Soil Health Week: Assess your soil health
Conducting regular soil analysis is a critical part of soil management on any productive farm system and provides the fertility profile, including soil pH and nutrient status. But,…
22 September 2026
Soil Health Week takes place from Monday, 21 September to Friday, 25 September 2026, and aims to highlight the importance of healthy soils for sustainable agriculture, food production and the wider environment.
Soil Health Week will bring together farmers, advisors, researchers, students and members of the public through a programme of farm walks, school events, practical demonstrations, workshops and online activities. Throughout the week, Teagasc will focus on practical measures that can be taken to improve and protect soil health, including:
- Knowing your soils
- Regularly assessing your soil health
- Avoiding compaction and erosion
- Supporting soil biodiversity
- Building soil organic matter
- Soil sampling and nutrient management
Keep an eye on Teagasc social media for Teagasc Daily articles each day, bonus podcast episodes and short videos!
Click on the links below to find out more about each event:
- Ask the Expert’ – The secret life of soil – Live Q&A webinar | Monday, 21 September
- Soil Health Farm Walk – Meath – Tuesday, 22 September
- Soil Health Farm Walk – Carlow – Wednesday, 23 September
- Farm Walk – Barry & Sharon O’Hagan – Friday, 25 September
- Signpost Webinar – Understanding soil health and the EU Soil monitoring law – Friday, 25 September
- Soil Health Workshop – Friday, 25 September
- Rooted in Health Farm Walk – Friday, 30 October
Monday, 21 September
‘Ask the Expert’ – The secret life of soil – Live Q&A webinar
Monday, 21 September | 7pm
Register for the Ask the Expert Webinar
Curious about life in soil? Largely hidden from view soil is home to a vast and diverse community of organisms that play a vital role in nutrient cycling, plant growth and overall soil health.
Join our live webinar, where soil biology specialists from the Irish Soil Biology Research Network will answer your questions on soil biology, soil health and management, and take you on a visual journey through some of the most important organisms in the soil.
Chaired by: Veronica Nyhan, Soil & Plant Nutrition Specialist, Teagasc and Elena Hayes, Education and Public Engagement, Teagasc
Panellists:
- Fiona Brennan, Soil Biology Researcher, Teagasc
- Olaf Schmidt, Professor School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin
- Achim Schmalenberger, Professor in Microbiology, University of Limerick
- Olga Lastovetsky, Associate Professor School of Biology and Environmental Science
- Tancredi Caruso, Associate Professor in Ecology, University College Dublin
- Saorla Kavanagh, Farmland Biodiversity Researcher, Teagasc
- Deirdre Gleeson, Soil Microbial Ecologist, South-East Technological University
- Israel Ikoyi, Lecturer in Environmental Sciences, University College Cork
Tuesday, 22 September
Soil Health Farm Walk
Tuesday, 22 September | 11am | Newgrange Farm, Slane, Co. Meath, C15 X5EV
This event is a joint Kepak Teagasc farm walk as part of the Better Farming for Water Campaign. The focus is on sustainable farming practices that protect water quality and enhance soil health on a productive mixed tillage drystock farm. Topics on the day will cover how to assess soil health, sowing new hedgerows and native trees, use of organic manures, cover crops and Farming for Water EIP.
Register for the Meath Soil Health Farm Walk
Wednesday, 23 September
Soil Health Farm Walk
Wednesday 23, September | 2.30pm | Bagenalstown, Co. Carlow, R21 NX38
Register for the Carlow Soil Health Farm Walk
Hugh McDonnell is a tillage farmer from outside Bagenalstown. Working on a light textured soil, Hugh has been practicing min-till, straw incorporation and cover crops for many years. Joined by invited speakers and facilitated by Bagenalstown Tillage Group, this event will explore practical ways to assess and improve soil health, building resilience and supporting sustainable crop production.
Soil and Sustainable Farming Schools Event
Wednesday 23, September | Munster Agricultural Society, Curaheen, Co. Cork
University College Cork, Munster Agricultural Society, Vistamilk and Teagasc will host a soil and sustainability farming event for local secondary school students on the Munster agricultural society site in Curaheen, Co. Cork. Students will explore pasture-based agriculture and farmland biodiversity through hands-on activities investigating grasslands, soils, soil organisms, earthworms and decomposition, while developing scientific investigation skills and understanding the importance of healthy soils for food production, water quality and sustainable farming. This interactive event connects curriculum topics to real-world sustainability challenges through tailored, stage-appropriate sessions, particularly relevant to Biology, Agricultural Science, Geography, and related subjects.
Friday, 25 September
Farm Walk – Barry & Sharon O’Hagan
Friday, 25 September | 2pm | Manorhamilton, Co. Leitrim, F91 R260
Growing Organics Farm Walk, focusing on lowland and hill sheep on the farm of Barry & Sharon O’Hagan.
Barry and Sharon are a husband and wife farming partnership. They run a flock of 150 mid-season lambing ewes with a mix of lowland and hill breeds producing approximately 1.5 lambs per ewe. There has been a big emphasis on improving the genetics within the flock in recent years in order to improve the value of the store lambs to be sold off the farm.
Register for the O’Hagan Farm Walk
Signpost Webinar – Understanding soil health and the EU Soil monitoring law
Friday, 25 September | 9.30am
Dr. Karen Daly, Head of Department at Teagasc environmental research centre, Johnstown castle, will present on the weekly Friday morning Signposts webinar. She will cover the new Soil Monitoring and Resilience law and scoping work for a national soil monitoring network for Ireland.
Register for the Signpost Webinar
Soil Health Workshop
Friday, 25 September | 11am | Agricultural Museum, Johnstown Castle, Co. Wexford
Join Teagasc soil scientists for an engaging hands-on workshop on soil health. You’ll see the remarkable diversity of Irish soils that underpin our food production systems and are vital for environmental health. You’ll learn simple, practical methods to assess soil health at home, at school, or on the farm, and we’ll show you how to use mapping resources to identify soils in your area.
Friday, 30 October
Rooted in Health Farm Walk
Friday, 30 October | 11am | Teagasc Oakpark, Carlow, R93 XE12
As part of Soil Health Week 2026, Teagasc, in conjunction with Boortmalt and the Irish Heart Foundation, will host Rooted in Health at Teagasc Oak Park, Carlow, on Friday, 30 October at 11am. This practical tillage event will focus on the role of cover crops in building healthier, more resilient soils, with over 20 cover crop species on display, comparisons of different establishment methods and practical soil health assessment techniques. The event will also put farmer wellbeing firmly on the agenda, with the Irish Heart Foundation providing farmer health checks on the day.
