Conservation Agriculture - Key Principles

Key Principles

The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has determined that CA has three key principles that producers (farmers) can proceed through in order to do the process of CA. These three principles outline what conservationists and producers believe can be done to conserve what we use for a longer period of time.

The first key principle in CA is practicing minimum mechanical soil disturbance which is essential to maintaining minerals within the soil, stopping erosion, and preventing water loss from occurring within the soil. In the past agriculture has looked at soil tillage as a main process in the introduction of new crops to an area. It was believed that tilling the soil would increase fertility within the soil through mineralization* that takes place in the soil. Also tilling of soil can cause severe erosion and crusting of soils which will lead to a decrease in soil fertility. Today tillage is seen as a way as destroying organic matter that can be provided within the soil cover. No-till farming has caught on as a process that can save soils organic levels for a longer period of time, and still allow the soil to be productive for longer periods of time (FAO 2007). Also with the process of tilling cause the time and labor for producing that crop.

If no-till practices were being done then the producer would see a reduction in production cost for a certain crop because they no longer are tilling the ground. Tillage of the ground would require the farmer more money due to the fact of fuel for tractors or feed for the animals pulling the plough in order to till the ground. Also the producer would see a reduction in labor; this would be because the producer does not have to be in the fields as long as they would if he/she was a conventional farmer.

The second key principle in CA is much like the first principle in dealing with protecting the soil. The principle of managing the top soil to create a permanent organic soil cover can allow for growth of organisms within the soil structure. This growth will break down the mulch that is left on the soil surface. The breaking down of this mulch will produce a high organic matter level which will act as a fertilizer for the soil surface. If the practices of CA were being done for many years and enough organic matter was being built up at the surface, then a layer of mulch would start to form. This layer would help in preventing soil erosion from taking place and ruining the soils profile or layout.

In the article “The role of conservation agriculture and sustainable agriculture” the layer of mulch that is built up over time will start to become like a buffer zone between soil and mulch that will help reduce wind and water erosion. Also, with this, comes the protection of a soils surface when rain is in the process of falling to the ground. Rainfall on land that is not protected by a layer of mulch is left open to the elements of being impacted directly by the rain. But when soils are covered under a layer of mulch, the ground is protected in a way so that the ground is not directly impacted by rainfall (Hobbs et al. 2007). This type of ground cover would also help in keeping both the temperature and moisture levels of the soil at a higher level rather than if it was tilled every year (FAO 2007).

The third and final principle that is exercised by the FAO is the practice of crop rotation with more than two crop species. According to an article published in the Physiological Transactions of the Royal Society called “The role of conservation agriculture and sustainable agriculture” crop rotation can be used best as a “disease control” against other preferred crops (Hobbs et al. 2007). This process will not allow pests such as insects and weeds to be set into a rotation with specific crops. Rotational crops will act as a natural insecticide and herbicide against specific crops. Not allowing insects or weeds to establish a pattern within fields will help to eliminate problems with yield reduction and infestations within fields (FAO 2007). Crop rotation can also help build up a soils infrastructure. Establishing crops in a rotation allows for an extensive build up of rooting zones which will allow for better water infiltration (Hobbs et al. 2007).

The breakdown of organic mollecules in the soil into phosphates, nitrates and all the other "ates" which are then in a form which plants can utilize. Plowing increases the amount of oxygen in the soil and increases the aerobic processes, hastening the breakdown of organic material. Thus more nutrients are available for the next crop but at the same time, the soil is depleted more quickly of its nutrient reserves.