In no-tillage farming, seeder furrow openers provide the soil loosening and opening for seed and fertiliser placement. Optimisation of seeding opener performance includes minimum soil disturbance, low power (fuel) requirement, optimum seedbed and seed depth for germination and crop growth, minimum interference with residue handling and seed–fertiliser separation. Factors to consider in achieving these targets include opener geometry, operating speed and depth, soil and residue conditions, and seed and fertiliser boot design.

No-tillage system (NTS) with plants of the Poaceae and Fabaceae in single or intercrop systems for onion production resulted in higher total organic C and total N contents than conventional tillage (CTS). Isotope ¹⁵N measurements showed that C and N were more protected in microaggregates than macroaggregates and bulk soil. Macroaggregates had more total organic C and total N than microaggregates. Using soil cover crops in NTS increased soil quality compared to NTS without cover crops and, mainly, to CTS.

In crop fields, soil organisms are the principal component of soil fertility, useful indicators of soil health and comprise the diversity of life in soil. However, there is little information on macrofauna diversity in Himalayan mountain agroecosystems. We found that soil macrofauna diversity in mountain agroecosystems was in the world’s mid-range (6–22 groups). Macrofauna population and diversity among irrigated and non-irrigated agroecosystems differed significantly across soil depth and crop season – useful knowledge for soil management for sustainable agriculture.

Acidic subsurface layers within agricultural soils can limit performance of plants and function of soil biology. These layers form within pasture soils as a net result of transformations of nitrogen from stock urine application. Although the extent of acidity is influenced by seasonal conditions, acidic subsurface layers formed in the field following application of simulated stock urine, regardless of the season of application.

A nursery experiment was conducted to assess the effect of biochar produced from pine needles, and of ectomycorrhizal fungal inoculation, on growth of Pinus wallichiana seedlings. Plant growth, mycorrhizal colonisation and nutrient uptake were significantly increased in biochar-amended soil as well as with ECM inoculation. Physicochemical properties and soil enzyme activities were increased by biochar augmentation and ECM inoculation. These results suggest that biochar of pine needles has potential for improving plant growth and soil fertility.

The increasing demand for food production has drawn attention to soil quality and its productive capacity. Thus, detailed soil characterisation is fundamental, which requires costly, time-consuming and waste-producing laboratory analyses; however, using proximal sensors, such as portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) spectrometry, provides environmentally-friendly and low-cost alternatives for this issue. The pXRF has great potential to enhance low-cost soil characterisation, especially for food-producing developing countries that lack funds, and so improving sustainable soil management and food production.