Discover practical information on soil management and links to soils research and knowledge exchange activity. Whether you need an introduction to soil biology or a detailed guide to improving field drainage, we have information and guidance to support you.

GREATsoils: Helping you protect your soil and improve its productivity.

The soil health scorecard provides a framework to monitor soil health on a rotational basis.

The Excel-based tool uses soil analysis results for core soil health indicators and compares them to typical ranges for UK soil types and climate regions (benchmarks).

A completed scorecard automatically produces a 'traffic-light' snapshot of soil health to guide your management decisions.

To farm sustainably, you need to understand a soil’s physical structure as well as its nutrient and biological status.

A simple set of routine assessments will help you understand your soils better, and identify where improvements can be made.

Find out about different groups of soil organisms and their roles in nutrient cycling, stabilising soil structure, water infiltration and interactions with plant roots. 

Although soil type cannot be easily changed, knowing which soil type is present helps determine how to manage the soil to optimise its structure, water relations and nutrient supply.

Practical soil management

Soil management practices include drainage, cultivation and crop establishment as well as identifying and dealing with common soil problems.

In October and November we are running three events with Catchment Sensitive Farming (CSF) that examine how to integrate soil biology, physics and chemistry as part of the soil health scorecard.