Plants Dig Soil™

“Tight soil” can be physical or chemical. From the surface, the symptoms often look the same: water pooling, poor growth, shallow roots and areas that never seem to perform.This episode takes a short detour from my Better Farming Prairies series on chemically tight soils to look at physical compaction. When does steel help? When do roots help? And when are we expecting too much from both?I cover traffic, headlands, wheel tracks, deep tillage, cover crops, and why diagnosis matters before choosing a fix. Tillage can provide relief when the problem is true physical compaction, but roots need to follow if the benefit is going to last. If the problem is chemical — such as salinity or sodicity — steel alone will not solve it.--------In case you’re new here, I’m Scott Gillespie—an Alberta-based writer and independent agronomy consultant. My work focuses on #RealisticRegenAg for organic and conventional farms. I provide practical, science-backed advice shaped by two decades of experience across a range of farming systems, with particular expertise in irrigated production.--------Transcript with links to everything mentioned in the episode:https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/podcast/steel-roots-break-compactionArticle link:https://issuu.com/lethcounty/docs/rural_living_in_lethbridge_county_spring_summer_2/22Newsletter signup: https://mailchi.mp/plantsdigsoil/newsletter https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/6944029544697802752 YouTube: (Company): https://www.youtube.com/@scottcgillespie Podcast: https://anchor.fm/scottcgillespie (Look below Spotify for other apps or just search “Plants Dig Soil” in your favourite app.)Practical Regeneration: Realistic Strategies for Climate Smart Agriculture https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/books Consulting packages: https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/pricing/#consulting Speaking, Teaching, & Workshop Design: https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/speaking Funding service offerings: https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/pricing/#paperwork Email: [email protected] Call/text/WhatsApp:403-654-3096LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottcgillespie/

“Tight soil” is a phrase we use a lot, but it isn’t a diagnosis. It’s a symptom.Water pooling, poor crop growth and areas that never seem to perform can all point to very different problems. Sometimes it’s physical compaction. Sometimes it’s salts. Sometimes it’s sodium affecting soil structure. Sometimes the problem is deeper in the profile than it looks from the surface.In this episode, I introduce the first article in my Better Farming Prairies series on tight soils. I talk about why diagnosis matters, common misdiagnoses like “alkali” patches and magnesium, and why tools like a shovel, Dutch auger, and penetrometer can help separate surface symptoms from what’s really happening below.This is the start of a series on tight soils. Next month I’ll take a short detour into physical compaction, then return to chemically tight soils: saline, sodic, saline-sodic and solonetzic soils.--------In case you’re new here, I’m Scott Gillespie—an Alberta-based writer and independent agronomy consultant. My work focuses on #RealisticRegenAg for organic and conventional farms. I provide practical, science-backed advice shaped by two decades of experience across a range of farming systems, with particular expertise in irrigated production.--------Transcript with links to everything mentioned in the episode:https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/podcast/diagnosing-tight-soilsArticle link: https://www.betterfarming.com/flippingbook/better-farming-prairie/2026/july-august/40/index.htmlNewsletter signup: https://mailchi.mp/plantsdigsoil/newsletter https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/6944029544697802752 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@scottcgillespie Podcast: https://anchor.fm/scottcgillespie (Look below Spotify for other apps or just search “Plants Dig Soil” in your favourite app.)Practical Regeneration: Realistic Strategies for Climate Smart Agriculture https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/books Consulting packages: https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/pricing/#consulting Speaking, Teaching, & Workshop Design: https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/speaking Funding service offerings: https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/pricing/#paperwork Email: [email protected] Call/text/WhatsApp:403-654-3096LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottcgillespie/

You can’t plan the weather, but you can plan how you’ll respond when it hits. I’ll walk you through the key principles, grounded in research and on-farm experience. If you want the full breakdown, check out my full article in Better Farming Prairies this month.Transcript with links to everything mentioned in the episode:https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/podcast/frost-heat-hailNewsletter signup: https://mailchi.mp/plantsdigsoil/newsletter https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/6944029544697802752 YouTube: (Company): https://www.youtube.com/@scottcgillespie Podcast: https://anchor.fm/scottcgillespie (Look below Spotify for other apps or just search “Plants Dig Soil” in your favourite app.)Practical Regeneration: Realistic Strategies for Climate Smart Agriculture https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/books Consulting packages: https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/pricing/#consulting Speaking, Teaching, & Workshop Design: https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/speaking Funding service offerings: https://www.plantsdigsoil.com/pricing/#paperwork Email: [email protected] Call/text/WhatsApp:403-654-3096LinkedIn (Scott): https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottcgillespie/