Agricultural sustainability is built on the premise of promoting soil health. Agricultural practices such as tillage, crop rotation, cover crops and fertilization have been credited with shifts in the soil food web which affects many aspects of soil health. The aim of the current study was to...

This chapter considers indigenous soil knowledge, notably in respect to processes of soil enrichment which are argued to be more widespread in Africa and Asia than thought. The chapter draws attention two areas of practice: (i) cultivating ruined settlement sites (rendered rich in organic material...

There is mounting research on microbial diversity and their products, especially those associated with soil amendments such as biochar and compost. There is increasing recognition of the beneficial effects of biochar, which, applied in suitable amounts and forms, can stimulate soil microbial...

The organic matter (including composts, uncomposted materials, manures, compost extracts and compost teas) required to sustain the activity of the organisms responsible for general disease suppressiveness can be imported from elsewhere and added to soil as an amendment, or it can be obtained from...

This chapter seeks to elucidate the concerns underlying manure management and the considerations of sustainable manure management. While the chapter provides a broad review of salient issues, particular emphasis is placed upon emerging areas of concern and innovation in manure management.

This chapter focuses on these emerging contaminants in livestock manure, viz., hormones, antibiotics and antibiotic resistance genes. The chapter also provides brief discussion on the following topics: degradation of steroidal hormones in manure during storage; fate of hormones in manure following...

This section describes the history of the development of integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) and how the approach has been built up based on experience gained from more than 50 years of work on soil fertility management in sub-Saharan Africa. A definition of ISFM is then provided and broken ...

This chapter deals with the nutrient requirements of banana and plantain plants (Musa). The different functions and deficiency symptoms of these nutrients are described, which include the macronutrients N, P, K, Ca, Mg and S and the microelements Zn, Mn, B, Fe and Cu. The interactions (antagonism...

Thus chapter focuses on the utilization of olive mill by-products (washing water, leaves, pomace, and mill waste water). Tabulated data are provided on the characteristics and quantities of olive pomace produced by three different extraction methods: (i) traditional pressing; (ii) triphasic...

This chapter covers the biological control of plant parasitic nematodes (PPN) using predators, nematophagous fungi, endophytic fungi and bacteria; application of biological control agents (selection of biological control agents and isolates, and inoculum production and formulation); integration of...