I recently read that for every kilogram of food we eat, approximately 10 kilograms of topsoil are lost through erosion, land degradation and poor farming practices associated with large-scale industrial food production. In other words, the fertile land that we need to support our diet and our existence is shrinking at an unprecedented rate, while population and demand continue to rise. The widespread use of herbicides, pesticides and chemical fertilisers in our food supply is not only damaging to consumers but also has untold effects on our farmland and natural world.
The Western diet is predictably the least sustainable, with its heavy reliance on beef and dairy products, but monocropping of soy, cereals and others is not much better. Every single crop grown on a large industrial scale loses more soil than it creates. In recent years, there has been an emphasis on no-till or minimum-till cropping to conserve topsoil and reduce the release of CO2 into the atmosphere that occurs with large-scale tillage. Unfortunately, such systems necessitate the even greater use of herbicides, particularly when used on a large scale. Chemical weed control is the only option when mechanical means of weed control are no longer used. Increased chemical use poisons both the soil life and the food we eat, further contributing to topsoil loss and environmental damage.
Home gardeners have experienced the benefits of regenerative gardening and organic practices firsthand. In our gardens, we can build topsoil at a rate far greater than nature can do unaided. In a well-run vegetable garden, the soil is better after every crop; richer, deeper and teeming with life. Most of the carbon lost through soil disturbance in the home garden is taken up by the foliage of the vegetables we are growing, helping them pull even more from the air.
Gentle use of hand tools minimises damage to the soil. Digging can be used to incorporate compost into the root zone and aerate the soil without the risks associated with doing it on a large scale with enormous machines. No-till or no-dig methods are also helpful, particularly with perennial plantings and orchards. Each gardener should choose the method that works best in their own garden.
Rather than losing topsoil, we are cultivating soils that, in turn, nourish our food. All waste in the garden is returned to the soil (either through compost, green manures, or mulches), feeding the soil life and decomposing to form the basis for new topsoil. Erosion, toxic chemicals and soil loss are not a problem for home gardeners. Regenerative gardening is not only a sustainable way to grow food, but a solution to many of our environmental issues.