the future of agriculture because responsible nutrient management helps produce more crops to support the world. There are many factors that go into proper nutrient management.
Fertilizers
Fertilizers are at the forefront of nutrient management because they affect the plants ability to grow and produce seeds. Fertilizers are defined as a chemical or natural substance added to soil to increase the fertility. Many crucial plants nutrients are added to soil through fertilizers. Some of the most crucial nutrients are nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulfur. Stout (1990) explains, “nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium have traditionally been the main concern for the fertilizer energy and are known as primary nutrients”(pg. 153). Nitrogen is the most important of these as it directly affects the plants ability to grow, as plants are dependent on the amount of nitrogen in the soil. Phosphorus is a vital so the plant can convert the suns energy into food, feed, and fiber and as well plays a key role of photosynthesis. Potassium...
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...ut, B.A., Handbook of Energy for World Agriculture. Retrieved from http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=JcdAAQAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=the+importance+of+fertilizer+in+agriculture&ots=gBe14ajSxH&sig=OBXvUhwGOrF17UJeb-naHZLsH1k#v=onepage&q=the%20importance%20of%20fertilizer%20i n%20agriculture&f=false
Swedrynska, D., Makecka, I., Bleckarczyk, A., Swedryzynski, A., Starzyk, J., (2013). Effects of various long-term tillage systems on some chemical and biological properties of soil. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies. Vol. 22 (6). Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=92702290&site=ehost-live
Tilman D., Cassman, K.G., Matson P.A., Naylor, R., Polasky, S., (2002). Agriculture sustainability and intensive production practices. Nature. Vol. 418. Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v418/n6898/pdf/nature01014.pdf
For years farmers have been adding natural fertilizers to their crops. It is a big risk though. Over fertilizing is very dangerous. It puts high concentrations of salt into the soil. It can also affect the water resources nearby. Nitrogen, Phosphate, and Potassium are the basics of fertilizer. If a certain nutrient is short in supply the fertilizer might not work as well. Calcium, iron, manganese are also nutrients that might be needed. So don’t just trust the fertilizer bag that says it has all the nutrients, test it out. (Miller and Levine 717)
Tilman, David, Kenneth G. Cassman, Pamela A. Matson, Rosamond Naylor, and Stephen Polasky. "Agricultural Sustainability and Intensive Production Practices : Article : Nature." Nature 418 (2002). Nature Publishing Group : Science Journals, Jobs, and Information. Web. 31 Nov. 2011.
By exploring the past and its threats to human populations, the global modern mythology of sustainable agriculture can begin to be narrowed down as to the how and why rural communities may or may not have benefited from agricultural sustainability. By describing the dynamic analysis in the livelihoods of developing countries, the historical changes that had occurred in rural communities, can be understood. Halberg and Müller stated that globally “The world’s population was about 7 billion in 2010 and is expected to grow much more. The expected growth is highest in parts of the world that are vulnerable to hunger and adverse climate condit...
Traditional agriculture requires massive forest and grassland removal to obtain land necessary to farm on. Deforestation and overgrazing has caused erosion flooding, and enabled the expansion of deserts. But with drainage systems, leveling, and irrigation provided by the Green Rev, all this terra deforming will unlikely happen again. We can retain clean air and lessen the global warming effect caused by deforestation.Many people argue that a revamp in agriculture will be way too expensive and unrealistic especially for those poor farmers in third world countries. However many times, they exaggerate the price.
Dr. Jules Pretty, of the University of Essex defines agricultural sustainability as ‘”farming that makes the best use of nature’s goods and services while not damaging the environment. Sustainable farming does this by integrating natural processes, such as nutrient cycling, nitrogen fixation, soil regeneration and natural pest control, within food production processes. It also minimizes the use of nonrenewable inputs that damage the environment or harm the health of farmers and consumers.” Of course, saying that policies are unsustainable seems opinionated but, according to the definition and Gold’s statements in his report, we can boldly say that some policies aren’t sustainable. Livestock production has become the largest user of agricultural land and in results damages some of the environment.
“With today’s successful commercial agriculture, one U.S. farmer produces enough food to feed 155 people and is the leading producer of more than 50 foods of importance to diets throughout the world (Farming).” Just from doing the math if one farmer can feed 155 people by 2050 when the population is predicted to be 9.3 billion it would take 60 million farmers to feed everyone. David Pimentell says the solution for farmers to produce more food would be to have more farm land and put in wells and irrigation sprinklers. The most important nutrient to plants, animals, and humans is water. So by adding wells and irrigation sprinklers to fields and replacing dry land fields farmers can produce more food the only down fall would be the cost and the use of water.
As the global population continues to rise, the amount of food needed to feed the people will increase as well. Two types of agriculture systems have been the backbone for crop production for decades if not centuries: conventional and organic agriculture— both methods could not be any more different. Conventional agriculture, a method that uses synthetic chemical pesticides, technologies or additives, and practices that are unsustainable is the leading producer for our food. On the other side of spectrum, organic agriculture generally, performed in a much smaller scale, does not use synthetic chemicals and utilize methods that are environmentally sound. Most conventional
Farmers apply nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, manure, and potassium in the form of fertilizers to produce a better product for the consumers. When these sources exceed the plants needs or if these nutrients are applied before a heavy rain then the opportunity for these excess to wash into aquatic ecosystems exists.
2009) due to their small scale and full scale components, vitamins, chemicals and hormones (Makulec 2002). Vermicomposts contain supplements, for example, nitrates, replaceable phosphorus, solvent potassium, calcium, and magnesium in plant accessible structures (Orozco et al. 1996; Edwards 1998). Take-up of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and magnesium (Mg) by rice (Oryza sativa) yield was most highest when compost was connected in blend with vermicompost (Jadhav et al. 1997). N take-up by edge gourd (Luffa acutangula) was higher when the manure blend contained half vermicompost (Sreenivas et al. 2000). Aside from giving mineralogical supplements, vermicomposts likewise add to the natural richness by including gainful microorganisms to soil Adding vermicasts to soil enhances soil structure, richness, plant development and stifles infections brought about by soil-borne plant pathogens and consequently expands the harvest yield (Chaoui et al. 2002; Scheuerell et al. 2005; Singh et al. 2008). Kale (1995) announced the supplement status of vermicomposts with natural carbon 9.15-17.98%, add up to nitrogen 0.5-1.5%, accessible phosphorus 0.1-0.3%, accessible potassium 0.15%, calcium and magnesium 22.70-70 mg/100 g, copper 2–9.3 ppm, zinc 5.7-11.5 ppm and accessible sulfur 128–548 ppm. Impacts of an assortment of vermicomposts on a
Sustainable agriculture integrates three main goals--environmental health, economic profitability, and social and economic equity. A variety of philosophies, policies and practices have contributed to these goals. People in many different capacities, from farmers to consumers, have shared this vision and contributed to it.
Agriculture is one of the most ancient forms of art and science that ties human development and well-being to natural resources and ecosystems. (Fritz J. Häni, 2007) Sustainable Agriculture is the production of food, fibre, plant and animal products using farming techniques that protect the environment, public health, human communities and animal welfare. (Sustainable Agriculture - The Basics, 2015) Sustainable agriculture is an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site – specific application that over the long term will:
Today agriculture is the livelihood of most poor underdeveloped nations. This communal life blood provides a majority of the population with a source of employment, nourishment and income. It is considered to be an invaluable skill, that is taught down from generation to generation along with a sense of respect for the environment. However as a nation begins to undergo development, so do their food production systems. The country's newfound development causes significant restructuring of their agricultural production practices. This restructuring leads to poor environmental practices, and adverse agriculture methods. Increased economic development/production negatively affects a country's environmental and agricultural health.
Intensive agriculture has large manufacturing inputs, including the use of chemical pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, selective breeding, research new varieties and a high degree of mechanization. Output products used primarily commercial purposes, as goods sold on the market or export. The activities on the intensive agricultural production is an effort to find ways to source the highest financial income from grain, products made from grain or livestock .......
The philosophy of agriculture to live harmony with nature is deeply rooted in ancient agriculture and still practiced in India, China and the Andes. Organic agriculture reflects this philosophy, but the recent history of concepts such as organic, bio dynamic, natural farming and other related concepts, can be traced back to early in the 20th century. Conventional agriculture differ from organic farming in terms of usage of chemical fertilizers which increase the nutrient of the soil, usage of genetically modified seeds for better crop production as well as the use of antibiotics and hormones in animal farming. In Malaysia, the major agriculture crop productions are rice, fruits and vegetables (including palm oil production). China is in the first ranking for agriculture sector followed by India and United States of America. Since organic farming is practiced by many countries, without further ado, let’s take a look on how it can affect the environment and its implementation.
Haruna. U. Nasira. M. Umar. M.B. Sustainability Issues and Nigeria’s Agricultural Paradigm, Agricultural Economics and Extension Programme, Abuakar Tafawa Bawela University, PMB 0248, Bauchi, Nigeria. Department of Agricultural Technology, Jigawa State College of Agriculture, PMB 01, Hadejia State, Nigeria