While I’m a big supporter of precision ag as a means to collecting data for better decision making, I was reminded recently we can’t lose sight of the fundamentals like soil testing, as boring as this may sound to growers. A 2015 Olds College survey by students highlighted the need to keep soil testing front and centre. Forty six percent of respondents only soil sample occasionally. Seventy-eight percent of farmers that use soil sampling see the information as useful, and 22% responded say they would consider zone sampling in the future.
Why Farmers in Western Canada Use or Don’t Use Soil Sampling as Part of Their Nutrient Management Planning

• 78% of farmers had soil sampling done sometime in the past
• 22% had never used soil sampling
• 23% soil sample every 2-3 years
• 29% soil sample to some degree every year
• 3% soil sample every 5 years
• 45% soil sample only occasionally

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