CharTerra News & Updates

Welcome to our April 2017 SoilMatrix Newsletter –

I am writing this on April 24, 2017 and watching a heavy snow falling in the park across the street from our home. It’s less than a month from the traditional seeding time in Calgary – May Long Weekend.   The question going through my soil-geek mind is: “How can I help the soil life get started with this cold spring weather we’re having?” But that’s enough complaining…

This month’s newsletter is shorter to give you more time to view an informative one-hour webinar on “Getting to Know Trillions of Friends Underfoot – Focus on Soil Life”. The more we know about these little helpers, the more we will be able to help them work for us and our plants this summer.

Only “living” things can be spoken of as having “health”, so we should view soil as a living, breathing ecosystem. Soil isn’t inert; it is teaming with billions of bacteria, fungi, and other microbes that are the foundation of an elegant and interdependent “Soil Food Web”. Soil is an ecosystem which, when managed well, provides nutrients, root protection, and structural support for plant growth. It also absorbs and holds rainwater for use during dryer periods; it filters and buffers potential pollutants from entering our waterways; and provides beneficial habitats for soil microbes to flourish and diversify and keep the whole ecosystem running smoothly.

This webinar was sponsored by a Calgary company “Black Earth Humates” and the No-Till Farming magazine (https://www.no-tillfarmer.com) and was produced by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and its Natural Resource Conservation Services (NRCS) group.   This excellent video is highly recommended by yours truly – the soil geek:

Getting to know the trillions of friends underfoot: Focus on Soil Life:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mA74MZTX5Hs

Another great resource that goes into great detail on “Soil Health” is the USDA’s Soil Health website:

https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/main/soils/health/ – These excellent resources and webinars go into greater depth on the topics introduced in the YouTube video I just shared.

Also, see the introduction to the USDA’s online Soil Biology Primer here: https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/main/soils/health/biology/

Each sub-link provides very helpful descriptions of the soil food web, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, nematodes, arthropods, and earthworms.

The more I learn about soil biology, the more curious I become.   It is interesting to learn how soil organic carbon is a necessary component for soils to support all of the various actors in the Soil Food Web; and how, vice-versa, a healthy Soil Food Web maintains a high level of soil organic carbon.   Sometimes soils need a little help to replenish the soil carbon when soils have become degraded. Nature does this through occasional forest fires that leave behind large amounts of charcoal (nature’s biochar) – the reason a forest floor turns into a lush green carpet of new life after a forest fire. We can mimic this natural process by amending biochar to our problem soils to give them a soil carbon boost and stimulate the Soil Food Web back into action.  Once biochar is present in the soil it is stable for a long time and continues providing support for the microbiology of our soils for a long time. Biochar can even help healthy soils remain healthy with the harsh weather we are currently experiencing..

Last but not least, AirTerra is one of 15 companies selected to pitch for funding at the Calgary Fundica RoadShow event taking place on May 4^th, 2017 at The Commons, 1206 20 Ave SE, Calgary. The winner of this cross-Canada pitch contest wins $1,000,000 in funding. Wouldn’t that be glorious! You are welcome to join us by clicking on the link below to register for this event (use the Fundica promotion code: FRIENDSFAMILY25 to receive a 25% discount).  Come cheer us on and share in the excitement as we do our best to tell the story and raise the funds needed to set up a SoilMatrix Biochar packaging facility in Calgary!

Click here to register to attend AirTerra’s pitch for $1,000,000 to fund expanding biochar sales in Canada!

Hope to see you at the Calgary Fundica RoadShow pitch on May 4th, but see you all for sure at the end of May… the garden planting month!