AM Minnesota Tuesday: Soil Health

This week is National Soil Health Week and that will be the topic on Tuesday's AM Minnesota Program. My guest will be Ed McNamara. McNamara is a farmer from Goodhue County and for many years has served on the Goodhue County Soil and Water Conservation District Board. Not that many years ago we did not really pay much attention soil health or microorganisms that were active in the soil.

Farmers knew that microorganisms were important in breaking down crop residue or converting nitrogen into the nitrite form that can be absorbed by corn plants. There were some farm groups that were talking about things farmers could do to improve soil health. Plus there were companies developing products to "enhance" soil health. I and many other farmers kind of took their claims with a little skepticism. Now we are finding out maybe we need to pay attention to soil health. When you think about it, soil is alive with organisms that are important for plant growth and development.