Build healthy soil and grow better plants
Robert Pavlis, a gardener for over four decades, debunks common soil myths, explores the rhizosphere, and provides a personalized soil fertility improvement program in this three-part popular science guidebook.
Healthy soil means thriving plants. Yet untangling the soil food web and optimizing your soil health is beyond most gardeners, many of whom lack an in-depth knowledge of the soil ecosystem.
Soil Science for Gardeners is an accessible, science-based guide to understanding soil fertility and, in particular, the rhizosphere - the thin layer of liquid and soil surrounding plant roots, so vital to plant health.
Coverage includes:
- Soil biology and chemistry and how plants and soil interact
- Common soil health problems, including analyzing soil's fertility and plant nutrients
- The creation of a personalized plan for improving your soil fertility, including setting priorities and goals in a cost-effective, realistic time frame.
- Creating the optimal conditions for nature to do the heavy lifting of building soil fertility
Written for the home gardener, market gardener, and micro-farmer, Soil Science for Gardeners is packed with information to help you grow thriving plants.
"Robert Pavlis once again proves science is wonderful! Soil Science for Gardeners explains why things work in your garden! Equally important, Pavlis uses science to destroy so many gardening myths. This is a book for all gardeners, especially the curious ones."
-- Jeff Lowenfels, author, DIY Autoflowering Cannabis and the Teaming With Trilogy
"Robert Pavlis speaks the language of plants. More to the point, while he understands the science of healthy plant life he knows that none of this knowledge is very useful to the average gardener (nor of much interest) until it is distilled into language that we understand. Voila! Soil Science for Gardeners. This book will help readers understand the language of horticulture as it relates to soil. And good soil health is the foundation of every great garden and every successful garden experience. You will become a more confident gardener and your enjoyment of the gardening experience will be that much deeper. I will place my copy of this book within easy reach for future reference. Its pages will become well-worn from use long before it becomes compost. And in my books, composting a good book after it has served its purpose is a high compliment. From book to earth, from earth to life. From life to book. I predict that your reading experience of this book will enlighten and inform you like no other."
-- Mark Cullen, C.M., president, Mark's Choice, co-author, Escape to Reality
"Like many gardeners, I use soil all the time, yet rarely give it much of a thought. But Soil Science for Gardeners takes you behind the scenes to the underground world of soil: what it is, its inhabitants, and how to use soil to really get the gardening results you want. Much of what you thought you knew about soil is simply not true and you'll learn why, plus how to make the soil you garden as healthy as possible. Painless science, practical knowledge. Read it from beginning to end!"
-- Larry Hodgson, the Laidback Gardener
"Good gardens start from the ground up. In Soil Science for Gardeners, Robert Pavlis tells what's going on in soils and then offers practical directions to manage soil for more productive and healthier plants."
-- Lee Reich, author, The Ever Curious Gardener
"Natural systems are more than the sum of their parts. And yet to understand them we must closely examine these parts. Soil Science for Gardeners takes us on a journey through the microscopic levels of soil geology, chemistry, and biology, and illuminates the soil ecology that sustains all life on land. From this knowledge base it then teaches us strategies and methods to regenerate and sustain life giving soil."
-- Darrell E. Frey, author, Bioshelter Market Garden and co- author, The Food Forest Handbook
"Thank goodness for this book! If I had one wish for all gardeners, no matter their experience, I'd wish for them to endeavor to understand the vital role that soil plays in gardening success, and then, I'd have them read this book for the most comprehensive understanding behind it all. As a self-proclaimed soil super-fan, this is the most comprehensive book on the subject I've ever seen. I've been following Robert's work for a long time and I trust his science-based, no-nonsense approach to helping us all debunk gardening myths while making us all smarter gardeners in the process. Robert is one of my trusted, go-to sources when I want to get to the bottom line, and this book does that in spades. Soil Science for Gardeners will teach us everything we want and need to know about the critical role soil plays in the success of our garden and landscape, and more. It's extremely well thought out, comprehensive and a joy to read: practical wisdom for real life application in all our gardening pursuits. Three cheers for Soil Science for Gardeners!"
-- Joe Lamp'l, Creator and Host of Emmy Award-winning PBS television series, Growing a Greener World(R) and Founder, joegardener.com and The joe gardener(R) Show podcast
Table of Contents:
Introduction
What Is Soil Health?
Using the Book
Terminology
SECTION 1: UNDERSTANDING SOIL
1. Soil Basics
Components of Soil
Origin of Soil
Soil Particles
Soil Texture
Importance of Particle Size
Air and Water
Aggregation and Soil Structure
Soil pH
2. Plant Nutrients
Ions
What Is Salt?
Movement of Nutrients in Soil
Essential Plant Nutrients
Micronutrients
Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC)
3. Soil Life
Energy Food Web
The Power of Large Molecules
Ratio of Fungi to Bacteria
Chemicals in the Soil
Pathogen Control
Identification of Microbes
4. Bacteria
What Do They Eat?
Where Do They Live?
Role in Disease Prevention
Ideal Environment
Role in Building Soil Aggregates
Conditions that Harm Bacteria
Nitrogen Fixation
5. Fungi
What Do They Eat?
Where Do They Live?
Fungi at War
Fungal Parasites
Mycorrhizal Fungi
6. Other Organisms
Actinomycetes
Algae
Protozoa
Nematodes
Arthropods
Earthworms
7. Organic Matter
Decomposition: Converting Dead Things into Humus
Truth About Humus
Too Much Organic Matter
Compost
Chelation
8. Rhizosphere
Root Exudates
Soil Enzymes
Effect of Desiccation
Soil pH Levels
Dynamic Microbe Population
Allelochemicals
Plants Are in Control
SECTION 2: SOLVING SOIL PROBLEMS
9. Identifying Soil Problems
Why Do We Fertilize?
Soil Testing
Plants as Indicators of Soil Problems
Plant Tissue Analysis
DIY Test Kits
Determining Soil Texture
Crusted Soil
Quantification of Microbes
Level of Organic Matter
Compaction
Hardpan
Drainage
10. Gardening Techniques That Affect Soil
Tilling
Working the Land
Mulching
Hoeing
Cover Crops
Raised Bed Gardening
Crop Rotation
Companion Planting
11. Solving Chemical Issues
Buffer Capacity
Increasing pH
Decreasing pH
Saline and Sodic Soils
Increasing CEC
Synthetic vs Organic Fertilizers
Understanding Fertilizers
Synthetic Fertilizers
Organic Fertilizers
Fad Products
12. Solving Microbe Issues
Inoculation
Solarization
Controlling Pathogens
Compost Tea
Best Practice for Increasing Microbe Populations
13. Increasing Organic Matter
Options for Adding Organic Matter
Cover Crops
Vermicompost
Bokashi Compost
Biochar
Biosolids
14. Dealing with Structural Problems
Compaction
Drainage Issues
Modifying Soil Texture
Clay Soils
Sandy Soils
SECTION 3: A PERSONALIZED PLAN FOR HEALTHY SOIL
15. Developing a Plan for Soil Health Improvement
16. How Detailed Should You Get?
17. Soil Health Assessment
Chemical Tests
Soil Sampling Instructions
18. Soil Health Action Plan
Soil Health Assessment
Action Plan
Action Plan Follow-up
Appendix A: Soil Health Assessment Form
Appendix B: Action Plan for the Year
Index
About the Author
About New Society Publishers
Robert Pavlis is the owner and developer of Aspen Grove Gardens, a 6-acre botanical garden that features 3,000 varieties of plants. Specializing in soil science, he has been an instructor for Landscape Ontario and is a garden blogger, writer, and chemist. He resides in Guelph, Ontario.
New Society Publishers
Pub Date: April 07, 2020
0.8" H x 8.9" L x 6.0" W
224 pages
paperback