Importance of Organic Matter in Soil

Farmers and landowners have the opportunity to invest, regenerate, and restore our soils so we can continue to produce crops from our working lands and sustain our food system for future generations. Right now, conventional farming is depleting topsoil, where most of the organic matter is located, faster than it can naturally be replaced. When soil erodes after tillage, or living roots are sprayed dead by herbicides, farms lose organic matter and sacrifice their soil heath.

You might be wondering how to regenerate and maintain healthy soil. Healthy soil is full of organic matter. Organic matter refers to carbon-rich material in the soil such as remnants of animals, leaves and plant material, roots, and animal waste. Regenerative agriculture encourages ample organic matter, and therefore carbon, in soil. When there is enough organic matter in the soil, it creates the conditions for crops to thrive, for microbes and fungi to source nutrients, while providing structure, aeration, and water availability in the soil. Regenerative agriculture practices such as cover crops, extended crop rotations, and no-till or reduced till are some of the practices that farmers can adopt to encourage organic matter and regenerate topsoil.

Regenerative agriculture practices have many goals including “improving soil health, increasing biodiversity, aiding in carbon sequestration, … and improving the overall larger ecosystem”. These practices make crops more productive, reduce variability in yield on fields, and produces crops that are more resilient to draught and flooding. Regenerative practices also provide opportunities for farmers to save money since they allow them to use less fertilizer and pesticides. Healthier soils also cause an increase in the nutrients available for plants, so the crops have more nutritional value. As you can see, there are many benefits of adopting regenerative agriculture practices, and this transition is necessary to protect the future of our food system.

At Carbon Yield, we believe that regenerative agriculture practices should be accessible to all farmers. We help growers integrate new practices that improve their bottom line while strengthening their land for the future. We help collect and organize farm management data to assess opportunities in carbon markets and we connect farmers to opportunities to save money on farm inputs and sell their crops at a premium. Transitioning to regenerative practices makes farming more resilient and more profitable, and with our help, we believe growers can prosper on healthy soil.

There are many practices that are considered regenerative. See our post on Cover Crops, Livestock Integration, and Diverse Crop Rotation on cropland.