Category: Soil Health
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Testing for Soil, Plant Compost and Water Quality
Vern Grubinger, Vegetable and Berry Specialist A variety of tests are available to assess soil in the field and greenhouse, plant tissue, compost and water used for agriculture. Test results provide data that can inform management decisions aimed at optimizing crop quantity and/or quality, as well as fertilizer and soil amendment costs. Conducting tests on…
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Estimating Nitrogen Availability From Legume Cover Crops
By Becky Maden, Vegetable Nutrient Management Specialist, UVM Extension Farmers appreciate the value of cover crops for the wide range of benefits they provide to the soil and the environment, but when it comes to calculatingnitrogen (N) contributions to cash crops from legume cover crops, there is a lot of uncertainty. Legume cover crops have…
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Nutrient Management and Water Quality on Vegetable Farms
Nutrient management is part of a suite of farming practices aimed at supporting healthy soil and protecting water quality. Nutrients for vegetable crop production are managed with crop rotation, cover cropping, soil testing, and appropriate and timely applications of fertilizers and soil amendments. Nutrient Management Planning Tools Click the links below to download these tools.…
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Soil Testing in High Tunnels
Why should you use a different soil test for high tunnels? Management of high tunnel soils differs from field soils, largely because of the lack of rainfall and because higher rates of amendments are needed to achieve yield potential in high tunnels. In addition, over time, certain nutrients(such as phosphorus) and soluble salts may accumulate…
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Wood Chips as a Soil Amendment
Giving farming advice while sitting at a desk can be a perilous endeavor. I know, because I do it all the time. To keep from screwing things up I rely on a lot of other people to share their knowledge and information with me, so I can pass it on. That includes farmers, researchers, Extension…