Environmental & sustainability links

SoilBioLab Compost Tea Trial Report

SoilBioLab Compost Tea Trial Report: Assessing the effect of brewing time and added microbial foods on the quality of aerated compost tea. Andrea Araujo, Jennifer Ings and Simon Parfey.

Compost tea (CT) is a water based microbiological inoculant containing high levels of bacteria and fungi produced from compost. This is applied to crops improve soil and plant health and increase plant growth. This investigation aimed to identify the optimum conditions to produce a CT containing the highest levels of active microbial biomass. By varying the components of the CT mix and length of time that it was brewed, an ideal mix of compost, molasses and humic acid with a brew time of 24 hours was identified as providing the highest overall active and total microbial biomass.

RHS projects on soil

Projects in which the RHS Plant Soil Interaction team is involved.

Safeguarding our soils: A strategy for England

Soil is a fundamental and essentially non-renewable natural resource, providing the essential link between the components that make up our environment. Soils vary hugely from region to region and even from field to field. They all perform a number of valuable functions or ecosystem services for society including:

  • nutrient cycling
  • water regulation
  • carbon storage
  • support for biodiversity and wildlife
  • providing a platform for food and fibre production and infrastructure

British Sugar TOPSOIL

British Sugar TOPSOIL is the largest UK manufacturer and supplier of environmentally sustainable topsoil and topdressing products to the landscaping, construction and sports turf/amenity sectors, supplying over 250,000 tonnes annually. TOPSOIL products are derived from the prime arable soils that adhere to the sugar beet delivered to British Sugar factories. […]

RSPB Sustainable Drainage Systems

RSPB guide for developers and local authorities on making sustainable drainage systems that benefit local wildlife

Urban greening

RHS urban greening project

learningforsustainability.net

Social learning is increasingly cited as an essential process for addressing the complexity and uncertainty inherent in many sustainability issues, for developing understanding between the different perspectives involved, and for supporting collective action. This guide to on-line resources (formerly NRM-changelinks) includes a number of topic areas that are relevant to social learning. A short introduction to each section outlines the nature of the resource links provided, and provides pointers to other topic areas which are closely related in use. These can be accessed through the drop-down menu on the left…