The ground is cold and covered in white. It looks like it’s hibernating—but don’t be fooled! Healthy soil teems with life year-round. In fact, billions of living and breathing microorganisms are hard at work under the ice and snow. Bacteria, fungi, algae, nematodes and anthropods aren’t visible to the naked eye, but they all contribute to the health of the soil.
The cold weather doesn’t slow them down. In fact, research shows that microorganisms continue to grow in frozen soil, often at rates equal to those during the summer. Scientists have even found active soil bacteria living at temperatures 39 degrees below zero.
When it’s not frozen solid, healthy soil is soft and crumbly. It is darker in color and easy to dig into. It has a sweet and earthy aroma. It looks, smells and feels alive.
If you took a sample of soil from your garden and looked at it under the microscope, hopefully you would see billions of microorganisms hard at work. Healthy soil should be teeming with these busy biological “workers” whose main task is to break down organic material and make nutrients available for plants to absorb.
Unfortunately, many soils around the world are in serious trouble. They’ve been depleted for a variety of reasons that range from natural conditions to over-farming and/or the application of synthetic fertilizers.
The good news is that more people understand that healthy soil is the key to our future. Quick-and-dirty chemical fertilizers give plants a quick hit of nutrients, but they don’t do anything to improve the long-term health of the soil. Eventually, this leads to a breakdown of soil structure resulting in weaker plants, increased risk of disease and, ultimately, soil infertility.
So, while the snow continues to pile up outdoors, why not start planning for spring by resolving to give your garden a healthy boost with all-natural Cascade Minerals Remineralizing Soil Booster? Made of pure volcanic basalt, Cascade Minerals mimics the Earth’s own method for producing healthy soil rich in essential minerals and helps kick-start the biological processes required for optimal and sustainable plant growth.
Your winter (and spring, summer and fall) soil will thank you!
