Haney Soil Vitality Analysis
This soil analysis shows how actively the soil life (soil biology) works in your field and how many nutrients it actually provides to the crop. This way, you measure soil quality not just chemically, but as a whole.
Conventional soil analyses measure reserves. The Haney test additionally measures biology: How strongly do microbes respire, how much food (carbon and nitrogen) is available to them, and in what ratio? This results in a soil vitality value that combines chemistry and biology. The test was developed by Rick Haney at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA-ARS); the USDA lists it as an official Soil Health Nutrient Tool.
Your sample is analyzed by our partner laboratory in Germany, the Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Analysis (IAU) in Freyburg – an accredited specialized laboratory with many years of experience in soil analysis.
Two Soils, One Location
- same location
- different fertilization
- different management
- same mineral starting point
With our consultation and with soil and leaf analyses, we will lead you to such results within a few years. Fertilization has the greatest influence on soil structure and soil microbiology, followed by tillage.
What the Soil Analysis Measures: Soil Chemistry and Soil Biology
Measuring soil quality means measuring two things: chemical reserves and the biological life that makes them available. The Haney soil analysis covers both, plus optionally the total nutrient reserve.
Soil Chemistry (H3A Extraction)
The H3A extractant mimics the organic acids of living roots. Thus, what is truly available to the plant is measured: nitrate-N, ammonium-N, phosphorus, sulfur, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and the trace elements boron, iron, manganese, copper, zinc, molybdenum, and cobalt – plus base saturation and nutrient ratios according to Albrecht.
Soil Biology
Microbial respiration (CO₂ burst after drying and rewetting) shows how much life is in the soil. This is complemented by water-soluble carbon and organic nitrogen – the microbial food – and their ratio. All together, this results in the soil vitality value.
Total Nutrients in Soil (additionally available)
Total digestion measures the entire nutrient reserve in the soil. From the ratio of total to available nutrients, it can be deduced whether fertilization is necessary – or whether biology needs to be promoted to mobilize them. Many nutrients are sufficiently present in the soil reserve; only the right activation and root stimulation are missing for the plant to access the reserve.
What This Brings You
The test answers three questions: How is my soil doing? Is it in balance? And what can I do? In a USDA evaluation of 3,200 samples, farms reduced their nitrogen input by 20–30% without yield loss, because biologically supplied nutrients were accounted for for the first time. High soil vitality also improves nutrient supply from the soil reserve and stabilizes yields during dry periods.
One limitation to note: The test is a snapshot. Values like microbial respiration fluctuate with season and weather. For a meaningful trend, take follow-up samples at exactly the same location and at the same time in the crop rotation, ideally in spring or fall. The test does not measure water balance or soil compaction.
Key Values in the Report
| Value | Statement |
|---|---|
| Soil Vitality | Overall value from respiration, microbial food C and N, and their ratios. The higher, the more active the soil. |
| Microbial Respiration (CO₂) | CO₂-C released in 24 h – the direct measure of microbial activity and nutrient cycling. |
| Microbial Food C and N | Water-soluble carbon and organic nitrogen: the food for microbiology. |
| C:N Ratio | Between 8:1 and 15:1, N and P are released; above 20:1, nitrogen is immobilized. |
| Microbially Active Carbon | Over 80% means: The food is insufficient, microbes are consuming humus. Under 30%: The cause is not the food. |
| Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) | How many nutrients the soil can hold on clay minerals and humus and make available to the plant – measured as plant-available CEC from H3A extraction, plus the calculated potential CEC. |
| Additionally available: Total Nutrient Contents | Total digestion of the soil reserve. The ratio to available nutrients shows for each nutrient whether to fertilize or mobilize. |
Analysis and Laboratory Work: Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Analysis (IAU), Freyburg – accredited specialized laboratory. Evaluation and Interpretation Basis: Soil Vitality according to Haney with Albrecht Ratios.
How it Works
Get in Touch
If you are interested, please contact us. Indicate how many analyses you would like to conduct on your farm – we will provide you with a quote for the entire service.
Materials are sent to you
We will send you sample bags and a prepaid box with all the paperwork so that the parcel reaches the lab promptly.
Take Samples
For each field, take a composite sample of approx. 500 g from several cores: 0–20 cm for arable farming, fruit growing, vegetable growing and viticulture; 0–10 cm for grassland. We will support you with sampling. If desired, our partner terrahum.ch will take the samples GPS-guided—so that in subsequent years you measure at exactly the same point.
Report and Consultation
You will receive the analysis report with soil vitality score, nutrient data and ratios—and we will discuss with you what measures follow for fertilisation and management.
Request an analysis
This service cannot be ordered via the shopping cart. Write to us with how many fields you would like analysed—you will receive a quote for the complete service including materials, shipping, analysis and consultation.
Or by phone: +41 44 508 59 86
Would you like to learn more? Watch the Haney test video
Downloads
Soil Vitality after Haney brochure (PDF)
Method, measured values and sample report from the IAU laboratory
Sample submission form / order (PDF)
Form for shipping your soil samples
Sample report (PDF)
What your analysis result looks like – with soil vitality score, nutrients and ratios
Sampling instructions (PDF)
Step by step to a clean soil sample – materials, cores, depth, timing, shipping
Presentation: What is humus and how do we build it? (PDF)
How humus is formed, what degrades it, and what measures you can take to build it up on your farm
Frequently asked
What is the difference between the Haney soil analysis and a classic soil test?
A classic soil test measures only the chemical nutrient reserves. The Haney test also measures soil biology—how active the microbes are and how many nutrients they actually make available to the plant.
How often should you have soil quality measured?
You don’t need an analysis every year. What matters is that you take the follow-up samples using the same method—GPS-guided is the most accurate—and sample at the same time of year within the crop rotation. Only then will the trend show you what your measures have done in the soil—and not just that you happened to hit a different spot in the field.
How much does a soil analysis at EDAPRO cost?
The price depends on the number of samples and analyses on your farm. After your enquiry, you will receive a quote for the complete service—including materials, shipping and consultation.
Where is the soil sample analysed?
At the laboratory of our partner IAU (Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Analytics) in Freyburg, Germany—an accredited specialist laboratory. EDAPRO will then discuss the results with you.
