Did you know that soil acidity – the pH of your soil – can affect the availability of soil nutrients to your plants? Did you know the basic elements needed for the health of the human body are the same ones that your vegetable plants need, too? Kirsten Conrad, Agriculture/Natural Resources Extension Agent for Arlington and the City of Alexandria, offers some easy lessons on how to achieve optimal conditions to maintain soil fertility for healthy plants. She also explains the soil nutrient analysis services available to you through Virginia Cooperative Extension that can help
Zoom session, recorded August 19 2022
Video of Presentation
Chapter Breaks
Additional Resources
Food Waste Collection
- Arlington County Yard/Kitchen Waste Collection
- EcoAction Arlington: Be an Active Participant in Collecting Food Scraps Waste
- Alexandria Food Waste Collection Sites
Soil Rebuilding
- Urban Soil Rebuilding
- Soil Profile Rebuilding: Rehabilitating Compacted Soils
- Urban Soils, USDA.
- Lots of info on the web and social media:
4TheSoil: Core Principles
Virginia Soil Health Coalition
Virginia Tech Soil Testing Notes
- Explanation of soil tests Note 1
- Lawn fertilization for cool season grasses Note 17
- Lawn fertilization for warm season grasses Note 18
- Vegetable & flower gardens Note 19
- Home shrubs & trees Note 20
- Home fruit trees Note 21
- Small fruits for home use Note 22
And more!
- Soil Tests – MGNV Resource Page
- Turf & garden tips
- Understanding Cation Exchange Capacity and Base Saturation, University of Georgia Extension.
- DIY Home Soil Percolation Test
- Arborist Wood Chips for Building Soil
- Estimating Soil Texture, Colorado State Extension
- Soil Health and Cover Crops, Virginia Cooperative Extension.
- Cultivating better tasting more nutritious tomatoes
- Garden Myths about Fertilizer
- The Contentious Nature of Soil Organic Matter, University of California, Agriculture & Natural Resources
- Remineralization of Soil for Optimizing nutrition