East Kootenay farmers will have an opportunity to learn how soil biology could help inform decisions around water use, pasture health and crop production during a field day near Fort Steele on Sept. 29.
The four-hour Soil Biology Field Day at Spring Creek Ranch will give local producers a hands-on look at the organisms living in their soil and how soil conditions relate to roots, nutrient cycling, water infiltration and pasture management.
The event comes as farmers across the region face increasing pressure around water availability and irrigation. About half of actively farmed land in the East Kootenay relies on irrigation, according to the B.C. Climate Change Adaptation Program.
The program said summers in the broader Kootenay and Boundary region are typically dry, with hotter and drier conditions expected to increase irrigation demand in the coming decades.
Forage and pasture also account for about 95 per cent of cultivated land in the East Kootenay, making soil health and water management particularly relevant to local ranchers and producers.
“There is an entire living world beneath our feet, and most of us never get to see it. When farmers can look at their soil, see the biology, understand what the roots and microbes are doing, and connect that to water, nutrients and plant health, soil becomes something we can observe and work with. That’s what I’m excited for farmers to experience at this field day,” said Natalie Forstbauer, founder and editor-in-chief of Heart & Soil Magazine.
The field day will be led by Robby Gass, founder of ALBA Regenerative Agriculture, who has more than 30 years of experience in regenerative, organic and biodynamic farming.
Gass will use live microscopy to magnify soil organisms on a computer screen, giving participants an opportunity to examine soil samples and consider how what they see could inform decisions on their own farms.
“The microscope gives farmers another way to read what’s happening in their soil. My goal is for people to leave with a better understanding of their soil and practical questions they can start asking on their own farms,” said Gass.
Participants will explore soil food web basics, nutrient cycling, roots and forage, water infiltration and pasture management. Gass will also demonstrate how a live compost extract is made.
Organizers said the event is intended to provide producers with practical knowledge they can take back to their properties as they manage soil, water and pasture conditions.
The field day is open to ranchers, livestock and crop producers, hay farmers, market gardeners, home growers, agricultural advisers and others interested in soil biology.
The Soil Biology Field Day runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 29 at Spring Creek Ranch, 7977 Maus Creek Rd., near Fort Steele.
Registration costs $105, including GST, for two people and includes lunch. The outdoor event will go ahead rain or shine, with covered space available.
Advance registration is requested by Sept. 26.
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