Farmers are invited to join a new research project that aims to develop a soil health sensor that measures microbial diversity and fungal-to-bacterial ratio to improve farm productivity.

The three-year Thriving Roots Underpinning Total soil Health (Truth) project is looking to involve up to 30 UK farmers to carry out a series of on-farm trials for which they will be paid.

The intention is to deliver a platform comprising soil/root health testing tools and a knowledge exchange group that can inform sustainable soil management practices.

See also: Crop nutrition focus saves farmer over £43,000 on costs

Get involved

The first stage of the project will see the farmers, also known as “root rangers”, paid and trained to use on-farm soil/root testing tools.

A webinar to launch the project, led by the British On-Farm Innovation Network (Bofin), takes place on Wednesday 14 February at 8:30am.

Specialists from University of Nottingham and John Innes Centre will talk through the latest tools used to measure and quantify root growth and soil microbial activity.

Futhermore, PES Technologies will present its soil “nose” – a sensor that brings remarkable insight into your soil properties from the volatiles it captures – that will be developed as part of the project.

Alternatively, farmers can sign up here.