Instant Insights: Soil Health Indicators

Chapter 1 - Developing soil health indicators for improved soil management on farm: Elizabeth Stockdale, NIAB, UK; Paul Hargreaves, Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), UK; and Anne Bhogal, ADAS Gleadthorpe, UK; 1 Introduction 2 Frameworks from policy and practice where soils are considered 3 Approaches to monitoring soil quality/health in agricultural systems 4 Case study: developing a practical and relevant soil health toolkit for UK agricultural soils 5 Conclusion and future trends 6 Where to look for further information 7 Acknowledgement 8 References
Chapter 2 - Biological indicators of soil health in organic cultivation: A. Fortuna, Washington State University, USA; A. Bhowmik, Pennsylvania State University, USA; and A. Bary and C. Cogger, Washington State University, USA; 1 Introduction 2 Metrics of soil health 3 Using biological indicators 4 Conclusions and future trends 5 Acknowledgements 6 Where to look for further information 7 References
Chapter 3 - Modelling soil organic matter dynamics as a soil health indicator: Eleanor E. Campbell, University of New Hampshire, USA; and John L. Field and Keith Paustian, Colorado State University, USA; 1 Introduction 2 SOM modelling basics 3 Current issues and developments in SOM modelling 4 Future trends in soil health monitoring and decision support services 5 Conclusion and future trends 6 Where to look for further information 7 References
Chapter 4 - Quantifying earthworm community structures as indicators of soil health: Jacqueline L. Stroud, formerly Rothamsted Research, UK; 1 Introduction 2 Earthworms, soil health and management 3 Challenges in collecting data on earthworms 4 Developing improved assessment of earthworms 5 Results and discussion 6 Conclusion 7 Where to look for further information 8 References