I talked about soil and rain barrels and composting last week. But what about organic matters? What is it? Does it matter? How much organic matter matters? Can it be too much? According to the University of MN Extension, the answer is actually… YES.
Soil organic matter (SOM) is the portion of soil that is composed of living and dead things in various states of decomposition, such as plant roots and microbes. Organic (carbon-based) materials that we add to the soil, like compost or organic fertilizers, will also contribute to SOM as they are incorporated and decomposed by soil organisms.
Going forward, the best practice is to balance additions of compost or other organic materials with soil testing to truly understand how those materials are impacting your garden’s SOM. The U says that over time, SOM can build to the point where significantly more nutrients are available in the soil than the plants are able to use. That means excess goes into our waterways and groundwater.
Here are good things to do:
Reduce the amount of tilling
Use cover crops
Mulch around crops to keep soil in place and establish a buffer around the garden to minimize runoff.
Teri Knight became a Master Gardener with Dakota County, Minnesota in 2003. She currently produces her website, www.gardenbite.com. Teri’s been involved in community projects which include a Junior Master Gardener program for 8 to 12 year olds, designing and planting a garden for a women’s center and various other organizations!
