Soil-Sampler

If you hire someone to sample or do it yourself, you need the need the confidence the samples are consistently taken. You want to hire a sampler that follows a good protocol to have a reputable sample. The quality of the decision made with a good soil sample is very little cost/ac. in comparison to what you spend on the sample. Consistent depth is important as every inch of difference in soil depth will change your sample.

A good sampling protocol is:

• • Probe Type (a core probe will collect the most consistent sample from every layer).
  • Consistent cores per bag (don’t throw out soil from your sample).
  • Have min. 15-20 cores from the same location to get a good average for the location (watch for fertilizer band, soil difference, weed patches, etc.).
  • Sample the same time in a rotation and the same time in the season.
  • GPS locate the area and sample the same location. To compare a sample from one sample year to the next, you need a repeatable location.
  • Label the sample properly and consistently from one year to the next.
  • Take two or more samples (analyzed sample) from different locations to compare low/high.
  • Compare data from one sample year to the next and check for reliability. Watch trends and plan accordingly.

If your contractor uses a Wintex Agro sampler, GPS equipment with min. sub foot accuracy and mapping technology, you know they take it seriously.

• • The Wintex automatic sampler will be consistent in depth and amount of soil sampled. If not a full depth is taken, the sampler will eject the sample outside the soil box. Some models even have a hydraulic hammer for hard soil conditions to speed up collecting consistent sampling.
  • GPS receiver has to be accurate to be able to return to the same location to resample year after year. You should be able to take a sample today another one tomorrow with the same analytic results.
  • Soil sampling maps are produced in different ways depending on the intended goal and conditions.
    • • Yield maps are removal maps historical to previous crops.
      • EC maps measure salinity differences
      • Drone maps are mostly crop health differences and have to be ground truthed to know what they represent.
      • Satellite maps are the same as drone maps, just less resolution. Different season, crops, conditions and stresses will represent different data.

The points above are the only way to compare data and get trend-lines. To get value out of soil sampling, you need to be able to have consistent data, able to compare from one year to the next and get trend-lines. When you start to compare yield trends, nutrient removal and availability trends with application trends the quality of data is important. Farming has changed, and we talk about Precision Farming now, and so should be the bases we use to make decisions.

Short term, you get information on what is available in a specific location. Long term, the trends will help to manage under or over applications helping, your wallet and the environment.

It is not just the nutrient you apply; it is the balance and placement. Multiple depth sampling will help to manage fertilizer placement.

If you are interested in speeding up your soil sampling, making it more user-friendly and consistent with repeatability, visit Wintex Agro Canada at https://wintexagrocanada.com/ or talk to an Ag Business team member.