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Soil sampling requirements in France

Soil sampling requirements in France

National rules: Arrêté du 19 décembre 2011 relatif au programme d’actions national à mettre en oeuvre dans les zones vulnérables, as amended.

Soil sampling in France: frequency, area, depth and cores

How often do you need to soil sample in France?

Soil sampling rules in France, with the exact wording of each source
Country / region Purpose / programme Time / frequency Area per sample Method Depth Cores Status and source
France
FranceNational rule for nitrate vulnerable zones. Each regional action programme sets the sampling protocol.Annual soil nitrogen or organic matter analysisNitrates Directive national action programme (programme d’actions national), vulnerable zones
  • Repeat Every cropping season, at least one analysis
Not specifiedAt least one field (îlot cultural) for one of the three main crops grown in the vulnerable zone. The regional prefectoral order sets the protocol, including minimum depths and the number of horizons by soil type.Not specifiedNot specifiedConditionalArrêté du 19 décembre 2011, programme d’actions national (Légifrance, version in force 30 October 2026)
Who it applies to, the exact wording and every source
Who it applies to
Anyone farming more than 3 ha in a nitrate vulnerable zone.
Outside the rule
The regional order may let a manure analysis replace the soil analysis, or, on soils unsuited to residue sampling, an estimator (model or tool) for the soil nitrogen stock.
Laboratory and analysis
One of: nitrogen residue at the end of winter, after harvest or at the start of winter; organic matter content; or total nitrogen in the cultivated horizons, as the regional order specifies. An end-of-winter residue result must be used in the planned rate.
In force from
Under review
Legal text
Arrêté du 19 décembre 2011 relatif au programme d’actions national à mettre en oeuvre dans les zones vulnérables, as amended, Annex I, III, 1°, soil nitrogen supply (reliquat d’azote minéral)

The wording in the source

Timing

Method

  • une analyse de sol sur un îlot cultural au moins pour une des trois principales cultures exploitées en zone vulnérable

    a soil analysis on at least one field for one of the three main crops grown in the vulnerable zone

    Annex I, III, 1°

  • Cet arrêté fixe le protocole à respecter pour la réalisation de ces analyses, notamment les profondeurs minimales et le nombre d’horizons à prélever selon le type de sols.

    This order sets the protocol to follow for these analyses, in particular the minimum depths and the number of horizons to sample by soil type.

    Annex I, III, 1°, referring to the regional prefectoral order

Who it applies to

  • Dans le cas général, toute personne exploitant plus de 3 ha en zone vulnérable est tenue de réaliser, à chaque campagne culturale, une analyse de sol sur un îlot cultural au moins pour une des trois principales cultures exploitées en zone vulnérable.

    In the general case, anyone farming more than 3 ha in a vulnerable zone must carry out, in each cropping season, a soil analysis on at least one field for one of the three main crops grown in the vulnerable zone.

    Annex I, III, 1°, Fournitures d’azote par le sol

Outside the rule

  • Il peut prévoir, dans des conditions qu’il définit, que l’analyse de sol puisse être remplacée par une analyse des effluents d’élevage épandus ou, dans le cas de sols impropres à la réalisation de reliquats, par l’utilisation d’estimateurs (modèle ou outil) pour évaluer le stock d’azote.

    It may provide, under conditions it defines, that the soil analysis can be replaced by an analysis of the livestock manure spread or, for soils unsuited to residue measurement, by the use of estimators (model or tool) to assess the nitrogen stock.

    Annex I, III, 1°, the regional prefectoral order

Laboratory and analysis

  • L’analyse porte sur l’une des grandeurs suivantes : le reliquat azoté en sortie d’hiver, le reliquat azoté post récolte, le reliquat azoté en entrée d’hiver, le taux de matière organique, ou encore l’azote total présent dans les horizons de sol cultivés, comme précisé par l’arrêté préfectoral régional mentionné au b.

    The analysis covers one of the following: the nitrogen residue at the end of winter, the post-harvest nitrogen residue, the nitrogen residue at the start of winter, the organic matter content, or the total nitrogen in the cultivated soil horizons, as specified by the regional prefectoral order mentioned in b.

    Annex I, III, 1°

  • Lorsqu’une analyse de reliquat en sortie d’hiver est effectuée, son résultat est utilisé dans le calcul de la dose prévisionnelle.

    Where an end-of-winter residue analysis is carried out, its result is used to calculate the planned rate.

    Annex I, III, 1°

Sources

Sources re-checked every two months, last update October 2026. Reviewed by GeoPard editorial team.

Soil sampling regulations in every country

Report an outdated requirement: info@geopard.tech

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Set the area per sample, the cores and the depth your rule asks for. GeoPard places the points on a grid or by zone, routes the walk, prints the labels and takes the plan to the field on a phone.

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