Make sure to get a copy of the December issue of Agriculture Magazine which is now off the press. It contains a lot of informative articles which could help you achieve greater success in your farming.

Read, for instance, the article of Dave Deppner, founder of Trees for the Future, an NGO that is planting trees in some 65 countries all over the world. He writes a detailed article on Lessons in Sustainable Land Development.

In his article, Deppner cites at least four major problems in soil and vegetation caused by the application of chemical fertilizers. One is that chemical fertilizers kill beneficial organisms that live in the soil. Chemical fertilizers are often acidic which cause the pH of the soil to change, thereby harming organisms that are critical to soil health.

Deppner also stresses that chemical fertilizers create hardpans in the soil. These are hard layers that can form naturally or unnaturally under the soil. This decreases the soil’s ability to trap and hold water.

He also states that chemical fertilizers can damage plants’ health. Large increases in either nitrogen or phosphorus can kill certain beneficial microorganisms that live in the roots of plants, making them more susceptible to injury and diseases.

Finally, he said, plants can experience a deficiency in trace minerals, even if the trace minerals are locally available in the soil. This is because overuse of chemical fertilizers inhibits the chemical and physical reactions that transfer the trace elements into the plants through the root hairs.

You will also read the inspiring story of Constancio Sia’s diversified farm in Valencia, Negros Oriental, where he grows very productive durian trees, longkong lanzones, rambutan and mangosteen. He also has native chickens which he feeds with fermented residue of coconut meat used in the production of virgin coconut oil plus duckweeds.