-- Control Pests without Harmful Chemicals

Garden and household pests - unwanted insects, including flies, mosquitoes, fleas, cockroaches, termites, and moths, and intruders like mice and rats - are annoying, destructive, and potentially harmful to the health of humans and pets. But the use of chemical toxins to control these pests is a problem - who knows what some of these chemicals themselves can do to the health of our family members?

Luckily, there are ways to combat these invaders without resorting to potentially poisonous chemicals. Essentially, there are four approaches to pest control; used in combination they can go a long way to eliminating insects and rodents from one's home and outdoor environment.

First, make sure you're not creating the conditions that invite these pests onto your property. Standing water attracts mosquitoes; take a walk through your property and make sure you don't have bowls of water, discarded tires, and other receptacles that can contain rain water. If you find them, get rid of them. Poorly stored food and stray crumbs can attract ants, roaches, and mice. Keep your food stored in airtight containers, wipe down counters, tables, etc., and sweep the floor frequently, discarding the refuse and removing in from the house.

Secondly, provide barriers, either physical or biological, to repel insects and rodents. Properly maintained and installed screens on windows and doors will help block flies and mosquitoes from the home. Simple to use, nontoxic home remedies can repel insects; for instance a brew of catnip tea, sprayed in a solution around cupboards, baseboards, and other areas, particularly in the kitchen and bathroom, can repel cockroaches.

Third, you can add beneficial insects and other organisms to your environment. Adding ladybugs to gardens has been a natural remedy for years: ladybugs just love aphids, and will eat them before the tiny insects can ruin your growing plants. (Some people go so far as to add a gecko or two to their homes; geckos eat cockroaches, and will help keep an infestation under control; you'd have to make up your mind if you really want to live in the same house or apartment with a couple free ranging lizards. If you have small boys, chances are they'll be thrilled!)

Finally, if all else fails, there are compounds, safe to humans with normal use, but deadly to pests, that will eliminate some insects for good. To rid your home of cockroaches, for instance, put containers of boric acid behind counters, in the backs of cupboards, in shelves, and other areas that cockroaches frequent; they'll eat the boric acid and return to their nests, carrying more boric acid with them; the boric acid will kill them and the other inhabitants of their nests. (Make sure you keep the boric acids away from children and pets.)

There are also nontoxic, natural preparations sold commercially which can be used to repel or eliminate pests without adversely impacting your home environment. In short, there are many natural, safe options for eliminating pests that you can use to make sure your home is a comfortable, enjoyable environment for your family, not for unwanted guests.


Author: Aldene Fredenburg
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-- Easy Ways to Save Energy

With this fall's spike in oil and natural gas prices and the further impact Hurricane Katrina will have on this winter's heating oil supplies, it's become more important than ever to make sure our homes are as energy-efficient as possible.

Luckily, there are a number of easy, inexpensive ways to button up your home for winter. Numerous cost-efficient products on the market for your windows and doors will go a long way toward preserving the heat you generate with your heating system.

Make sure your windows and doors are tight. Self-stick foam weather-stripping at the tops and bottom of windows, as well as across the separation between the top and bottom halves of the window, will block out drafts. Additionally, clear plastic, secured to the window frame with double-sided sticky tape, will also block out drafts and create an air barrier between the window and you.

Additional weather-stripping around all four edges of doors will also help to block out the cold. Also, don't forget your water heater! You can buy inexpensive padding to wrap around the unit itself, and sturdy foam insulation for all the pipes.

The way you furnish your home can add to your level of comfort this winter. Thick, insulated drapes will cut back on drafts from windows; wall to wall carpeting will cut back on drafts from cold air coming in from gaps between walls and floors; both wall to wall carpeting and thick area rugs will retain heat and add to your comfort.

Believe it or not, you can lose heat through the switch plates and wall plugs in your outer walls. Another inexpensive product will solve that problem; for three or four dollars you can buy insulated pads to install behind the plates. Simply remove the switch plate, pop in the appropriate padding, and screw the switch plate back on. A single package contains insulated pads suitable for single and double on-off switch plates and two-plug outlets.

Experiment with the way you dress and see if you can turn the thermostat down and still be comfortable. Wear warm fleece; keep your feet warm with thick socks and shoes or fuzzy slippers; even consider wearing a hat indoors. You should be able to turn the thermostat down to at least 68 degrees and still be comfortable. If you have an alternate source of heat - a wood, corn or pellet buring stove - consider using it as a primary source of heat.

If you have thermostats in each room, you may want to consider shutting off the heat in unused rooms, or at least lowering the thermostat in those rooms to 55 degrees. If this is an option, be sure to put weather-stripping around the doors to the unheated rooms.

If you're really strapped for funds, don't hesitate to call your local human services agencies to find out if you can qualify for home heating assistance. As a taxpayer, you've undoubtedly been supporting all kinds of social programs for years, or even decades; don't let embarrassment prevent you from getting help when you need it. Adequate heating isn't a luxury, it's a necessity.

If you take careful stock of the heating problems in your home and take a few simple measures to solve those problems, you should be able to minimize the impact rising fuel prices will have on your winter heating budget. Keep warm!

Related Articles - cost-efficient heating products, weather stripping,

Author: Aldene Fredenburg
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-- Lawn Weeds - How You Can Beat Them!

Sometimes it seems as though everything is out to thwart your desire to have that beautiful, healthy, green carpet of lawn. Despite your efforts it is still patchy, brown and attacked by weeds. But don’t give up. It may not be too late.

Most gardeners don’t mind the odd weed as long as the lawn still looks pretty good. However remember that the odd weed in spring could be a large infestation by midsummer if you don’t deal with it. If you mow the lawn once a week you will remove most of the flower stems before they can set seeds. However, many of the lawn weeds grow flat and do not produce flowers on long stems, so these will still flower and set seeds no matter how often you mow. Other methods are needed to treat these weeds. Remember, the earlier you attack the weeds the better as “One year’s seeding makes for seven years weeding!”

The best way to keep your lawn looking great is to keep the grass plants healthy, and then they are less likely to let weeds and pests take over. So first of all take care of the basic needs of your lawn.

If a lot of weeds pop up it could mean that your grass is weaker than it should be. If your lawn is too dry, start with a thorough watering – to a depth of 200mm is recommended. Deep watering done less often is better for your lawn grass than if you water a little and often. It helps it to develop a strong, deep root system that makes the plants stronger and less susceptible to drought. Or alternatively, if you have a persistent problem with a waterlogged lawn you may need to consider laying drainage for which you should consult a professional. Feeding your lawn with the appropriate nutrients will also make the grass stronger.

In spite of trying to make your grass plants as healthy as possible, you are still sure to get some weeds growing in it. Weeding is an ongoing process, but shouldn’t take much time once you establish a healthy lawn. Grass, and especially the modern mixtures, is very competitive and crowds out most weeds. In a healthy lawn weeds aren’t usually much to worry about. Simply pull up any weeds that show up. As you see weeds appearing, dig them up and you’ll keep your lawn weedless with a minimum of effort. Practically speaking though, you will only do this if you have only a few weeds to remove. Constant vigilance is the key to success with this type of weed control.

If your weed problem is larger, spray individual weeds with a low-toxicity herbicide. Don’t spray the entire lawn unless you have weeds throughout it. You will damage, and could kill dry, dormant or stressed grass if you apply a lawn weeder over the whole lawn. Lawn weedkillers are powerful chemicals and you should always follow the manufacturers instructions for preparation, using, storing and disposing of them. Never use more than directed or ‘add a bit more just in case’. You should also identify the sort of grass you have as some types can be damaged by MCPA and dicamba, which are the active ingredients in many weedkillers. Be careful not to allow pets or children near the lawn if you’ve recently sprayed it.

The best way to minimise the amount of chemicals you use is to spot-treat weeds. Use a pump-action sprayer and walk backwards, up and down the length of the lawn spraying a shot of chemical onto each weed. Hold the nozzle as close as you can to the weed and release with a low pressure to minimise spray drift. It does take longer to do this way but it is more thorough and better for the environment. If you tip a bottle of red food colouring or add some wetting agent into the mix, it is easier to see where you have already sprayed.

After a couple of weeks you’ll be seeing results. If there are still a few weeds you’ve missed, dig them out or do the spot treatment again. Remember if you can kill the weeds before they flower and seed, you’re a long way towards having a much smaller problem next spring.

Occasionally you may find a nasty, particularly virulent weed takes over your lawn in which case you need to find out the specific treatment for it from your local garden centre. An example of this is Soliva, also known as lawn burweed, spurweed, bindii, or onehunga weed. It is low growing, has feathery leaves and produces seeds with a short spine on them, which stick into bare feet when you walk on the plants, a particularly unpleasant experience. Although it is only an annual weed it seeds profusely, and its method of spreading by

sticking to feet is extremely successful. It requires a targeted weed killer to be applied at a particular time of the year to be effective against it.

‘Weed and Feed’ products are not generally recommended. For instance, the best time for spraying weeds is not generally the best time for fertilizing your lawn. Also it is unwise to spray unnecessary herbicide over your whole lawn when only a small patch may be infected with weeds. One concern with the hose-on products is spray drifting onto surrounding shrubs. It’s hard to apply these products just to the lawn. Applying fertilizer, herbicide and pesticide where and when it is needed is a better lawn care strategy.

So even if your lawn is less than perfect now, don’t give up. Follow these tips for getting rid of lawn weeds now, and by this time next year you may have all your neighbours asking you for advice!

About the Author

Ellen Smithies has 25 years experience with lawn care and has just released a new information packed guide to great lawns "50 Basic Lawn Care Tips". It’s absolutely FREE. Claim your copy from this link: http://www.lawnsworld.com/freestuff.html

Author: Ben Galt
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-- Gum Removal in Land Terminals

One of the most disgusting things is sitting down in a train or bus terminal to wait for your conveyance in comfort, only to discover that you have sat right on top of a wad of gum. This very problem, as well as other similar problems, is what makes gum removal in land terminals so important. Not only is it messy and unsightly to see wads of gum stuck to walls and encountered under seats, but it can also be the cause of public health issues. Gum removal in land terminals is important not only for the aesthetic value of an area, but also for the health implications.

Chewing gum is everywhere. Even in the very land terminals that experience chewing gum pollution, chewing gum machines dispense gum almost constantly. This means that there is a ready supply of the gum. And when it becomes stale, it is discarded by the chewer. And while there are receptacles ready to take care of the nuisance, many people thoughtlessly stick their chewing gum to a wall or under a seat. Gum removal in land terminals can help reduce the nuisance, and it helps make the terminals less of breeding grounds for germs.

How gum removal in land terminals impact public health

Every wad of chewing gum has the germs, located in the saliva, of whoever chewed it. Therefore, where chewing gum soiling is present there are also plenty of germs crawling around on the surface of the gum. Not only that, but the sticky nature of chewing gum allows it to trap dirt and other small particles from the air, meaning that it makes such areas even dirtier. And germs and dirt lead to disease. Gum removal in land terminals is a matter of public health, even when those terminals are privately owned.

The problem with gum removal in land terminals is the amount of gum present. This means that many cleaning supplies are needed for proper gum removal. Commercial cleaners can be rather expensive, as can some other commercial remedies, such as aerosol freezing solutions. And using an ice cube really is not all that practical. Plus, a great deal of work is still involved in scraping the gum free from its anchorage.

In order to make the removal of gum go much more smoothly, one needs something that goes beyond traditional chewing gum removers. And that is what a special solution called Gum-Out does. Gum-Out, which has been on the market for 20 years, is a major contribution to cleaning technology. Gum-Out release agent is applied by a special plastic injector and breaks the bond between the gum and the surface to which it is stuck. Its unique technique removes gum with relative ease, and is fairly inexpensive. It is available at http://www.chewing-gum-removal.com, and it can make the task of gum removal in terminals much easier. Each bottle of Gum-Out if used as directed will remove up to 125 lumps of chewing gum.

Author: J ONeal
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-- Satellite TV Service -- Is DIRECTV or DISH Network Better?

Since the demise of Pegasus and VOOM, there are just two satellite TV service providers battling it out for the top spot -- DIRECTV and DISH Network.

Both companies provide excellent service, all-digital broadcast quality, and great customer service. The main difference between the two companies is the programming they provide.

How Satellite TV Service Works

Satellite TV providers such as DIRECTV and DISH Network send a broadcast signal carrying television programming to a satellite orbiting above the earth. The Satellite then broadcasts the signal back down to earth.

This signal is picked up by a satellite TV dish then transmitted to a receiver where it is amplified and sent to a TV screen.

Benefits of Satellite TV Service

* Satellite TV is broadcast in all-digital format, providing the highest quality picture and sound available.

* Satellite TV gives you access to hundreds of different programs, pay-per-view movies, special events, and commercial-free music channels.

* Satellite TV utilizes DVR (digital video recording) receivers so you can record your favorite programs and bypass commercials while watching live TV.

* Satellite TV is much more reliable than cable or over-the-air TV. Broadcast outages average only 1% as opposed to 3%-5% for cable.

Satellite TV Services

DIRECTV

DIRECTV was launched in 1994 and was the first DBS (direct broadcast satellite) service in the world. It is currently the largest satellite TV provider with 14.5 million subscribers. It is ranked #2 in customer satisfaction by J.D. Power and Associates.

DIRECTV offers more than 225 channels of programming, including movie channels, music channels, pay-per-view movies and events, sports packages, and international programming.

DIRECTV has the most sports program packages, including NFL Sunday Ticket.

When you order DIRECTV programming, the system -- satellite TV dish and receivers -- is free for up to four rooms. Installation is also free.

Program packages start at $41.99 a month for 135 channels (which includes 31 music channels), plus HBO, Showtime, and Starz.

Note: To find out about DIRECTV's latest special offers and free bonuses, click on the links at the bottom of this article.

DISH Network

DISH Network was launched in 1996 and is the second-largest satellite TV provider with

more than 12 million subscribers. It is ranked #1 in customer satisfaction by J.D. Power and Associates.

DISH Network offers more than 255 channels of programming, including movie channels, music channels, pay-per-view movies and events, sports packages, and international programming.

Dish Network has the biggest variety of movies and shows and the most HD (high definition) programming.

When you order DISH Network programming, the system -- satellite TV dish, receivers, and installation -- is free for up to four rooms.

Program packages start at $31.99 a month for 60 channels plus HBO, Showtime, and Cinemax.

Note: To find out about DISH Network's latest special offers and free bonuses, click on the links at the bottom of this article.

Bottom Line

If you're a sports fan and want the most sports packages -- including the popular NFL Sunday Ticket which allows you to watch almost all the NFL football games -- then DIRECTV is the way to go.

If you're a movie buff and want the biggest variety of movies and shows, and the most HD (high definition) programming, then Dish Network is what you're looking for.

About The Author

Brian Stevens is a professional freelance writer and webmaster who has written extensively on satellite TV service.

Author: Brian Stevens

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-- Alaska Drilling. Is it Necessary?

Drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) has become a controversial issue when Republicans included the measure in a major defense bill. According to Democrats and moderate Republicans the piece of legislation was embedded in a major defense bill that couldn’t be turned down. The total bill passed 306 voting for it and 106 against (House Approves drilling, 2005).

The new defense bill will hopefully reduce the federal deficit by 40 billion over the next 5 years (House Approves drilling, 2005). In addition to deficit reduction some of the money will go for military supplies, helping hurricane victims and subsidizing heat to those in poverty. Republicans feel that the measures are necessary if the White House fiscal obligations will again be on track.

In 1987 a report directed to Congress indicated that there were 26 major oil fields in Alaska (Adams, 1995). These oil fields could potentially supply 10 billion barrels pumped at 365 million barrels a year (Cowen & Doggett, 2005). It would take over 27 years to remove all of the oil.

Even though, without doubt, that the oil revenues would help the economy and the local Alaskan population, the necessity of protecting one of the U.S.’s largest natural reserves remains unresolved. Native peoples who are strapped for cash and rising oil prices which damper the nation’s economy are pitted against environmentalists who want to protect the multitudes of endangered species.

Since humans love to consume and make little effort to conserve natural resources there must be a balance against damaging natural preserves further in an attempt to furnish people’s needs and protecting unspoiled land. By keeping the area relatively untouched businesses and governments will be forced to upgrade their fuel efficiency reducing the nation’s dependence on natural resources. By opening the ANWR to only a small amount of oil mining instead of the full array of oil companies proposed by the government we can help push the nation into a stronger economic future that is less dependent than competing nations.

Adams, Jacob (1995, June). Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, Barrow, Alaska. Artic Circle. Extracted December 19th, 2005 from

Author: Murad Ali
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-- What are Carbon Offsets: Going Green and Creating Green Power Projects

As we all become more aware of our collective responsibility as stewards of our planet, capitalism has produced a verifiable mechanism for reducing carbon emissions, creating clean energy and engaging us all with the ability to minimize the damage we do to our environment.

Carbon Offsets are a simple way for all of us to create a better environment for ourselves, our kids and, the big one, our grandchildren. More selfishly, we all need clean air to breathe and clean water to drink. And especially those of us who live in Arizona, we don’t really want it to get any hotter on Summer Days!

Buying Carbon Offsets for Your Home Costs Less than a Day of Air Conditioning

While Reducing, Reusing and Recycling are key in preventing climate change, offsetting your carbon emissions is the next great step in the preservation of our environment for generations to come. The Carbon Calculator Math is below, or you could use a Carbon Footprint Calculator at www.ecoaidnow.com/Calculators.aspx

To offset your carbon emissions simply means to neutralize your part in the polluting of our environment. In technical terms, a carbon offset is a certificate representing the reduction of one metric ton (2,205 lbs) of carbon dioxide emissions. What you are doing when you carbon offset is to use money to pay for your carbon footprint. That money, in turn goes to support carbon projects that reduce the amount of carbon in the air. It is a balancing act. These certified (meaning third-party verified) projects, such a reforestation, need financial backing to make them viable, so the carbon offset is a valuable investment.

Since carbon dioxide emissions are the principal cause of climate change, purchasing carbon offsets is key to promoting a greener environment. Every ton of emissions reduced will result in the creation of one certified carbon offset.

When you offset your personal carbon emissions, you are doing your much-needed part in helping to put an end to global warming and climate change. In addition to making the world a better place, you just might also score a few popularity points with your friends and family.

There is no question that we have a problem. The only question is how people will interpret and react to the problem. A number of people maintain that the world isn’t in a crisis. George Carlin speculated that the Earth just needed plastic, and now that it has it, the humans are no longer needed! That is certainly one perspective.

The Challenge is not so much Global Climate Change, but more of a personal one. Do we

want to live in a clean world or a dirty one! Do we want to be subject to wars over fossil fuels? Are we, as individuals, stewards of business, operators of government, and elected officials, willing to take action to right the environmental wrongs we might create? The global becomes personal.

Buying Carbon Offsets is one way to deploy our resources towards a better Future. The best first step is to always think about the very real consequences of your actions. Protecting our air and water isn’t something that can be taken care of by someone else, we have to do it for ourselves.

To take an active role in neutralizing your carbon emissions today use our individual carbon calculator (ecoaidnow.com/Calculators.aspx).

About the Author:
Dr. Ken Pollock is EcoAid’s Chief Executive Officer, sets the strategy for the company. www.ecoaidnow.com. Read more of his articles at www.buycarboncreditsandoffsets.com. In addition, he will be launching http://carbon-school.com in the near future to provide the training and tools for individuals, businesses and institutions. He has a PhD in Chemical Engineering.

Author: Dr. Ken Pollock

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-- Types of Indoor Greenhouse

Indoor Greenhouse is an adorable extension of your garden which is brought into your home to add a beautiful environment-friendly atmosphere. This is a very unique home accent but the most natural among others. There are many different sizes and shapes of this plant home which is especially designed for interior purposes.

Usually, this type of greenhouse is not as sophisticated as those placed on the garden or backyard of your home. This is generally the open type compared to those of its counterparts which are equipped with built-in doors. The reason is this indoor greenhouse is already sheltered under the roof of your home. It is a shelter under a shelter.

The cute plants on the houses shelves receive the passive light of the sun without getting too much exposure to the ultra-violet rays. Indoor Greenhouse makes a beautiful accent at your front door. It is also a great way to protect seedlings from frost for an early start. It is easy to set up in no less than an hour, and you have your mini plant shelter in the interior.

You can watch the process they undergo as they develop. All these are done in the safety of your home with your plants. There is no need for you to go out to the garden to see how they are. With this kind of environment added to your home, you now enjoy the chance to observe how plants do things at day and night time.

Indoor Greenhouse can change the appearance of your home with the presence of these plant homes all around your home. It has many fantastic shapes and features that can be used to accentuate the interior and exterior of your home. You can have as many of these shelters as they can be accommodated in your home.


Author: Benedict Perez
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-- Organic Yields Are Better Than Conventional, Including GM Crops

There are many claims being bruited about that organic farming yields can never produce enough to meet the food demands of the growing global population. This is a myth.

At the turn of the century, a New Scientist editorial declared that organic farming methods, using natural fertilisers and natural means of pest control, were increasing harvests from poor farms worldwide by at least 1.7 times more than the original yields using conventional methods.

University of Essex professor Jules Pretty says there is ample evidence gathered from 20 countries that more than 4 million hectares are being farmed through organic techniques and produce enough food for at least 2 million families.

In Kenya, for example, AusAID has helped the poor Makuyu community produce organically grown maize at yields that are 1.6 times higher than maize crops grown in comparable farms with chemical nutrients. Where food production was never enough before when they were using chemical fertilisers, they can now produce a surplus which they sell and the profits ploughed back. Professor Pretty has more examples of farmers in Brazil, Guatemala, Mexico, Indonesia, Bangladesh, and other countries experiencing yield increases when they shifted from using synthetic chemicals to organic farming techniques.

But, it may be argued, this experience comes only from impoverished communities and small farms. Does it hold true for the large-scale farms of the developed world?

In fact, it does. Wheat organically grown with manure in the UK has produced higher harvests year after year than wheat conventionally grown with chemical fertilisers, writes Professor George Monbiot in the Guardian. In a Washington State University comparative analysis of conventional, integrated and organic farming systems utilised in apple production, the researchers found that organic systems produced equivalent yields to the other systems. The big difference was in the period needed to reach break-even point on investments in the farm: organic farming system had a break-even point of nine years, while conventional farming had 15 years and integrated farming had 16 years. Organic farming also had better impact on the environment than the other systems.
In trials conducted by the Queensland Department of Primary Industries, researchers found that organically grown wheat had a yield of 3.23 tonnes per hectare while conventional wheat had only 2.22 tonnes.

In a separate study involving large farms in seven industrialised countries, Professor Pretty found that when a farm switches from conventional to organic farming, yields initially go

down by around 10-15 per cent but these soon increase and continue rising. He observed that in the United States, the top 25 per cent of organic farms produce consistently higher yields than comparable conventional farms and yet have much better environmental outcomes.

What about genetically modified (GM) crops? The performance of organic farming practices is superior even compared to GM crops. A study on GM crops in Europe by London’s Institute of Science in Society observed so much variation in crop results that the inescapable conclusion was GM crops could not really be relied upon to produce stable yields. In Argentina, which is among the top three GM-crop producers, the focus on GM crops resulted instead in soaring foreign debt partly due to dependence on imported agricultural inputs required to support the crops.

There is much evidence that organic farming practices produce higher — and more sustainable — yields than crops grown with chemical fertilisers or from GM seeds. Many experts now believe the only way to feed the increasing population is through sustainable, organic agriculture.


Author: Helen Disler
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-- The Importance of Carbon in the Soil and How it Gets Stored

Soil organic carbon, which makes up about 60% of the soil organic matter on average, has beneficial effects on many physical, chemical and biological functions of soil quality. It helps support the productivity and diversity of all living organisms in the soil. It influences water-holding capacity, aeration, soil aggregation, and other physical aspects. It affects cation exchange capacity, the supply and availability of other nutrient elements, buffering capacity and other chemical parameters of soil. Soil organic matter, with soil carbon, holds vast amounts of organic compounds, nutrients, trace elements, and cations that are essential to plant growth and biological activity.

Soil organic carbon is also important for another reason: it serves as a repository for carbon dioxide (CO2), a greenhouse gas. The amount of carbon in the soil has been estimated to be at least two times greater than carbon in the atmosphere and in vegetation. The problems associated with climate change might be alleviated if more carbon remains captured in the soil as organic carbon.

Plants get carbon mainly by absorbing CO2 from the air and they use it with water to manufacture organic material. Eventually, carbon may comprise at least 50% of plant structure. When plants and animals die, decomposition breaks down their organic material and releases them into the soil.

Soil organic carbon is usually divided into different fractions, determined by the ease of decomposition. Crop residues and the like are easily broken down and the organic carbon is used in biological activity. Particulate organic carbon breaks down more slowly and plays a key role in soil structure; it also contributes to energy and nutrients needed in biological activity. Humus decomposes much more slowly and is especially crucial in providing nutrient elements. Finally, there is the very stable fraction of recalcitrant organic carbon, usually charcoal, which resists further decomposition and serves as a carbon sink.

The manner in which land is used and managed affects the soil’s ability to retain organic carbon.

Soil organic carbon is reduced by farm management practices that raise the decomposition rate of soil organic materials and/or reduce carbon inputs. Such practices include fallowing, overgrazing, burning or removal of stubble, and excessive cultivation (tillage). Essentially, these practices increase the rate of decomposition and expose the soil to erosion — processes that release carbon dioxide into the air instead of allowing carbon to be assimilated into other organic compounds in the soil.

Soil organic carbon is increased by farming practices that increase carbon inputs and/or decrease losses of organic material. The practices involved include direct applications of living organisms (earthworms) or dead organic materials, animal manure, composts, reduced tillage and stubble retention for green manure. Theoretically, any practice that raises crop yields will increase soil organic carbon storage because there is greater absorption of atmospheric carbon. Thus, practices like crop rotation, crop intensification through multiple cropping, and improved cultivars are useful, provided inorganic fertilisers are not used to boost yields.
Many farmers have found that adopting farm management practices that increase soil organic carbon helps them achieve higher profitability and better sustainability. The mitigating effects on climate change provide an added bonus.

Author: Helen Disler
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