The science beneath every decision.
Soil Health
101.
Understand your soil.
Choose your next step.
Begin with what soil is and why it matters. Follow the Dust Bowl’s lessons into chemistry, biology, and physics, then connect the science with management, economics, and the future of soil health.
Learn at your own pace through illustrated pages, examples, and exercises. Save your place and return when it suits you.
- 1A horizon Mineral material mixed with organic matter; often a zone of dense biological activity and roots.
- 2B horizon A zone of soil development that may accumulate clay or other materials.
- 3C horizon Less-altered parent material beneath the more-developed layers.
- 4Pores and roots Water and air occupy changing spaces. Roots and organisms connect the layers.
An illustrative A–B–C mineral-soil profile, not to scale. Horizons vary; some soils have additional horizons or a different sequence. Original SHE teaching figure.
Concept sources: USDA NRCS · Soil Facts; University of Minnesota Extension · Five factors of soil formation.
From understanding to doing
Leave with a way to look at your soil.
Understand the system.
Connect soil’s history and formation with the chemistry, biology, and physics behind its functions.
Recognize useful evidence.
Learn what major indicators measure, why their methods matter, and how to ask a focused soil question.
Connect science and decisions.
Weigh management mechanisms, trade-offs, costs, and benefits, then build a plan you can review.
Your learning path
Six lessons. A connected foundation.
Build the concepts in order, then return to the questions that matter to your field, garden, or work. Each lesson includes annotated figures, explanations, a worked scenario, a notebook activity, and a knowledge check.
One payment includes all six lessons, assessments, your saved notebook, and the completion certificate after passing.
- 01Open lesson ↗
What Is Soil? From the Dust Bowl to Soil Health
Explore how soil forms, why societies depend on it, and how conservation and soil-quality thinking led to today’s soil-health framework.
About 50 minutes · Free sample lesson - 02Included with enrollment
Soil Chemistry
Understand the soil solution, pH, nutrient cycling, cation exchange, and the difference between salinity and sodicity.
About 55 minutes · Reading, activity & knowledge check - 03Included with enrollment
Soil Biology
Follow carbon and nutrients through roots, microbes, and the soil food web, and learn what biological measurements reveal.
About 50 minutes · Reading, activity & knowledge check - 04Included with enrollment
Soil Physics
Investigate texture, structure, pore networks, water movement, aeration, and compaction in the root zone.
About 50 minutes · Reading, activity & knowledge check - 05Included with enrollment
Soil Health Principles and Management
Turn cover, living roots, diversity, and reduced disturbance into a practical management system with clear trade-offs.
About 50 minutes · Reading, activity & knowledge check - 06Included with enrollment
The Future and Economics of Soil Health
Work through a partial budget, weigh transition risks and public benefits, and examine the evidence behind emerging soil-health tools.
About 50 minutes · Reading, activity & knowledge check
Read, pause, return.
Work through phone-friendly lessons on your schedule. Enrollment saves passing checks and your optional notes to your account.
Learn from feedback.
Pass each lesson check and the final assessment at 80% or higher. Review explanations and retake a check when you need to.
Keep your learning record.
After passing, download your Soil Health 101 Certificate of Completion. A unique verification page records the achievement.
Before you begin
Who is this for?
Beginning farmers, gardeners, students, and anyone who wants a clear introduction to soil health. No previous soil-science course or special equipment is required. Activities can be completed with the fictional examples.
What does the $25 enrollment include?
All six lessons, explanatory quiz feedback, saved progress, a private notebook, a printable reference with your notes, the final assessment, and a completion certificate after passing. This is a one-time course purchase.
Do I need to attend at a particular time?
You can start, pause, and return at your own pace. Lessons are written and illustrated, with practical activities and assessments. There are no scheduled classes.
How do I earn the certificate?
While enrolled and signed in, pass all six eight-question checks with at least seven correct answers each, then score at least twelve out of fifteen on the final assessment. Retakes are included. Optional notebook activities help you apply the material and are not graded.
Does this provide CEUs or professional certification?
A Soil Health Exchange Certificate of Completion records completion of this course. It carries no CEUs or professional certification.
Who prepared the course?
The Soil Health Exchange editorial team prepared the course using USDA NRCS, SARE, university Extension resources, and peer-reviewed Soil Health Institute research. Source links appear in each lesson. Worked scenarios and assessment situations are original learning examples. Worked budgets use clearly labeled hypothetical values; research findings link to the original studies.
Can I also learn the CEMA 216 workflow?
Our six-part CEMA 216 course covers the testing and reporting workflow. Its first lesson is free, with the complete course available for $25 USD, paid once. Explore the CEMA 216 course →
Questions about enrollment or accessibility? Get in touch.