Grass Roots Partnering for Soil Quality

After Three Rivers Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) coordinator Paula Jones and University of Idaho Sustainable Agriculture Coordinator Cinda Williams decided that soil quality issues were too important to wait for an NRCS course on soil quality, they went to Sustainable Agriculture and Research Education’s (SARE) Western Region Professional Development Program for funding to create one of their own.

“We saw that within NRCS, the technical emphasis was moving to soil quality and we thought, ‘Let’s get ahead of the curve,” said Jones. Armed with a 2002 SARE grant, Williams, Jones, and other project leaders held four workshops in a year, providing soil quality training to 106 NRCS; Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES); and other agricultural professionals from Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming.

By the end of each three-day training session, participants had learned how to recognize and use indicators of soil quality, how to perform and assess soil quality measurements using a soil quality test kit, and how to prescribe practices and develop management strategies to improve soil quality.

The grant also allowed the project leaders to purchase 24 soil quality test kits, which they distributed throughout Idaho in NRCS, RC&D, and CSREES offices.

The soil quality test kit, available from an agricultural supply house is modeled after the kit developed by the NRCS-Soil Quality Institute and includes the instruction and interpretation booklet written by SQI scientists. The test kit enables agricultural professionals and farmers to conduct a number of simple tests such as soil respiration, water infiltration, bulk density, salinity, soil nitrate, and aggregate stability. The kit’s versatility means a user can learn about biological, chemical, and physical soil properties without having to send samples off to the lab.

“The soil test kits are easy to use, portable, and very helpful to the farmer,” said Jones. “If you give farmers tools to check their soils, you can show that it works and that they can monitor [the soil] themselves,” she added.

Learning how to use the kits also proved to be one of the most successful parts of the workshop. “It’s easier to understand the process if you use it in the field,” said Rod Kyar, Idaho Assistant State Soil Scientist, and workshop leader, who selected two sites for the soil workshops that would show large differences in soil quality.

Kyar likes the test kits because they contain a variety of standard soil tests. “Most people know pH and EC, but the test kits exposed people to other tests such as bulk density, infiltration, and respiration. Interpretations from these tests clearly demonstrated how different management practices can impact the soil,” said Kyar.

Participants were quite excited about the kits at the workshop although both Jones and Kyar note that they are not getting as much use as hoped, simply because of staff time constraints. However, Jones said, training 100 people in soil quality was a big accomplishment. And, those who are trained stand ready to pass on what they learned. “We now have a cadre in Idaho that we can pull together to do training in neighboring States,” said Jones.