Soil Depletion & Micronutrient Deficiency

This should be self-evident, but i was unable to find a single closely related thread on ATS. i chose Medical Issues & Conspiracies, due to the vast implications on health and because it fits neatly into the age of degenerative disease.

Modern Agriculture heavily depends on artificial fertilisers, without them, only a fraction of our current amount of crops could be grown on Earth, i consider this a canon fact.

Now, these fertilisers only supply a narrow range of nutrients, enough to make the plants grow, while rarer minerals can only drawn from the soil's depleting reserves, inevitably resulting in exhaustion of trace elements required by animals - and us!

The predictable consequence is lack of vitality and untraceable ailments which can't seem to be cured at any cost but may miraculously vanish once the victims geta boost of micronutrients, be it on accident or intentionally due to vitamin and/or alternative health craze. Coincidentially, this is exactly what we're seeing throughout the world today, isn't it?! The logic behind soil mineral depletion is compelling, if you grow ten times the amount of crops on the same soil, overall nutritional value per pound will drop to one tenth - neglecting the effect of establishing crop fields in naturally unviable areas through means of irrigation and fertilisation. Crops from these areas will offer even less nutritional value since they started out primarily unusable in the first place.

Senate Document No. 264, 1936

"Most of us today are suffering from certain dangerous diet deficiencies. The alarming fact is that foods - fruits and vegetables and grains - are now being raised on millions of acres of land that no longer contain enough of certain needed minerals. No matter how much of them we eat, these foods are starving us!...
It is bad news to learn from our leading authorities that 99 percent of the North American people are deficient in (vital) minerals, and that a marked deficiency in any of the more important minerals actually results in disease."
..

So, there, this was 1936, welcome to 2006, perhaps you'd like to know what fertilizer usually contains and about the side effects of mineral depletion on plants

www.tjclark.com.au...

Commercial fertilizers were introduced in 1908. Was the soil depletion problem solved? Not by a long shot! Study any commercial fertilizer by reviewing the ingredients listed on the package. You will see nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (NPK) and most times, nothing more. Why? It's a known fact that you can raise most crops and plants with what little nutrients are still in the soil, and NPK.

Most farmers never put back more than 8 minerals. In the first place, more than 8 minerals would be nearly impossible to obtain. Secondly, farmers get paid to produce maximum yield per acre, not maximum nutrition, so why bother with producing healthy food?

In addition to causing mineral depletion fertilizers also weaken the crop which in turns makes it more subject to insects. This in turn forces the farmers to use toxic chemicals to kill the insects.

Dr Jerome Weisner, Science Councillor to John F. Kennedy stated way back in 1963 that "The use of pesticides is more dangerous than atomic fallout."

His words are simply a deafening reverberation from those of Rachel Carson in her incisive work of 1962, 'Silent Spring', where she says "We are rightly appalled by the genetic effects of radiation...How then, could we be indifferent to the same effect from farm chemicals used freely in the environment."

So, i should have made myself clear by now, in fact i came up with the issue on my own, and i was frankly flummoxed by the lack of attention on this forum. a statistic for you before i write my comment:

www.doctorwallach.com... (commercial)

mineral depletion during the last 100 years

North America - 85%
South America - 76%
Asia - 76%
Africa - 74%
Europe - 72%
Australia - 55%

Ok, we have a true problem at our hands, one which was apparently swept completely under the rug, or how would you explain that some people are contemplating the use of crops for fuel production? Blow our last essential minerals through the chimney? If this isn't the definition of insanity then i don't know what it is! There are many more examples, like destroying food due to low market prices, and of course, OVERPRODUCTION, preferably on subsidies

I think the remedies are obvious, measure the amounts of minerals that remain and trace them, so food production can be optimised for mineral and vitamin retention. This probably means eating more raw and less refined food, but there really is no option, is there?

Awareness is key.


PS: i will add a final thought, namely that obesity might be partially caused by the desire to eat to mineral level, neglecting calories...

[edit on 26-2-2006 by Long Lance]

They say we are what we eat and from what I’ve been reading, we aren’t amounting to much. Rather than steward over the land as we should, we work it hard and use chemical fertilizers in the attempt to revive the soil that should be allowed to lay fallow. Because of this, the same eggplant you eat today has only a fraction of the nutrients it had during your grandparent’s days.

Most farmers never put back more than 8 minerals. In the first place, more than 8 minerals would be nearly impossible to obtain. Secondly, farmers get paid to produce maximum yield per acre, not maximum nutrition, so why bother with producing healthy food?
In Dr. Jensen’s book, Empty Harvest, he talks about how many of our illnesses are correlated with our improper stewardship of the land. Our immunity very much parallels the immunity of the land. Of special mention is that trace minerals are very depleted in our soils. Veterinarians have long since known this, which is why there are some 45 trace minerals added to dog and livestock food. They would much rather spend a few cents everyday than hundreds of dollars on vet bills!

www.tjclark.com.au...

Percentage of Mineral Depletion From Soil During The Past 100 Years, by Continent:

North America - 85%
South America - 76%
Asia - 76%
Africa - 74%
Europe - 72%
Australia - 55%

www.doctorwallach.com...

According to the U.N., worldwide some 25 million acres of prime agrigultural land are lost to erosion, salinization, etc., every year. Even in relatively healthy farmlands of North America, the top soil is slowly disappearing. About 1 mm is lost each year. And much of the soil that remains is losing its nutrients. Where the nutrient content of the soil falls, crop yields and nutritional value fall with it.

www.earthsave.bc.ca...

There are more than 30 studies comparing the nutrient content of organic crops and those produced conventionally with chemical fertilizers and pesticides. In these studies, various individual nutrients in individual crops were compared, such as zinc in organic versus conventional carrots, or vitamin C in organic versus conventional broccoli. In the more than 300 comparisons performed in these studies, organic crops had a higher nutrient content about 40% of the time, and conventional crops had a higher nutrient content only about 15% of the time. Overall, organic crops had an equal or higher nutrient content about 85% of the time. These results suggest that, on average, organic crops have a higher nutrient content.While the overall outlook is favorable for organic crops, there is too little data for most individual nutrients to say anything at all. But for three individual nutrients - vitamin C, nitrates and protein quality – there is enough evidence to suggest that organic crops are superior to conventional ones. Compared to crops grown with chemical fertilizers and pesticides, organically grown crops generally have a higher vitamin C content, a lower content of carcinogenic nitrates and better protein quality.

www.price-pottenger.org...

Most of my hits were of marketing hawks trying to get you to buy their products. Even if this weren’t the case, I’d still feel the need to add one more voice – the voice of dissent:

What many people worry about is soil organic matter, which has nothing to do with mineral content. Traditional (organic) farming involved regular application of animal manure and this resulted over the years in a build up of organic matter. This improves soil texture, increases micro-organisms (which organic growers believe can improve crop disease resistance) and holds onto moisture better (reduces drought susceptibility). Modern intensive farming tends to use no animal manure. It was thought that this would result in a drastic loss of organic matter. Rothamsted Research Station have experiments that have been running over 100 years looking at various aspects of soil and nutrition (www.rothamsted.bbsrc.ac.uk). Their work shows a reduction in organic matter but nowhere near as great as expected because the much higher yield of intensive systems results in much larger amounts of root left in the soil when crops are harvested and this breaks down to soil organic matter.

experts.about.com...

This is a very interesting post.

This year I am growing a larger garden - trying to make it bigger each year - and I will be using manuer for the first time.

I have also read recently that some of the insecticides used to have oil in it, and this hurt the soil to a large degree.

Originally posted by godservant

This year I am growing a larger garden - trying to make it bigger each year - and I will be using manuer for the first time.

I've been using cow manure, with chemical fertilizer added off and on. My plants are GREAT - at least in looks and taste. I'm planning to add sheep manure and bat guano this spring. ...plus I add sand and peat. My soil is black loam with a lot of clay - it dries hard on its own, like cement. Reminds me of New Mexico caliche except for the colour.

I haven't been using insecticides - had problems last year with moulds and slugs - plus rabbits and deer. ...I let the garden dry out completely in the heat for the mold - used an organic chemical for the slugs but am going to try the beer in a saucer trick this year - and maybe motion-triggered lights for the wildlife. The deer were BAD - took out my sunflowers every time they started to bud, ate my poppies, hollyhocks and nasturtiums, but they left the strawberries, tomatoes and parsley alone. Thought a lot about roast venison anyway. I would harvest 'em if I thought I could get away with it.


.

All you need to do is notify Colonel Bat Guano and he'll defend the perimeter against the Deer Hoarde (Another Dr. Strangelove reference worked into the board. Excellent).

The folks in the shop were telling me about the different ways they keep the insects away from their gardens the natural way. I'll be darned if I remember them, but I am sure they said to stop by the locol co-op for ideas and stuff.

I do remember that they used good bugs to deter the bad bugs. Don't remember the bugs' names, though.

Rock Dust and Remineralization

Simple solutions that demonstrate results are seldom pursued these days. Our knowledge base has succumbed to a political base where anything but laboratory technique is consistently observed. Hence private citizens must concentrate on the available techniques and provide for the future, independent of the leverage and advantages of sound government which is concurrently absent.

In addition to the great suggestions already posted, I suggest to anyone who is worried about the nutrient content of their soil where they grow food, to buy a pH meter before you attempt to remediate the problem, as remineralization can lower or raise the pH of the soil, and if you are adding in the wrong minerals, you could be killing your crops. Also find out the pH sweet spot for each individual crop, try to group them according to pH level, and hope for the best.

Another thing to avoid is creating a monoculture in your fields, as that can make your field vulnerable to diseases, pests, etc.

www.thegardenhelper.com...

Raising the soil pH to make it more alkaline

* Add 4 ounces of hydrated lime per square yard in sandy soils
* Add 8 ounces of hydrated lime per square yard in loamy soils
* Add 12 ounces of hydrated lime per square yard in clay soils
* Add 25 ounces of hydrated lime per square yard in peaty soils

Lowering the soil pH to make it more acid

If your soil needs to be more acidic, sulfur may be used to lower the pH if it is available. To reduce the soil pH by 1.0 point, mix in 1.2 oz of ground rock sulfur per square yard if the soil is sandy, or 3.6 oz per square yard for all other soils. The sulfur should be thoroughly mixed into the soil before planting. Sawdust, composted leaves, wood chips, cottonseed meal, leaf mold and especially peat moss, will lower the soil pH.

Calcium and Phosphorous can also be used, if memory serves me correctly but I forget which way they tilt the pH scale towards, so you gotta do the research yourself on that one.

[edit on 1-3-2006 by sardion2000]

The answers are easy if they're only affecting your garden, try some river silt, if it worked for ancient egypt, it will work for everyone.

Now, add the 'green revolution' and 7.35bn people on earth into the mix, overproduction in the west, climate shifts everywhere including increased water + wind erosion and it's no longer as easy. ground rock is nice, but normal water erosion works quite a bit differently, doesn't it?

Bandaids might help, and i'm all for using the stuff, but first and foremost, mineral flow needs to be understood and then carefully directed, wrt contaminants (f-ex.havy metals) and so on.

[edit on 1-3-2006 by Long Lance]

Hi Everyone;

I love to garden and have used composting as a way to elevate the soil . I use green leaves from grass for nitrogen , egg shells for calcuim and always dump in fish byproducts. Indians used fish as a firtelizer and it works out well for corn. I also used Oak tree leaves that had fallen from the tree in auttum. There are so many things you could place into the compost pile to make it thrive. Many Blessings.

Too bad so sad. It's probably already too late, with the way things are turning out.

Originally posted by Thomas Crowne

The folks in the shop were telling me about the different ways they keep the insects away from their gardens the natural way.

I read recently that growing garlic, planted here and there in your garden, is good for doing just that.

Anyone ever tried that? I plan on trying that this year.

Originally posted by godservant

Originally posted by Thomas Crowne

The folks in the shop were telling me about the different ways they keep the insects away from their gardens the natural way.

I read recently that growing garlic, planted here and there in your garden, is good for doing just that.

Anyone ever tried that? I plan on trying that this year.

Yeah, i've heard that works. There's also a plant called pyrethrum which is a natural bug repellent. Some kind of flower, too that i can't remember the name of, it's pretty common. One of the fruit and veg. blokes near my place has strings of garlic hanging from the roof, which I think is for pest control. I might go ask him, it's a nice day, I should get outta the house. . .

For insect control try fencing in your garden and turning a turkey loose in it. The turkey will eat the insects.

For sustainable farming: plow on contour, plant cover crop of rye grass during fall and turn it over prior to planting in the spring, return all crop waste residues to the garden, abstain from harsh herbicides and pesticides as they degrade slowly and contain heavy metals, apply lime every year as well as organic fertilizer, if you desire you may use no till farming but that is very hard to do, place straw or plastic between crop rows to prevent the soil from getting to hot and dry as organic material burns off with excess temperature and arid conditions.

Growing Organic is the way to go. By improving the soil, rather than just juicing it up with chemicals, you are making your garden plot - substainable.

reply to post by Long Lance


I agree with you. The way "Big Agri" farms; using mostly chemically processed sludge & petro byproducts fertilizers is a disgrace.

It is up to each individual, to do his or her part to change things. Every American should have a small garden and grow their on vegetables. If you do not enjoy gardening, support local Organic Farmers - by buying at a farmer's market. Also stop buying those chemical fertilizers & using them - they kill soil borne microoranisms - in effect killing the soil.

Instead, buy Organic Fertilizers - you can find them on Ebay under Organic Fertilizer. They are much better options. Compost or Vericompost yard waste & food scraps. Google either subject and you will find tons of helpful articles on how & what to use. Grow Organic - or eventually Die from nutrient poor foods & chemical toxins. That death will come in the form of cancer, parkinsons or some other terrible disease; all which are byproducts or extremely poor diets.