In March of 2021, the romance with country living and the rural lifestyle has received a shot in the arm. And, no, this shot is not the COVID vaccine but rather it is the desire to get away from the cities, away from the lockdowns and long lines at grocery stores, and out into the fresh air and the crisp clean aroma of the country.

   When thinking of “country,” most people imagine wide open spaces, bright blue skies, birds, animals, and most of all, an assortment of growing things - from trees, to fields of grass, to wild flowers, to sage brush. Growing plants define the country, and make it wonderful and alluring. But they do so much more. Plants capture carbon from the atmosphere, thereby reducing the carbon load in the atmosphere, too much of which can produce what we call “climate change.”

Carbon itself is of course no villain; it is the substance from which all living things are made. All mammals expel carbon dioxide into the atmosphere when they exhale after taking in oxygen. Carbon dioxide is also expelled into the atmosphere when fossil fuels are burned. Plants, on the other hand, take in carbon dioxide; they use it as fuel for growth, expelling oxygen in the process - oxygen, the very substance that we all need in order to live. No wonder we humans love our plant-filled countrysides. Plants literally “breathe” in sync with us!

   All plants thrive because they are fed by microbes that live in their soil. In fact, it is not actually the plant itself that takes in carbon dioxide but rather it is the microbes. The microbes ingest the carbon, and use it to produce a plant growth fuel, rich in nutrients. In short, microbial rich soil equals healthy thriving plants. Plants will also absorb and utilize nitrates, which are found in

manure and fertilizers. But of course too much in the way of nitrates cannot be absorbed and can run off and pollute the water supply.

   Microbial rich soil also has the benefit of forming a kind a spongy mass at the base of a plant which makes the plant better able to absorb rain water, and thereby avoid erosion. Pasture growing on rich microbial soil can benefit from the grazing of cattle or other livestock. Grazing thins the grasses, allowing rain water to penetrate into the soil rather than to run off into ditches or streams and cause erosion. There can be a symbiotic relationship between livestock and pasture.

   This symbiotic relationship is emphasized in the film, “Kiss the Ground,” released by Netflix in 2020 - see www.kissthegroundmovie.com. The film uses the term, “regenerative agriculture” to refer to practices to support and build microbial rich soil that will allow plants to thrive, and preserves the top soil. The approach includes extensive use of cover crops, managed livestock grazing, no-till farming, composting of wastes, and various other practices.

   A rancher named Gabe Brown is introduced, who uses a number of techniques to maintain healthy soil and avoid erosion, including livestock rotation, planting cover-crops to eliminate bare expanses of land, and a “notill” drill made by John Deere for seeding. He notes that the hooves of grazing animals function much like the “no-till” drill, cutting the soil just enough cover the seed without disrupting the existing root system.

   No one cares more deeply for the health of our lands than our ranchers. For generations, ranchers have known the delicate balance between grazing and over-grazing. Sufficient grazing keeps the pasture healthy and stimulates soil enrichment. Over-grazing will kill the plants and thus destroy the microbes. When the microbes are destroyed on a large scale, the soil becomes “dirt.”

   A process called “desertification” literally means land that is turning into desert. The process of desertification has been going on for thousands of years, since man discovered the plow. Plowing tears up root systems, destroying microbes and contributing to desertification. But desertification has become extreme with the advent of “factory farming,” and commercial farming techniques that use large amounts of chemical fertilizers.

   The film says that approximately two-thirds of the world’s land is in a process of “desertification.” And yet this process can be reversed by simple techniques of land management that enrich soil and promote microbial growth. As we enjoy this beautiful, green spring season, just remember to be thankful to those tiny microbes that make it all possible.