Sustainable Soils

Today's emphasis on sustainability has captured the attention of the building industry, developers, architects, governmental planning/approval agencies, landscape architects and subsequently all of the contractors that will ultimately maintain the projects  and finally the lenders financing the new projects.

How much more does it cost?    Will it pay for itself?   How do we create a sustainable solution?   What is "sustainable"?  Can we build/develop/install undercurrently approved building codes or will there need to bechanges/alterations/exemptions?  These are all important questions and eventually these and probably manymore will need to be explored and answered.

This article will explore just one of the questions...soilsustainability.  In other articleswe will discuss greenscaping, native planting, xeriscaping, roof gardens andother areas of concern to the "sustainable" discussion.

The "top soil", when we speak of it in this article, will bethe top eight inches, as this is where the majority of plant growth activityoccurs.  The sub-layers will havesecondary effects regarding leaching, runoff and water holding abilities andmust eventually be taken into consideration.

Many factors enter into play when discussing healthy top soils.  They include the amount of organicmaterial required to constitute healthy soil - the organic percentage can be aslittle as one percent for soils in arid climates to as much as fifteen percent ormore needed in wet cool climates.

Good soils can be composed of many materials and any numberof combinations of those materials from loose sand to heavy clays.  The key is the correct combination ofparticulates and the types of organic material (humus) that is included.  Without the key component - the organicmaterial - no soil can provide quality growing conditions nor will the soil beable to sustain itself. 

Warm wet climates create more problems keeping soils intheir proper organic balance than cool dry climates because soil biology inwarm wet climates is constantly working to break down organic material;therefore, understanding what types of organic material should be used asamendments and what soil inoculants and other additives and as well as whatfertilizers will be needed will be determined by the above discussedcircumstances. 

For many years we have been treating soils to massiveamounts of fertilizers (N-P-K) plus dangerous pesticides, herbicides andfungicides.   Syntheticchemicals have combined to destroy the natural soil biology and its ability tobreakdown organic materials that are required for healthy well balanced soils.  Without this necessary biology the soilfoodweb (http://soils.usda.gov/sqi/concepts/soil_biology/soil_food_web.html)is broken.

Building the organic content in soils is not nearly asstraight forward as it sounds as all organic material is not created equal.   Raw manure, an amendment used forcenturies, can be very damaging to soils as well as a major polluter of theenvironment.  Wood chips, whendecaying, can steal large amounts of vitally needed nitrogen from the soil.  The one organic material that can beadded to any soil (regardless of the soils natural makeup) is "humus". 

Humus is the perfect catalyst to start the proper cycle ofdisintegration of other added organic material and hasten the breakdown ofnaturally occurring organic material, such as grass clippings.  This natural decay of organic materialwill help create a natural balance that can be sustained over time.

In order to attain sustainability, or to approach it; topsoils must have large amounts of live and varied soil biology, a food sourcefor the soil biology to survive until it is established, plus all the necessarynutrients required to keep the soil biology healthy so it can then feed  the landscape.   Active soil biology breaks downraw organic material into humus and as the biology reproduces and subsequentlydies it also becomes a part of the humus.

Fully balanced and complete top soils, not only providegreat looking plants, but help keep them healthy and disease and pest resistantat the same time.   Propersoil biology fights off harmful pathogens and other diseases and provides acomplete palate of necessary nutrients to grow strong healthy plants that cannaturally fight problems as they occur.

The plan for healthy soil includes 1) humates, 2) soilbiology, 3) food for the soil biology and 4) all the necessary elements forhealthy plant life.   How isit possible to attain all this in a short time and make sure you are gettingeverything needed?

The solution is 100% organic TurfPro USA products.   TurfPro USA products are derived from a unique natural rawmaterial deposit found in the Southeastern USA.  A natural depression formed thousands of years ago and it containsan ancient humus deposit made up of @60% marine life and @40% plant life.  The raw material contains a completeblend of the components necessary to build/re-build soils that are out ofbalance or are lacking the necessary items to start the cycle ofsustainability.  TurfProUSA products are not fertilizers but make the components of fertilizer readilyavailable for plant to use more efficiently.

Superior to ordinary blends of organic material, TurfProUSA products are a balanced combination of beneficial organicnutrients, natural soil biology, a full range of humic acids along withnecessary trace elements in a form plants can use to quickly and the exactmaterial to energize and vitalize top soils.

Depending on the natural materials that make up the soil tobe amended, and the type of organic material being added,  as little as 10 pounds of  TurfPro Naural - Granular per 1,000square foot of surface area can begin to build/rebuild top soils.  When planting anything from annuals totrees, the addition of TurfPro Natural - Fines mixed withthe existing soil in the planting hole (see web site for rates of application)will help new plantings realize a better chance to adapt to their new home.   Studies have shown new plantings,when the existing soil is mixed with TurfPro USA products, the first yeargrowth is superior to those where existing soil is used by itself.  It is also recommended using a qualityorganic fertilizer at half of the labels application rate to provide the N-P-Kto create a proper balanced and sustainable soil.

Until soils are in a complete natural balance, it may benecessary to add nutrients - especially trace elements - to make up for thoselost due to previous poor maintenance.  It is recommended using Turf & Garden Pro or Turf& Garden Pro with Iron (for areas where added iron is needed) inaddition to a quality liquid organic fertilizer.   During the first year of building/re-building soilbiology, it is recommended using a 1 to 1 ratio of a TurfPro USA liquidproduct with a quality liquid organic fertilizer such as MegaGreen. Thereafter, a 4part organic fertilizer to one part Turf & Garden Pro liquid willgenerally be sufficient to provide proper nutrients and trace elements.

When using an irrigation system, it is recommended using"fertigation" to provide the most efficient use of fertilizer and water.   The use of EZ-FLO brand non-mechanicalinjection units has been proven to be cost efficient and extremely effective inthe distribution of the TurfPro USA liquids and liquidfertilizers at the proper application rates.  This program will begin the road to sustainability whileusing the least amount of water and fertilizer thus resulting in minimal if anyenvironmental pollution.

For further information about TurfPro USA products, visitthe web site at: www.turfprousa.com .

Sustainable landscapes are a largepart of the solution of global warming.