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Soil reclamation, improvement, recultivation and conservation in Germany
Author(s) -
Kuntze H.
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
zeitschrift für pflanzenernährung und bodenkunde
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.644
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1522-2624
pISSN - 0044-3263
DOI - 10.1002/jpln.19861490413
Subject(s) - land reclamation , environmental science , land improvement , peat , productivity , soil conservation , drainage , agroforestry , land use , agriculture , geography , civil engineering , engineering , land management , ecology , archaeology , biology , economics , macroeconomics
Land improvement has a long tradition in Germany. Therefore, the author gives an introduction pointing out the historic background as well as trends in theory and practice. Objectives of melioration are reclamation of land, site improvement, recultivation and soil conservation. In the past, land was reclaimed by clearing forests, building dykes and cultivating peatlands. This horizontal expansion has now ceased because of the lack of suitable land for reclamation. Instead, attempts are being made to improve certain sites by ” downward expansion ”: the usable volume of soil is being increased by deep ploughing, subsoiling as well as combined drainage and irrigation in order to improve its productivity as well as its bearing capacity for heavy machines. Modern uses of melioration include the recultivation of open pits and refuse dumps. Agricultural engineering has developed further to ecological technology. Finally, the autor deals with preventive and improvement measures within the framework of soil conservation programs.