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livingontheland - Re: [Livingontheland] Some important excerpts from ATTRA

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Subject: Healthy soil and sustainable growing

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  • From: Mark Nagel <activism98201@verizon.net>
  • To: Healthy soil and sustainable growing <livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Some important excerpts from ATTRA
  • Date: Mon, 03 Jul 2006 12:11:34 -0500 (CDT)

Paul,

This is a great piece!

It, however, seems to put forth the notion that tilling may not be all that
bad: that's how it reads to me, not that that's what I'm personally
suggesting.

If humas is pretty stable, then would tilling really be a big threat to its
stability?

Tilling is likely to break up some of the bindings of humus, but at the same
time isn't the idea of tilling to re-incorporate organic material into the
soil? Would this activity offset the negative impacts that tilling has on
humus?

I realize that there are other factors here such as soil erosion and
disturbances to microbes and worms and whatnot*. But what I'm trying to
understand is what things promote and what things demote humas production
over the long-haul. * As these are the things that are key humus
constructors I could see where tilling would be most potentially damaging to
them.

NOTE: Again, I am in no way trying to revive the notion of tilling. I think,
however, that there is a place and time for everything (part of the larger
toolkit); tilling, personally, is a tool that I am too lazy to want to employ
:-)


-Mark Nagel
Everett, WA


=====================
From: TradingPostPaul <tradingpost@riseup.net>


Here's some excerpts from SUSTAINABLE SOIL MANAGEMENT
By Preston Sullivan, NCAT Agriculture Specialist
May 2004 ©2004 NCAT
http://attra.org/attra-pub/PDF/soilmgmt.pdf

Research supports our central ideas behind this list. This is basic to the
most productive, sustainable growing for home or market - and the survival
of the family farm.

paul, tradingpost@riseup.net
---------------

[snip]




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