Understanding evapotranspiration better
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Transpiration depends on evaporation, therefore factors affecting the rate of evaporation also affect the rate of transpiration.
Author Archive for: Portia Phohlo
Entries by Portia Phohlo
Soil fungi connections
Reading Time: 2 minutes
Soil fungi increase security, awareness, and knowledge for those connected to them. Any soil management action that results in the breakage of these connections, such as tillage and fungicides, destroys the entire nerve system of the soil thus isolating plants and soil organisms from each other.
Water movement in the soil: Important notes for irrigation management
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Irrigation should not be applied uniformly in fields because soil differs in structure and texture. Understanding water movement dynamics for individual fields are very important for irrigation scheduling.
Finding the water sweet spot
Reading Time: 3 minutes
The relationship between plants and water is delicate. Too little water can lead to plant stress, resulting in wilting. Too much can lead to risk of pathogen infection and loss of nutrients supporting the plant via leaching.
Paying back the carbon debt
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Rebecca Burgess, founder of the Fibershed project says that, “our soils have a carbon debt; the atmosphere is gushing with carbon. The carbon over our heads is literally in the wrong place” and this couldn’t be truer.
FAQ about legumes and root nodules
Reading Time: 2 minutes
These are some questions I was asked by a farmer in the Tsitsikamma the other day about legumes and root nodules.
Tapping into the tons of nitrogen above the soil
Reading Time: 4 minutes
Nitrogen-fixing bacteria in the soil provide an opportunity for farmers to tap into the huge amounts of nitrogen which are just sitting in the atmosphere, waiting to be unlocked.
What is nature telling you?
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Often farmers treat the farm as a whole and that is completely wrong. Fields within a few meters from each other can have completely different characteristics, especially with regards to soil biology.
Without oxygen in the soil, nothing works
Reading Time: 2 minutes
Oxygen is one of the overlooked but most important requirements for microbial and root development. In fact, I’d even posit that it is more important than food, water, and warmth.
Constant cover is your soil insurance
Reading Time: 2 minutes
Keeping the soil covered is important for soil conservation. The abundance and diversity of food for soil organisms is what determines a soil’s natural productivity.