Soil health

[Video] Soil Health Sessions: Soil Health Indicators

April 15, 2020 | Posted in Soil Health

Anna Teeter with the Soil Health Partnership discusses soil health indicators in this video from the Soil Health Partnership. Teeter explains why soil is not just a closed system, how to get started evaluating soil health, the definition of soil health, and more.

3 Soil Health Indicators

April 15, 2020 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: Soil Health Partnership

Soil health is the capacity of soil to function as a vital living system to sustain biological productivity, maintain environmental quality, and promote plant, animal, and human health. This is a concept that characterizes the ability of a living soil system to perform functions such as supporting plant health. Read more in this article from the Soil Health Partnership.

Cover Crops Can Be the Answer

April 13, 2020 | Posted in Grazing

Source: Tri-State Livestock News

Producers select a crop based on various components unique to their own operation. While each cover crop can offer a multitude of benefits, Miranda Meehan, extension livestock environmental stewardship specialist at North Dakota State University, urges ranchers to look at the big picture. Read more in this article from Tri-State Livestock News.

9 Minnesota Farmers Used Soil Health Practices for 5+ Years: Here's How It Went

April 10, 2020 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: Aberdeen News

Farmers and landowners can learn about the soil health journeys of Minnesota farmers in a new report, “Soil Health Case Studies 2020.” University of Minnesota research assistant Aidan Read visited farms and interviewed farmers in late 2019 to develop case study profiles of nine farms.

Soil Health Practices Help Minnesota Farmer

April 8, 2020 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: The Calendonia Argus (Houston County, MN)

As more and more farms find different ways to utilize their land, one Minnesota farm is using soil health practices to help them out. Connor McCormick, who farms just outside of Caledonia along with his dad Kevin, said their first time using a cover crop – cereal rye – turned out pretty good. Read more in this article from the Caledonia Argus (Houston County, MN).

[Podcast] Wider Rows Leaves Space for Cover Crops

In this week’s podcast, retired John Deere engineer and farm consultant Bob Recker provides insight on ways to boost soil health without taking fields out of production.

April 6, 2020 | Posted in Seeding Practices

In this week’s podcast, retired John Deere engineer and farm consultant Bob Recker provides insight on ways to boost soil health without taking fields out of production.

Storing Carbon in the Soil a Win-Win for Farmers

April 6, 2020 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: Conservation News

In 2019, a UN report laid out a bitter truth: The current food system is fueling the destruction of Earth’s forests — and humanity must overhaul how we grow and ship food to stop climate breakdown. But countries are struggling to keep farming sustainable while meeting the mounting demand for production — which must increase by between 25 percent and 70 percent by 2050 to feed growing populations. Read more in this article from Conservation International.

Pennycress Doubles as Cover Crop, Cash Crop

April 3, 2020 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: The Courier (Waterloo, Iowa)

Cover crops are an investment in soil health, but what if they paid off as a cash crop as well? Researchers at the University of Minnesota are aiming for just that as they shape pennycress into a suitable food and fuel product that can fit in with the typical upper Midwest crop rotation. Read more in this article from The Courier (Waterloo, Iowa).

What Do Soil Microbes Do?

March 25, 2020 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: Ohio's Country Journal

Soil microbes are abundant, making nutrients available to plants. There are more soil microbes in a teaspoon of soil than there are people on earth. Read more in this article from Ohio's Country Journal.