Philadelphia soil project signals largely positive findings for urban growers
Project is aimed at ensuring safe and productive urban gardening.
By Alexandra McLaughlin, Penn State University
Morning Ad Clips
June 11, 2023
Excerpt:
The initial findings were a pleasant surprise for the growers, as arsenic, cadmium and lead levels were below any concerning thresholds in most of the locations sampled. However, the pilot sites often exhibited excessively high pH and concentrations of phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium and soluble salts. This discovery suggests that urban gardening organizations with limited budgets often can reduce amendment application, especially when soil testing is used to guide decision making, leading to cost savings on compost and other amendments.
“One of the objectives of the project is to self-evaluate Penn State’s soil testing services and create a more streamlined and less confusing testing process that is also less expensive,” Byrnes said.
Extension plans to develop educational materials, including short videos, fact sheets and workshops, to empower growers with the knowledge and skills for soil testing and interpretation.
Byrnes said the collaboration with Temple University played a key role in the project’s success.
Penny Retica, a Temple University student, focused on the ways site histories can enrich the relationship a community gardener or farmer has to the land. Retica’s work underscores the importance of understanding the historical context of the land, particularly in relation to Philadelphia’s industrial past. Site assessments allow growers to discover what existed on the land decades ago, such as a gas station, factory or even a thriving community garden.
