Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
variations in land may include a change in the way minerals or the soil type is laid out in
any given area.
When planting your crop, it's important that seeds be sown on loose soil composed of
living, fertile topsoil. Loose soils give plant roots plenty of room to push through the soil,
accessing water and nutrients with ease. When soils become hard and compacted, not only
is it more difficult for the roots to grow outward and locate new nutrient sources, but root
access to water can become too restricted.
Differences Between Loose and Compacted Soils
Source: Based on illustration from
ClayDoctor.com
Understanding the type of soil you're growing on is essential for designing an
electroculture system. For instance, one of the effects of electrical soil stimulation is the
induced movement of water and/or nutrients through the soil. Soils with high clay content
have a much greater ionic mobility, which in turn means plants can grow better, not only
due to the intrinsic nutrient availability, but even more so due to the increasing nutrient
mobilityfromelectricalstimulation.Sandysoils,bycontrast,donothaveasmuchmobility
of nutrients to start with, so the impact from electrical stimulation will be not be as great.
The Nutrient Cycle
Soil, as the storehouse for nutrients that plants need to consume for growth, is a diverse
anddynamicenvironmentwheresoilorganisms,nutrients,water,andotherformsofmatter
essential for life are continually in action. Roots draw in dissolved minerals and water that
are found withing pores spaces. Since the amount of nutrients present in the soil solution
