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Part way through this, really does a good job of understanding differences bw Indigenous science and western science. Talks about two-eyed seeing with references

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Part way through this, really does a good job of understanding differences bw Indigenous science and western science. Talks about two-eyed seeing with references

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Isaac Murdoch on belonging & responsibility to Mother Earth

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Isaac Murdoch on belonging & responsibility to Mother Earth

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https://www.lessonsfromearthandbeyond.ca/chapter-1-inaaknigewin.html

Excellent and brief. "Everything gives everything to everything"
we don't speak about rights, but about responsibilities.

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Inaaknigewin is a form of governance on how we live on the land. It is a set of principles and guidelines that we follow to ensure that we live with nature. It is very important that we try to...

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The soil food web is a common grouping of soil organisms according to what they eat ( i . e . trophic groups ) . Trophic levels also reflect the flow of energy through the soil food web, as all organisms consume food to get the energy they need to grow and reproduce .

Back to: The function of soil biology

Nutrient cycling

Every time an o rganism feeds , waste nutrients are excreted in a form that is more available to plants . Plant roots are hotspots for such feeding activity so plants can readily take up these nutrients leading to the production of more plant material , supplying new organic matter to the soil and completing recycling of nutrients .

Predators ( e.g. protists, nematodes, mites and springtails) are important to drive the release of nutrients and make them available for plant uptake. Soil fauna can account overall for 30-40% of net nitrogen released into plant-available forms. The remaining nutrient is released by microbes or the enzymes they produce .

Trophic levels in the soil food web

Basal trophic level - Food sources that are either living plant tissues or dead organic matter such as plant litter or the dung and dead remains of soil or above - ground o rganism s.

Second trophic level (yellow circles) - M icro organism s feed on food sources in the b as a l tr ophic level and comprise decomposers feeding on dead organic matter , herbivores and plant parasites that feed on living plants , and microbes that feed on compounds exuded from roots.

Third trophic level (blue circles) - Ne matodes and microarthropods that gra ze on bacteria or f ungi but may also eat dead organic matter.

Fourth trophic level (red circles) - Larger micr oarthropods and nematodes that eat their smaller cousins.

Fifth and higher trophic level (orange circle) - H igher level predators in the soil food web include predatory mites , centipede s, and beetles .

Root zone interactions

The high level of feeding activity around plant roots , driven by the compounds that plants exude , releases nutrients where plants can access them and provides a diverse range of predators that can attack ro ot pests. Th ese root ex udates also support beneficial microbes that help produce plant growth compounds and fight off disease .

Useful links

Find out how soil organisms stabilise soil structure

Read about different ecological groups of earthworms

Find out about the diversity of nematodes in soil

Learn about different groups of soil microorganisms

GREATsoils

Amanda Bennett

Senior Environment Manager (Soil Health & RB209)

See full bio

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The soil food web is a common grouping of soil organisms according to what they eat ( i . e . trophic groups ) . Trophic levels also reflect the flow of energy through the soil food web, as all organisms consume food to get the energy they need to grow and reproduce .

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Soil Solutions to Climate Problems--excellent

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Soil Solutions to Climate Problems--excellent

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This is a great intro for 7-12. Narrated by ecoactivist Michael Pollan

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Soil Solutions to Climate Problems - Narrated by Michael Pollan

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great graphics, It's simple but describes soil's ecosystem complexity well, focused on nutrient exchanges without naming specific species. Also shows problem with fertilizers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVhY4ssMtbI

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0:00 / 3:12•Watch full video

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8qTRBc8Bws

Very short, at 4 minutes, very fine animation describing working with living soil organisms versus using fertilizer that deadens soil.

Key points:
-Living soil is a self-sustainable web of organisms freely sharing nutrients.
-Nitrogen fixing plants (3 described) do not work with the nitrogen, they create habitat for the several kinds of bacteria that convert nitrogen into different forms that feed other bacteria and create nutrients for the plant.
-Without the activity of these bacteria, the plants lack nutrients.  Human food then lacks these same nutrients. (shows chart of decrease of nutrients in food over years)
-Fertilizer applications kill off all these organisms. the soil becomes dead, requiring more and more additives to grow plants.  Runoff from fertilized fields poisons water. When the  nitrogen is emitted by soil, a greenhouse gas (nitrous oxide) is released into the atmosphere.

Through the right plants and the activity of bacteria and earthworms, soil becomes mineral rich and healthy. Healthy soil creates healthy food.
Bacteria are "tiny allies beneath our feet"

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Understanding Our Soil: The Nitrogen Cycle, Fixers, and Fertilizer

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Produced by a major news channel--lots of good content

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Produced by a major news channel--lots of good content

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Among many good things here about soil, there's great NASA visuals of how carbon emissions are lowered during plant growing season: very dramatic to see this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJhpoYwAqFA

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Video #1: Basic Introduction to Regenerative Agriculture

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Video #1: Basic Introduction to Regenerative Agriculture

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In eight minutes this provides a wonderful introduction. (It moves very quickly.) The basic difference is how to work with the land as a living system so that it can regenerate itself.  Current farming methods destroy that possibility by large scale plowing, cattle raised in pens not pastures, and mono crops rather than diverse crops.
Three types of Regenerative Agriculture:
1.  No Till Farming to maintain the organisms in soil
2 Regenerative Grazing captures carbon, enriches soil, water stays in soil
3. Food forests produce food in different layers, mimicking a real forest by the diversity of plants.

Land is a web of relationships. "What sort of relationship do you want to foster?"

This is the quick overview--more detailed videos follow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSEtiixgRJI

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkOb9Q2hXYE

Focus on Cattle "Wholistic Grazing" and depth of relationship farmers have to RA  Excellent  23 minutes, intimate explorations with three different farm families
(bracketed comments are our additions, not in video)

Today, we are depleting soil.  If we lose soil, we deplete our ability to create food that nourishes us.  Regenerate soil to regenerate our health.  Nothing is more important.

Three case examples, where you really get to know the rancher/farmer.  This is a benefit of this video--intimacy and tuning into how meaningful this work is for them.

Carbon, can add large amounts in soil from grazing.  Takes careful management of rotating from field to field every few days.

Cattle are a solution, not the problem when carefully grazed. Ideally in pastures, cows eat 1/3, trample 1/3, leave 1/3

Feed lots visuals are depressingly ugly in contrast.

Food: We can improve the biodiversity and produce better food by shifting our mindset.  (working with soil as a living system rather than imposing foreign elements that destroy soil)

Corn: Why do we take our food (corn) and put it in our gas tanks? Makes no sense.  Statistics on corn usage and GMOs

Traditional AG: how much can I get as quickly as possible?
RA: how do I build this soil as far as we can see into the future?
GMO corn-10-20 years good but soil depleted every year then lost forever. The Iowa Cornbelt soil took centuries to create, with bison ranging freely in the millions.

Put cattle in the field "Wholistic grazing" to regenerate topsoil where it's been planted with soy and corn for 60 years.

Water retention. Gain 20,000 gallons of water per acre with every 1% increase in organic matter.  Organic matter holds soil together and this holds water.  They're adding 3-4 tons organic matter per year while conventional farming loses 8-10 tons/year.

Visuals of cows held in metal circles (awful) and feedlots.  Mechanized farming had goal of fewer farmers.  (It made farming like a factory, hard and meaningless. Children leave farming and farmer suicide is a big issue.)
How to  promote rural economies by RA which is both economically productive and emotionally very satisfied because farmers are connected to the land.

Farmer speaks of his integrity and values as well as true meaning of being a farmer.  "You have to know I love working with cows."  Shows him playing.

Shows brief display of him charting minerals and sources to cultivate healthy soil for healthy feed.

How do we want to manage our land?  by poisoning it or do we want to support family farms that regenerate soil we all depend on?

Ends with demo in field by Peter Donovan speaking about soil as source of all life. Very powerful.  We're part of the circle of life.  Soil is the basis of our civilization.  Everything we do, build, are, depends on soil.  Powerful imagery of people dying because of lack of food as migrants, cholera, drought, violence.

How do the people feel who are engaged in raising plants using healthy methods, who care about soil and all other beings.  Strong sense of purpose.  Why they're called "renegades" because they swim against the current.

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Regenerative Renegades | Natural Grocers Presents