Excessive use of mineral nutrition with a decrease in the reserves of organic matter in the soil leads to soil salinization.

This is stated in the material “How much does soil health cost?” at SuperAgronom.com.

 According to the latest FAO data, already more than 424 million hectares of topsoil (0-30 cm) and 833 million hectares of subsoil (30-100 cm) are affected by salts. In particular, 85% of the affected soils of the upper layer are saline, 10% are sodic and 5% are saline-sodium, in turn, 62% of the soils affected by salts are saline, 24% are sodic, and 14% are saline-sodium.

The lack of labile organic matter with an excess of mineral nutrition forces the soil microbiocenosis to use humus as a source of carbon and energy. And although humus is a very stable structure, difficult to microbial degradation, but in case of emergency, microbes find a way to feed on it. Thus, the mineralization of organic matter begins to prevail over condensation (the formation of new organic compounds) and the soil loses more and more organic matter.

To monitor the health of your lands, you need to constantly monitor the condition of the soil, and in addition to agrochemical, also microbiological analysis of the soil. This will track the following critical components:

• The dynamics of changes in the content of organic matter in the soil.
• Important structural indicators are the degree of compaction, moisture capacity, and erosion.
• Changes in the soil microflora, in particular, the accumulation of pathogens, the reduction in the number of beneficial groups of microorganisms.