Mulching as a pre-drought measure

 By James Laraki

MOISTURE in the soil is precious to any growing plant. Because of this, moisture becomes the primary concern for growing crops during a drought situation. 

Therefore, anything we can do to retain and help plants make use of available soil moisture efficiently helps us to grow food for a longer period during a drought. 

Mulching is one of the simplest and most beneficial practices one could use in their gardens. 

Mulching is covering of the soil surface with any material. 

It is done to retain moisture in the soil and keep the soil cool. 

Materials used for mulching could either be organic matter such as crop remains and grass, or inorganic material such as plastics and newspapers. 

Apart from retaining moisture, mulching can suppress weeds and make the garden bed look neat and attractive. 

Organic mulches help improve soil fertility as they decompose.

Depending on the material used; benefits of mulching include :

• Shades the soil, lowers soil temperatures, reduces the rate of water loss from the soil and keeps the soil cool;
• protects the soil from wind and therefore slows the evaporation of moisture from the soil. It prevents top soil being blown away as dust;
• increases effective use of water by reducing evaporation caused by wind and high temperatures;
• improves soil fertility as organic as mulch decomposes;
• mulch reduces weed growth, particularly if the mulch layer is thick;
• mulch should be left in place after the crop has been harvested, as the next crop will benefit from its protection. Or it can be dug into the soil as compost. The presence of the mulch often means that less digging is necessary for the next crop. As a lot of moisture is lost from the soil each time it is disturbed, this is a way of making use of all the water that is available, and;
• Mulch reduces soil erosion by preventing excess water from running off the field quickly and acts as a cover from heavy rain.

Mulch can be put on the garden either before or after a crop has been planted. 

Some crops can be planted through mulch; however, with most it is best to spread the mulch around the crop after it has started growing.

It is better to use weeds, crop remains and waster organic matter on the soil as mulch rather than burning them. 

The mulch layer must be thick enough to shade the soil and reduce airflow. 

Drought causes water stress and wilting of leaves that can lead to death of plants. 

The low humidity and big temperature changes could cause problems for plant reproduction, leading to reduction or complete failure of production. This can lead to food shortages.

Mulch can help in reducing death of plants during frosts by keeping the temperature of the soil steady. 

Frosts are usually experienced in certain areas, particularly in the high altitude region of the highlands during drought. 

Frosts kill plant by freezing the water inside plants and bursting open the plant cells. 

Mulching can help by keeping the ground frozen by shielding it from the warmth of the sun. 

Mulching will keep the soil temperature steady, which will keep the plant in dormancy and prevent it from triggering new growth. 

During drought the soil is exposed to heat and wind. Exposed soil gets hot, particularly during the day. 

Lack of water in the soil can cause hardening and cracking, making it difficult to dig the soil for the next crop. 

Dry soils are hard to dig, which could easily delay your next crop after it starts to rain again. 

Insects and microorganisms in the soil could be destroyed, which could slow down decomposition of the organic matter. 

Mulching is seen as an additional responsibility and one may not have sufficient quantity of the necessary material to use as mulch. 

It is likely that one may not be able to mulch a big field.  

But mulching is simple and something one easily apply to help the soil to conserve moisture during drought. 

Conserving moisture becomes central to any strategies towards sustained food production during drought. This is so as moisture in the soil is vital for the growth of plants.  

Anything we can do to help plants to be use soil moisture efficiently will help to grow food during a drought.