The subsoil could play an important role for agricultural climate adaptation strategies. It is defined as soil layers below the working depth of 30 cm. The subsoil often receives little attention in farming practice. Yet, plants extract between 10 and 80% of their nutrient and water requirements from the subsoil. Measures to enhance the subsoil can help to improve the water storage capacity, root penetration and microbial activity – and thus contribute to stabilizing yields in times of drought.

In this publication, we present the results of an acceptance study in two case study regions in Germany. We investigated farmers' and other soil experts' perceptions of subsoil amelioration as an approach to adapt to climate change. In addition, we analyzed the factors that influence their willingness to adopt specific measures to improve the subsoil. Applying Q-method and focus groups, we surveyed overall 86 actors in the agricultural sector. The article is published in Frontiers in Agronomy, Volume 3, April 2021 and is available for download.

The research is part of the project Soil³ – Sustainable Subsoil Management, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) via the BonaRes funding programme. Soil³ aims to improve the overall nutrient and water use efficiency of plants through subsoil management and, thereby, to secure or increase crop yields in the context of an emerging bioeconomy.