User:Be.cereus/Regenerative agriculture

Regenerative Agriculture - Draft

Regenerative agriculture

Lead

Goal: Expand the Nutrient Cycling section in Regenerative Agriculture.

Why? The section does not properly explain what nutrient cycling entails such as the impact of farming practices and microbial activities on SOM which promotes nutrient cycling.

Nutrient Cycling

Nutrient cycling is a vital aspect of regenerative agriculture, essential for maintaining soil fertility and enhancing crop yield. This process involves the conversion of nitrogen into various forms as it moves through the environment, including soil, plants, air, and water . In agroecosystems, which refer to plant and animal communities and their interactions with various aspects of their surroundings, nutrient cycling is crucial in determining how efficiently plants use nitrogen for growth and how much nitrogen is lost to the environment . An essential component of nutrient cycling is soil organic matter (SOM), which serves as the primary reservoir for major soil nutrients, such as nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus. SOM supports plant growth by gradually releasing nutrients required for root development, microbial activity, and overall soil structure .

Changes made:

• I condensed the introduction, avoided repetition and redundancy.
• I combined small sentences into compound ones to improve the reading flow.
• I explained what the aim of this writing was, which is to rewrite just the nutrient cycling sub-section, and not the entire environmental impacts section.
• Removed excess linking

Soil Microbiome and its role in Nutrient Cycling

The soil microbiome which consist of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms play an essential role in nutrient cycling by decomposing organic matter and releasing essential nutrients for plant growth . Their activities are needed for decomposition and mineralization processes, which help to transform complex organic compounds into simpler forms that plants can absorb . In nitrogen cycling, nitrogen-fixing bacteria convert organic nitrogen into ammonium (NH₄⁺), which is then converted into nitrate (NO₃⁻) by nitrifying bacteria . While both ammonium and nitrate are important for plant growth, nitrate is the most preferred for many plants due to its mobility, less toxicity, and efficient transport systems. Ammonium is also a great alternative as it is more readily assimilated once inside the plant, it can cause toxicity if taken up in excess . Environmental conditions such as soil pH, and nutrient availability play major roles in determining which form of nitrogen is absorbed first . Soil microbes also play a key role in phosphorus cycling, helping to dissolve phosphorus from organic material for plant availability . A diverse microbial community also helps to prevent soil-borne diseases and reduces the need for synthetic fertilizers .

Changes made:

• I moved the section on soil microbiome up before discussing farming practices.
• I explained what the nitrogen cycling process is.
• Removed excess linking and explained what happens when ammonium and nitrate are both present in the soil.
• I changed the starting sentence.

Impact of Farming Practices on Nutrient Cycling: Conventional vs Regenerative

Conventional farming disrupts nutrient cycling by using practices like tillage, which breaks down soil structure, reduces soil organic matter (SOM), and negatively impacts the overall soil health . Conventional practices lead to reduced crop yields, increased reliance on synthetic fertilizers, and environmental problems like nutrient runoff and water pollution . Over-reliance on synthetic fertilizers depletes soil health by favoring the growth of certain microorganisms over others, thereby reducing microbial diversity, organic matter decomposition, leading to soil degradation . In contrast, regenerative agriculture promotes practices that enhance soil health and nutrient cycling . These practices include reduced tillage which helps to preserve SOM, the use of organic fertilizers such as compost for soil enrichment, incorporating regenerative livestock management, practicing crop rotation with leguminous plants like soybean to promote nitrogen fixation that occurs from the symbiotic relationship between nitrogen-fixing bacteria and the root nodules . Integrating livestock into cropping systems has been shown to improve nutrient cycling as animal manure enriches the soil and promotes microbial diversity . Cover cropping is another practice that helps to prevent erosion, leading to healthier and more resilient soils .

Changes made:

• I differentiated between conventional and regenerative practices and also linked this to nutrient cycling.
• I edited the titles to align with the bigger picture and adjusted their sizes.
• I used Wikipedia’s linking for the key terms that I used in the article.
• Removed excess linking

References

1. ^ Tully, Kate; Ryals, Rebecca (2017). "Nutrient cycling in agroecosystems: Balancing food and environmental objectives". Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems. 41 (7): 761–798. doi:10.1080/21683565.2017.1336149. ISSN 2168-3565.
2. ^ Ball, B. C.; Bingham, I.; Rees, R. M.; Watson, C. A.; Litterick, A. (2005). "The role of crop rotations in determining soil structure and crop growth conditions". Canadian Journal of Soil Science. 85 (5): 557–577. doi:10.4141/S04-078. ISSN 0008-4271.
3. ^ Bhattacharyya, Siddhartha Shankar; Ros, Gerard H.; Furtak, Karolina; Iqbal, Hafiz M. N.; Parra-Saldívar, Roberto (2022). "Soil carbon sequestration – An interplay between soil microbial community and soil organic matter dynamics". Science of The Total Environment. 815: 152928. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.152928. ISSN 0048-9697.
4. ^ Kraut-Cohen, Judith; Zolti, Avihai; Shaltiel-Harpaz, Liora; Argaman, Eli; Rabinovich, Rachel; Green, Stefan J.; Minz, Dror (2020). "Effects of tillage practices on soil microbiome and agricultural parameters". Science of The Total Environment. 705: 135791. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135791. ISSN 0048-9697.
5. ^ Allam, M.; Radicetti, E.; Quintarelli, V.; Petroselli, V.; Marinari, S.; Mancinelli, R. (2022-04). "Influence of Organic and Mineral Fertilizers on Soil Organic Carbon and Crop Productivity under Different Tillage Systems: A Meta-Analysis". Agriculture. 12 (4): 464. doi:10.3390/agriculture12040464. ISSN 2077-0472.
6. ^ Suyal, Deep Chandra; Soni, Ravindra; Singh, Dhananjay Kumar; Goel, Reeta (2021). "Microbiome change of agricultural soil under organic farming practices". Biologia. 76 (4): 1315–1325. doi:10.2478/s11756-021-00680-6. ISSN 1336-9563.
7. ^ Ashworth, A. J.; Owens, P. R.; Allen, F. L. (2020). "Long-term cropping systems management influences soil strength and nutrient cycling". Geoderma. 361: 114062. doi:10.1016/j.geoderma.2019.114062. ISSN 0016-7061.
8. ^ Kim, Nakian; Zabaloy, María C.; Guan, Kaiyu; Villamil, María B. (2020). "Do cover crops benefit soil microbiome? A meta-analysis of current research". Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 142: 107701. doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2019.107701. ISSN 0038-0717.
9. ^ Szostek, Małgorzata; Szpunar-Krok, Ewa; Pawlak, Renata; Stanek-Tarkowska, Jadwiga; Ilek, Anna (2022-01). "Effect of Different Tillage Systems on Soil Organic Carbon and Enzymatic Activity". Agronomy. 12 (1): 208. doi:10.3390/agronomy12010208. ISSN 2073-4395.
10. ^ Prommer, Judith; Walker, Tom W. N.; Wanek, Wolfgang; Braun, Judith; Zezula, David; Hu, Yuntao; Hofhansl, Florian; Richter, Andreas (2020-02). "Increased microbial growth, biomass, and turnover drive soil organic carbon accumulation at higher plant diversity". Global Change Biology. 26 (2): 669–681. doi:10.1111/gcb.14777. ISSN 1354-1013.