Whakamarara

NEW! All our workshops are now held both online and
face to face.

Soil is a critical element to understand if you want to grow nutritious food, successful plants, vibrant trees and healthy livestock.   If you also want to cut down on buying and hauling soil amendments, spending hours weeding, hoeing, and digging, this  course will make all the difference in helping you get your soils into a healthy, sustainable cycle

This is the second of the 4 Understanding Soils  Sessions

Soil “beginners” are welcome as well as those of you who would like a “soil” refresher to fill in any gaps in your knowledge.

This is an excellent opportunity to learn about your specific soil by bringing along samples from your property. If you have a soil test you can bring that along too. By the end of this course you’ll know what all those chemical abbreviations and numbers actually mean and what you might do about them!

Topics covered over the four sessions will include:

• Why soil texture matters, and how to identify soil types easily.
• Reading the soil profile.
• Learning what weeds can tell you about the soil.
• Monitoring the health of the soil.
• Using S-Map to identify NZ mapped soil types to be able to research different soils without a sample or test.
• How to take a soil test sample, understanding Soil Test results and how to interpret and take appropriate actions.
• The Soil Food Web– what is it, how to support it and enhance plant health and production.
• pH scale. Testing, interpretation and subsequent actions.
• What soil can offer to climate change – storing carbon in the soil.
• Humus, the essential ingredient.
• Importance of covered soil, minimising digging and soil disturbance.
• Soil amendments: compost, vermicast, compost teas, ocean products.

Practical activities include soil testing, Visual Soil Assessment, earth-worm counts, using a microscope to look for soil biology, making hot compost, making compost tea, and making a mini worm bin.

Laptops will be useful for the S-Map session, but not essential for each student.

Cost: If you join us for just a few sessions, pay $59.95 for any session before 22 August, excellent value for hours of quality education, interaction and the support materials.