Soil Characteristics of a Permaculture Orchard in the Jackson Purchase
Grade Level at Time of Presentation
Senior
Major
Horticulture
Minor
N/a
Institution
Murray State University
KY House District #
6
KY Senate District #
6
Faculty Advisor/ Mentor
Dr. Steve Still, PhD; Dr. Iin Handayani, PhD.
Department
Hutson School of Agriculture
Abstract
Permaculture is the development of agriculture systems that are sustainable and self-sufficient. Addressing conservation issues such as diminishing natural resources and changing environmental conditions, permaculture allows for adaptive and resilient agriculture ecosystems that are able to cope with environmental stresses while reducing inputs. The objective of this research is to evaluate eight different zones in a permaculture ecosystem for selected soil attributes, in Briensburg, Kentucky (USDA Hardiness Zone 7b, approximately 51.1” (129.5cm) rainfall/year). As this is the beginning of a long term longitudinal study, only preliminary baseline measures were collected originally, including soil water retention and soil organic carbon. Sampling, processing, and analysis started in December, 2016 and was repeated in September, 2017. A general increase (although not significant except in the case of site 5) in measures of soil organic carbon (SOC) was observed. Measures of soil water holding capacity (SWHC) of the sampled sites increased significantly in 6 of the 8 sites sampled.
Soil Characteristics of a Permaculture Orchard in the Jackson Purchase
Permaculture is the development of agriculture systems that are sustainable and self-sufficient. Addressing conservation issues such as diminishing natural resources and changing environmental conditions, permaculture allows for adaptive and resilient agriculture ecosystems that are able to cope with environmental stresses while reducing inputs. The objective of this research is to evaluate eight different zones in a permaculture ecosystem for selected soil attributes, in Briensburg, Kentucky (USDA Hardiness Zone 7b, approximately 51.1” (129.5cm) rainfall/year). As this is the beginning of a long term longitudinal study, only preliminary baseline measures were collected originally, including soil water retention and soil organic carbon. Sampling, processing, and analysis started in December, 2016 and was repeated in September, 2017. A general increase (although not significant except in the case of site 5) in measures of soil organic carbon (SOC) was observed. Measures of soil water holding capacity (SWHC) of the sampled sites increased significantly in 6 of the 8 sites sampled.