SOILS & SUBSTRATES

The soil is the basis for a good yield and quality of crops.
The chemical, biological and physical properties of the soil determine the conditions to enable plant growth: the availability of nutrients, water and air, but also the suppression of plant diseases.

A soil that is in good condition allows crops to grow more easily and will produce more and better crops.

Soil improvement measures, and in particular organic matter management and prevention / elimination of structural problems, requires an investment in the short term, but in the long term these measures will recoup.

PH & Acidity

The pH or acidity is a fixed component of the soil analysis.
At a pH value of less than 5, the plant can absorb fewer nutrients. This gives lower yields and quality loss. The most sensitive elements are nitrogen, phosphate, potassium, magnesium, sulfur and calcium. This can lead to deficiency symptoms.

A high pH (pH-KCl> 7) limits the availability of certain nutrients, such as manganese. For good growth it is essential to keep the pH at an optimal level, on most soils between 6 and 7.

Organic Matter

Organic matter plays a central role in soil quality and influences chemical, physical and biological soil parameters. The quality of the organic matter is determined, among other things, by the carbon (C) total content. The higher the percentage of C, the older, blacker and more stable the organic matter. Such C-rich organic matter contributes to the moisture-retaining capacity of the soil, but is of no meaning for the soil life.

Soil Life

Soil quality is regarded as the integrated whole of biological, chemical and physical properties and processes in a soil. Biological soil quality largely comes down to functional agro-biodiversity. The generally valid hypothesis is that a healthy soil has a high functional agrobiodiversity. Loss of agro biodiversity poses a threat to many functions of the soil such as crop production, soil structure formation, nutrient supply and water management. In a teaspoon of fertile soil there are more organisms than there are people on earth.

Organic Matter & Humus

Fresh organic material comes in the form of crop residues, organic fertilizers or compost in the soil. It is partly degraded by the soil life there. The young organic matter is the not yet completely digested organic matter that has been added to the soil in the form of crop residues, roots and organic fertilizer. The fraction of easily degradable substance digests quickly. In this process, nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphate and sulfur are released for absorption by the crop.

Organic Matter & Humus

The fraction of organic matter that is still present in the soil long after application is called the effective organic substance (EOS). The amount of effective organic matter varies greatly: compost has a high proportion of effective organic matter, because it has already been partially converted during the composting process. Digests of plant remains contain the highest amounts of effective organic matter.

In the degradation of organic matter, a number of substances remain that can laboriously convert soil life, such as lignin and phenols. In addition, the soil life forms new products that are difficult to break down. This process of the conversion of fresh organic material into stable organic matter is called humification. The humification coefficient is the ratio between the amount of effective organic matter and fresh organic matter. These stable compounds together form the humus, which due to its negative charge plays an important role in binding positively charged nutrients such as calcium, magnesium, potassium and sodium.