Dirt Dude Conversations 1. Bob and Kirsten of the Soil Health Lab.
"Cover crops, I think that's gotta be one of the most important things,just because of building up the organic matter, and reducing the erosion potential." Kirsten Kurtz
Bob Schindelbeck and Kirsten Kurtz of the Cornell University soil health lab are soil analysis and extension experts, connecting farmers with the latest thinking at the University. The soil health movement is a relatively new way of thinking to mainstream agriculture, and Cornell has worked hard at a holistic approach for measuring and then delivering tools to improve soil health and agricultural sustainability. Often is as much as understanding the motivation of the farmer as the soil tests themselves. It was with Bob and Kirsten that I first realised that soil science is as much about the sociology as the science.
We talk not only about the soil health Lab, but also growing wine grapes in the nearby Finger Lakes district, the importance of cover crops and reducing tillage. These guys are seriously passionate about their soils and serving their districts.
