List five methods of sustainable agriculture affecting soil, fertilizer, livestock, herbicides, pesticides, water, and/or energy.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Soil:
• Rotating crops increases nitrogen in the soil so there is less need to use fertilizers.

• Using appropriate plowing methods reduces soil erosion and problems caused by weeds and pests.

• Using cover crops, crop rotation, no-till planting, contour planting, ridge till, mulch, terraces, and grass strips conserves both soil and water.

Fertilizer:

• Reducing the use of fertilizers and using livestock manure more effectively lowers costs.

• Planting cover crops, such as legumes, after harvest restores nutrients and reduces erosion.

• Composting all plant residues not harvested into the soil improves its nutrient content and water-holding capacity.

Livestock:

• Feeding livestock or buffalo on the open range allows their manure to fertilize the ground.

• Collecting feedlot animals’ manure enables it to be used as fertilizer or treated before it is released.

• Maintaining animals’ health can prevent disease.

Herbicide/pesticide:

• Using crop rotations, cover crops, and mechanical cultivation can control weeds.

• Using resistant crops and rotating crops foils pests that lay their eggs in the soil where last year’s crop was grown.

• Using biological controls such as predators can destroy pests.

Water:

• Irrigating only during dry spells and applying only spot irrigation conserves water.

Energy:

• Using renewable energy technologies such as hydroelectric, biomass, photovoltaics, wind power, solar thermal, geothermal, biogas, and methanol conserves resources.

• Using machinery scaled to the job at hand, and operating it at efficient speeds conserves energy.

• Combining operations such as harrowing, planting, and fertilizing in the same operation conserves energy.