Long-term field research confirms Solvita Soil Test value

Long-term field research, conducted by the University of Guelph, has confirmed Solvita Soil Tests as valuable testing tools for evaluating soil health.

Research results show that Solvita tests enabled a high level of certainty in “useful” cropping comparisons and correlated with soil carbon levels and total soil nitrogen.

Solvita tests have the ability to capture key biological, chemical, and physical traits indicating healthy functioning in a farm system, says Woods End Laboratories, developer of the test.

Highlights of the research, published by Chahal et al., titled “Long-term effects of crop rotation, tillage, and fertilizer nitrogen on soil health indicators and crop productivity in a temperate climate” included:

• Diversifying rotations with perennial and cover crops increased corn yield;
• Higher concentration of soil organic carbon (SOC), evolved carbon dioxide, and Solvita amino-N developed from diverse rotations;
• SOC linked with crop yield and SOC as an indicator of agricultural resilience;
• Solvita labile amino nitrogen (SLAN) and Solvita carbon dioxide-burst positively correlated with SOC and total nitrogen; and,
• Applied nitrogen in diverse rotations had a synergistic effect on soil health indicators

“The study accessed two long term plot studies, providing optimal platforms to evaluate soil health test parameters, says Will Brinton, founder and chief science officer of Woods End Laboratories. “Such long-term practices provide greater confidence in distinguishing soil quality effects in laboratory analyses than reliance on short term studies. These projects reflect significant commitments of researchers supporting sustainability research objectives. Both Solvita tests (SLAN + CO2) were tested in several combinations of crops, soil management regimes, and time frames confirming their usefulness in monitoring changes that are indicative of soil health improvements.”

Brinton also stated, “The study further confirms that soil health is critical to the future of society in so far as it links farming, nutrition and climate under the theme of sustainable practices.”