Soil

Healthy Soil

75,000 different species of bacteria per teaspoon

40 tons of living biomass per acre

Holds .66 gallons of water per cubic foot

Dirt has no microorganisms

Protocols that kill microorganisms

Tilling (crushes the microorganisms)
Inorganic fertilizers (are salts that damage microorganisms)

Pesticides and herbicides
Bare ground (no cover crop)

Healthy Soil is alive with microorganisms that have a synergetic relationship with plants. Soil microorganisms can not photosynthesize energy from the sun so they rely on the plants to excrete sugars through their roots, to feed them. In return, the plant absorbs the minerals and nutrients excreted from the microorganisms.

Inorganic fertilizers and tilling damages the soil by killing these microorganisms, thus harming the plant. Note that organic farming utilizes 3 of the 4 protocols that damage soil.

Soil Food Web

Dr. Elaine Ingham at SoilFoodWeb.com

Learn Biological Agriculture by taking her online courses at LifeintheSoilClasses.com

Professional Background -- Current

Dr. Elaine Ingham is currently Founder and President and Director of Research for Soil Foodweb Inc., a business that grew out of her Oregon State University research program and her research is on:

-- What organisms are present in the soil and on the foliage of your plants?

-- Which organisms benefit which types of plants?

-- Which organisms harm plants?

-- How can these organisms be managed to grow plants with the least expensive inputs into the system while maintaining soil fertility?

Behind her user-friendly approach lies a wealth of knowledge gained from years of research into the organisms which make up the soil food web. Her goal is to translate this knowledge into actions that ensure a healthy food web that promotes plant growth and reduces reliance on inorganic chemicals.

Finding my Niche

I knew that I found my niche in permaculture when I learned about the Soil Food Web.

I decided to make it my life passion to learn all I can about the biology of the soil so I can help others grow better food, at less cost and restore the land in the process.

I want to personally thank Dr. Elaine Ingham for her hard work, dedication, and unending patience. I also would like to thank the staff at Celebration Institute for making me feel welcome while staying at the farm last winter (2017-2018).

Note: These pictures were taken at the research center, Berry Creek, CA, in the winter of 2016-2017, while I was working there remodeling a bathroom and adding a space for doing microscope lab work.

We had record levels of snow that winter.

I was staying in my trailer across the street, under a blanket of snow.

The sacrifices we make, for an education!! ha ha