permaculture

[lfl@intrex.net]

Mark wrote:

> Soil depth in some of these historic grasslands is also phenomenal.  
> Those of you who wonder how industrial ag maintains itself dispite it's 
> madness should look here.  4 meters of prime A horizon lets one abuse 
> the land for generations without paying much penalty.  Except dieing of 
> cancer early.  I have one of Foth's soil science texts, I'll have to 
> crack it open again....

I talked with someone today who said that the best and deepest farm soil in
the US is in Champaign, Illinois. Farmland in that area is being sold off in
postage stamp lots for high dollar homes, no space for yards. This is a 
disgrace!

> > p. 142, "The composition of the atmosphere is the result of reactive
> > processes, and forests may be doing about 80% of the work, with the 
> > rest due to oceanic or aquatic exchange."

> Hmmm.  I thought there was a bigger contribution coming from the 
> oceans.  I remember seeing something on fertilizing the ocean with iron 
> to boost the carbon sink effect there and bulk up the sea food 
> production.  What will the monkey people think of next ;<)

As for the ocean they have discovered that evaporation is hampered by a thin 
layer of stagnant air
hovering over the water, in some areas of the world
A Brit has invented a machine that is installed offshore, churns up and 
creates turbulence
within that stagnant air so evaporation can escape into the atmosphere to 
condense as rain

As I posted earlier. Last Sunday the Bill Moyers show on PBS TV showed an 
interview with
a fisherman on a lake in Africa somewhere, a big lake, or it used to be; its 
drying up at
an alarming rate and the fisherman is worried that he will soon be unable to 
get enough catch
to feed his family. The interviewer asks why the lake is drying up. Response: 
Not enough rainfall
to keep the lake at traditional levels (never had such low lake levels in 
anyone's memory).
What is the cause of the drought? The fisherman points to a long range of 
hills off in the distance;
hills denuded by intense clearcut logging, carried out over many square miles 
in the vicinity of the lake.

Maybe this is proof that terrain cleared of plant life brings drought.
Plants, especially trees and understory transpire (evapotranspiration)
and give off moisture to the atmosphere. They shade the ground and prevent
moisture loss from that source. Moisture begets plants which beget biomass
and nutrients which beget more plants and a diverse, stable ecosystem.
This system helps to prevent soil erosion, nutrient loss and demineralization.

LL

--
lfl@intrex.net
http://market-farming.com