First blog from Rose Farm
24th February 2023
Down to earth.
written by Yvonne Morley-Chisholm
We start with the most basic commodity that we have: soil.
It is something we take for granted yet which feeds the very plants that thrive on planet Earth and upon which every animal in turn feeds either directly or indirectly.
So today we look at soil made in our composting bins; made by nature, nothing added … pure and simple.
We look closely at its rich brown colour. Then Emma gently squeezes it to see if it will hold its form - and it does - indicating the perfect level of moisture in it. I watch her crush it between her fingers to feel how crumbly it has become. I am invited to smell it and I experience a very subtle earth-like scent that feels like a gift to my senses. There is nothing unpleasant here. It looks and smells “clean”. We espy the small creatures inside it that thrive*. Deeper still, beyond our sight and other senses, will be the microbes moving around its structure to carry nutrients back and forth. All this will serve the cycle of plant-life very well indeed, wherever we put it.
The results are, in fact, superb. It is ready to receive seed, to feed established plants, to raise the level of beds and planters. Everything can be nourished. We share a moment of pure joy. How simple, how profound is nature.**
How did we achieve this?
We started with kitchen scraps, straw from the chicken houses, lawn cuttings, twigs, cardboard and pruned branches from shrubs and trees. We alternated between the green (food waste, grass cuttings) and the brown (leaves, twigs, cardboard, straw). Everything rotted down and the “wonder that are worms” turned it into rich soil.
We won’t need to feed this soil with expensive additives in the months to come. We can have confidence that nature will balance everything out if we work to good planting plans. The combination of those plants, the quality of this soil and where we locate everything will give us a real advantage over pests and disease***.
It has cost us nothing; we haven’t spent a penny.
The compost bins were made from wooden pallets, the ingredients for the compost came from food waste and garden waste that would have been thrown away otherwise.
So nature can work at her best, free from man-made additives. It’s an investment that cannot fail. The natural order of things has reminded us that, if we want quality cropping, it’s all down to earth.
* Take a look at the short film (30 seconds) on our Twitter and Instagram feeds.
** Emma gives an amazing talk on earth which we plan to share in the weeks to come.
*** We plan to share more about keeping plants and disease at bay in the future.
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