Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

permaculture - [permaculture] Tillage

permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: permaculture

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Mark <mpludwig@facstaff.wisc.edu>
  • To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [permaculture] Tillage
  • Date: Sun, 01 Dec 2002 09:25:05 -0600

At 11:33 AM 11/30/02 -0700, you wrote:
. I think it's also an explanation of why in
*some* conditions plowing works (perhaps occasionally or short term)

Plowing, or tillage in general, oxidizes humates (and other things), this can give the soil a burst of available nutrients liberated from the humates. Same situation with highly available N. This can yield a heck of a burst of productivity for crops in the short run, though once you start to run out of active humates this effect drops off. Good shallow tillage (6 -10 cm) that incorporates and mixes in compost, green manure etc. can give the soil life a boost from feeding them, certainly a valuable technique, especially when restoring degraded soils or growing intensive crops. Tillage is an important tool, but like so many tools it is over used.
M


Mark P. Ludwig
Poultry Research Lab
University of Wisconsin -Madison
608-262-1730 WK
608-846-7125 HM




  • [permaculture] Tillage, Mark, 12/01/2002

Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page