Innovative agronomy tools and resources: Soil health, conservation and fertility

Nicolle Ritchie<ritchi67@msu.edu>, Michigan State University Extension - June 09, 2026

Innovation and adaptability are important for farm success. Explore these free tools and resources on improving soil health, conservation and fertility practices and decision-making.

A field of young corn where the corn in the middle is more yellowish in color than the more green colored surrounding corn. — Photo by Nicolle Ritchie, MSU Extension

Being able to innovate and adapt is important for farm success, but it can be overwhelming to make changes. A good tool or resource should make your life easier in some way. It might inform decision-making, simplify calculations or analyze and organize data in a practical way. It should be user-friendly, affordable and reliable or trustworthy. The following is a list of free tools and resources on improving soil health, conservation and fertility practices and decision-making. It is not an exhaustive list but a starting point.

Nutrient management

The creation of synthetic fertilizers was a launching point for crop yields. Today, fertilizer is one of the highest input costs for growers. Excess fertilization can negatively affect water quality and hit the pocketbook. Michigan State University Extension provides easily interpreted research-based fertilizer recommendations based on soil test results.

Fertilizer Recommendation Program: Enter soil test results into this tool to receive personalized fertilizer recommendations from MSU Extension for your crop and soil. These recommendations are based on the Tri-State Fertilizer Recommendations.

Dried corn root and stalk. — Photo by Nicolle Ritchie, MSU Extension.

Conservation and soil health

The foundation of crop productivity is the soil. Soil provides nutrients and water, anchors plants and shelters important micro- and macro-organisms. When it comes to building soil health, there are many tools out there, most of which are directly related to cover cropping. Using cover crops can greatly improve soil by increasing the soil organic matter and water holding capacity as well as reducing soil erosion and nutrient loss.

Cover Crop Decision Tool: This tool from the Midwest Cover Crops Council shows cover crop species options for your operation based on your cash crop, location and cover crop goals.

Cover Crop Species Selector: This tool from Precision Sustainable Agriculture shows cover crop species options for your operation based on your cash crop, location, cover crop goals and the Midwest Cover Crops Council guidelines.

Cover Crop Nitrogen Calculator: Use this tool from Precision Sustainable Agriculture with a current cover crop biomass sample or select the predictive model to calculate biomass for you. This tool estimates nitrogen mineralization from grass cover crops like cereal rye, triticale and more.

Cover Crop Economic Decision Support Tool: This tool from Precision Sustainable Agriculture assigns costs to labor, equipment, herbicide applications and other inputs that might be involved with cover cropping. It weighs the inputs against potential cover crop benefits and provides a financial overview to aid decision-making.

Great Lakes Cover Crops Project: This cover crop map shows voluntarily submitted cover crop information on farms throughout the Midwest. Powered by the University of Michigan, Michigan Agriculture Advancement and University of Missouri.

Soil Health Service Provider Directory: This filterable spreadsheet from MSU Extension connects consumers to companies that offer cover crop and/or soil health services, from seed sales to custom seeding to cover crop consulting.

Drain Tool: This tool from MSU integrates soil data from the NRCS Web Soil Survey in a more user-friendly interface. It can aid in drainage plans, elevation maps, precision conservation efforts to prevent erosion and more.

Native Plant, Seed, and Services Directory: This searchable, filterable directory from the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation connects consumers to companies that produce native plants, seeds and services.

An older red barn and adjacent outbuilding sit beside a rural road, surrounded by grass and fields under a bright blue sky with scattered clouds. — Photo by Nicolle Ritchie, MSU Extension

Fun!

This bonus tool is a quiz to test your field crop identification skills. Take it yourself and send it to your friends and neighbors to improve agricultural awareness in a fun way.

Field Crops Identification Quiz: Take this quiz to test your field crops identification skills from afar. Focused specifically on field crops in southwest Michigan. Train yourself first with the article “Drive-by crop identification in southwest Michigan” from Michigan State University Extension.

MSU Extension Field Crops