THE involvement of youths in protecting the environment is crucial for the sustainable development of Guyana. The agricultural sector offers many opportunities; as such, sustainable management of the environment is necessary for the success of the sector.

The National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) recently partnered with the Ministry of Natural Resources to educate youths on Guyana’s rich biodiversity and the need to protect the environment. NAREI took the opportunity to educate participants about the work of two departments: Mangroves Restoration and Management and Soil Management and Farm Mechanisation.

The one-day workshop held at the Guyana School of Agriculture was facilitated by Ms. Kene Moseley Coordinator of the Mangroves Restoration and Management Department and Mr. Johnathon Melville, Research Scientist attached to the Soil Management and Farm Mechanisation Department.
This article will share information on the Soil Management and Farm Mechanisation Department.

GIS: Soil Maps and Land Capability Maps:
* GIS: Geographic Information Systems
* Farmers need soil information within a geographic context to make appropriate and timely decisions in managing farmlands and developing areas with potential for cultivation. GIS produces digital soil maps that can be accessed via web and mobile apps.
* Soil Maps
* Land Capability Maps

Climate-Smart Agriculture:
* The department focuses on adaptation strategies for climate change through its hydroponics and shade house facilities.
* Hydroponics is an agricultural practice that can be implemented to adapt to climate change. Agriculture is highly sensitive to climate change, since it depends largely on environmental conditions.
* Climate change affects sufficient freshwater supplies, fertile soil, the right balance of predators and pollinators and air temperature.
* Advantages of using hydroponics systems include mono-culturing, as there is no soil depletion and elimination of soil-borne pest and diseases; higher planting densities; efficient utilisation of water and nutrients; and absence of weeds.
* Properly implemented, hydroponics gives more produce in less time than open-field production.

Soil Health and Soil Fertility
* Soils are important to food security, and climate change has the potential to threaten food security through its effects on soil properties.
* The ability to produce nutritious crops in sufficient amounts depends on soil properties and conditions.
* In particular, soils that have a well-developed structure, sufficient organic matter, and other physical and chemical properties conducive to promoting crop growth lead to better yields.

Soil Chemistry Laboratory
* At the Soil Management and Farm Mechanisation Department laboratory, our main goal is to provide agricultural stakeholders with a comprehensive soil-testing programme that promotes the sustainable use of fertilisers, soil amendments and other soil-management practices for increasing agricultural production and productivity.

Soil Sampling:
* For orchard crops, we require three soil depths at 0-6, 6-12 and 12-18 inches.
* For vegetable crops, we require two soil depths, 0-6 and 6-12 inches.
* Based on soil results, recommendations are made for fertiliser, organic matter and limestone inputs.

Soil Microbiology (Production of Rhizobium Inoculant)
* Nitrogen is often the scarcest nutrient in the soil. That is why it is used more than any other fertiliser in agriculture. The overuse of artificial fertiliser can lead to serious environmental problems.
* Rhizobium is a genus of Gram-negative soil bacteria that fix nitrogen. Rhizobium species from an endosymbiotic nitrogen-fixing association with roots of legumes.
* Legumes can form a symbiotic relationship with nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria called rhizobia. The Rhizobium bacteria take in nitrogen from the atmosphere and turn it into ammonia (NH3), a kind of natural fertiliser this symbiosis is to form nodules on the plant root, within which the bacteria can convert atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia that can be used by the plant.