Checkup Time

by Troy Munsch, Resource Conservationist
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
Manhattan, Kansas

A topic that probably isn’t discussed too much around the kitchen table is “soil health.” The term soil health doesn’t mean soil erosion. It is referring to a specific soil type and its ability to perform a specific function with influences coming from Mother Nature as well as man.

There are several properties that can be looked at when performing a “checkup” on the soil. These include: structure, water holding capacity, infiltration, cation exchange capacity, number of earthworms present, percent of organic matter, nutrient supplying capacity (mineralization), pH, rooting depth, organism biodiversity.

To assist in this checkup, the local Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) field office has access to a Soil Quality Test Kit. The kit includes all of the tools necessary to check these items.

A simple phone call to the local NRCS office can be made to schedule the “doctor’s appointment.” The conservationist will bring the kit to the field and, with client assistance, perform the checkup.

Even if all of the tests available through the kit are not completed or an evaluation is done only in problem areas, this is an excellent way to get on the road to improving and/or enhancing one of the nation’s most precious resources, THE SOIL.

To get started with your soil checkup, contact your local Natural Resources Conservation Service office or conservation district office located at you local county USDA Service Center.

For more information about NRCS programs, visit the Kansas NRCS web site at www.ks.nrcs.usda.gov.

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Last Modified: 09/05/2008