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  • From: "Eugene F. Monaco" <efmonaco@comcast.net>
  • To: <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [permaculture] Rock Dust
  • Date: Sat, 2 Apr 2005 14:01:17 -0500

I've never used rock dust but have a question from a skeptical perspective.
I don't doubt that it can be good in the short term much the same as
fertilizer can be good in the short term, but does it go beyond there? My
question has to do with the natural processes that are being ignored.
It seems logical that the deep-root plants (think dikon radish) can mine the
minerals from the rocks below and bring them to the surface in a
bio-available form, which, subsequently, can be available to other plants as
the soil is built organically. No place on earth doesn't have rocks under
the soil. So all this stuff about soils being depleted -- a la Dead
Doctor's Don't Lie -- could be remedied with soil building. No? Why not
put your energy into building soil with natural systems rather than hauling
in tons of crushed rock from a quarry some place offsite. Let the local
plants and critters do the work. Am I being to idealistic? Or maybe it has
simply to do with the time dimension. Comments?

Gene Monaco






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