TECHNICAL


Murrayfi eld Golf Club


(Fig 9). This highlighting the complexity of the relationship that exists between land management and GHG omissions. The fi eld of agriculture is increasingly recognising the benefi ts to be gained from maintaining levels of C within soil. Modern methods increasingly focus on organic materials, cover crops, crop rotation, and reduced disturbance of the land, by avoiding aggressive maintenance practices. In doing this, farmers are able to harness the benefi ts of the suns solar power through maximising the input of root exudates. Thus maintaining the health of their soils and increasing the net primary productivity (NPP) of the land. Leading to the term ‘light farming’ (Fig 10). Practical decisions taken on a daily basis will ultimately determine how the C footprint of your land is regulated (Fig 11). Feedbacks will vary from the obvious to the more discreet, where your impact is perhaps less appreciated. Keystone blocks in your maintenance programme such as nutrition, irrigation and the consumption of aggregates are all of relevance. An increasing industry emphasis placed on a biological approach to nutrition recognises the importance of


maintaining the biological capacity of a growing medium. Whether through the use of compost tees, bio-stimulants, or via the incorporation of a top dressing material with a suitable OM content, maintaining a consistent input of C should be a primary objective. This helping to avoid the pitfalls of an over reliance on synthetics. Additionally,


this reduction in use and resulting demand for synthetic fertilisers helping to counter the high C cost of their production. The industrial process in question, which enables the fi xation of atmospheric nitrogen to ammonia, is known as the Haber-Bosch process, and is believed to consume more than 1% of the world’s total energy consumption[4]


.


The physiology of


vascular plants, including grass, is ultimately geared towards a few relatively simplistic goals


Fig 8: Carbon rich root exudates enhance aggregate formation


PC April/May 2021 131


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