Chemical Soil Health: How Crops Actually Get Fed (with guest speaker Nigel Palmer)

Join us for a deep dive into the chemistry that underpins soil fertility and crop nutrition. In this intensive, we’ll explore how plants access and use nutrients, how those nutrients move through soil systems, and how farm management decisions influence nutrient availability. Participants will build a practical understanding of nutrient cycling and the relationships between key elements that shape plant health and productivity.

Together we’ll connect soil chemistry to real-world farm management: how nutrients interact with soil biology, soil structure, and one another; how to interpret soil tests; and how to choose effective nutrient delivery methods. We’ll also look at how cover crops can address nutrient deficiencies and how careful observation—of plants, soil conditions, and indicator species—can reveal early signs of nutrient imbalance.

Through the day, you’ll learn:

• Nutrient cycling and key nutrient interactions
• How to read and interpret soil tests
• When different nutrient delivery methods are most appropriate
• How cover crops and plant diversity can help address nutrient needs
• How to observe nutrient signals in the field, including indicator plants and leaf symptoms