Profile
The Western Greece Soil Laboratory (WGSL) was founded in 2009 with the co-financing of the International Humanitarian Organization of Orthodox Christians (IOCC) and the Region of Western Greece, in the framework of humanitarian aid to support the fire-affected farmers of Ilia. Today it is a regional infrastructure and provides services in the form of an agreement between the University of Patras (Laboratory of Soil Science), the Region of Western Greece and the Municipality of Ilida. It is a public infrastructure - as a service (Infrastructure as a Service), with the name «EDAFOLOGIKO» and is a competition and development centre (Competency Center) for the soil in Western Greece.
The WGSL operates in the public interest and provides quality soil testing, fertilization recommendations and training services to farmers, groups of producers, agri-food and agribusiness companies, academia and research institutes, to all levels of education and the public bodies, the wider public and private sector.
The WGSL utilizing modern laboratory infrastructures as public property and having the scientific guidance of the Soil Laboratory of the University of Patras and the support of the scientific staff of the Region of Western Greece applies the most modern analytical techniques according to the international standards of analysis SSSA, APHA, EPA and ISO. It can carry out quality controls on soil, irrigation water and plant tissues, supporting the provision of specialized Precision Agriculture consulting services at all stages of agricultural production and following integrated crop management systems. Today, this infrastructure is the greatest guarantee for the support of farmers and the protection of soils in the Region of Western Greece.
Specifically, the laboratory carries out:
- Soil analysis
- Irrigation water analysis
- Quality control - nutritional status of crop plants (leaf diagnostics)
- Quality control in fertigation and hydroponics solutions
- Precision Agriculture applications
Healthy soils
for a healthy life!
Objectives of the soil laboratory are:
- Proper plant nutrition
- Reducing production costs
- Maximizing production
- The production of quality agricultural products
- Maintaining the quality of natural resources
- The reduction of nitrate pollution
- Tackling climate change