Press article - Soil health: Strip-till and strip-plant methods to improve soil fertility

There is an increasing demand for organic vegetables in Brandenburg, north-eastern Germany. However, in recent years, higher water consumption and nutrient requirements, combined with a shorter cultivation period and worsening weather conditions are challenges being brought about by climate change. The naturally sandy soils have become less fertile. Measures for improving this are often costly, and farmers in the area are also limited in terms of personnel capacity. So this Operational Group set out to identify targeted innovations to regenerate the soils, to improve the economic situation of vegetable farms and at the same time contribute to environmental protection. It aims to transfer the strip-till and strip-plant methods that are already successfully used in arable farming to market gardening. These methods have been shown to reduce weed pressure, increase soil moisture and fight against soil erosion.