Re: sanet-mg-digest V1 #559
Cass Peterson (cpete@nb.net)
Sun, 20 Sep 1998 21:22:46 -0400
>>Wallace, Arthur and Garn A. Wallace. 1995. Compost and composting:
>>facts and myths. p. 39-51. Soil Conditioner and Amendment
>>Technologies, Volume 1. Wallace Laboratories, Los Angeles, CA.
>>335 pp.
>>
>>Compost has its uses, but fot
>the most part, especially in soil restoration, compost is just too much
>work for too little effect to be useful. Try and convince some European or
>American organic certifier of this though...For many people composting is a
>sacred act and you just ain't organic without it. The fact is mulches,
>green manures and good ol' natural succesion (sometimes called weeds) are
>often far more effective.
>
Weeds and native grasses are excellent soil-builders. Our best crops come
after "natural succession", meaning a piece of ground that has been allowed
to grow up in whatever will grow, which is (on a previously disturbed piece
of ground) usually orchard grass, switchgrass, johnson grass, and a
plentiful mix of lamb's quarter, chickweed, pigweed, plantain, dandelion,
cinquefoil, Queen Anne's lace, and false mallow.
I love planting anything into a former raspberry patch. Raspberries produce
well for about 5 years, sometimes we stretch them to seven. When the
raspberries get finally get disked in, along with all the crownvetch,
pigweed, johnson grass, and whatever has gotten out of control over the
years, I know that I can plant ANYTHING in that piece of ground, and it
will do well. Rain or no. Fertilizer or no. Nature is good, and wise, but
she needs space. I wish I had more ex--raspberry patches to till in every
year.
Cass Peterson
cpete@nb.net
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