Organic farming is a modern, sustainable form of agriculture that provides consumers with fresh, natural farm products. It works in harmony with nature rather than against it. There is growing interest among farmers and consumers in food grown without synthetic pesticides and inorganic fertilizers. As a result, organic agriculture is receiving increased attention, and organic food markets are expanding rapidly worldwide.
Nutrient Management Challenges and Solutions
Developing production technology, especially nutrient management strategies for organic farming, is essential. Organic farming is crucial for achieving higher yields, economic returns, and maintaining soil health. Most organic manures are low in nutrient content and insufficient to meet crop nutritional requirements, mainly when inorganic fertilizers are not used. Enriching organic manure and compost with permitted natural additives like rock phosphate and beneficial microorganisms is a viable option for nutrient supplementation in organic food production.
Microbial Enrichment for Better Manure
Microbial enrichment techniques with bio-inoculants have improved compost quality. Enriching organic manure with beneficial microbial cultures enhances nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) content through nitrogen fixation and phosphate solubilization. Thus, enriched organic manure and its combinations provide an ideal nutrition strategy for crops. It is possible to increase the nitrogen content of compost by inoculating it with nitrogen-fixing organisms and the phosphorus content by inoculating it with phosphate-solubilizing bacteria. Improved manures will play a significant role in organic farming due to their simple and easy production methods.
If you are interested to explore more concerning Organic farming, read the relevant article: Key Practices for effective Nutrient Management in Organic Farming
In recent years, the production of organically cultivated crops has increased. After learning about the health benefits and importance of food grown without industrial pesticides or artificial fertilizers, many consumers are willing to pay a premium price for it (Mikkelsen, 2000). Organic farming systems depend on soil health to function. Nutrient management is a key factor in maintaining soil health and has become one of the most critical challenges for organic farmers. Proper management of nutrients, soil structure, and soil biology guarantees improved agronomic yields and healthy animals. Incompetent management can result in reduced yields, animal health problems, and increased pollution (Shepherd & Rayns, 2006).
There is a need for better management of all important nutrients to ensure sustainable agriculture and maintain necessary improvements in food production while reducing waste, economic loss, and environmental repercussions (Goulding et al., 2008). Organic farming is more dependent on individual site conditions than other types of agriculture. Hence, it has combined the best-adapted nutrient management strategies for organic cultivation (Köpke, 1995). Chemical fertilizer imbalances have resulted in numerous environmental and health issues. The declining state of soil fertility in Nepalese soils is one of the most critical crop production issues. Many restrictions arise from soil fertility status affecting agricultural commodity cultivation. Therefore, proper research into the best nutritional management practices in organic farming is essential to ensure the long-term sustainability of soil fertility and productivity without harming the environment (Kafle et al., 2019).
References
- Kafle, K., Shriwastav, C. P., & Marasini, M. (2019). Influence of integrated nutrient management practices on soil properties and yield of potato (Solanum tuberosum L) in an Inceptisol of Khajura, Banke. International Journal of Applied Sciences and Biotechnology, 7(3), 365–369. https://doi.org/10.3126/ijasbt.v7i3.25134
- Goulding, K., Jarvis, S., & Whitmore, A. (2008). Optimizing nutrient management for farm systems. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 363(1491), 667–680. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2007.2177
- Köpke, U. (1995). Nutrient management in organic farming systems: The case of nitrogen. Biological Agriculture and Horticulture, 11(1–4), 15–29. https://doi.org/10.1080/01448765.1995.9754690
- Mikkelsen, R. L. (2000). Nutrient management for organic farming: A case study. Journal of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Education, 29(1), 88–92. https://doi.org/10.2134/jnrlse.2000.0088
- Shepherd, M. A., & Rayns, F. (2006). Funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). January. https://doi.org/10.13140/2.1.3331.9684
