Healthy soil and sustainable growing

[Dieter Brand <diebrand@yahoo.com>]

Paul,

 

you wrote:

 

> Forested areas in tropical climates don't build much soil organic matter.

 

They do, but humus (organic matter) is lost at a much higher rate than

in a temperate climate, 50 times faster. Hence the importance of returning

more organic matter to the soil than in a temperate climate, which is made

possible by the longer growing season in hot climates.

 

> midwest grassland prairie - now the breadbasket - had very deep topsoil and
> stable humus, tho it's been depleted by perhaps 50% since the coming of the
> plow ...

 

This proves my point exactly. Central and Northern European soils are still

in much better condition even after almost 2 centuries of deep ploughing. If

Prairie soil turns into dust after ploughing for a few decades only, this is a clear

indication that the quality of the humus produced by grassland is not of the

same quality. If the strong colloidal bonds of the humus-clay complexes in

the stable humus can last 1000 years, today’s farmers are still benefiting

from the forests that covered much of Europe during the Middle Ages.

This also explains why no-till is practically unknown in Europe. The case

for no-till is simply not as strong as it is in the US.

 

Dieter Brand

Portugal

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