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GARDEN CLIPPINGS: Soil’s job in keeping plant and animal life alive

Ask a 10-year-old what it is that plants need to grow, and they will reply with sunshine and water. Correct.

Tell the same child that plants also need soil, and they won’t disagree. Ask them why plants need soil and you will get a startled, puzzling look.

GARDEN CLIPPINGS: Soil’s job in keeping plant and animal life alive Back to video

Tell the pupil that soil’s main job is to hold the plant up and they will begin to understand. After all, if plants were growing in a bathtub, they would surely fall over.

Soil is one of nature’s most neglected mysteries. Back in the late 1970s when attending Michigan State University, my least enjoyable classes were Soil Sciences 1 and 2, taught by Prof. Ronald Spangler.

Soil Science was mundane, almost........

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