D is for dirt: go get grubby!

D is for dirt!

In the words of ABC’s Dirt Girl - Go get grubby!
It seems I have quite a lot to say when it comes to compositing and dirt! However this will be the last blog on compost and dirt for a while.

Dirt is essentially a combination of rock, clay, sand and other organic matter - have I mentioned how wonderful compost is? Dirt is also packed with microorganisms and minerals. There are about 50 billion microbes in 1 tablespoon of soil. Soil is a very complex ecosystem, teeming with very diverse life.


Like many keen gardeners - professional and amateur - I’ve been doing a lot of research into dirt - it’s actually quite fascinating stuff. Soil is far more complex than any ecosystem above the ground. I highly recommend that you start with research into what is commonly referred to the 'No dig' method of gardening.

One of the most powerful things I have come to understand is that home garderns really need to stop ‘feeding the plants’ with lots of fertilisers and soil amendments and instead focus on nourishing and restoring our soil. Nourish and care for the soil and it will look after the plants a lot better and with less effort than fussing with fertilisers. This all seems pretty obvious now, but it represents a huge shift in how I approach our garden.

In the wild soil does not need to be manually cultivated for spectacular forests to grow. In a forest fallen leaves, twigs and branches, annual plants at the end of their yearly cycle and other plants at the end of their lives, are all deposited on the forest floor when they decompose. The action of earthworms, bacteria, fungi and insects break down added organic (or mulch) matter slowly and release it into the soil, providing nutrients to the garden. Because the soil is not disturbed a more stable soil ecosystem is created. Moisture is retained due to the mulching, and the organic matter in the soil works like a sponge to retain moisture.

On the other hand digging over the soil exposes a very delicate ecosystem to the air which dries it out, and to the ultraviolet rays of the sun, which sterilise the soil – killing the soil organisms. The soil loses a lot of its nutrients and organic matter. Compaction of soil occurs, leading to reduced water infiltration and more surface runoff, increasing soil erosion.


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