How is soil health different from soil fertility?

Source/Author: Soil Health Institute

Understanding your soil is the foundation of good farm management. Soil testing gives farmers, agronomists, and landowners the data needed to assess and improve their soil’s physical, chemical, and biological properties, supporting better decisions that enhance productivity and long-term sustainability. But not all soil tests tell the same story.

Image credit - Soil Health Institute

There are two different approaches – soil fertility testing and soil health testing – and understanding the difference between them is key to getting the most out of your farming operation. Here’s what each test measures and why using both gives you the fullest picture of your soil.

Soil fertility is the measure of a soil’s capacity to supply essential nutrients for crop growth. It’s assessed through routine soil tests that quantify nutrient levels (like phosphorus and potassium), which have been researched and calibrated over decades to optimize crop yield responses and guide fertilizer and lime application rates.

Soil health is really about how alive and well your soil is. It’s not just about nutrients. It reflects the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of soil working together to hold water, support the tiny organisms that cycle nutrients, and bounce back from stress. Because these properties can shift over time in response to management, soil health is both a snapshot of how well your soil functions today and a long-term measure of whether your practices are sustaining the land for the future.

While soil fertility testing tells you what nutrients your soil has and what to add, soil health testing tells you how well your soil is functioning as a living system. Used together, fertility testing optimizes what you apply today, while soil health testing helps you understand whether your broader management practices (tillage, cover crops, and rotations) are moving the soil in the right direction over time.

The bottom line: Soil health testing is not a replacement for regular soil fertility testing and vice versa; they are complementary and each is needed to get a full picture of your soil’s condition.

This resource is one of many developed through the Farmers for Soil Health partnership. The Farmers for Soil Health (FSH) collaboration, covering 20 states across the Midwest, Great Lakes, and Chesapeake Bay, aims to boost cover crop adoption on corn and soybean acres to 30 million by 2030. Along with the University of Missouri Center for Regenerative Agriculture, SHI leads the FSH education team, collaborating with technical assistance leads in each state to offer education and resources for successful adoption of soil health management systems.