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CHAPTER 1
health and the environment. The system involves three principles that have to be
preferably implemented as one whole system:
• Reduced mechanical disturbance of the soil.
• Crop diversification, including rotation and the use of cover crops. The belief is
that the more crops that are used in a rotation system, the better the results are.
• Permanent organic ground cover.
When a producer applies those principles simultaneously and properly it influences
the health of the soil in particular, promoting stability with regard to production (by
opposing the negative effect of adverse climatic conditions), income and profitability,
labour practices, etc.
An important benefit of conservation agriculture is that it stops the soil degradation
process and contributes to the rehabilitation of the fertility of the soil. This enables
producers to apply fertiliser more optimally, and reduce the use of chemicals
like pesticides and herbicides in general, while crop yields stabilise and can even
increase over the long term.
Experts explain that if the agri-ecological system improves with regard to grain
cultivation, it results in more positive microorganisms being formed in the soil,
counteracting the negative microorganisms that cause diseases. Biodiversity is im-
proved aboveground as well as in the subsoil so that the balance in both instances
is repaired by the repeated application of the above-mentioned three principles.
Conservation agriculture also has other benefits that can contribute to the long-term
sustainability of farming units. For example, it usually goes hand in hand with good
general farm management like time planning, soil and moisture management, the
use of quality seed, and co-ordinated management of diseases, pests, weeds and
fertiliser. Integration of an animal factor also plays an important role in the improve-
ment of soil health.
Track traffic
The application of conservation agriculture differs according to the type of soil in
question. It is appreciably easier to implement in soil with a higher clay content and
in higher rainfall areas, and much more difficult in dry circumstances and sandy
soil, as is found typically in especially the North West Free State and parts of North
West where deep water table sandy soils are found.