Gentle sketch
In this episode, Nicky Schauder of Permaculture Gardens continues the conversation about permaculture and the ins and outs of compost tea with Mary Sketch Bryant, Marian Dalke, and Jeff Ishee. Nicky received two USDA-Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Producer Grants to specifically research the benefits of compost tea and its effects on plant growth, yield, soil biology diversity, and the stability of soil health. Nicky's research question was does compost tea make certain leafy vegetables grow bigger or not?
To read the Permaculture Gardens blog and other resources about soil regeneration, compost tea, permaculture, and growing food yourself, please visit
https://www.permaculturegardens.org/
Bill Mollison's books Introduction to Permaculture and Permaculture: A Designer's Manual are available online or through your local independent bookstore. Information about USDA-Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education's (SARE) grant programs and their free publications are accessible at
https://southern.sare.org/
To learn about the Virginia Soil Health Coalition and join the Coalition's quarterly meetings, please visit
www.virginiasoilhealth.org
For questions about soil and water conservation practices and outdoor educational activities for youth, call or visit a USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Center, a Virginia Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts (VASWCD) office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.
As always, we encourage you to join the 4 The Soil movement at
www.4thesoil.org
and follow the four principles of soil health:
1) Keep the Soil Covered -- Cover crops are our friends
2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage in your field or garden as much as possible
3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity and life in the soil
4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation and/or livestock integration.
And please share your stories of how you are regenerating soil on your farm, in your garden, or backyard. Yes, we can all cheer "for" soil and be #4theSoil!
Virginia Cooperative Extension Master Gardener Program VSU College of Agriculture Center for Food Systems and Community Transformation Virginia Small Farm Resource Center "On the Farm" Radio Virginia Farm Bureau Federation Piedmont Environmental Council Chesapeake Bay Foundation Sustainable Chesapeake Virginia Beginning Farmer & Rancher Coalition FarmersGov Virginia Farm Bureau Women's Leadership Program Southern SARE Virginia Tech School of Plant and Environmental Sciences Virginia Cooperative Extension Soils Page