Soil fertility is declining in the Far East

The Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (Rosselkhoznadzor) of the Khabarovsk region reports the results of laboratory studies of soil samples taken in the region for eight months of 2022. During this time, Rosselkhoznadzor tested 278 soil samples.

The obtained results of the research indicate the decline in soil fertility of agricultural land in the controlled area. In total, over 4 thousand hectares were surveyed. The decrease in soil fertility is due to a sharp decrease in the volume of such chemical measures as soil liming, organic fertilizer application, and insufficient level of mineral fertilizer application. A negative impact on the balance of organic matter (humus) is also exerted by a high proportion of soybeans in the structure of sown areas.

“Statistics say that over the past 5 years, on average, 54.8 kg of mineral fertilizers and 0.22 tons of organic fertilizers per 1 hectare were applied for crops. Whereas, for the reproduction of soil fertility, it’s necessary to apply at least 210 kg of mineral fertilizers per 1 hectare and about 10-40 tons of organic fertilizers per 1 hectare. Also, measures for liming soils have sharply decreased,” said Aleksey Yun, chief specialist of the testing laboratory.