Last Wednesday, I attended the Rose Café series talk given by Senior Research Associate Dr. Dawit Solomon. The major question posed was, “Why does soil matter?”. Prior to attending this discussion, I probably would answer as most others would – soil relates to growing plants and agriculture. Dr. Solomon did mention these, but expanded on the importance of soil to an even greater and more scientific degree.

Something that really struck me was the concept of effective maintenance and its relationship to managing soil quality. At a time when there is growing concern for the welfare of our planet, I feel that there needs to be a balance between finding new technologies and better utilizing already existing ones. Dr. Solomon is collaboratively working with Professor Blalock on a project to produce more affordable and natural fertilizer in countries, such as Ethiopia. The product that they have currently developed is made up of cow bones and molasses. It has already shown to have a positive effect on crop production.

I thought that it was great for Dr. Solomon to raise the point that many indigenous communities have been practicing good soil care for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. In many developed countries, the US especially, it can be easy for people to become caught up in the habits of purchasing new goods and not making the best use of what they currently have in their possession. Recently, I participated in a psychology experiment that had to do with the effects of a survival mindset. To not give anything away about the study, I will just say that I think it would be interesting for people in our modern-day society to take a step back and truly reflect on the basic elements that we have at our disposal. In many ways, I do believe that it comes down to perspective. If we cannot have an appreciation for the benefits that natural materials like soil, which contain a lot of the Earth’s atmospheric carbon, then how can we expect to properly maintain them? This is not at all to say that industrializing and lots of farming of soil are purely negative. Because it has been shown through the indigenous people that soil cultivation can be highly beneficial. It is more to say that we should be more conscious of how we are treating the soil.

Every year that I have been at Cornell, I seem to end up with a new plant. Unfortunately, the outcome is not always a good one. Perhaps this year, I will try to focus a little more on quality of the soil, in addition to the baby leaves and newly budding flowers!