Written by Zach McElgunn, ELA Staff This month’s tips, tricks, and techniques draw on the work and advice of Rosmarie Lohnes (Designer President, Helping Nature Heal). Rosmarie joined ELA members…
Soil Health
The Needs Assessment of Los Angeles Soils: Current Status, Community Needs, and Future Directions
By Yujuan Chen, Ph.D.
Soil is the brown infrastructure for Los Angeles. It has great potential to mitigate current and future climate impacts by sequestering carbon, improving water supply and water quality, supporting plant growth, enhancing food production, and maintaining healthy communities. This study aims to understand the current status of LA soils, identify soil issues, and work with partners to provide a framework to move forward.
Green Manure
by Robert Kourik
You say you want to garden all-naturally, but the closest source of animal manure is many miles away? Then green manuring might be for you. Green manuring is the process of tilling fresh green plants into the soil to help make it drain better and allow it to hold onto more moisture, with an added bonus – the plants, as they decay, act as a readily available fertilizer. Green manuring is also pretty darn close to free fertilizer – discounting the cost of a few seeds and plenty of elbow grease. Learning how the natural cycle of decomposition works means you’ll know exactly what part of the cycle to influence, how to speed up the natural processes, and how to improve the soil in either the short or the long term.
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What Is Soil Health?
by Robert Schindelbeck, Aaron Ristow, Kirsten Kurtz, Lindsay Fennell, and Harold van Es
In general, soil health and soil quality are considered synonymous and can be used interchangeably, with one key distinction conceptualized by scientists and practitioners over the last decades: soil quality includes both inherent and dynamic quality.
The Massachusetts Healthy Soils Action Plan: Overview & Survey
by Keith Zaltzberg and Jim Newman
In the Fall of 2020, the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs is scheduled to release the Massachusetts Healthy Soils Action Plan (MA HSAP). This ambitious plan seeks to protect and build the economic and ecological resilience of the Commonwealth through exceptional soil stewardship and will consider all major land use types, including forest, wetland, turf and managed greenspace, highly impervious built landscapes, and agriculture.
Lighten Up: Avoiding Soil Compaction
by Maureen Sundberg
In March, crocus pop up from a warm spot in the garden while snow and ice patches still cover the lawn and beds. You’re anxious to get out into the yard, but that melting snow and ice has saturated the soil. Your best course of action? Stop yourself.
Keep Carbon in the Ground
A Scientific Exploration of Climate Change and Soil Health by Dr. Kristen DeAngelis Soils rich in carbon are healthy soils, but climate change and poor management practices threaten to degrade…
Maximizing Soil Health with Compost
ELA invited a few members to talk about the compost they use, how they are utilizing that resource, and their compost sources. They also offer tips for managing soil.
The Art of Lawns at Chanticleer
by Scott Steinfeldt Chanticleer is a public garden located in Wayne, Pennsylvania. It is a garden of pleasure and learning, relaxing yet filled with ideas to take home. As the…
Maintaining and Increasing Carbon in the Managed Landscape
Conference Session Review by Alexis Doshas Garden designs that not only fulfill the desires of the client but also support and maintain optimal soil health translate into improved carbon sequestration…
Practical Tips for Fertilizers and Amendments
Feeding the Soil While Stabilizing and Sequestering Carbon by M.L. Altobelli My goal, always, is to develop healthy soils that can persist beyond the current owner and landscaper – soils…
Gardening, Healthy Soil, and Carbon Sequestration
by Adrian Ayres Fisher Starting right now, we, all us humans on the planet, have a short window of opportunity to solve global warming, keep global average temperature rise below…
