soil

[k15n1]

Fascinating article that covers the history of organic, virtues of poo and mineral/chemical fertilizers. I'm still reading through it but so far I've found it to be very reasonable from a scientific point of view. And it's an easy read, too.

http://www.soilandhealth.org/01aglibrary/010178.better.than.organic.pdf

 

[BarredBuff]

Very interesting I may have to look at it soon.....

 

[Marianne]

It is an easy read, longer than what I first thought.

I'm about half way through the interview. Pretty interesting stuff and new things to research.

 

[k15n1]

Sounds like this person had a very negative research experience. I did not experience any waste or foolishness during my 7 years of medical research. And I think sacrificed rats are not a significant source of carcinogens.

The important part of the article is the need for mineral improvements to soil that we are using. When we grow plants, some nutrients are used up and should be replaced to avoid destruction of the land. I always thought that compost was adequate, but I'm starting to question my assumptions now.

This interview seems to point to appropriate-technology thinking for farming, rather than the extremes.