Sustainable Soil Management

Basic knowledge of Biology and Geology

In order to achieve the objectives of each of the aspects focussed in the curricular unit and the expected competences of the students, the teaching-learning process is based on

1. The study of specific cases, accompanied by a set of instructions that lead the student to analyse them, draw conclusions and make decisions or propose actions;

2. Carrying out practical work to apply theoretical concepts, which can be numerical, laboratory or field-based, namely identifying and characterising profiles corresponding to different types of soil, assessing soil fertility or identifying and classifying the management practices applied;

3. The bibliographical research needed to supplement the information obtained in class and to prepare reports. The student will be encouraged to take part in research carried out at the institution on the subject of soil fertility management.

Course provides students with the necessary skills for the sustainable use of soil as a factor of production and support of agricultural ecosystems, such as:
1. Identifies soil constituents and properties, factors and processes of formation and differentiation leading to soil classification
2. Understands the dynamic properties of water movement, adapting soil tillage to optimum sowing or planting conditions
3. Knows the dynamics of nutrients and SOM, identifying the role of soil biodiversity in their transformation and in the C sequestration
4. Identifies sustainable use practices of soil resources, increasing their functionality in the ecosystems of dryland and irrigated farming
5. Recognizes erosion and loss of soil fertility, identifying regenerative practices of soil recovery and conservation of sustainable systems
6. Performs soil sampling techniques, interprets chemical and physical analyses to define adequate corrections to the production systems

1. Mineral and organic constituents of soil; Physical and chemical properties and relation with soil composition
2. Factors and processes of soil formation; Diagnostic horizons; Portuguese classification, FAO/WRB
3. Dynamic soil properties: adhesion and cohesion forces; Soil tillage classification: adequacy to production systems
4. Soil water: pF curves, movement in saturated and unsaturated soil, soil water storage capacity
5. Nutrients and SOM: transformation and dynamics in soil
6. Soil biodiversity and role in nutrient dynamics: microbiome and carbon sequestration, mineralization and stabilization of SOM
7. Sustainable management practices in dryland and irrigated soils; Application of the Good Agricultural Practices Code
8. Water erosion and soil degradation: regenerative practices for soil recovery and conservation
9. Sampling for chemical and physical analysis, interpretation for soil adequacy corrections to the production system.

Continuous assessment:

Continuous assessment consists of: a written test (TE), two assignments in the form of written reports (RE1 and RE2) to be presented and discussed in class and  reports of practical classes (RAP). The assessment elements have a minimum rating of 7.5 points.

Final classification = 0.50xTE + 0.10xRAP + 0.20xRE1 + 0.20xRE2

Exam Assessment

The exam consists of a written test worth 100 per cent.

For students who have completed the written reports proposed in the continuous assessment (RE1 and RE2), with a mark higher than 9.5, the exam mark (EX) can be supplemented with the RE1 and RE2 marks, with the final classification being = 0.60xEX+0.20xRE1+0.20xRE2.

The conditions for approval and access to continuous assessment and to exam are those defined in the ESAC Student Performance Assessment Regulations.

NAO