God provided us with an amazing world and he wants us to fully partake but he also expects us to be caregivers. Whether it’s soil or our soul God has a plan. It seems logical therefore to compare our soul to soil. Honoring God’s plan in both cases bears much “fruit” and I would ad "nutrient dense produce". HA! Easier said than done! We are given free will, thus we chose how we want to participate in feeding the soil and our soul.
Thomas Aquinas put it this way: “It is only God who creates. Man, merely rearranges.” “God has no need for our worship. It is we who need to show our gratitude for what we have received.”
Back to Soil. To have nutrient dense produce we have to feed the soil. The soil food web is a complex biological ecosystem. For that ecosystem to thrive it requires the right inputs to feed the soil. That ecosystem is a community of organisms living all or part of their lives in the soil. Those organisms are a complex living system. How treat the soil is how that ecosystem interacts with the environment, plants, and animals. Food webs describe the transfer of energy between those species
The USDA Natural Resources and Conservation Services has an excellent Soil Biology Primer that is based on the amazing work of Dr. Elaine Ingram https://www.soilfoodweb.com/ You can go to her website and be a part of the SOIL-UTION. You can also go to USDA's Natural Resources and Conservation Services and download the Soil Biology Primer
here https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/main/soils/health/biology/
I am a member of the Virginia Association of Biological Farming www.vabf.org Whether you are a gardener or a small farmer I would encourage you to join VABF.org.
What is Biological Farming: “Biological Farming is an approach to food and fiber production that respects the natural processes in the farm or garden ecosystem to yield top quality products, provide a viable living for the producer, and sustain long-term productivity. Practitioners use ecologically sound methods of agriculture, horticulture, aquaculture, and livestock husbandry to provide food that is as nutritious and free from toxic residues as possible, and which preserves the balance found in natural ecosystems.”
I will "dig" into feeding the soil in my next Musings!
“Aquila non capit muscas”
Gary Scott
Twin Springs Farm