permaculture.studio dover, pennsylvania
← soil science foundational work

Ray R. Weil

Popularized biological subsoiling via ‘bio-drilling’ cover crops such as forage (daikon) radish to break compaction and scavenge nitrogen.

The record

Standing
foundational work
Based
University of Maryland · United States
Focus area
Soil Science
Works on
bio-drilling, forage radish, cover crops, active carbon (POXC), compaction.

Standing is this studio’s placement of the work, not a ranking of the person, and it is the one line here that is a judgement rather than a cited fact.

The work

Professor of soil science at the University of Maryland and co-author of the standard textbook The Nature and Properties of Soils. His Mid-Atlantic research documented how forage radish taproots penetrate compacted layers, create root channels for following crops, capture residual nitrogen, and warm spring seedbeds. Also developed the permanganate-oxidizable (active) carbon test now used widely in soil health assessment.

Where to read them

  • Ray R. Weil — lab or personal site
  • The Nature and Properties of Soils (with Brady)
  • Chen & Weil (2010) radish root penetration of compacted soil
  • Weil et al. (2003) active carbon method

Sources for this record

Corrections

This record was assembled from the sources above, and nothing in it was inferred to fill a gap. If it is about you and it is wrong, or you would rather not be listed, write and it changes.