The Ecozones of the World

The Ecozones of the World
Author: Jürgen Schultz
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 423
Release: 2013-06-29
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3662031612

This abundantly illustrated book provides a fundamental introduction to the ecological zones of the geosphere. The revised edition includes more than 70 new figures and tables, plus detailed maps of agricultural regions and soil classification. A large number of new Anglo-American ecological studies are included, along with a discussion of the correlation between northern ecosystems and the carbon dioxide balance in the global atmosphere.

Soils of Tropical Forest Ecosystems

Soils of Tropical Forest Ecosystems
Author: Andreas Schulte
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 220
Release: 2013-03-14
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3662036495

An understanding of the characteristics and the ecology of soils, particularly those of forest ecosystems in the humid tropics, is central to the development of sustainable forest management systems. The present book examines the contribution that forest soil science and forest ecology can make to sustainable land use in the humid tropics. Four main issues are addressed: characteristics and classification of forest soils, chemical and hydrological changes after forest utilization, soil fertility management in forest plantations and agroforestry systems as well as ecosystem studies from the dipterocarp forest region of Southeast Asia. Additionally, case studies include work from Guyana, Costa Rica, the Philippines, Malaysia, Australia and Nigeria.

Agriculture and Rural Development in a Globalizing World

Agriculture and Rural Development in a Globalizing World
Author: Prabhu Pingali
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 348
Release: 2017-05-08
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1315314037

Rapid structural transformation and urbanization are transforming agriculture and food production in rural areas across the world. This textbook provides a comprehensive review and assessment of the multi-faceted nature of agriculture and rural development, particularly in the developing world, where the greatest challenges occur. It is designed around five thematic parts: Agricultural Intensification and Technical Change; Political Economy of Agricultural Policies; Community and Rural Institutions; Agriculture, Nutrition, and Health; and Future Relevance of International Institutions. Each chapter presents a detailed but accessible review of the literature on the specific topic and discusses the frontiers in research and institutional changes needed as societies adapt to the transformation processes. All authors are eminent scholars with international reputations, who have been actively engaged in the contemporary debates around agricultural development and rural transformation.

World Mapping Today

World Mapping Today
Author: Bob Parry
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
Total Pages: 1080
Release: 2011-12-22
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3110959445

Global assessment of soil carbon in grasslands

Global assessment of soil carbon in grasslands
Author: Dondini, M., Martin, M., De Camillis, C., Uwizeye, A., Soussana, J.-F., Robinson, T., Steinfeld, H.
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
Total Pages: 76
Release: 2023-02-14
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 925137550X

Soils contribute to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals through carbon sequestration. By enhancing soil health and fertility, soils can play a crucial role in climate action, land degradation neutrality, and alleviating hunger. The present study provides a spatially explicit report on the state of grassland soils and can be used as a baseline for future work to explore the impacts of livestock management on soil carbon at regional, country and farm levels. Assessing the current state of grassland systems and their potential to sequester carbon in the soil is of key importance to understand the trade-offs between grassland services on food security, biodiversity conservation and climate mitigation.

World Reference Base for Soil Resources, 2006

World Reference Base for Soil Resources, 2006
Author:
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
Total Pages: 146
Release: 2006
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 9789251055113

This publication is a revised and updated version of World Soil Resources Reports No. 84, a technical manual for soil scientists and correlators, designed to facilitate the exchange of information and experience related to soil resources, their use and management. The document provides a framework for international soil classification and an agreed common scientific language to enhance communication across disciplines using soil information. It contains definitions and diagnostic criteria to recognize soil horizons, properties and materials and gives rules and guidelines for classifying and subdividing soil reference groups. Published also in Spanish and Arabic.

Land Resources

Land Resources
Author: Anthony Young
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 336
Release: 2000-07-20
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780521785594

This book provides an authoritative review of the resources of soils, water, climate, forests and pastures on which agriculture depends. It assesses the interactions between land resources and wider aspects of development, including population and poverty. Unless action is taken, the developing world will face recurrent problems of food security and conflict. The book gives some forcefully-expressed criticisms of current methods of assessing land degradation and placing an economic value on land. It should be read by all involved in rural development, including scientists, economists, geographers, sociologists, planners, and students of development studies. It provides a summary and perspective of the field of land resources, and suggests improvements needed to conserve resources for future generations. The hardback edition of the book received excellent reviews.

Essentials of Soil Science

Essentials of Soil Science
Author: Winfried E.H. Blum
Publisher: Gebr. Borntraeger Science Publishers
Total Pages: 173
Release: 2017-10-11
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3443011292

This book is a concise, yet comprehensive modern introduction to soil science and describes the development of soils, their characteristics and their material composition as well as their functions in terrestrial and aquatic environments. Soil functions include the delivery of goods and services for the human society, such as food, clean water, and the maintenance of biodiversity. The book is profusely illustrated with many coloured figures and tables to accompany the text and ease its understanding. Particularly the chapter on soil classification, based on the World Reference Base for Soil Resources (WRB), features numerous colour pictures of typical soil profiles to facilitate understanding the characteristics of particular soil types. Chapters on soil protection and remediation and soil monitoring and the history of soil sciences conclude the book together with a very comprehensive alphabetical index, allowing for a quick and easy orientation about the most important terms in soil sciences. The book addresses all those, who want to orient themselves about soils, their functions, their importance in terrestrial and aquatic environments and their contribution to the actual and future development of the human society, such as teachers, practitioners and students in the fields of agriculture, forestry, gardening, terrestrial and aquatic ecology and environmental engineering, and of course, beginning students of soil science. “Essentials of Soil Science” is an updated English edition of the highly valued German textbook „Bodenkunde in Stichworten” (now in its 7th edition), which was conceived in 1969 as a standard text in soil science for universities, high schools and all kinds of learned institutions related to soil science and its applications, including practitioners in agriculture, forestry, landscape planning and architecture and users of soil in engineering and other areas. For classroom use, Borntraeger (http://www.borntraeger-cramer.de/9783443010904) offers classroom sets of 10 and 20 copies which you may order through your bookstore or directly online by following the respective link.

Soils, Land and Food

Soils, Land and Food
Author: Alan Wild
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 260
Release: 2003-01-09
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780521527590

A major challenge of the twenty-first century will be to ensure sufficient global food production to cope with the burgeoning world population. Soils, Land and Food is a short text aimed at undergraduates, graduates, agricultural scientists and policy makers which describes how the use of technology in soil management can increase and sustain agricultural production. The book leads the reader through the development of techniques of land management and discusses reasons why some agricultural projects have succeeded while others have failed. It shows how surveying and protecting soils before new land is brought into cultivation, raising soil fertility, increasing inputs and improving economic conditions can all help to increase food production. Particular emphasis is placed on the need for both economic change and technological intervention in developing countries where, in many cases, food production will need to more than double in the next fifty years.