[Terrapreta] The Science of Terra Preta Formation

[gordon eliott]

dear jim,
so is humus the same as OM?
and if cellulosic OM (which acts as a hiding place for nutrients as well as
water and microbes) gets eaten by termites then will there not will be less
of it?.
just as there will be much less of it if it is also "oxidized" (do you mean
fungal decay? in hot and humid conditions.
am i right in thinking that the best soil is what nurserymen use - peat?
and that plants have adapted to do their best in all sorts of inferior
soils?.
charles weber, like you, also talks a lot about mineral turnover or flows.
http://charles_w.tripod.com/laterite.html
best wishes
gordon eliott



On 06/04/2008, Jim Joyner <jimstoy at dtccom.net> wrote:
>
> Gordon,
>
> I'm not familiar with termites that eat humus but even if they do, such
> "eating" is not likely to be significant compared to humus simply "burning
> off" under hot and humid conditions. Humus oxidizes and literally burns
> (that can be easily demonstrated). That is a reason that plowing and tilling
> in such climes can do as much or more damage than it provides benefit. And,
> one doesn't need to travel to the tropics to see this. The US south has the
> same problem, just not to the same extent.
>
> Actually, I've never seen *stable* humus form in the tropics. Not sure it
> really exists there, even in TP. Dead tissue goes to OM, The nutrients are
> taken up directly by plants and the carbonaceous material evaporates or
> burns off as CO2. Much of the CO2 is directly absorbed back into plant
> growth. That's a little rough but it close to what happens in the tropics.
>
> I've spent time on southwestern Pacific islands where termites don't
> exist. Folks still have the same problem with humus and organic matter
> oxidizing.  My limited experience with termites in Guam was that they *
> contributed* to the quality of OM in the soil by breaking down woody
> material and leaving behind a much more tilthy soil. Once the woody material
> was gone, the termites when away. Admittedly, this latter experience is a
> bit artificial as the termites in Guam where all imported.
>
> Jim
>
> gordon eliott wrote:
>
> why are tropical soils poor? no humus - which gets eaten by humus eating
> termites
> why are temperate soils often so rich? termites do not survive in the
> cold.
>
> i suggest http://charles_w.tripod.com/laterite.html for some deep soil
> philosophy with an informed evolutionary perspective.
> it seems to me that terra preta is an inadvertant discovery of providing a
> place where microbes and nutrients can reside (like the humus of temperate
> soils). termites can digest the long chain cellulose molecules - but not
> carbon.
> best wishes
> gordon eliott
>
>
>
>
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