The importance of mineral content and soil fertility in food nutrition
Story and Photography by Yvonne Lelong Bordelon
“The nation that destroys its soil destroys itself.”
– Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1937
The old adage, “You are what you eat” is certainly true for humans, as well as plants. Recent research has shown that fruits and vegetables grown today contain fewer vitamins and minerals than those grown 50 years ago. It appears that the major cause of this decline is soil depletion as a result of modern intensive agricultural methods that have stripped many nutrients from the soil.
A landmark study conducted by Donald Davis and researchers from the University of Texas Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry compared the vitamin and mineral content of food crops grown today to those of crops grown decades ago and found that if more crops are grown in a given space it almost always results in lower nutrient levels in the produce. The median levels of minerals, vitamins, and protein in the fruits and vegetables also decline. Additionally, while the new types of crops do provide greater yields, greater pest resistance, and climate adaptability, their ability to manufacture or incorporate nutrients does not keep pace with their rapid growth.
It is well known that the fertility of soil used over and over to grow the same crop will become depleted and future crops grown in that soil will have reduced nutritional content. Experts also agree soil will contain fewer nutrients after it has been leached of minerals and necessary microorganisms by poor management or overuse of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides. If using any of these products, apply no more than recommended by soil test results.
Feed the Living Soil to Feed the Plant
The relationship between animals, plants, and the living soil is a mutually beneficial cycle – animal byproducts (such as manure) and plant material (organic matter) are added to the soil and broken down by microorganisms (such as bacteria and fungi), which process and excrete water-soluble nutrients that plants can use. The plants, in turn, provide food for the animals.
One of the first steps you can take to increase soil fertility is to have your soil tested to determine its actual deficiencies. While you are waiting for the results, you can improve the soil by using organic growing methods such as adding organic matter, in liquid or solid forms; growing nitrogen-fixing legumes; and adding minerals such as ground oyster shells. Rotating crops in the garden and minimizing the use of synthetic pesticides and herbicides will also increase microbe numbers.
Another important step is to keep the soil covered with plants or with a green cover crop or brown organic mulch during the off-season. This practice, especially in winter, will help minimize nutrient leaching and the loss of topsoil due to erosion. Both brown and green materials will also add nutrients when worked into the soil in early spring.
Composting plant materials and manure is another good way to improve soil fertility. Sheet composting, one of the less labor-intensive methods, is an excellent way to establish new beds or to enrich old ones during the off-season. Start with a layer of cardboard to smother the grass and weeds, and then layer organic matter on top. Good choices include coffee grounds, crushed eggshells, kitchen scraps, manure, grass clippings, wood ash, and crushed oyster shells. For most crops, start three to four months before planting.
Bin composting and pile composting are both tried-and true-methods, but with these approaches you must move the material twice and turn it often. One raised bed design, known as a keyhole garden, combines a permanent compost bin with deep layers of branches, paper, cardboard, and other sheet composting ingredients. Vermicomposting with earthworms is another good option, one that will produce rich worm castings.
Using animals, such as chickens and ducks, to till and enrich the soil and eat weeds and insect pests is an age-old practice that is still used today. The birds benefit from the healthy diet and produce eggs rich in protein and vitamins.
If you don’t want to keep poultry, you can add alfalfa meal, blood meal, cottonseed meal, fishmeal, soybean meal, or greensand to the soil in amounts recommended by a soil test. As the fertility of the soil improves, the health of the fruits and vegetables will improve, which can result in increased disease and pest resistance and produce with higher levels of vitamins and minerals
