When farmers talk about their soil test results, the conversation often starts and ends with soil pH. While that one number is important to determining whether lime is needed, that insight is just a ...

If you want your plants to grow big and healthy, soil quality matters. Even if you aren’t planning on growing a lush veggie garden, all plants need nutrients to grow, in addition to light and water.

Anxious about the rueful state of his peas, radishes and onions, Rod Marquardt arrived at the University of Minnesota’s soil testing laboratory with two lunch bag-sized containers of dirt. “We’re just ...