Soil health perspectives of Arizona rangeland stakeholder

Abstract

Soil health is broadly defined as the capacity of soil to support a vital living ecosystem that sustains plants, animals and humans. Soil health is related to many functions of natural and managed ecosystems such as water holding capacity, erosion control, nutrient cycling and plant growth. Soil health collectively refers to a large set of physical, chemical, and biological properties of soil systems and how they operate and function together. Accordingly, considering soil health is a rather holistic approach to evaluating soil function in terrestrial ecosystems, either in native or cultivated conditions. Soil health is quickly becoming recognized as a valuable approach of assessment of agricultural productivity and environmental well-being. Unfortunately, climate change is quickly degrading soils worldwide, rendering large swaths of previously productive landscapes unsuitable for plant and animal growth.