The soil and plants in your fields, along with the atmosphere and water cycle, make up a natural food production system, as crops are food factories. The raw materials required by the factories are air (specifically carbon dioxide and nitrogen gases), water, 20 or so...
News
Unfortunately, Plants Don’t Have Feet!
If plants could run away from poor soil and growing conditions, I believe that they would. But, since they cannot, we need to focus on building soil health. Farming practices are increasingly being influenced by consumer demand, the banning of old and restrictive...
Going Biological in 2019!
I hope that everyone had a fantastic holiday season! I’m looking forward to the new year and working with you in 2019! Biological materials are getting a considerable amount of attention these days. Biological farming works with natural laws, not against them. Andaman...
Foliar Applications Key to Mycorrhizae Expansion and Carbon Sequestration
Soil carbon improvement or soil organic matter (SOM) improvement of only 0.5% not only has the ability to sequester a gigantic portion of our nation’s annual emissions of carbon dioxide but sequestering atmospheric carbon in soil as humified organic carbon also...
Acres Conference & Trade Show / Organic Grower Summit
I just returned from the Acres Conference and Trade Show in Louisville, Kentucky. I hadn’t been for a couple of years and I won’t make that mistake again as the information presented was new, interesting, refreshing, and practical. It’s was an excellent way to gain...
How to Measure Soil Diversity?
We’re learning that not only do we need intensive microbial communities in our soils, but we also need a broad diversity of microbes. Soil microbes are critical for vigorous plant growth including: nutrient cycling; decomposition of organic substances leading to soil...
Validating Improved Soil Health Practices
An article by Elizabeth Creech was posted on the USDA website. It grabbed my attention when it stated that the U.S. lost 2 million acres of land last year used in active crop production. Doing nothing to improve our soils isn’t an acceptable option anymore knowing...
Voice From the Past Points the Way to the Future
A friend sent me a fascinating article from Acres U.S.A. magazine. It focuses on the early work of soil scientist Henrik Lundegårdh (pronounced Lun-de-gourd) who, in the 1920s, established an essential framework for understanding the biology of crop productivity. The...
The New Science of Disease Protection
As scientific research becomes more pervasive in agriculture, we’re learning more about the complexity of plant-soil communities and the potential for controlling plant diseases and pests through ecological management instead of the application of toxic chemicals....
What Scientific Breakthroughs Have Promise for Agriculture Production?
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine identifies the most promising scientific breakthroughs that are possible in the next decade that would increase the U.S. food and agriculture system’s sustainability, competitiveness, and resilience. Most...