Links & Articles
Discover a wealth of combined resources for learning about & advocating for soil health in Pennsylvania.
RESOURCE CATEGORIES
Pennsylvania Farmer Testimonials
Dig a Little, Learn a Lot - NRCS Healthy Soils Are Full of Life - NRCS Principals for High Functioning Soils - NRCS Healthy, Productive Soils Checklist for Growers - NRCS Farming in the 21st Century: a practical approach to improve soil health - NRCS Carbon to Nitrogen Ratios in Cropping Systems- NRCS
Total Organic Carbon - NRCS
Soil Carbon - Pennsylvania Soil Health Coalition
Particulate Organic Matter - NRCS
Reactive Carbon - NRCS Value of Soil Health - NRCS Iowa Soil Health Key Points - NRCS Five Questions Landowners Should Ask Their Farmers about Soil Health - NRCS What is a Soil Health Management System? - NRCS
Soil Respiration - NRCS
Soil Enzymes - NRCS
Potentially Mineralizable Nitrogen - NRCS
Soil Structure and Macropores - NRCS
Available Water Capacity - NRCS
Aggregate Stability - NRCS
Measuring Soil Compaction Using a Penetrometer - Penn State
NRCS Cropland In-Field Soil Health Assessment
NRCS Tech Note for cropland in-field assessment
NRCS Cropland In-Field Assessment video
NRCS Pasture Condition Score Sheet
Maryland Soil Health Assessment
South Dakota Soil Health Assessment Card
Soil Health Indicators - quick photo reference
Soil Health Indicators & Tests - NCAT
Estimating Soil Texture by Feel
Measuring Water Infiltration in Agricultural Soils video - NCAT & Stroud Center
Soil Health in Field & Forage Crop Production (Higher Quality PDF or Faster Download PDF)
The ABCs of Soil Health- NRCS
A Practical Guide to No-Till & Cover Crops in the Mid-Atlantic - North Jersey RC&D
Advancing Eco Agriculture webinars
Tainio Biologicals, Inc webinars
Web Soil Survey – Custom Soil Maps & Reports
Getting Started with Web Soil Survey
Soil Health Demo by Leroy Bupp (PA No-Till Alliance)
Pasa Sustainable Agriculture soil health resource page
Green Cover Seed Resource Website
No-Till Farmer Magazine free eGuides
Soil Health Research list compiled by Jim Hoorman
ACRES Healthy Soils Problem Solving Booklet
Optimizing Managed Grazing for Soil Health - Soil Health Institute & NRCS
One Good Idea website
Pennsylvania Beginning Farmers Resource Guide - Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Overview of plant micronutrients, insect pests, and herbal oils for insect control (click on the critical topics category) - Apical Crop Science
Soillife.org website
Soil Biology Primer - USDA, Elaine Ingham
Tainio Biologicals - Natural Growing Through Biology YouTube channel (also available as audio podcasts through Spotify and Apple)
Biological Pathways to Carbon Rich Soil - Christine Jones presentation
Soil Microbes Help Save Plant Growing Input Costs (Included in the video library)
Beneficial Insects (Included in the video library)
Farming with Soil Life: A handbook for supporting soil invertebrates and soil health on farms - Xerces Society, available through SARE website
Farming with Soil Life - digital download
Farming with Soil Life video series
Soil Organisms fact sheets by Jim Hoorman
Understanding Soil Biology & Nutrient Recycling
Introduction to the Plant Microbiome - Pioneer
Intro to the Soil Food Web - Urban Worm Company
Fertilizer Salt Index - salts can impact the soil microbe community
Soil Microbes in Organic Cropping Systems 101 - Penn State University
Management of Soil Microbes on Organic Farms - Penn State University
Earthworms - NRCS factsheet
Biological Indicators Overview - NRCS factsheet
Jeff Lowenfels Teaming with Microbes books
The Rhizophagy Cycle: How plants get nutrients from microbes - Dr. James White, Rutgers University, webinar
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE)
Steve Groff's Resources for Successful Cover Cropping (Training Binder)
Northeast Cover Crop Council - Cover Crop Decision Support Tools
Cover Crop Selector Tool - Precision Sustainable Agriculture
NRCS Comprehensive Guide to Cover Crop Species Used in the Northeast
One Pass Only: Seeding Cover Crops While Harvesting - Ray McCormick video
Building Healthy Pasture Soils - NCAT
PA Grazing Lands Coalition resource webpage
Stepping Up Your Grazing Management
How to Assess Soil Health on Grazing Lands Using a Shovel and a Knife - NCAT YouTube video
Grazing Support & Mentorship in Pennsylvania
Grazing for Good: The Benefits of Regenerative Dairy - Pasa Sustainable Agriculture, 4 videos
PSU Integrating Grazing into Cropping Systems: Grazing Cover Crops for Soil Health
PSU Integrating Grazing into Cropping Systems: Cover Crop Species & Crop Rotations
PSU Integrating Grazing into Cropping Systems: Infrastructure
PSU Integrating Grazing into Cropping Systems: Livestock Class Considerations
Potential to Integrate Grazing into No-Till Systems - PSU
U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef
Teacher's manual for understanding soil health and watershed function
The Little Regenerative Farmer book
General agricultural information (suggested by a student named Ainsley)
The ABCs of Soil Health - NRCS
NRCS General Soil Education website (including soil-related lesson plans)
NRCS Soil Health Educators Guide website
What is Dirt? - Curious Kids, University of North Dakota
Healthy Soils Activity Guide - Stop Waste
Soil Activity Book - Maryland Department of Agriculture
Healthy Soil: Healthy Life - 2022 NACD booklets, educator guide, & activity sheet
Life in the Soil: Dig Deeper - 2019 NACD booklets, educator guide, & activity sheet
Healthy Soils are Full of Life! - 2017 NACD booklets, educator guide, & activities
Soil is Alive! video - SciShow Kids
The Soil Awakens video - Soillife.org
Layers of Soil video - Peekaboo Kidz
I Farm Ugly song - music and lyrics by Jon Chandler
Building Healthy Soils in Home Gardens - PA Soil Health Coalition
Soil Health in Raised Beds - Penn State Extension
Resources for the small-scale grower - Green Cover
How to Manage Common Weeds Without Chemicals video - by Soil Shepherds
Regenerating the Home Landscape - by Soil Shepherds, ACRES magazine
Soil Health Academy no-till gardening blog post
Cover Crops Are an Easy Way to Improve Your Garden's Soil - Lancaster Farming article
Backyard Soil Health Q&A with Dr. Steven Mirksy - USDA-ARS YouTube video
Best Practices for the Sustainable Urban Garden - SARE
How Regenerative Farming Could Impact The Food We Buy In Years To Come - Tasting Table article
Bryan O'Hara | Organic No-Till Vegetable Farming - YouTube webinar recording
Soil Biology in Home Gardening - Lisa Blazure webinar recording, Prince George's SCD
Penn State Farmer to Farmer Case Study videos
Penn State Organic Crop Production Guide
Transitioning to Organic Production - SARE
Growing Organic No-till Garlic video - Beech Grove Farm
Soil Health and Organic Farming Guidebooks - Organic Farming Research Foundation
Rodale Institute Soil Health webpage
Los Fundamentos de la Salud del Suelo - Organic Farming Research Foundation
Bryan O'Hara | Organic No-Till Vegetable Farming - YouTube webinar recording
Soil Microbes in Organic Cropping Systems 101 - eOrganic, Penn State University
Management of Soil Microbes on Organic Farms - eOrganic, Penn State University
Healthy Soil Problem Solving 2022 - ACRES
Soil Health and Cover Crops at Burroughs Family Orchards - SARE video
Investigating the Benefits of Integrating Cover Crops into Organic Vegetable Systems - Rodale Institute webinar
The Art and Science of Grazing by Sarah Flack
The Complete Guide to Restoring Your Soil by Dale Strickler
Cows Save The Planet by Judith Schwartz
Dirt: The Erosion of Civilizations by David Montgomery
Farmacology by Dr. Daphne Miller
For the Love of the Soil by Nicole Masters
A Growing Revolution by David Montgomery
Grow Your Soil! by Diane Miessler
Life in the Soil by James Nardi
One Straw Revolution by Masanobu Fukuoka
Plowman's Folly by Edward Faulkner
Soil Biology Primer by multiple authors including Elaine Ingham
Soil Health, Soil Biology, Soilborne Diseases and Sustainable Agriculture by Stirling, Hayden Pattison, and Stirling
Teeming With Microbes by Jeff Lowenfels
What Your Food Ate by Anne Bikle & David Montgomery
Regen Ag podcasts - John Kempf, Advancing Eco Agriculture
Green Cover Podcasts - Keith Berns (also on YouTube)
Natural Growing Through Biology - Tainio Biologicals (also on YouTube)
Joel Myers - the history of Pennsylvania no-till
Rodale Farming Systems: Watershed Impact Trial
The Graziers Grapevine by the PA Grazing Lands Coalition
Ryan Graham, Butler County farmer: Every Day is Earth Day for Farmers
Interseeding Covers Into Corn at V4-V5 for No-Till Success, John Wallace, PSU
Understanding Carbon:Nitrogen Ratios & Cover Crops - Steve Groff on Cover Crop Strategies Podcast
On the Road with Cover Crops - Jim Hershey on No-Till Farmer Podcast
Landowner Help website - recorded webinars and resources
Agricultural Conservation Lease Builder - step-by-step help for developing leases
Long-Term Leasing Booklet & Ag Leasing 101 - PA Farm Link
Five Questions Landowners Should Ask Their Farmers about Soil Health - NRCS
PA Farm Link website - land and legal information
Thiele Dairy Farm - 2023 American Farmland Trust Pennsylvania Farm
B&R Farms - Boots and Robin Hetherington + Morgan and Kevin Bond, PA
American Farmland Trust - national case study list
Quantifying Economic and Environmental Benefits of Soil Health - AFT
Economics of Soil Health Systems in Midwest Corn and Soy - Soil Health Institute
Thiele Dairy Farm: No-till & Cover Crops in PA - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Deploy Cover Crops to Drop Your Herbicide Use
Steve Groff, Cedar Meadows Farm (Lancaster County) - No-Till Farmer
Leroy Bupp, Bupplynn Farm (York County) – No-Till Farmer
No-Till Pioneer on a Mission for Soil Health
Leroy Bupp, Bupplynn Farm (York County) – Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Focusing on Profits, Not Yields
Lucas Criswell, Criswell Acres (Union County) – Farm Progress
Lucas Criswell & Jim Hershey (Union & Lancaster Counties) – No-Till Farmer
Using Untreated Seed to Boost Beneficial Insects
Lucas Criswell, Criswell Acres (Union County) – No-Till Farmer
Dave Graybill, Red Sunset Farm (Juniata County) – Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Fine-Tuning Fertility for Top Yields
Dean James, Don Cotner Farms (Northumberland County) – No-Till Farmer
Connections Between Soil Health & Nutrition
Jennifer Montgomery & Greg Boulos, Blackberry Meadows Farm – Pasa Sustainable Agriculture
Jim Harbach, Schrack Farms (Clinton County)
Jim Harbach, Schrack Farms (Clinton County) – Dairy Herd
Harvesting Sunlight to Feed Soils
Jim Harbach, Schrack Farms (Clinton County) – No-Till Farmer
Planning and Research is Necessary for No-Till Success
Jim Hershey, Hershey Farms (Lancaster County) – No-Till Farmer
60” Corn Rows Make Space for Cover Crops
Ben Peckman, Slate Ridge Farm (Franklin County) – Farm Progress
Water In, Slugs Out, Inputs Down, Profits Up
Ben Peckman, Slate Ridge Farm (Franklin County) – No-Till Farmer
Feeding Worms, Microbial 'Livestock' Transforms No-Till Fields
Dave McLaughlin, Little Germany Farm (Perry County) - Cover Crop Strategies
Behind the Scenes with a Local Beef Farmer
Dave & Holly Albert, Misty Mountain Farms (Lycoming County) - Dirt to Dinner
Drone aids in making farm decisions
William Thiele (Butler County) - Farm & Dairy
Soil health and forage: A cover crop twofer
William Thiele (Butler County) - Farm Progress
The Next Step in No-Till: Planting into Living Covers - Cover Crop Strategies featuring Jim Hershey and Lucas Criswell (Lancaster & Union)
Profiles in Soil Health: Rowan Miller (Cumberland County)
American Farmland Trust
Profiles in Soil Health: Teena Bailey (Lehigh County)
American Farmland Trust
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