Working towards better soil

Working on the land affects the quality of the water in the soil and around the farmyard. Good soil structure also helps to retain water. This is becoming increasingly important.

Gouden Gronden (Golden Soils)

The water authority, the Groningen provincial executive, and many farmers in the Groningen part of our region work to improve soil quality. We are doing this under the banner of 'Gouden Gronden (Golden Soils)'. With better soil:

  • We improve water quality
  • We ensure less desiccation;
  • We are dealing with salinisation
  • We prevent flooding.

With Gouden Gronden (Golden Soils), we carry out projects, conduct research, and provide information about better soil use. 

How do we work towards better soil?

To ensure sustainable use of the soil, we are working together on the following points:

  • We are making agriculture less dependent on the supply of freshwater. This can be achieved by retaining more freshwater in the soil. Another option is to grow crops that are more resistant to salt and/or drought.
  • We ensure that the soil is better able to drain water. This prevents flooding.
  • We are reducing the amount of nutrients and crop-protection products that wash off our land into surface water. By nutrients (such as nitrogen and phosphate), we mean substances that promote the growth of fungi, bacteria, plants, and algae.
  • We are increasing agricultural yields. In doing so, we are looking at ways to reduce costs by using fewer crop-protection products and growing more crops and varieties that are better adapted to the changing climate.
  • We are increasing the diversity of life, the biodiversity, in the soil. This can be achieved by not disinfecting the soil, for example, and tilling it less often. This allows agriculture to benefit from the soil life again.

Current projects

A number of projects are currently underway to improve soil quality. Would you like to learn more about these projects or participate? Please contact the Gouden Gronden (Golden Soils) office at goudengronden@noorderzijlvest.nl.

Spaarbodem (Retentive Soil)

The gradual increase in the amount of salt in the soil is a problem for agriculture. This is particularly true for the wide strip along the coast in our region. The soil itself can contribute to combating this salinisation. The soil is our savings account for freshwater. Hence the name of this project: Spaarbodem (Retentive Soil).

Knowledge, advice, and practical application

There is often a need for more knowledge and advice on how to better use and cultivate the soil. Spaarbodem (Retentive Soil) provides just that. The project focuses on information, knowledge transfer, and advice. This is done in groups and also individually. The information and advice are aimed at achieving the desired situation: a better soil structure, ensuring that water can drain away more easily, and preventing salinisation. This creates a win-win situation. As an arable farmer, you gain insight into soil management and related measures.

Sixty farmers can participate in the Spaarbodem (Retentive Soil) project. The participants are divided into four themes that will be explored in depth during the project. The themes form 'frameworks' within which concrete actions on the plot are explored in depth.

You will work with 15 fellow entrepreneurs in a theme group to implement measures. For each theme group, one company will be designated to implement one or more measures with the help of external experts. In addition, the other participating companies in the group will also implement selected measures themselves. With the knowledge and experience you gain in the project, you will fulfill an ambassadorial role, inspiring other entrepreneurs.

Spaarbodem (Retentive Soil) will run until the end of 2022.

TRIJNTJE

In practice, knowledge about better use and the potential of soil is quite difficult to find. This is especially true when it comes to the specific situation of a piece of land that you use for your own business. 

Developing an app

That is why an app is being developed to give the agricultural sector better access to that knowledge. The app lists the desired information, like a kind of 'train'. We added a personal touch to this and called it TRIJNTJE. With TRIJNTJE, we hope to enable farmers to make better choices for the proper use of their own soil.

The app is intended to provide all the important data for a piece of land used by a farmer. The farmer can consult information and indicate what he wants to do with the plot. The app shows the possible measures and the consequences of each measure for the soil, the yield, and the water in the vicinity of the farm. The app uses calculation models from Wageningen University. A test version is currently being trialled by a group of farmers. If the test goes well, the app will be further developed. We kindly ask for your patience.

Pasture and water

On many livestock farms, the soil structure and water management of the grassland could be improved. If we do not take action, this will result in lower yields and poor water quality in the vicinity of the farm.

Farmers were approached to participate in the Pasture and Water project. There are 85 participants. Practical trials are conducted in groups. Together, we determine which measures work best and how we can implement them.