The loss of soil and water under natural vegetation is the lowest. But lands must be cultivated and grown with crops to produce food. This can be done without much harm to the soil if proper soil and water conservation methods are followed. Such methods aim at encouraging water to infiltrate into the soil, reduce its velocity and check run off losses. Mulching is one of the method of soil and water conservation Mulching A mulch is natural or artificially applied layer of plant residues or other materials on the surface of the soil with the object of moisture conservation, temperature control, prevention of surface compaction or crust formation, reduction of run off and erosion, improvement in soil structure and weed control. Artificial mulches of different kinds such as jowar or bajri stubble, paddy straw or husk, sawdust etc., increases absorption of water and minimise evaporation. They also control run off and soil losses. The quantity of mulch used was 5 tons per hectare. |
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