The strength/power of the soil to provide vital nutrients values(nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) to the plant’s roots, keeping it fresh and alive is known as soil fertility. When there is agricultural production, the ground needs to be solid and in check. Fertile soil also plays a major role in retaining moisture and maintaining the apt pH value. If the soil underneath the crops is not in the right state then that might hamper the entire farming.

Whenever the soil fertility components get tampered, and essential elements are taken away from the soil, without making efforts for its re-establishment, depletion of soil fertility occurs. It is the removal of nutrients and essential components of the soil from itself.

Causes:

The major causes of soil fertility are listed below:

1. Inadequate fertilizer use

2. Total removal of crop and inadequate cropping methods

3. Non-efficient methods of crop rotations

Methods through which the soil fertility can be conserved:

1. Protecting the topsoil by planting trees on left-out spaces of fields.

2. By implementing crop rotation, through which many different types of plants can be planted on the same field.

3. No-tilling.

4. Stopping to dig unnecessarily in the field.

5. Creating a compacted soil surface.

6. Planting more and more indigenous crops.

7. Adding organic material to provide additional richness.

The technology is working very hard for improving soil fertility. These include:

-nutrient management

-crop residue management

-applications of chemical fertilizers

-agroforestry

Thus, we as citizens of India should work collectively and prevent our soil from losing its rich nutrient values.