The Pennsylvania No-Till Alliance will be hosting a soil health field day July 31 on Fabin Brothers Farms at 231 Bethel Church Road, Indiana.

The event will be hosted by Scott Reinhart and will feature a soil pit presentation and discussion in the morning by Odette Menard. She will also be discussing influencing soil productivity with earthworms.

Will Brinton will talk about increasing soil health with Solvita tests in the afternoon.

Lunch will be provided as well as equipment demonstrations and cover crop walks.

This free event is a good opportunity to hear and learn from Menard who has worked tirelessly to promote zero till farming practices throughout southwestern Quebec for many years. Her dedication to soil health earned her the distinction of being the first female member of the Canadian Conservation Hall of Fame in 2005. She has been actively involved at the producer level to establish no-till networks.

Her presentation will focus on the benefits of earthworm populations in soil reclamation.

The Solvita test is a new tool that measures soil respiration; a byproduct of good biological activity. Brinton will explain this test and its benefits during the meeting.

Brinton, president of Woods End Labs, developed the Soil Health Nutrient Tool in 2005 with Rick Haney from USDA in Texas as a tool to further evaluate soil health. The test measures the soil’s carbon and water soluble carbon — all indicators of a soil’s biological health and its ability to use nutrients.

The soil health tool combines five different measurements of the soil’s biological properties, creating a soil health score, which represents the overall health of the soil system. Brinton’s goal is to save farmers money on unneeded fertilization while concurrently allowing them to assess their soil’s health.

For more information you can call 717-635-2320 or visit www.panotill.org.

Andy Gaver is a conservationist with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service in Butler County.