ABSTRACT
The processes of soil formation and the ongoing processes which provide the functions at the heart of the ‘ecological factory’ of goods and services on which humanity depends (Wall et al. 2012) result from interactions between biology, geology, climate and hydrology. Of the global challenges that humanity faces, the need to feed an increasing population from finite resources is probably the longest recognised and has resulted in the rapid intensification of agricultural systems globally from the mid-twentieth century onwards. Technological developments in tillage, agrochemicals and plant breeding have been key drivers supporting the increase in agricultural productivity; as a consequence the biological interactions at the heart of soil processes including, but not only, nutrient cycling were increasingly marginalised and replaced by direct inputs during the intensification of agricultural systems (Giller et al. 1997). In this period, the focus was mainly on crop health through external inputs, fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides inter alia. However, more recently the key role of soil organisms has been re-recognised and maintaining soil health has become an explicit target of farm management strategies. By understanding and working with the natural biological cycles and implementing nutrient management practices that support soil health whilst supplying crop nutrient requirements, farmers can increase the
resilience of the system to extreme weather and increase the sustainability of agricultural production systems without any loss of productivity or profitability.
