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Fertility

A fertile soil should be capable of supplying all the elements plants need for growth. Fertility is an essential component of soil health and productivity. Not only must nutrients be present in the soil, they need to be in a form the plant can use. Since these ionized forms of nutrients are soluble in water, plant roots can absorb them along with the water they take up. The rate at which nutrients become available is affected by weather, irrigation, soil type, pH, and fertilizer applications. Nutrients present in forms other than ions are not directly available to plants although they do represent reserves that can become available in the future.

Featured Publications

Precision Agriculture (PDF)

Weddell, B., T. Brown, K. Borrelli. 2017. Chapter 8 In Yorgey, G. and C. Kruger, eds. Advances in Dryland Production Systems in the Pacific Northwest. Washington State University Extension, Pullman, WA. ↑ Back to top

Soil Amendments (PDF)

Yorgey, G., W. Pan, R. Awale, S. Machado, A. Bary. 2017. Chapter 7 In Yorgey, G. and C. Kruger, eds. Advances in Dryland Production Systems in the Pacific Northwest. Washington State University Extension, Pullman, WA. ↑ Back to top

Soil Fertility Management (PDF)

Borrelli, K., T. Maaz, W. Pan, P. Carter, H. Tao. 2017. Chapter 6 In Yorgey, G. and C. Kruger, eds. Advances in Dryland Production Systems in the Pacific Northwest. Washington State University Extension, Pullman, WA. ↑ Back to top

Precision Nitrogen Application: Eric Odberg Case Study (PDF)

Yorgey, G., S. Kantor, K. Painter, H. Davis, and L. Bernacchi. 2014. Video and text farmer case study. Eric Odberg is a fourth generation farmer who practices no-till management and was an early adopter of variable rate nitrogen (VRN) application in the dryland production region of the Pacific Northwest. ↑ Back to top

Composts and Nutrient Management

The WSU Puyallup Research Center faculty have conducted extensive work on compost, manure and biosolids. This website provides information on yard waste and food waste composts, clopyralid, calculating bulk density, nutrient management for organic systems and compost facility operator training events. The site has links to the Compost Mix Calculator the Organic Fertilizer Calculator and […]

Additional Publications

Unlocking the Biofuel Power of Cover Crops in Washington State: Enhancing Potential Through Hydrothermal Liquefaction. Biomass and Bioenergy

Santosa, D. M., Potter, T., Pierobon, F., Göreke, D., Meyer, P. A., Kruger, C. E., Norberg, S., Collins, D., & Male, J. (2025). Unlocking the biofuel power of cover crop in Washington State: Enhancing potential through hydrothermal liquefaction. Biomass and Bioenergy, 203, 108311.  Study explores whether Washington cover crops can serve as profitable, low-carbon feedstocks […]

Helping Sustain Agriculture in Africa

WSU scientist Lynne Carpenter-Boggs is working with an international group of scientists to help find bean varieties and microbial inoculates that will improve yields on the ancient soils that farms in many parts of Africa must contend with. Dr. Carpenter-Boggs took a Flip camera to Africa and shot some wonderful footage of farms, people and […]

Organic Farming Systems and Nutrient Management

Beginning in 2002, organic amendments, cover crops, and soil quality have been investigated in our farming systems experiment. An interdisciplinary team is studying a range of issues important to smale scale, direct-market, and organic agriculture, including nutrient management, soil quality, weed management, economics, marketing, and on-farm research. ↑ Back to top

 Browse all Fertility Publications

External Links

Some WSU Extension websites provide links to external sites for the convenience of users. These external sites are not managed by WSU Extension. Furthermore, WSU Extension does not review, control or take responsibility for the content of these sites, nor do these sites implicitly or explicitly represent official positions and policies of WSU Extension.