Role of soil physical, chemical and biological properties for soil health improvement and sustainable agriculture

Abstract

Soil health refers to the ecological equilibrium and the functionality of a soil and its capacity to maintain a well balanced ecosystem with high biodiversity and productivity. Soil health as a tool for sustainability, physical, chemical, and biological properties. Among the physical indicators, soil texture, aggregation, moisture, porosity, and bulk density have been extensively used, while among chemical indica¬tors soil pH, total C and N, mineral nutrients, organic matter, cation exchange capacity and biological ones such as microbial biomass C and N, biodiversity, soil enzymes, soil respira¬tion, etc., in addition to macro and meso-fauna play a major role in maintenance of soil health. Many human activities have caused desertification, loss of biodiversity, disruption of aggregates, loss of organic matter and nutrients. It is imperious to maintain soil health and productivity with increasing emphasis on reforestation and recovery of degraded areas through the use of organic amendments, reintroduction of plants, soil fauna and microorganisms.