High soil nutrient levels is not an adequate measure of soil fertility. In the same way, counts of specific forms of soil biology are not a measure of the contribution of soil biology to plant nutrition. The proportions of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in the soil are not reflected in the proportions of those elements found in plant leaves through tissue or sap testing. We seem to be resolutely fixed on counting mg/kg of chemical constituents in soil.

The Short Answer The full range of factors affecting productivity are rarely assessed. Parts of paddocks, through natural conditions, decline in soil health and productivity. Applying more phosphorus, or more nitrogen is often not a solution and is potentially driving productivity down. In short, its likely we measure the wrong things, and we don’t measure enough places. We base decisions on insufficient information. The soil is the engine of wealth creation on a farm.

The key to fostering bigger changes is to facilitate smaller ones. For that reason we work on small, worthy targets that farm managers can adopt. A Manifesto for Regenerative Agriculture? Back in mid-November, a group of experts and practitioners got together in Germany to develop a common understanding of what the term ‘regenerative agriculture’ means. More details of the Manifesto that the group agreed on are found at the link above.

In looking into the research on soil and soil health over the past 25 years, I am struck by how much we have discussed, measured and then set aside without it becoming part of the mainstream debate about global environmental condition. “Throughout much of the twentieth century, there has been very little concern about soil quality. In contrast to the other key components of the environmental system, air, and water, there are few immediate public perceptions that the quality of the soil is declining.

The LRF launched Round Two of its competitive funding program today. The process in this Round is different. There are two stages to the application. The initial application will gather data to enable the LRF to form an assessment about where the project sits on the spectrum of LRF investment priorities, other merit components, and value. Only shortlisted projects will complete the full Final Application. It will include a risk assessment component.

There is a lot of talk about soil biology and soil organic matter currently. Not so long ago, such topics seemed to agronomists to be part of the hippie world view, and hardly credible. There are now many startups, often established by scientists, with an aspiration to develop a line of biological products that are applied to seed or through irrigation to the soil. Many of these novel products address environmental issues as well as production issues.

The Essentials The LRF announced recently that it will open a new round of investment this year. More details will be available during this month/July There will also be a Queensland Natural Capital Fund to support ongoing investment in environmental services markets and payments The LRF investment rounds are competitive, so we recommend giving prompt consideration at a high level about your company’s interest in carbon farming and associated co-benefits projects.

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I was talking with a colleague recently about indicators of soil health. He’s a senior manager for a large horticultural enterprise. We agreed on most of them, though he attached more significance to biological activity at the time of sampling, than I do. Suddenly, he raised a challenge: “Why do we need to measure soil health? I know healthy soil when I see it! You can dig your hands into it.

In the normal run of agronomic activity, we get soil samples to tell us about the condition of the soil, and in particular any deficiencies in either macro-nutrients or micro-nutrients. Especially for the latter, we are looking at small numbers in parts per million. Why would accuracy be a problem? Wouldn’t accuracy be exactly what we want. This post is about why we recommend understanding clearly the limitations of accuracy, and why uncertainty is better.