Good Soil
No I’m not talking about the nursery; I am talking about that patch of Earth under your feet. A patch of Earth that should be teeming with trillions of beneficial microorganism’s, just a handful and you would have more organism’s in your hand than all life on Earth. Unfortunately most of our lawns and gardens have been over fertilized or sprayed with chemicals that it makes not just what is above ground void of life but below ground as well.
Soil is one of those things that most humans don’t even think about but is so essential. 95% of our food comes from the roughly 5-10 inches of topsoil, yet the US alone has already lost 1/3 of its topsoil due to intensive modern agriculture. Luckily more farmers are getting on board with such things as planting cover crops and no-till methods.
Soil is also a carbon sink. Plants pull the carbon dioxide out of the air by photosynthesis which then goes into the soil through their roots and feed things like mycorrhizal fungi which I’ll touch more on later. However when land is over tilled or over fertilized the soil is exposed which is then blown or washed away, also the beneficial microbes that hold the soil and nutrients together die which allows for erosion and nutrient loss not to mention carbon that was once trapped in the soil is released back into the atmosphere.
If you want to see something cool there is actual video evidence of the earth cooling as plants are growing and soil not being tilled; then warming as plants die and carbon is released in the air when the land is tilled.
Lets’ talk about the life that live in the soil. We all know about worms, but what about all the organisms other than worms. Those organisms can be broken down into three main types bacteria, fungi, and archaea. They may be microscopic but play a large part in your soils health.
Bacteria does three main things. First they decompose organic matter like all that material you put into your compost bin. Secondly they move nitrogen around either through decomposition or through the air; giving some nitrogen for the plant to use or changing the nitrogen into other compounds for other organisms to use. Lastly they aggregate the soil. How bacteria aggregates the soil is by producing bacterial slime which helps the bacteria stay in place the slime also binds the soil particles together into little crumbs that allow air and water to pass through, storing some of that water for plant roots.
When we think about fungi what do you think about? Mushrooms perhaps well mushrooms are just the tip of the fungi iceberg. In the soil there are fungal strands that transport moisture or nutrients lets say from a rotting log to a place many yards away. Just as we have a circulatory system the fungal strands are the circulatory system of the soil. The vitally important fungi is mycorrihizal fungi. Mycorrihizal fungi intertwine with a plants roots which brings food and water to the plant from further away than the plant roots can reach and in return the mycorrizal fungi use sugars the roots excrete. Now imagine what always tilling the soil does.
Now onto the oldest organism on Earth archaea. Archaea do decompose things but their most important function is making nitrogen and carbon available for plants to use.
What can we as gardeners do to aid in the fight against erosion and create or maintain good soil health for our gardens and the gardens of future generations. Well we can stop rototilling all the time. I am not saying not to do it at all but limit it. Use it to break new ground and help you get out those big stones. Not rototilling will let those organisms build up that intricate beneficial web in your soil that nourishes your plants and other soil life. Afterwards you can apply a layer of compost yearly or as needed to feed the beneficial organisms and plants. Compost also adds diversity in terms of soil organism’s and improves soil structure. Mulch it could be wood shavings or straw doing so will protect against erosion, aid in water retention and feed the soil. Lastly I might get some heat for this but plant as close as your plants will allow it will stop weeds from coming up, stop erosion and help with water retention due to the sun not baking the soil. All these things we as gardeners can do.
No matter how big or small your garden is; even what may seem like something insignificant can make a difference not to just your garden, but the world.
