Learn, Baby, Learn
If I told you to put a lot of organic matter*
in your soil before planting, you might say:
a) “Ok.”
b) “What's organic matter *?”
Or c) “Who are you? Why are you talking to me? And
get that shovel out of my face!”
All three are valid answers. In any event: time to
“larn you up.”
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| Organic matter: my leaf pile, someday rotting to compost, in front of a 4' fence for a size comparison. |
I've had a squirrel-proof bird feeder in my back yard
for over 40 years. It's on a pole with a loose baffle. Squirrels
climbing the pole can't get past the metal baffle, as their weight
tilts it down, and the top, rounded surface is too slippery to climb.
Until the last week or so, when I watched a squirrel actually get
some traction on that surface and pull himself up. After seeing this
same squirrel accomplish such thievery several times, the baffle was
drowned in silicone spray. We'll see. How do I know it was the same
squirrel each time? Among the hoard of gray squirrels, it alone was
almost black. No other squirrel accomplished this thievery during the
week that I watched. Others didn't, or couldn't, learn from that
miscreant. A good thing.
I've read there was a chimpanzee who was taught to
understand and “speak” in sign language. It couldn't show any
other chimps how to do the same. Have you seen the “Planet of the
Apes” series of movies? Not a happy outcome for humanity. Maybe the
chimp's instructional failure was a good thing.
The ability to teach important details to one's own
species, often without a physical description to mimic, is a major
factor in man's overrunning the earth and holding its fate in his
hands. I hope that is a good thing.
Some people say they have a brown thumb, but I contend
the difference between a brown thumb and a green one is knowledge.
Not “simply” knowledge, since learning isn't always trivially
easy, but knowledge is something that can be absorbed by
normal people with motivation.
If you want a green thumb, you may choose a minimal
amount of information to ensure your tomatoes grow well. Or, you may
learn about many other plants, and get your whole garden off to a
good start. Or, you could become obsessive, reading everything you
can, talking to everyone you find with a modicum of knowledge, and
even experimenting. Those options are all available to us through
some magic inherent in being human.
So, I could teach you about “organic matter” and
the needs of your soil. We could chat, amiably, about pH and minor
nutrients. You would already know about the major nutrients. Friends
would come by to enjoy your garden and protest they could never
grow any plants that well. You would say, “I use a lot of organic
matter in my soil.” They would say a) "Ok", or b) “What's organic
matter *?” or c) …
* - “organic matter”, in this context, is the
remnants of life: generally dead plants or parts of plants. Small
animals, fungus and bacteria will eat those remnants and break them
down to basic chemicals the roots of the plants in your garden
would love to have. Compost and humus are two forms that can be made
in the backyard or purchased. Mixing it into your soil before
planting, and top-dressing with it afterwards is always a good
strategy. Many books have been written on the subject of this
paragraph. I would recommend: “Start with the Soil” by Grace
Gershuny as an easy and intelligent introduction.
