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Course: 2027 Orange County Master Gardener Training Course - Part 1, Section: Week 3 - Soil and Soil Amendments
Week 3 - Soil and Soil Amendments
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Week 3 - Soil and Soil Amendments
Monday, January 15, 2024
Topics of the Week:
- Soil
- Soil Amendments
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This the guide we provide gardeners on how to take a proper soil sample.
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Web Soil Survey (WSS) provides soil data and information produced by the National Cooperative Soil Survey. It is operated by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and provides access to the largest natural resource information system in the world. NRCS has soil maps and data available online for more than 95 percent of the nation’s counties and anticipates having 100 percent in the near future.
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My Soil
Although how a piece of land is used affects the tilth or structure of the soil, the texture of the soil is determined largely by the bedrock, which acts as the soil's parental material. There are 561 named soils in New York State. What kind of soil do you have?
Use the USDA's Web Soil Survey to determine what type or types of soil you grow in. You can research the soil type(s) of your home garden, a community garden, or if you are currently not growing in the ground you can research the soil type(s) found at public garden like the Orange County Arboretum.
Once you have determined the type(s) of soil, read more about it. Is this type of soil commonly used for farming? Look at the soil profile. Does it change from one horizon to the next? What is the depth of a restrictive feature? What kind of drainage does it have? What are the minor components of your soil?
Find the Official Soil Series Description. This includes a description and map of other places with the same soil type. Where else can you find this type of soil. Look at the soil profile which shows the depth of the different soil horizons. If you want to go further, learn more about the minor components of your soil.
For this week post, tell us:
- the location of the soil type you researched (i.e. home, community garden, etc.)
- what type(s) of soil you found
- one interesting thing you learned about this soil type
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