Part 2 of 2: New analyses provide test results with handy scores that assess soil using a simple format, and make it easy for Alberta farmers to spot where an intervention or practice change might have the biggest effect.
Tag Archives soil conditions
Benchmarking soil health in Alberta
Researchers at the Chinook Applied Research Association’s Soil Health Lab have adapted a soil health assessment from Cornell University to evaluate Alberta soils
Measuring the components of healthy soil in Alberta
Part 1 of 2: Soil health more than just its chemical properties, according to the Alberta Soil Health Benchmark Report
The data Prairie farmers get from chemical analysis of soils are necessary to develop a field fertility program — but as an Alberta program shows, those data don’t tell the whole story needed to assess soil health.
One does not simply measure soil health
Agronomy Management: Just analyzing soil samples won’t give you the big picture
Over the past 40 years, Prairie farmers have made extraordinary strides in improving soil quality. Two major reasons were the shift from using summerfallow to continuous cropping, and the shift from conventional cultivation to no-till or minimum-till farming. Farmer adoption of these improved practices was gradual. Most famers were cautious and wanted to be sure […] Read more
Precision ag on Blackstrap farm
Extracting a soil sample to help identify a problem
My Dundurn farm is rolling Weyburn/Elstow loam with some very eroded knolls. For many years the combine raced over the knolls with little pouring in the hopper. The erosion over the decades was by water, but much of it from annual tillage — especially in the days of summerfallow. A few years ago I acquired a […] Read more
Artesian wells are not always good
Artesian wells are amazing phenomena. But they can cause salinity in the soil
Flowing artesian wells are a fascinating piece of Mother Nature in action. “Artesian” means that the water level rises above the depth of completion. The sand aquifer is confined by clay layers and pressure builds up. If the water level in the well is above the completion zone but below the ground, it is a […] Read more
Farming your marginal land
Pulling marginal acres into production may look like an attractive proposition. But there are strings attached
Pushing marginal land into grain production may add up to short-term gains when grain prices crest. But it comes with risks, too. “I would have some grave concerns about the notion of bringing marginal land back into annual grain production,” says Dr. Reynald Lemke, research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Lemke examines how farming […] Read more
The profit in strip till
There is increasing interest in strip till. When considering it for your farm, think about profit and conservation, not just yield
Strip till is becoming a common practice through much of the U.S. corn belt, especially in Highly Erodable Land (or HEL ground) areas where the U.S. National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has strict guidelines against working the full width of the seedbed. Many wonder if this practice can be transferred to Western Canada, especially with […] Read more
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