A soil amendment is defined as any material added to a soil to improve its physical properties, such as water retention, permeability, water infiltration, drainage, aeration and structure, with the ultimate goal to provide a better environment for plants.
Organic amendments increase soil organic content and offer many plant benefits as in the Brandt humic products such as the OPTiK® line (in America) and Uptake® around the world with are produced through the microbial breakdown of plant and animal matter. The main component of these humic products, are the humic acids, which contain both humic and fulvic acids. Humic acids contained in these Brandt products are a natural way to provide plants and soils with a concentrated dose of essential nutrients, vitamins and trace elements that are normally not provided by typical fertilization.
Inorganic amendments such as Brandt’s range of soil wetters offered to growers as both impregnated products on inert media (for incorporation) or applied directly to the soil, provide desirable soil amendment characteristics including improved wetting through the soil profile, improvements to soil porosity and improved water-holding capacity. Another unique range to the Brandt soil amendment line is in its new products that are designed as photosynthetic enhancers. This new technology helps the growers control the photosynthetic capacity of a plant particularly during times of high stress. Amending these physical properties allow soils to withstand compaction, improve infiltration and aeration, and finally regulate photosynthetic capacity.
Amending a soil is no longer the just same thing as mulching, although many mulches also are used as amendments. The Brandt philosophy with its range of soil amendments is to provide what the plant or the soil really requires to maximize its output with the least environmental impact.