Soil defertilisation refers to the practice of reducing
soil fertility
Soil fertility refers to the ability of soil to sustain agricultural plant growth, i.e. to provide plant habitat and result in sustained and consistent yields of high quality. in order to reduce the number of plants that can grow on that soil. It is often done on land not intended for agriculture, such as city parks.
Benefit
On land not intended for
agriculture
Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
, such as city parks or other communal spaces, undesired plants (weeds) can become a nuisance to the city's communal services, costing effort and money.
In some cases, along with soil defertilisation, the soil's pH and water content can be altered. This may create a much different environment, allowing more specialised plants/vegetation to grow and take hold.
In practice
Soil defertilisation is done by growing
specific cover crops (e.g., ''
Phacelia
''Phacelia'' (phacelia, scorpionweed, Heliotropium, heliotrope) is a genus of about 200 species of annual plant, annual or perennial plant, perennial herbaceous plant, herbaceous flowering plant, plants in the borage family, native to North Ameri ...
'', ''
Sinapis alba
White mustard (''Sinapis alba''), also called yellow mustard, is an annual plant of the cabbage family. It is sometimes also referred to as ''Brassica alba'' or ''B. hirta''. It probably originated in the Mediterranean region, but is now ...
'', ''
Lolium multiflorum
''Lolium multiflorum'' (Italian rye-grass, annual ryegrass) is a ryegrass native to temperate Europe, though its precise native range is unknown.
It is a herbaceous annual, biennial, or perennial grass that is grown for silage, and as a cover ...
'') on them and then, instead of ploughing them under, removing them from the soil. By doing this, the nutrients that have accumulated in the crops are removed together with the crops. The crops may be used on other land that needs to be
fertilsed (instead of defertilised), for example, agricultural land.
See also
*
Soil fertilisation
References
{{reflist
Fertilizers
Sustainable technologies