India’s agrarian distress: Can we revive our fatigued soils

Intensive cultivation and improper nutrient replenishment have affected soil fertility. Stagnating or declining yields are the telltales

World Soil Day: Preserving and restoring soil health is crucial for a prosperous and sustainable future

With pressing population needs and greed, soil productivity is consistently decreasing

Potassium in our soil is running low, threatening global food security – new study proposes a way out

A proposal for a resolution on potassium at a future United Nations environment assembly holds the key to intergovernmental action

World Soil Day: A third of it is degraded. Here’s the solution countries should adopt

Soil erosion mitigation through the application of sustainable soil management is critical for protecting our soil

Black soil in red: Climate change threatens world’s food basket

FAO report finds most black soils moderate to severely eroded due to land-use change, unsustainable practices 

‘Deficiency in micronutrients in soil linked to health of children and women’

Districts with an increased proportion of soil zinc samples had significantly lower rates of child stunting and underweight

Soil matters

Unhealthy soil leads to unhealthy children. India needs to improve soil micronutrients not just to increase crop productivity, but also to …

How nutrient-deficient are Indian soils?

Nitrogen deficiency in 90% samples in 27 states and UTs

Study zeroes in on target plant hormone to improve potassium deficiency in rice

Plants deficient in Potassium more susceptible to salt, drought, chilling and other stresses

Soil microbiomes should be included in One Health goals: Study

Ignoring soil microbiomes and their role may lead to pandemics

Beyond conservation, why our natural ecosystems need restoration

Significant strides have been made in both the science and practice of restoration over the last three decades, with specialisation across …

Where does the water go during a drought? Germany researchers try to find out

Researchers examined how the process of evaporation and groundwater recharge differed under various kinds of soils and land uses

Deficiency in micronutrients in soil linked to health of children and women

Districts with more soil zinc samples had significantly lower rates of underweight children and child stunting

Grazing animals play key role in maintaining soil carbon health: Study

Grazing by mammalian herbivores can be a climate mitigation strategy

An epic global study of moss reveals it is far more vital to Earth’s ecosystems than we knew

They are likely to play increasingly important roles as vascular plants decline under predicted hotter, drier & more variable global climates

Biodiversity loss could be making us sick – here’s why

Promoting connections with nature — including the microbes many of us currently shun — should be a key part of …

India has lost over 1,500 sq km of land to ‘catastrophic’ soil erosion

New research finds Assam the worst affected, lost close to 300 square kilometres of topsoil

World Desertification Day 2023: Granting equal land rights to women can reduce world hunger significantly, says UN

Removing legal barriers to women owning land will help with soil health protection, notes United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification

How balanced soil nutrient management can save Indian agriculture

The ill-effects of imbalanced application of fertilisers — which leads to soil sickness, decline in soil health and reduces crop …

Seeding happy, cleaning air: Farmers adopting non-burn tech give hope

Several Indian states are experimenting with Happy Seeder that cuts and lifts the paddy straw and also improves soil health

Micro-irrigation: The way ahead for sustainable agriculture

In the age of climate change and water scarcity, micro-irrigation can help increase crop yield and decrease water, fertiliser and labour …

Tractors can change farming in good ways and bad: lessons from four African countries

Insights from 87 villages reveal transformative power of agricultural mechanisation, but there are challenges too — like soil erosion, …

The forgotten environmental crisis: How 20th century settler writers foreshadowed the Anthropocene

Almost a century ago, New Zealand and Australia were at the forefront of an environmental crisis that was also profoundly geological in nature: …

Soil mapping in sub-Saharan Africa for better use of fertilisers, improving food security

UN's FAO to digitally map soil nutrients in central American countries too

Soil carbon sequestration may help fight climate change

New agriculture modelling study shows atmospheric carbon dioxide can be captured, stored in soil