Healthy soil and sustainable growing

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

I bet Ken would have something to say about tillage and soil structure ...
!  Not sure but how best to re-incorporate organic material into the soil
might depend on soil history, climate, and what material we're looking at.
Sometimes sheet composting or compost mulching may work better. Maybe a
roll of the dice. Soil science is science, but the growing is still an art,
isn't it?

I see fields around us plowed, disced, harrowed, hilled, and cultivated,
and then left bare all winter. Then spring winds carry the dust to the next
state. No wonder they have to spend so much on irrigation. No wonder I see
For Sale signs, 80 acres, 500 acres.

paul, tradingpost@riseup.net

Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes.
--Henry David Thoreau
*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********

On 7/3/2006 at 12:11 PM Mark Nagel wrote:

>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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