I am freshly inspired in my thinking about soil quality following
discussion with some of you at the ASA meetings in Anaheim.
Since returning to MD I have been pondering simple methods
for assessing soil physical condition...
If one starts with the premise that high quality soil optimizes
root development, then a logical approach to evaluating soil quality is to
look at root development.
We all know that exhuming an extensive root system is time
consuming and tedious... and would not be an appropriate rountine soil
test... but what about looking at root development at some point early in
crop development... how about as early as emergence ?
I am aware of studies evaluating crop cultivars in terms of rooting
characteristics but have soils ever been evaluated in terms of their
effect on rooting characteristics (e.g. depth, architecture, root:shoot
ratio) ...
What would the optimum phenological time for sampling be to see
soil effects on roots but minimize sampling time ? What crop
species would be best suited for a soil structure bioassay and which root
characteristic would be simplest to measure yet be sensitive to
soil structural quality ?
I am planning to plant some seeds in intact 0-30cm soil cores and
destructively sample after a minimum growth period... maybe at
emergence... or 1 week after emergence...
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on any past studies using plants
to bioassay soil structure or any recommendations for the development of a
simple soil structure bioassay method.
I wonder how many farmers have dug up crop plants to look at the roots ?
It is easy to tell whether active nodulation has developed
on legume roots.... what else can be quickly observed ??
Joel Gruver
Soil Quality Research
U of MD
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