Soil health is mostly disregarded and not paid very much attention during farming activities. However, taking care of Soil health is one of the key points in Climate-Smart Agriculture. There are several aspects and technics of improving soil health which aimed to explore by organizing webinars with Cornell University scientists.
In 2021, within the cooperation of the ICARE Foundation, Artak Khachatryan on behalf of the Humphrey Fellowship Program and the VISTAA expert center, two webinar sessions were organized during the March-April months. Dr. David Wolfe and Joseph Amsili, who are leading different research programs in the Plant Scient Department of Cornell University, delivered an outstanding presentation about Cover Crop Application for Sustainable Agriculture and Soil Biology and Soil Microbiology Management respectively on March 22 and April 15 both via the ZOOM platform.
According to information, presented by Joseph Amsili, the multispecies cover crop application helps to improve the soil structure, increase the soil organic matter. These improvements help to enrich and improve soil microbiology. The presentation by Dr. David Wolfe described the role of soil microbiology in plant growth and efficient farming. He also presented the importance of appropriate management of soil microbiology, how farmers can modify their farming practices in order not to damage the soil biology.
During the webinars, the field representatives have actively discussed the topics with the lecturers, shared their knowledge and asked for advice.The event was organized with simultaneous interpretation support and recordings in both Armenian and English were made and published in Project Partner’s YouTube channel dedicated to AGREEN Project:
Link for ICARE website news: https://icare.am/3554/
Links for ICARE youtube channels:
“Cover Crops for Sustainable Agriculture” Webinar 1.0, March 22, English version
Link to EN version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0O9dbGbXeg&list=PLaWxtEKEiFMlzgATDhm–SBFKu89kARZi&index=2&t=12sLink to AM version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXnBfWlJ3NI&list=PLaWxtEKEiFMlzgATDhm–SBFKu89kARZi&index=1
Frontiers in Soil Biology and Soil Health Management, Webinar 2.0, April 15, 2021
Link to EN version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CC27DnRHGFY&t=287s
Link to AM version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERHKW2eCRCI&list=PLaWxtEKEiFMlzgATDhm–SBFKu89kARZi&index=4&t=1612s
