Can we Save the Soil?

A movement initiated by Indian yogi Sadhguru to increase soil organic matter is catching on around the world

DID it ever cross your mind that the very soil in which we plant fruit trees and vegetables can go extinct? A long time ago, some vegetables and fruits could only grow at a particular place and be harvested during a specific season, but technology has helped us.

Now, farmers can grow and harvest most fruits and vegetables in almost at any part of the world.

Some farmers use pesticides to prevent insects from destroying the plants, while others use chemicals to boost the plants to grow quickly, but one wonders, where would these chemicals end up eventually? The soil?

What would happen to the soil, if we keep using chemicals on it? How would the soil keep replenishing itself or free itself from chemicals?

These are some questions to ponder. Though we do not have the answers, suffice to say, it’s time for us to take a moment and think about soil health.

There have been many campaigns about environmental issues, preserving forests, river pollution and climate change, but one Sadhguru, a yogi and mystic has been making everybody turn their head towards a cause which is one of the most important things in life that we all take for granted – the soil, in which we plant our fresh food.

Sadhguru began a movement 24 years ago about the importance of saving our soil, and fighting the threat of what he calls Soil Extinction. There is a dire need to care for our soil now, as we won’t be able to find new land when soil degrades or loses its nutrient.

Why save soil?

The global movement launched by Sadhguru was to raise awareness of the soil crisis and to support Soil Health, and to support leaders of countries to initiate or institute national policies and actions focused on increasing the organic content in cultivable soil.

Recently, Sadhguru embarked on a journey to save soil by meeting leaders and experts as a solo motorcyclist, riding 30,000km across 25 nations from the United Kingdom to India in 100 days, beginning on March 21 this year.

During his journey, he has been talking and giving interviews on TV shows about saving soil.

According to Sadhguru, the soil is losing organic content and vegetation. There are thousands of microbes in the soil and it functions in the same way that microbes work in our gut.

Losing the microbial activity or nourishment means the soil has no organic content and vegetation.

As soil is a habitat for an abundance of microbes – and we can easily find microbes in just a handful of soil – they play an essential role in nutrient cycling in the soil for the plants, productivity, and decomposition.

For decades, animals were part of farmland, and animal waste or manure has helped to increase soil organically. Animal manure integrates with the soil and increases organic matter level, adds nutrients required for the growth of plants, helps soil fertility, and increases water holding capacity.

However, the arrival of machines on farms may have led to animal-free agriculture. Meanwhile, vegetation helps to prevent soil degradation by stabilising the soil, reducing erosion, and preserving the nutrient and water cycle.

Meanwhile, spraying pesticides on land has an impact on almost 82% to 86% of biodiversity, which lives within 12 inches of the topsoil.

When agricultural land is ploughed up to nine to 12 inches in depth with tractors and machines and left open, the biodiversity gets destroyed completely.

Sadhguru explained that in agricultural soil, the minimum organic content is 3% to 6%, but in some land, the organic content is reduced to 0.5%, and it’s on the verge of desertification.

His solution is to bring back at least a minimum of 3% to 6% organic content in the soil through tree cultivation and animal waste, and this could benefit farmers as the organically rich soil needs less water (soil with organic content has water holding capacity).

He believes that the land has to have vegetation such as natural grass, bush or even planted trees, as it serves the ecological activity. Soil is the basis of life and it’s important to keep the biodiversity alive and to have a conscious approach on how to manage the soil, rejuvenate and revitalise the soil.

As per Sadhguru, in the last 25 to 30 years, at least 80% of insect biomass has disappeared from the planet, and we will be in a food crisis in 45 to 50 years’ time.

In other words, if we don’t take action to save our soil, we may face a situation where the land cannot be used for farming or planting due to degradation or lack of nutrients, resulting from lack of organic content. We may have to continue by cultivating new land but to what end?

What if we come to a situation where there is no more land left to cultivate to grow crops, where do we go then? Will we see mass migrations to another more fertile country, or spend money to import farm produce from other countries?

Sadhguru has opened our eyes to this matter and he hopes action is taken to save soil right now, and to make people understand that it’s our responsibility to care for our soil.

Let us take a minute and think about the very soil we step on every day!