Kirsten Kurtz manages the Cornell University Soil Health Laboratory. She received her master of science degree from the Department of Natural Resources and the Environment at Cornell in 2021 with research focused on soil health in remnant grasslands. Kirsten is also an artist who developed her own method of creating paint with soil while completing her undergraduate degree in visual arts. She led a winning team at an international soil painting contest sponsored by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, has been designated an Artist for the Earth by the Earth Day Network, and speaks regularly on the subjects of soil and soil art. View her work at soilpainting.com or on Instagram @kirsten_kurtz.
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Design
In graduate school my research involved comparing the health of soils in remnant native tallgrass prairies to adjacent farmlands. One of the lessons I learned is that we’d all be…
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How-To
Most people know that soil pH is a measure of how acidic or alkaline your soil is. Soils naturally have a wide range of pH values, with most ranging from…