This handbook, now in its third edition, tells the serious home or market gardener how to manage soils for long-term productivity. It offers practical concepts that facilitate sound management decisions based on ecological principles.In The Soul of Soil, the reader learns how soil organisms supply plants with the necessary nutrients at the right time, in the right form, and in the right amount. The goal of ecological soil management is to enhance conditions for the billions of microbes found in every gram of healthy soil. The authors are experienced farmers, writers, and teachers. In The Soul of Soil they establish that the medium of earth is an essential contributor to the healthfulness of what we consume.