Soil Minerals and Soil Testing for Organic Gardeners

Discover the Secrets of Soil Mineral Balance!

Discover the Secrets of Soil Mineral Balance
and Create Your Own Ideal Soil!


The secrets of soil mineral balance that create ideal soil, plant, and animal health are revealed here for the first time.  The amazing results that can be achieved by balancing the major cation minerals Calcium, Magnesium, Potassium and Sodium in the soil according to the teachings of Dr William Albrecht and Dr Carey Reams have changed the world of agriculture.  This knowledge has taken the focus away from merely trying to achieve high volume yields to achieving the highest yields of the highest quality and nutritional value, while building optimall health in the soil, the crops, and the people and animals that rely on them for food.

Cover Photo There are no more depleted soils once you discover these secrets; the soil just keeps getting better and better year after year, and all without the use of any sort of toxic rescue chemistry.  As Dr Albrecht was known to say, "Well fed is healthy."  A well-fed soil leads to well-fed crops and well-fed people and animals.

Professional agronomists charge hundreds or thousands of dollars to consult with you and apply their specialized knowledge of soil nutrients and  minerals in order to achieve the perfect balance in your soil.  Though we feel they are well worth what they charge, some of us would prefer to have the knowledge and be able to do that for ourselves and others.  There are also many home gardeners and small farmers who simply don't have the financial resources to afford the expense of a professional soil consultant.  The lack of knowledge or money need no longer keep any grower from having the ideal soil.  For only $29.95, about the cost of a single laboratory soil test, this new one of a kind book teaches you everything you need to know to perfectly balance all of the major and minor mineral nutrients in any soil!

Is this difficult to do?

Not at all. The only reason more people have not balanced the minerals in their own soil is because this information has never before been made available to the public.  Understandably, trade secrets are just that, secret.  With the publication of this book, they are secret no longer.

If you can add, subtract, multiply and divide, (or use a calculator) and you know or are willing to learn some very simple and basic chemistry, you will have no problem learning to balance all of the essential minerals in your own soil.  All you need are the results of a standard soil test,  a pencil and paper or a calculator, and the easy to understand information in The Ideal Soil.  That's all.  You can write the perfect mineral prescription for your soil the first day you own the book.  All of the information you need is right there, including

*Full instructions on how to read a soil test and understand everything it is telling you

*Easily understandable examples of the simple calculations needed,

*Full explanations of why you are doing what you are doing,

*The Ideal Soil Chart that shows you exactly what you want to end up with, and

*Tables that list the mineral content of every commonly used USDA Organic approved soil mineral amendment and fertilizer ingredient.

Every thing you need to know to write the perfect soil mineral prescription for your soil (or any soil anywhere) is included in The Ideal Soil.

Are there other books like this out there?

There are not.  While there are hundreds and hundreds of books about both organic and chemical-based agriculture, and even a dozen or so about sustainable Eco-Agriculture, The Ideal Soil is the first and only book that actually tells the reader what the perfect balance of minerals in the soil is, and the only book that shows exactly how to calculate the perfect mineral balance for the soil you are working with.  It is also the only book that we know of that gives the reader a chart listing the mineral content of every commonly available USDA Organic Approved mineral amendment and fertilizer ingredient.  One could purchase every other agriculture and gardening book in existence and not come up with this information.  The simple fact is, no one else has ever before written a book like The Ideal Soil.
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Read Chapter 1 HERE
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What about landscaping, lawns, golf courses, and parks? 
Will The Ideal Soil help grow stronger, healthier landscape plants?


The Albrecht/Reams cation balancing principles work anywhere in any soil or climate for any type of plant.  The Ideal Soil Chart shows the ideal ratios and proportions of all of the important mineral nutrients to each other, but in most cases, these are not exact ratios, but a range of acceptable proportions.  Any balance of minerals within that range will give excellent results.  The Ideal Soil is not just a one-size-fits-all recipe book; it gives you the knowledge you need to adjust the mineral balance to allow for the preferences of plants that are naturally adapted to certain soils and environments.

Different soil types, from adobe clay to sand to mucky peat will all need a slightly different cation mineral balance in order to perform best; this subject too is covered in The Ideal Soil.

You can create the perfectly balanced soil for any type of landscape or environment.   The plants will need less water during dry spells and will have few or no problems with disease or insect attack.  A perfectly healthy plant has a strong immune system and is highly stress resistant.

A unique opportunity for a new recession-proof career?


Once your friends and neighbors see your results, the quality and appearance of the plants and crops, the health of the land, and the nutritional value of the food grown using the Albrecht/Reams principles they will naturally want to achieve the same quality for their own farms and gardens.  Every community on the planet needs someone who knows how to balance the soil for perfect health. Every community on Earth needs a soil physician as much or more than it needs a medical physician or a veterinarian.  When people and animals experience perfect nutrition, perfect health follows naturally.

Yet, simple as it may be, not every grower or gardener is going to be willing to learn to read a soil test and write a soil mineral prescription.

Your willingness to learn and apply the knowledge in The Ideal Soil can soon make you the local soil health expert, and should you wish, open up a whole new career as a professional soil consultant.  As a matter of fact, the worse an economy gets and the fewer jobs there are, the more people want to and need to grow their own healthy food.  Those who know how to grow nutritionally superior food, solve problems, and greatly enhance the health of their community are respected and will always be in demand.

Are these mineral balancing principles compatible with USDA regulations for Certified Organic Growers? 

Every principle and idea in The Ideal Soil is designed for and compatible with Certified Organic crop production.  Healthy, sustainable farms and gardens in harmony with Nature are the future of agriculture everywhere.  The Ideal Soil calls for no dangerous or toxic chemicals, and the mineral amendments and fertilizer ingredients suggested and listed in the book are allowed for Certified Organic use under the USDA National Organic Program Final Rule.

Can I use The Ideal Soil to balance the minerals for my pasture or orchard?

Yes you can.  These principles work and work well for any type of crop anywhere (even including commercial tree farms).

How about updates?  Will the book change?

The basic principles of cation mineral balance will not change, nor will the ratios and proportions of one mineral to another as shown in The Idea Soil Chart.  We do anticipate that a few minor changes and additions will be made during 2009 to make the book better based on the feedback we get about this first edition of December 2008.  Everyone who purchases the first edition will also receive the updated and revised second edition absolutely free in their email as soon as the second edition is published.

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Read the Introduction HERE

Read Chapter 1 HERE

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 "...brilliant, profound, concise.....it has cut a clean path through the jungle of misunderstanding and misinformation that surrounds the growing of food."  Gary Kline, Black Lake Organic, Washington USA

"Seems you have  refined Albrecht's best guess".
Steve Solomon, Tasmania
author "Gardening When it Counts".

"From the day I got it bound til now, it has been open on my desk right next to me, I've carted it off to work to reread at lunch. I've handled it so much that I have to take it back to the print shopto get new covers. They both fell off."
Frank E., Arkansas, USA

"Your ability to take alot of great information from a very wide group of authors is impressive, you are to be commended on your library and ability to put it together.

I think you did the best job that I have seen so far."
Mike Kraidy, Int'l Soil Consultant, Peru mike@ofarmer.com

"Great book.  I really appreciated the clear concise format, the everything affects everything else logic "
Greg M., Tucson AZ, USA

"I've enjoyed reading this material. I've read many other books about soil properties, but this book took care of most of my questions."
Dave Hansen, Grass fed beef rancher, Nebraska USA
http://www.oakviewbeef.com

"Thank you and God bless you.  You have written a great book."
Dave R.

"This is the most concise, well written, and understandable explanation of soil analysis and soil minerals that I have ever seen. It makes the subject simple and gives people the confidence that they can do this themselves.  If I had the money, every library in the county would have a copy.  People need to read this book!" 
Heidi U., Olympia, Washington USA

"This is an excellent resource. I highly recommend it. I just got it yesterday and was up late into the evening reading it and read it while commuting to work today (dangerous, I know). It is excellent, I can't get enough of this book."
Mike C, Oregon USA

"I'm only on page 26, first time through (I'm sure I'll read it several times), but I just had to write and tell you how thrilled I am with it. Even at this early stage I can see that it is going to provide the knowledge I need to build my soil to world class."
A.M.,  Indiana USA

"It seems to be just what I needed to make sense of Soil Analyses for my kiwifruit orchard. I read it from start to finish this afternoon. Thank you."
A.L., New Zealand

"My compliments on the Ideal Soil book.  I read it more thoroughly and the layout of the soil test report combined with working through the calculations is very good.  I've amassed as much alternative soil fertility info as anybody and Ideal Soil will be one of my top reference guides."
Steve D., Texas USA

"First chapter of a superb book, for once by someone who has a clue what they're writing about. http://www.soilminerals.com/TIS_Ch1.htm"
R.P., UK

" I have not had a chance to study in depth but after just looking through the pages I am floored with the wealth of information that you compiled."
Holly B., Washington USA

"I have been studying soil content for several years and the book is the best I have read.  I am recommending it to the appropriate friends."
MHA, Tennessee USA

" I found it everything it was claimed to be and more."
Bill S., Wisconsin USA

 

Agricola's Best Guess:
The Ideal Soil Chart version 1.7

The Ideal Soil book and The Ideal Soil Chart are the result of a ten-year ongoing research project undertaken by the lead author to answer two questions:

Question #1: What balance of minerals and other nutrients are needed in a food crop to provide perfect nutrition and health to people and animals?

and

Question #2: Exactly what balance of minerals and other nutrients are needed in the soil to grow this perfectly nutritious healthy food?

In order to answer these questions it was necessary to go back and review every important work on soil mineral nutrients, starting with the classic Chemistry in its Applications to Agriculture and Physiology first published in 1840 by the German chemist and agronomist Justus von Liebig, and then searching for clues in everything written on the subject since.  Used bookstores were scoured for obscure farming magazines and books from the1800s and early 1900s.  Friends, colleagues, and acquaintances were quizzed about what knowledge they had and what books they recommended.  No field of agriculture was left out of the search: Biodynamics, Permaculture, Organiculture, and the SoilFoodWeb literature all made significant contributions.  Every book in the Acres USA catalog about farming and Eco-Agriculture was referenced; the standard college texts on soil fertility and soil mineralization were also studied for clues.  For the nutritional aspects, the same thorough review and study was done, from the 1920s work of Weston A. Price to the newest findings in both the mainstream and alternative health and nutrition fields.  The internet was searched again and again looking for obscure reprints and hidden gems until finally a pattern began to appear.

At the same time, the various ideas and discoveries were tried out on real farms and gardens.  Working with Gary Kline, the founder of Black Lake Organic garden center in Olympia Washington, and drawing on Gary's vast experience and many contacts, trials were done, various mixes were made, pastures, fields, and gardens were divided and different mineral combinations were applied to each part.  Animals were observed on pastures to see where they preferred to graze; milk samples were taken from dairy cows on different parts of the pasture and tested for their brix levels.  A full range of garden crops were grown on various soil types using different mineral balances, orchard soils were tested and the missing nutrients were added, and all along the guiding principle was Dr Carey Reams' wise advice: "See what you are looking at".  Some mistakes were made, fortunately none too serious or long-lasting, and the knowledge gained from those mistakes was applied to the next crop and the next year.  The Ideal Soil Chart was drawn up and revised again and again as more knowledge was gained from reading and trials.

The end result of this ten-year reasearch project is The Ideal Soil Chart, Agricola's Best Guess version 1.7, the centerpiece of The Ideal Soil.

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that anyone has cross-referenced all of the major and minor mineral nutrients in the soil and shown their correct proportions and relationships to each other.  All agronomists and mineral-savvy growers know that Boron is necessary for Calcium metabolism; the question has been, how much Boron in relation to how much Calcium?  And what about Copper and Zinc?  Yes, they are synergists/twins, but what is their correct proportion to each other and their relationship to Phosphorus, Potassium, and Magnesium?  Those and many others are the questions answered in this simple one-page chart.  It is our considered opinion that The Ideal Soil Chart alone is worth at least ten times the $29.95 cost of the ebook.  The information simply isn't available anywhere else.

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Notes and Introduction to
Agricola's Best Guess V 1.7
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The Ideal Soil: A Handbook for the New Agriculture

Table of Contents

Introduction: The Ideal Soil

Chapter 1: The New Agriculture

Chapter 2: Cation Exchange

The Idea Soil Chart v 1.7

Notes on the Idea Soil Chart v 1.7

Chapter3:TheMajorCations:Calcium,
Magnesium, Potassium, and Sodium

Chapter 4: The Major Anions: Phosphorus,
Sulfur, and Chlorine

Chapter 5: The Minor Elements: Boron, Iron, Manganese, Copper, and Zinc

Chapter 6: Trace Elements

Chapter 7: Writing the Soil Prescription

Epilogue: The Three-Legged Stool


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Appendices:

 ●    Soil Sampling Instructions

     The Ideal Soil Chart v 1.7

     Mineral content of USDA NOP Organic fertilizer ingredients

     Soil Report Blank

     Kelp typical analysis

     Kelp meal analysis II

     Clay phosphate analysis

     Annual uptake of Potassium, Magnesium, and Sulfur

     pH and nutrient availability

     Carey Reams’ Ideal Soil Recipe

     Conversion factors

     Notes on Cu, Zn, Fe, Mn, and B

              Copper

                        Bordeaux mixture

                        Burgundy mixture

              Zinc

              Iron

              Manganese

              Boron

References cited (Bibliography)

Recommended Reading 

Mineral Content of Vegetables
by Bear, Toth, and Prince 1948
(with a new introduction and comments by Michael Astera)

Primitive Diets: Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Iron content in the diet of isolated peoples worldwide, 1939.  WA Price


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