4 comments about Neal Kinsey's Hands-On Agronomy.

1. An in depth discussion of soil fertility issues and how to use specific fertilizers to achieve balanced crop nutrtion. Excellent statagies for soil testing. Answers to soil problems not easily found.



2. The author has a soil consultation service, and one does not have to read too many pages before one realizes that all that has been read so far is self-aggrandizment, and this continues throughout the book. The author makes the same claims that are heard or read in advertisments for quack products: State and/or university soil testing facilities produce inaccurate results because they cut corners in testing or return stock answers to stock analyses; but; the lab the author uses is 100% accurate. Growers who use the author's recommendations have increased crop yields by X%, with X depending upon the crop in question. All claimed increases are substantial.

   The author includes just enough factual material on soils to give the book an air of authority, but is very short on any explanation or reason for the importance of these soil factors (other than humus). The whole book seems to be a many-paged advertisement for people to use his service.

   Those interested in the subject might better spend their money on a good soils textbook.




3. Attending one of Mr. Kinsey's seminars and visiting with the farmers who have implemented his programs will convince the most staunch skeptic. His concept of "Feeding the soil and let the soil feed the plant" makes perfect sense. All elements in the soil must be within specific parameters for any plant to grow and produce to its full potential. Too much of the research results and recommendations that are available are tied to some corporate sponsorship that is ultimately tied to a product they wish to sell whether it is needed or not. Mr. Kinsey's success in 50 states and 50 countries speaks for itself. If you are a serious steward of the land and intend to stay in business in agriculture this book will help you get the not only more yield but higher quality products from your operation.



4. At a guess the reviewer "A reader from New York" has never had anything to do with soils and farming. He/she just eats the end products.
   I am a farmer in Australia dealing with some of the hardest yet some of the most potentially productive soils as any in the USA. This book was recommended to me by a fellow farmer. After reading it I was stunned as to how much sense it made. I can now relate soil test data to what I see in the field and understand why some areas always produce more than others. It's not "quackery" when you can understand how mother nature and basic chemistry allow some areas of a field to outperform others by sometimes 3-1.
   Readers of this book should be farmers who are willing to take a close look at their soils, work the numbers, think about it and then be prepared to accept what they WILL see in it all.
   I am by no means an organic farmer, I still use some commercial fertilizers and spray about as much as anyone. After reading this book I have started working on balancing the soil because I see from experience the most balanced soils producing the best crops.
   I don't really care if Neal Kinsey has a consulting practice on soils. And as far as the book being a bit "light on" for detail is concerned, well it's not. It is a great first step to understanding the soil we grow things in. Fertilizer brouchures are light on for detail.
   Happy reading and I hope the little light bulb gets turned on in your head like it did in mine.

No comments about Successful Sandy Soil Gardening.

No comments about Defining Soil Quality for a Sustainable Environment: Proceedings of a Symposium Sponsored by Divisions S-3, S-6, and S-2 of the Soil Science Society (S S S a Special Publication).

No comments about Fundamentals of Plant Science.

No comments about Gardening Down-Under: A Guide to Healthier Soils and Plants (Landlinks Press).

No comments about Growing Vegetables in Town and City (U.S. Department of Agriculture Publication No. 538).

No comments about The physical protection of soil organic carbon in aggregates: a mechanism of carbon storage in a Vertisol under pasture and market gardening (Martinique, ... Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment].

No comments about Soil Erosion in the Tropics: Principles and Management.

No comments about Soil Resilience and Sustainable Land Use (Cabi Publishing).

No comments about Best Ways to Improve Your Soil.