Farmers Edge Labs in Grimes has been testing Iowa soil samples since 2018, offering a wide variety of testing methods for producers across the major growing regions of the United States. A recent lab event offered an in-depth look at the full soil testing process, which includes both hand-made facilities and state-of-the-art technology. Patrick Visser, laboratory director at Farmers Edge, said those high-level machines can look for a variety of elements in soil samples.
By using plasma that is twice as hot as the sun itself, Visser said that the presence of specific elements can be determined by the wavelength and intensity of the light they produce through this process.
Visser said that data is then converted into whatever format the provider of the soil sample desires in order to make it easy to convert into actionable data points that can be applied to soil management practices.
For more information, visit farmersedge.ca.
