Farming to maximise the nutritional value of your food

by Bev Buckley (one of our Mt Tamborine farmers)

Nutrition Farming™ is the name given to an advanced form of organic farming. The name is registered to Nutri-Tech Solutions at Yandina. It emphasises the nutritional value of the food produced. Nutrition farming looks at four important aspects when it comes to growing food. These are:
(i) Mineral content of the soil,
(ii) Balance of the mineral content of the soil,
(iii) Level of organic matter in the soil,
(iv) Level of biological activity in the soil including the number and variety of micro-organisms, fungi, insects, bugs and worms.

Minerals
Ideally, soil should have the same number of elements that exist on Earth and in the same proportion. There are 92 elements in total. Minerals are either single elements or a combination. Under normal conditions mineral content is often deficient because of the chemical farming methods that have been used and because of a “robber farming” attitude that has prevailed for far too long. This means minerals have to be added back into the soil if nutritionally rich food is to be grown in that soil. Food can only contain the minerals that are present in the soil in which they are grown.

Many of the minerals, and particularly the vital trace elements that were originally in the soil, have been washed away into the sea. For this reason, any mineral additives that come from the sea, are valuable. This includes kelp and fish products. Other rich sources of mineral supplements include brown coal, which, because of its age is rich in minerals, and ground basalt, which is volcanic in origin.

Mineral Balance
William Albrecht, an American scientist working in the middle of last century, discovered that there is an “ideal” balance for the various minerals. He did this by looking at the most productive soils around the world and discovered that the same balance existed in all these soils. As an example, the ideal calcium / magnesium ratio is 7:1 and ideal phosphorus /potassium ratio is 1:1. When minerals are in balance and there are both organic matter and micro-organisms at work, the soil will be at the magic 6.4 pH level. Plants that grow in soil that has a pH of 6.4 are not attacked by pests or diseases, whose job it is to destroy weak plants.

Organic Matter
Organic matter comes from compost and green manure crops, turned back into the soil. Mulch, vegetable material that is laid on top of the soil to prevent weeds and to retain moisture, gradually decomposes and adds to organic matter levels. Animal manures from chickens, cows, pigs, or horses are also valuable sources of organic matter.

Biological Activity
Organic matter adds minerals to the soil and is also food for micro-organisms and fungi whose job is to change the mineral content of the soil into food available for plants. This activity is so important that plants are willing to supply the micro-organisms that live around their roots up to 50% of the sugars they make through the process of photosynthesis. The sugars flow down to the roots and are exchanged for a new supply of minerals.

Micro-organisms can be single-celled plants or animals. The range and variety of micro-organisms varies in different environments. In forests and orchards fungi are very important. In vegetable gardens bacteria is more common than fungi. Maintaining an environment where soil micro-organisms thrive is a most important aspect of nutrition farming.

Your job as a gardener requires you to manage these four aspects but the most important thing is not to harm the extraordinary inter-relationships that exist within the soil by using poisonous chemicals that kill soil organisms.