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Soil Health – A Precondition for Crop Production

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Microbial Strategies for Crop Improvement

Abstract

Soil health is an assessment of ability of a soil to meet its range of ecosystem functions appropriate to its environment. Soil health is generally used to measure the competence of soil to sustain plant and animal productivity, determine structural and functional diversity of microbes, maintain or enhance water and air quality, and support human health and habitation. Direct assessment of such parameters is a herculean task. As biological attributes are indicators of soil health, they are used for the diagnosis of soil heath. A comprehensive methodology integrating those indicators for soil health diagnosis is discussed. Further, the impact of soil health on crop production, quality improvement, production sustenance, and human, animal and environmental health is reviewed and discussed. In addition, the influence of soil management practices, like tillage, application of pesticides, fertilization, organic amendments, etc., on soil health is discussed. Inclusion of farmers and their experiences in the whole exercise of soil research are advocated for development of handy and farmer-friendly soil diagnosis protocols.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Kalyani, 741235, Nadia, West Bengal, India

    Niharendu Saha & Biswapati Mandal

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  1. Niharendu Saha
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  2. Biswapati Mandal
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Correspondence to Niharendu Saha .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Fac. Agricultural Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, 202002, India

    Mohammad Saghir Khan

  2. Fac. Agricultural Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, 202002, India

    Almas Zaidi

  3. Fac. Agricultural Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, 202002, India

    Javed Musarrat

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Saha, N., Mandal, B. (2009). Soil Health – A Precondition for Crop Production. In: Khan, M., Zaidi, A., Musarrat, J. (eds) Microbial Strategies for Crop Improvement. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-01979-1_8

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