Soil Soul Test

I’ve been sitting inside all morning, a rare thing for me, trying to decide how to handle the disappointing results of our most recent soil test.     Yeah, our great red organic soil failed.  60 points on a 100 point scale.

I came up with a five step program to address the failings of my soil and soul. Thank goodness for step number 5.  But before my solutions, here are the problems defined by  Cornell Soil Health .   I used them to test his time because they do test that include all the biological functions of the things that live in the soil.  Not just the chemical anylysis that many University soil test do.  Those ignore the living component.  Any test that ignores it, is looking at soil as nothing more than a medium for holding up plants, ignoring the life force and ignoring the most recent work in soil microbiology.

The results are in this easy to read chart.  With the results, you get access to Cornell’s guide to soil.  It’s all keyed to it, so I can look at the problem areas and read up on them.

Based on my reading, here’s my plan?
1.  Relax.   I’m converting my soil after years of abuse from synthetic toxins and tilling.
2 Plant a Winter Cover Crop.  I’ve order winter peas and oats.  This is a basic, reliable winter combination.  The goal is that the roots of these will add tons of organic matter, way down  (oats roots are about 6 feet long) where I could never get organic matter.
3. Add a very light dusting of pulverized lime.  That will get my pH up a little quickly and make some of my Calcium more available.
4. Double up on my compost tea applications.  That will increase my bacteria achieving two things — making more available nitrogen and hopeful out competing soil pathogen pest which made my root health rating a little low.

And finally,5.  Respect.   To take a break from reading and writing, I just went outside to rake the yard.  There were so many male cardinals bouncing around among the leaf litter and magnolia fruits that I just couldn’t do it.  Then a freak little voice in my head said, ‘oh but you really need to rake, people are going to think no one lives here.‘
Relax. Get out of my head anal retentive boy.  The truth is if I rake, I’m going to be the only one living here. All those birds and all their poop and all the worms and bacteria and seeds they stimulate will leave.  Then not only will you have to get your fields soil tested, but you’ll have to get your yard soil tested.   Then you have to buy things to add to replace all the stuff raked away and you’ll be all worried about it and the cardinals may not come to sooth your soul on a gray winter day.