The soil and foliage archive is a nationally significant collection for New Zealand’s planted forests and contains over 40,000 samples all linked to Scion’s trial register database. There is no other forestry soil and foliage collection of this magnitude in New Zealand. The collection from Scion forestry experimental trials goes back five decades, with samples entered into the collection from forests across New Zealand.

The real strength of this archive is time. Without the archive, all testing needs to be completed when the soil and foliage samples are taken. With this archive, scientists can go back at a later date and run the tests they need. For example, we can retest soil now with an instrument that didn't even exist when it was first collected.

Loretta Garrett, soil scientist who is utilising the archive says “this supports ongoing research into long-term nutrient sustainability of planted forest and deep soil carbon. Samples of different soil types were collected from 13 sites and planted forests. World leading research to understand the deep stuff.”

The archive has value right across the forestry value chain including in the tree nursery, at planting, over multiple forest rotations through to wood products. Forest productivity, forest nutrition, long-term sustainability, carbon sequestration, and environmental impacts.