Why Healthy Soil is the Best Gift You Can Give Your Farm This Year
If you’re a grower, then you’re probably reflecting on the challenges and wins you’ve faced over the past year. How are preparing for an amazing growing season this coming year?
From weather extremes to rising input costs, farming is an ever-demanding profession. Amidst all these challenges lies an opportunity: the chance to invest in your farm’s future by improving the health of its soil.
The Role of Soil Health in The Success of Your Farm
First you might be asking, what is soil health?
At its core, soil health refers to the balance of physical, chemical, and biological components that create a dynamic, living system capable of sustaining plant life. Healthy soil is rich in organic matter and full of beneficial microorganisms, and able to efficiently cycle nutrients and retain water. In general, healthy soil can also lead to less input costs and more efficient water use, which are wins we can all rally behind.
Healthy soil is a critical resource that serves as the foundation of agricultural success. When you invest in restoring soil health, you’re not just addressing immediate issues on your land—you’re building a foundation for long-term productivity. There are many agricultural practices that increase crop yields and boost your soil health—you might already be doing some of them.
The Benefits of Healthy Soil
Healthy soil offers a wide range of economic, environmental, and operational benefits.
Here’s why focusing on soil health solutions can transform your farm:
Economic Benefits: Healthy soil boosts crop yields and can influence crop quality, which translates into a higher return on investment (ROI). Soils rich in organic matter require fewer inputs like fertilizers and pesticides, reducing overall production costs.
Efficient Water Use: One of the greatest strengths of healthy soil is its ability to absorb and increase water retention. This means less irrigation, saving both water and money. Soils with improved water holding capacity are also more resilient during periods of drought or heavy rainfall. By increasing water retention, farmers can better manage extremes while ensuring consistent water availability for crops.
Resilience to Weather Extremes: Whether it’s a dry spell or a torrential downpour, healthy soils offer better protection against erosion, runoff, and nutrient loss. This resilience ensures that crops thrive even in challenging conditions, giving farmers peace of mind in unpredictable climates.
Generational Farming: Healthy soil supports the long-term viability of farmland, ensuring it remains productive for future generations.
Environmental Benefits: Healthy soil plays a critical role in mitigating climate change by storing carbon, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and supporting biodiversity.
Year-Round Impact
The benefits of healthy soil aren’t limited to a single season.
Focusing on restoring soil health creates year-round advantages that keep your farm productive and sustainable:
- Spring: Healthy soils support efficient seed germination and early root development, giving crops the best possible start.
- Summer: Improved water retention helps crops withstand dry spells, reducing the stress of irrigation challenges and aiding in periods of prolonged heat stress.
- Fall: Healthy soil enhances harvesting conditions and prepares the land for the next planting season, reducing the need for costly interventions.
- Winter: Cover crops and organic matter in healthy soil prevent erosion and maintain structure, ensuring the land is ready for spring planting.
What Are Practical Soil Health Solutions?
Improving soil health starts with understanding your soil’s unique needs. We asked two of our Certified Crop Advisors what they’d recommend—here’s their advice:
On efficiency: “Enhancing your soil’s efficiency will enhance your 2025 crops efficiencies” says Amy Rial. “This is done by increasing microbial biomass and diversity. A thriving underground ecosystem improves nutrient cycling, water retention, and pest resistance, leading to healthier, more productive crops. By investing in soil health today, we’re not just improving next year’s crops; we’re committing to long-term farm profitability, environmental stewardship, and a more resilient agricultural future.”
On soil environments: “Soil biology, very much like human biology, performs best in stable environments,” says Landon Gheer. “Drastic changes in moisture, temperature, and nutrient values can decrease soil microbiology performance. Crop residue helps to insulate and reduce extreme temperature changes in addition to retaining moisture by reducing evaporative losses, so maintain crop residue whenever possible.” [Source]
Here are some additional practical steps to consider:
- Assess Your Soil: It’s always smart to start with a baseline. Conduct a soil test to evaluate pH, nutrient levels, and organic matter content. This will provide a baseline for tailoring your soil management practices. This benchmarking is included in the MyLand Service.
- Feed the Soil Microbiome: MyLand introduces live, native microalgae that enhance the biological characteristics of soil by feeding the soil microbiome. Algae improves structure, increases organic matter, and fosters microbial life. All of these benefits support healthier, more productive soils.
- Adopt Crop Rotation and Cover Crops: These practices promote biodiversity and improve soil fertility. Cover crops, in particular, help protect the soil during the off-season, preventing erosion and adding organic matter. If these work with your existing practices, they could be something to consider.
- Minimize Disturbance: One way to preserve soil structure and protect beneficial organisms is by reducing disturbances in the soil, like tillage. This also helps with water retention and reduces the risk of erosion.
- Monitor Progress: Regularly measure key indicators such as soil organic matter, water infiltration, and crop performance. Tracking these metrics allows you to evaluate the success of your soil health initiatives and adjust as needed.
Give The Gift Your Farm Deserves
Investing in soil health is not just about improving yields for the next growing season—it’s about creating a farm that thrives for years to come. Healthy soil is the foundation of sustainable farming, offering economic, environmental, and generational benefits that far outweigh the initial investment.
This holiday season, consider giving your farm the ultimate gift of healthy, thriving soil. This is a gift that supports better crop yields, reduces costs, and ensures long-term sustainability.
It’s not just an investment in your land—it’s an investment in your family’s future and the legacy you leave behind.
Looking for a partner to help improve your soil health and secure a brighter future for your farm? We’re here to help.