With the UK, according to the met office, experiencing its driest spring in over 100 years just months after the wettest 18-month period on record, soils are facing significant stress, compounding concerns over climate volatility and long-term soil function.

Helen Dent, Sustainability Lead at Kite Consulting, says the rapid shift from waterlogged to extremely dry conditions has placed additional pressure on soil structure, compaction levels, and water-holding capacity.

"Currently, many soils are extremely dry, and it will take time for moisture levels to recover when the rain returns," says Helen. "This dry spell has followed a prolonged period of excessive rainfall, which demonstrates the changing conditions soils need to cope with. They need to be resilient to perform.

"Despite these challenges healthy soils have shown remarkable resilience this spring and continue to play a critical role in sustainable forage production in very dry conditions. Healthy soils encourage good rooting structures, aid water movement and high organic matter levels help store more water."

Research at Rothamsted shows that for a silty-clay loam every 1% increase in soil organic carbon equates to a water holding capacity increase of 354,000 litres a hectare to a depth of 30cm.

"Crucially, soil texture has a great influence upon this, and the relationship is not linear," she adds.

"There is little you can do immediately to help soils struggling with dry conditions, however cracked and parched they look. But some clay soils may actually benefit from cracking during dry periods, as it can help break up compacted layers."

Rotational grazing systems also appear to be performing better that set stocking ones under the current conditions. "Where fields have had rest periods, grass growth has been more resilient—likely due to deeper, healthier root systems," said Helen.

While current conditions make it a good time to observe field performance, Helen cautions that dry soils are not ideal for accurate soil assessment. "It's tricky to asses compaction, soils structure and worm population in the current conditions. You need moist soils to get reliable results," she explained.

"When there is slightly more moisture in the soil, it's a great time to do a soil health check. Always check your soil's physical, chemical and biological health. Physical health is the structure, including compaction. Chemical soil health includes your pH, P, K and Mg and your biological soil health is the life of the soil, and we can use organic matter along with worm counts to get an indication of this.

"All three ways to assess are inter-related," says Helen. "There is no point in spending time and money to get the right nutrient profile if the soil doesn't have the structure to mobilise them. For examples plants will only have access to phosphate that is within 1mm of the root.

"Along with this, it is worth checking your grass leys have the best genetics available and have not been overtaken by weed grasses over time, which will be less efficient with nutrients and in extreme conditions."

Recent dry conditions have been a reminder of the long-term importance of investing in soil health as part of a broader climate resilience strategy.

"Healthy soils can be one of your farm's greatest assets when it comes to managing extreme weather," she said.

For more information about Kite Consulting go to https://www.kiteconsulting.com