The Albrecht System: A Case for Soil Health?.

Dr. Willilam Albrecht was a soil scientist at the University of Mo from 1919-1970 and SSSA president in 1939 and during his long career wrote many scientific and popular press relating to soil, plant and animal nutrition interactions based upon the base saturation balance of cations in the soil. Dr. Albrecht’s methods have been controversial with many traditional soil scientists in the US since that rather than basing soil fertility recommendations upon sufficiency as most soil labs now use, His method promoted the use of percent base saturation to balance the cations in the soil in particular calcium and magnesium. Dr. Albrecht’s work also brought attention the importance of sulfur and micronutrients to plant and animal health. By professional training, Dr. Albrecht was a microbiologist and his methods promoted an environment favorable to their proliferation. Recent interest in soil health and the interaction of soil chemistry, soil biology and soil physical properties has renewed interest in Dr. Albrecht’s system since Ca is important in microbiological growth (fungal), soil chemistry leading to better soil physical properties such as soil aggregate. This presentation will provide results of breaking down Dr. Albrecht’s recommendations and the effect on corn and soybean grain yield and soil health.