Conventional agricultural practices do not include balancing soil minerals. This has caused a decline in the nutritional value of our food and a decline in human health. Mineral balance is one of the keys to healthy soil. Healthy soil grows healthy plants and healthy plants create healthy people and animals.
Minerals can make all the difference.
Soil is a result of life. Without life, soil would be just weathered rocks.
Soil is the product of billions of years of life on Earth.
It sustains us all.
Soil nutrient deficiencies are common throughout the world. In 1990 the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations reported on 190 agricultural soils worldwide (note that your soil may not even be considered “agricultural”). They found that 73% of these soils are deficient in phosphorus, 55% are deficient in potassium, 31% are deficient in boron and 49% are deficient in zinc. These are deficiencies by conventional standards, not the higher standards required for nutrient density.
Nutrient deficiencies in the soil translate into nutritional deficiencies in the animal that eats the food grown on that soil. Although we now tend to eat food grown in diverse places, the nutritional content of most food, even organically grown food, is marginal at best. See our book for the evidence linking soil fertility to human health.
The 19th century chemist, Justis von Liebig, found that plant growth is limited by the least available nutrient. Just as the barrel bearing his name shows, the lowest stave (the least available nutrient, depicted as the lowest piece of wood in the barrel) will limit the amount the barrel will hold (the growth of the plant). Once the least available nutrient is supplied, another nutrient becomes the least available.
As gardeners and growers, we often are searching for the silver bullet… that one thing that will make our gardens flourish. You will hear a lot of stories about other people’s silver bullets. They will tell you what worked for them, in their situation. But everyone has their own barrel and their own lowest stave. You’ll need to see what works for you, in your situation.
The trouble with Liebig’s barrel is that it doesn’t tell the whole story. While it illustrates the limiting factor, it shows nothing about the soil balance needed to allow plants to grow to their full potential.
This means balancing the soil mineral reserves, building the capacity of the soil to hold and distribute nutrients and enhancing the means with which plants take up nutrients, both biologically and directly.
Home gardens and small farms can be a great source of nutrient dense food. They are usually fairly small in area, and so do not require truckloads of mineral nutrients. There are many, many benefits to the garden farmer and the local community. If you are going to be growing and selling your own food, why not grow the best?
The cost of external inputs is a major concern for farmers who need to make a living from their crops. It pays to make sure that any mineral amendments applied are of benefit and take the soil in the direction of balance. If you are going to be adding amendments, why not make sure they are “just the right ones”?
We wrote OrganiCalc to help garden-farmers balance their soil minerals and grow nutrient-rich food. We partner with Logan Labs to help you get the right tests for your soil and irrigation water. We have testimonials from people who are amazing to find flavor in their food again. And we get to eat some pretty good food too!
