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RESOURCES

This page contains links to methods/protocols for on-farm and laboratory soil health testing and links to additional websites and other resources.

7-25-16 Nichols corn and soybeans 6-row 2 conv.jpeg

On-Farm Soil Health Testing

Empower farmers, ranchers, growers, gardeners, researchers, and the agricultural community to examine their soil, measure soil regeneration, and determine success through innovative solutions.

Image by Annie Spratt

Research Papers

  1. Hengl, T., Sorenson, P., Parente, L., Cornish, K., Battigelli, J., Bonannella, C., Gorzelak, M., Nichols, K., & Geiss, C. E. (2023). Assessment of soil organic carbon stocks in Alberta using 2-scale sampling and 3D predictive soil mapping. Facets, 8, 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1139/facets-2023-0040 

  2. Hendrickson, J. R., Liebig, M. A., Archer, D. W., Schmer, M. R., Nichols, K. A., & Tanaka, D. L. (2021). Late-seeded cover crops in a semiarid environment: overyielding, dominance and subsequent crop yield. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems, 36(6), 587-598. https://doi.org/10.1017/s174217052100020x 

  3. Omondi, E. C., Wagner, M., Mukherjee, A., & Nichols, K. (2021). Long-term organic and conventional farming effects on nutrient density of oats. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems, 37(2), 113-127. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1742170521000387 

  4. Halvorson, J. J., Nichols, K. A., & Crisafulli, C. M. (2018). Soil Carbon and Nitrogen and Evidence for Formation of Glomalin, a Recalcitrant Pool of Soil Organic Matter, in Developing Mount St. Helens Pyroclastic Substrates. In Ecological Responses at Mount St. Helens: Revisited 35 years after the 1980 Eruption (pp. 97-112). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-7451-1_5 

  5. Liebig, M. A., Hendrickson, J. R., Franco, J. G., Archer, D. W., Nichols, K., & Tanaka, D. L. (2018). Near‐Surface Soil Property Responses to Forage Production in a Semiarid Region. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 82(1), 223-230. https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj2017.07.0237 

  6. Bhosekar, V., Nichols, K. A., & Moyer, J. (2017). Organics for Sustainable Food Security. Modern Concepts & Developments in Agronomy, 1(1), 5-6. 

  7. Liebig, M.A., Wang, G. J., Aberle, E., Eriksmoen, E., Nyren, P.E., Staricka, J., & Nichols, K. A. (2017). Soil response to perennial herbaceous biofeedstocks under rainfed conditions in the Northern Great Plains. Geoderma, 290(15), 10-18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2016.12.013 

  8. Moyer, J., Nichols, K.A., & Bhosekar, V. (2017). A fifteen-year review summarizing effects of conventional and organic farming systems on soils, nutrition, environment, economics and yields (1981-1995). Austrian Journal of Science Technology, 8, 4628-4634. 

  9. Hendrickson, J. R., Liebig, M. A., Archer, D. W., Schmer, M. A., Nichols, K. A., & Tanaka, D. L (2015). Responses of crop yield to late-seeded cover crops in a semi-arid environment. Agronomy Journal, 107, 2011-2019. 

  10. Liebig, M. A., Hendrickson, J. R., Archer, D. W., Schmer, M. A., Nichols, K. A., & Tanaka, D. L. (2015). Short‐Term Soil Responses to Late‐Seeded Cover Crops in a Semi‐Arid Environment. Agronomy Journal, 107(6), 2011-2019. https://doi.org/10.2134/agronj15.0146 

  11. Pothula, A. K., Igathinathane, C., Shen, J., Nichols, K., & Archer, D. (2015). Milled industrial beet color kinetics and total soluble solid contents by image analysis. Industrial Crops and Products, 65, 159-169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2014.12.001 

  12. Reinhart, K. O., Nichols, K. A., Petersen, M., & Vermeire, L. T. (2015). Soil aggregate stability was an uncertain predictor of ecosystem functioning in a temperate and semiarid grassland. Ecosphere, 6(11), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1890/es15-00056.1 

  13. Seidel, R., Moyer, J., Nichols, K., & Bhosekar, V. (2015). Studies on long-term performance of organic and conventional cropping systems in Pennsylvania. Organic Agriculture, 7(1), 53-61. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13165-015-0145-z 

  14. Liebig, M., Archer, D., Hendrickson, J., Nichols, K., Sanderson, M., Tanaka, D., Merrill, S., Harner, L., & Olsen, D. (2014). The Area IV Soil Conservation District Research Farm: Thirty years of collaborative research to improve cropping system sustainability in the Northern Plains. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 69(4), 99A-103A. DOI: 10.2489/jswc.69.4.99A 

  15. Wang, G. J., Nyren, P., Xue, Q. W., Aberle, E., Eriksmoen, E., Tjelde, T., Liebig, M., Nichols, K., & Nyren, A. (2014). Establishment and Yield of 

  16. Perennial Grass Monocultures and Binary Mixtures for Bioenergy in North Dakota. Agronomy Journal, 106(5), 1605-1613. https://doi.org/10.2134/agronj14.0068

  17. Liebig, M. A., Johnson, H. A., Archer, D. W., Hendrickson, J. R., Nichols, K. A., Schmer, M. R., & Tanaka, D. L. (2013). Cover Crop Chart: An intuitive educational resource for extension professionals. Journal of Extension, 51(3), 1-5.

  18. Nichols, K. A., & Millar, J. (2013). Glomalin and Soil Aggregation under Six Management Systems in the Northern Great Plains, USA. Open Journal of Soil Science, 03(08), 374-378. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2013.38043

  19. Nichols, K.A., Caesar, T., & Halvorson, J. (2013). Roles of biology, chemistry, and physics in soil macroaggregate formation and stabilization. Open Agriculture Journal, 7, 107-117. http://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1874331520131011003

  20. Sanderson, M. A., Archer, D., Hendrickson, J., Kronberg, S., Liebig, M., Nichols, K., Schmer, M., Tanaka, D., & Aguilar, J. (2013). Diversification and ecosystem services for conservation agriculture: Outcomes from pastures and integrated crop–livestock systems. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems, 28(2), 129-144. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1742170512000312

  21. Spokas, K. A., Cantrell, K. B., Novak, J. M., Archer, D. W., Ippolito, J. A., Collins, H. P., Boateng, A. A., Lima, I. M., Lamb, M. C., McAloon, A. J., Lentz, R. D., & Nichols, K. A. (2012). Biochar: a synthesis of its agronomic impact beyond carbon sequestration. J Environ Qual, 41(4), 973-989. https://doi.org/10.2134/jeq2011.0069

  22. Banks, J. E., Cline, E., Castro, S., Urena, N., Nichols, K., Hannon, L., Singer, R., & Chandler, M. (2011). Effects of Synthetic Fertilizer on Coffee Yields and Ecosystem Services: Parasitoids and Soil Glomalin in a Costa Rican Coffee Agroecosystem. Journal of Crop Improvement, 25(6), 650-663. https://doi.org/10.1080/15427528.2011.599919

  23. Nichols, K. A., & Samson‐Liebig, S. (2011). An Inexpensive and Simple Method to Demonstrate Soil Water and Nutrient Flow. Journal of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Education, 40(1), 51-57. https://doi.org/10.4195/jnrlse.2009.0033

  24. Nichols, K. A., & Toro, M. (2011). A whole soil stability index (WSSI) for evaluating soil aggregation. Soil and Tillage Research, 111(2), 99-104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2010.08.014

  25. Stetson, S. J., Osborne, S. L., Schumacher, T. E., Eynard, A., Chilom, G., Rice, J., Nichols, K. A., & Pikul, Jr., J. L. (2011). Impact of corn residue removal on soil carbon pools in a no-till corn soybean rotation in South Dakota. Soil Tillage Research, 76(4), 1399-1406. http://dx.doi.org/10.2136/sssaj2011.0420

  26. Xue, Q., Nyren, P. E., Wang, G., Eriksmoen, E., Bradbury, G., Halverson, M., Aberle, E., Nichols, K., & Liebig, M. (2011). Biomass composition of perennial grasses for biofuel production in ND, Biofuels, 2(5), 515-528. http://dx.doi.org/10.4155/bfs.11.123

  27. Buyer, J. S., Zuberer, D. A., Nichols, K. A., & Franzluebbers, A. J. (2010). Soil microbial community function, structure, and glomalin in response to tall fescue endophyte infection. Plant and Soil, 339(1-2), 401-412. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-010-0592-y

  28. Nichols, K. A. (2010). Glomalin production and accumulation in soilless pot cultures. Canadian Journal of Soil Science, 90, 567-570. http://dx.doi.org/10.4141/cjss09041

Links/Websites

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The International Collection of (Vesicular) Arbuscular Mycorrhizal FungiINVAM - https://invam.ku.edu/ 

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