Summary
This field-based evaluation assessed the sensitivity and utility of twelve soil organic matter metrics across five long-term agroecosystem trials in the inland Pacific Northwest, ranging from 2 to 30 years old. Using a seven-criteria framework—evidence base, sensitivity to change, logistical feasibility, cost-effectiveness, accuracy, in situ performance, and management relevance—the authors found that active soil organic matter measures were highly variable and not consistently sensitive to management changes. Permanganate oxidisable carbon emerged as the highest-scoring metric, demonstrating sensitivity to stabilised organic matter pools and promising complementary value when paired with ion exchange membrane nitrogen for comprehensive soil health assessment.
UK applicability
The methodology and criteria framework developed in this study are potentially transferable to UK soil health monitoring programmes, though the findings regarding specific metric performance may require validation across UK agroecological contexts, soil types, and climate conditions. The emphasis on cost-effectiveness and practical applicability is relevant to UK farming policy and sustainable intensification objectives.
Key measures
Soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen, acid nonhydrolysable carbon (NHC), acid nonhydrolysable nitrogen (NHN), acid-hydrolysable carbon (HC), acid-hydrolysable nitrogen (HN), microbial biomass carbon (MBC), microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN), carbon mineralisation (Cmin), permanganate oxidisable carbon (POXC), ion exchange membrane nitrogen (IEM N), potential nitrogen mineralisation (PNM), and Haney soil health index (SHindex)
Outcomes reported
The study evaluated twelve soil organic matter properties and the Haney soil health index across five long-term field experiments in the inland Pacific Northwest, assessing their effectiveness against seven criteria for soil health assessment. Permanganate oxidisable carbon (POXC) was identified as the most effective metric, showing sensitivity to stabilised soil organic matter and strong correlations with acid nonhydrolysable carbon and nitrogen.
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