The Arbuscular mycorrhizal technique, which is considered a successful and promising method of farming in the Arab Gulf desert conditions with scarcity of water resources and low fertility of soil, has gained an international attention in the recent years. The technique is used as vital manure for plants as well as to safeguard them from pests, thereby reducing the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Additionally, the Arbuscular mycorrhizal technique is highly effective in organic farming, which is gaining increasing attention in the UAE.
The workshop featured two lectures. The first lecture on ‘The Development and Co-existence of Arbuscular mycorrhizal with Plants and Their Effect on Agricultural Activity’ – was delivered by Dr. Josef Morten from the West Virginia University, USA. Dr. Ghazi Al Kurki, Expert in the UAE Ministry of Environment and Water, presented the second lecture on ‘The Agricultural Applications of mycorrhizal Technique in the UAE.’
Information of ‘Arbuscular mycorrhizal Technique’
The technique uses Arbuscular Mycorrhiza pollens, natural microscopic creators, as pollens and protectors vital to agricultural production. Arbuscular mycorrhizal provide many benefits to the plants they coexist with, by helping them increase absorption of water and nutritional elements from the soil through a major network of microscopic lines in the soil that would reach several meters, which increase the rigidness of soil and reduce desertification.
Many agricultural practices, however, are negatively affected the activity of mycorrhizal. These practices and conditions include high use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, intensive and deep plowing, which destroys the network of arbuscular strings and its effectiveness as a biological fertilizer, as well as dispersion of soil, which removes the important organic material in the arbuscular. Scientists’ efforts have paid off in the recent years to find a relatively easy and effective method of producing Arbuscular Mycorrhiza pollens in vast quantities, facilitating its use in farming effectively.
The workshop included a discussion by participants, where they expressed their appreciation and gratitude for the Ministry’s efforts in transmitting the application of modern techniques in agriculture, which has contributed significantly in preserving natural resources as well as sustainably develop them.
-ends-