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Video: New video on the spade test

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Soil on a spade

The spade test is a proven method to assess the soil structure in a field. (Photo: Thomas Alföldi, FiBL).

Assessment of top soil by hand

The hand test to assess the soil texture is an important part of the spade test. (Photo: Thomas Alföldi, FiBL).

Assessment of the soil layers on a spade

The various aggregate types of the soil sample are determined by the soil structure. (Photo: Thomas Alföldi, FiBL).

A woman is assessing the smell of a soil sample

Assessing the smell: Mouldy smell can indicate oxygen deficiency in the soil. (Photo: Thomas Alföldi, FiBL).

Soils are the most valuable resource for crop production, but they receive very little attention because we take them for granted. Within the project FertilCrop, visual soil assessment and other hands-on techniques are compared to analytical soil tests. A new video explains how to apply the spade test.

The spade test can tell you about the top 40 cm of soil, which contains the layer that is manipulated by machinery and the layer below. Many characteristics of a soil can be determined such as horizons or layers, texture, colour, odour, structure, roots, and soil dwelling animals and you can see the effect of soil tillage. The video contains the following chapters:

  1. Andreas Fliessbach, Coordinator FertilCrop

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