Regenerative Ag
Spread that Fall Compost!
Fall finds me smiling for many reasons, not least of which is thinking about all the Soil Food Webbers out there happily and diligently applying microbes to the soil. Where do those microbes come from? Compost of course! Conventional wisdom would have us see compost as a fertilizer; containing soluble nutrients prone to leaching or […]
Biologically Complete Compost
When we are looking to restore life to the soil, our most important tool is compost. But not just any compost. To increase diversity and restore missing groups of plant-beneficial organisms, we need to create an effective inoculum of these microbes. You could think of the inoculum aspect a bit like a yogurt culture or […]
Seasonal Sampling
Soil biology numbers change across seasonal cycles. Understanding what mediates the flurries of activity of these wee beings is helpful in deciding when and how to check who is home in your soil. Numbers peak when plants are actively growing and excreting “liquid sunshine” through their roots. Soil temperature, moisture and other types of microbe […]
Let There Be Air
Compaction is a pretty big deal when you’re trying to grow plants. How far can roots go down before they hit “hard pan” and must go sideways? How far can water infiltrate until it, too, must go sideways, leaching soluble nutrients and potentially carrying precious topsoil away? Compaction can be caused by the weight of […]
What Is Regenerative Agriculture?
At it’s most basic, regenerative agriculture involves leaving the soil in better condition than it was found. It’s different to the idea of “sustainable” – keeping something in it’s current state or level for the future – which implies that where we’re at is actually acceptable. There’s no denying that agricultural practices over the course […]