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Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 4: Soil Restoration

ID

426-123 (BSE-272P)

Authors as Published

Authored by David J. Sample, Associate Professor and Extension Specialist, Biological Systems Engineering, Virginia Tech; Laurie J. Fox, Research Associate, School of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Virginia Tech; and Carol Hendrix, student, Biological Systems Engineering, Virginia Tech


This publication is available in an enhanced digital version and PDF.

This fact sheet is one of a 15-part series on urban stormwater management practices.

Please refer to definitions in the glossary at the end of this fact sheet. Glossary terms are italicized on first mention in the text. For a comprehensive list, see Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) publication 426-119, “Urban Stormwater: Terms and Definitions.”

Soil restoration (SR) is the technique of enhancing compacted soils to improve their porosity and nutrient retention. It includes biological (worms) and mechanical aeration, mechanical loosening (tilling), planting dense vegetation, and applying soil amendments. Soil amendments involve the spreading and mixing of mature compost into disturbed and compacted urban soils (see Figure 1).


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Publication Date

December 11, 2019