Soil Health

In May of 2023, the NOFA-NY education team had the great privilege to participate in soil microscopy training with Monique Bosch through CT-NOFA. The virtual training time let us get familiar with microscopes, learn to identify aggregates, fungal hyphae, nematodes, and some soil structure basics. The in-person training at Bard College was incredible! We found our own soil samples and analyzed them with students from the college, allowing us to test our teaching skills and gain confidence. I highly recommend Monique and this program. I have been able to work with farmers and gardeners now to look at their soil structures and teach them about what they see.

At Assawaga Farm, our microscope is an indispensable tool for maintaining and improving our soil's health. We use it to assess the biology of many things on the farm including potting soil, compost, teas, as well as general soil tests from our fields, and it allows us a better understanding of what the soil and crops need to be healthy, productive, and sustainable. Looking at our farm through a microscope opens up a whole new perspective that we use to inform our decisions.

For me it was a refresher, but I couldn’t have started using a microscope again without this training. So valuable to be able to create a slide that shows the life in the soil, and how to identify the microbes that make up the soil food web. I teach about this all the time when I give presentations on soils to different groups.