In The News
Soil Health and Fungicides
Fungicides are an essential tool in agriculture, but their use can have negative impacts on the environment and even the crops they are designed to help. One environmental risk of fungicide use is the impact on soil health, particularly on beneficial fungi.
Fungi play a crucial role in soil health by breaking down organic matter, cycling nutrients, and forming relationships with plant roots that can enhance plant growth and disease resistance. However, fungicides can disrupt these important relationships by killing beneficial fungi along with harmful ones. This can lead to a decline in soil health, reduced plant growth, and increased susceptibility to diseases.
Recent research has highlighted the negative impacts of fungicides on beneficial fungi. A study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution showed how fungicides can lead to significantly lower phosphorus uptake by plants by affecting Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Mycorrhizal fungi have an important symbiotic role with around 80% of plants. They are considered a natural biofertilizer because of their potential to improve soil quality, water stress tolerance and increase nitrogen and phosphorus and pathogen protection in exchange for photosynthesis products from the plant.
In addition to their impact on beneficial fungi, fungicides can also have other negative impacts on soil health. Fungicides can accumulate in soil over time, leading to contamination of nearby waterways and potential harm to non-target organisms such as earthworms, microbes, and other beneficial soil organisms. Fungicides can also disrupt soil microbial communities, which can lead to a decrease in the overall health and productivity of the soil.
Reducing fungicide use is an important part of regenerative agriculture, which focuses on building healthy soils and ecosystems. There are many approaches to reducing fungicide use, including the use of integrated pest management (IPM) strategies, which rely on a combination of different control methods and minimize the use of pesticides. IPM approaches can also include the use of beneficial fungi and bacteria, which can help control fungal diseases without the use of chemicals.
While fungicides remain one of the most important tools for controlling pathogenic fungi and crop diseases, the environmental risks of fungicide are not insignificant, particularly in their impact on beneficial fungi and soil health. Regenerative agriculture approaches that promote soil health and resilience, as well as the use of IPM strategies, can help reduce the reliance on fungicides and promote more sustainable agricultural practices.