Healthy soil and sustainable growing

["TradingPostPaul" <tradingpost@riseup.net>]

Thank you for the explanation. I do understand the complexity of humus is 
beyond current soil science; hence my quote from Aldo. My concern with 
humus-rich soil is due to its ability to hold nutrients in stable form to 
resist leaching, cultivate needed microorganisms, and hold moisture with good 
drainage. To me this is the key to the kind of growing that gives us far more 
for our time and energy. And in hard times that's the make or break for food 
security.

paul, tradingpost@riseup.net
---------------
The outstanding scientific discovery of the twentieth century is not 
television, or radio, but rather the complexity of the land organism. Only 
those who know the most about it can appreciate how little we know about it.
   - Aldo Leopold in  Round River, 1933
*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********

On 5/16/2006 at 9:36 PM Soilsecrets@aol.com wrote:

>In an attempt to expel information on humus, soils, and organic matter
>the
>information is often so grossly over simplified that it becomes gobble
>gook and
> unreadable to most laymen.  Many a scientist have spent their entire
>adult
>life trying to understand this process, earning Ph.D.'s in the process and
>still  don't truly understanding it.
>
>My idea is to keep it simple and stick to some basic  facts:
>1. organic matter or debris turns into compost which in time will turn
>into
>humus a stable polymer called Humic substances in the arena of  science.
>2. in the process of turning into humus the minerals of the organic matter
>
>is re-mineralized into the soil and made useful to all life.
>3. Organic matter is a source of nutritional calories or energy.  This
>provides fuel for the microbiology process of the soil. In essence,
>organic  matter
>is solid solar energy temporarily tied up in a biomass form of calories
>consisting of sugars, proteins and fats (oils).
>4. Humus has many benefits beyond the comprehension of mankind and many
>claims that cannot be easily substantiated or proven for the objective of
>getting
>the stuff properly label approved in many states.  In other words,  there
>are
>about 20 states that will not let a manufacture make any claims about
>humus
>on a label because the research to prove the claims is still not  solid.
>Even
>the components of humus such as the Humic acid and Fulvic acid  are
>debated
>with some states not recognizing a difference between the two.
>
>Dr. Michael Martin Melendrez
>