The Soil and Health

This is a newly edited revision of Albert Howard's important text on organic farming and gardening, and the central role of humus in maintaining soil health and fertility. THE SOIL AND HEALTH is a detailed analysis of the vital role of humus and compost in soil health - and the importance of soil health to the health of crops and the humans who eat them. The author is keenly aware of the dead end which awaits humanity if we insist on growing our food using artificial fertilisers and poisons. Albert Howard (1873-1947) was one of the leaders of the British organics movement in the mid-twentieth century. He was the first westerner to document and publish research on traditional techniques of agriculture, including Indian and Chinese farming and management of the soil. "Agriculture is the fundamental industry of the world and must be allowed to occupy the primary position in the economies of all countries." - Albert Howard CONTENTS 1 - Soil Fertility and Agriculture 1.1 The operations of Nature The life of the plantThe living soilThe significance of humusThe importance of minerals 1.2 Systems of agriculture Primitive forms of agricultureShifting cultivationThe harnessing of the NileStaircase cultivationThe agriculture of ChinaThe agriculture of Greece and RomeFarming in the Middle Ages 1.3 Soil fertility in Great Britain The Roman occupationThe Saxon conquestThe open-field systemThe depreciation of soil fertilityThe low yield of wheatThe Black DeathThe Industrial Revolution and soil fertilityThe Great Depression of 1879The Second World War 1.4 Industrialism and the profit motive 1.5 The intrusion of Science 2 - Disease in Present-day Farming and Gardening 2.1 Diseases of the soil Soil erosionThe formation of alkaline land 2.2 The diseases of crops 2.3 Disease and health in livestock 2.4 Soil fertility and human health 2.5 The nature of disease 3 - The Problem of Manuring 3.1 The origins and scope of the problem The phosphate problem and its solutionThe reform of the manure heapSheet-composting and nitrogen fixationThe utilisation of town wastes 3.2 The Indore Process - Some practical points- The New Zealand compost box- Mechanisation- The spread of the Indore Process 3.3 The reception by scientists

2022 Reprint of the 1947 Edition. Includes 15 illustrations (including plan and diagrams). Exact facsimile of the original edition and not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. During his years as a scientist working for the British government in India, Sir Albert Howard conceived of and refined the principles of organic agriculture. Howard's The Soil and Health became a seminal and inspirational text in the organic movement soon after its publication in 1947. The Soil and Health argues that industrial agriculture, emergent in Howard's era and dominant today, disrupts the delicate balance of nature and irrevocably robs the soil of its fertility. Howard's classic treatise links the burgeoning health crises facing crops, livestock, and humanity to this radical degradation of the Earth's soil. His message¿that we must respect and restore the health of the soil for the benefit of future generations¿still resonates among those who are concerned about the effects of chemically enhanced agriculture.

2022 Reprint of the 1947 Edition. Includes 15 illustrations (including plan and diagrams). Exact facsimile of the original edition and not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. During his years as a scientist working for the British government in India, Sir Albert Howard conceived of and refined the principles of organic agriculture. Howard's The Soil and Health became a seminal and inspirational text in the organic movement soon after its publication in 1947. The Soil and Health argues that industrial agriculture, emergent in Howard's era and dominant today, disrupts the delicate balance of nature and irrevocably robs the soil of its fertility. Howard's classic treatise links the burgeoning health crises facing crops, livestock, and humanity to this radical degradation of the Earth's soil. His message¿that we must respect and restore the health of the soil for the benefit of future generations¿still resonates among those who are concerned about the effects of chemically enhanced agriculture.

This is a newly edited revision of Albert Howard's important text on organic farming and gardening, and the central role of humus in maintaining soil health and fertility. THE SOIL AND HEALTH is a detailed analysis of the vital role of humus and compost in soil health - and the importance of soil health to the health of crops and the humans who eat them. The author is keenly aware of the dead end which awaits humanity if we insist on growing our food using artificial fertilisers and poisons. Albert Howard (1873-1947) was one of the leaders of the British organics movement in the mid-twentieth century. He was the first westerner to document and publish research on traditional techniques of agriculture, including Indian and Chinese farming and management of the soil. "Agriculture is the fundamental industry of the world and must be allowed to occupy the primary position in the economies of all countries." - Albert Howard CONTENTS 1 - Soil Fertility and Agriculture 1.1 The operations of Nature The life of the plantThe living soilThe significance of humusThe importance of minerals 1.2 Systems of agriculture Primitive forms of agricultureShifting cultivationThe harnessing of the NileStaircase cultivationThe agriculture of ChinaThe agriculture of Greece and RomeFarming in the Middle Ages 1.3 Soil fertility in Great Britain The Roman occupationThe Saxon conquestThe open-field systemThe depreciation of soil fertilityThe low yield of wheatThe Black DeathThe Industrial Revolution and soil fertilityThe Great Depression of 1879The Second World War 1.4 Industrialism and the profit motive 1.5The intrusion of Science 2 - Disease in Present-day Farming and Gardening 2.1 Diseases of the soil Soil erosionThe formation of alkaline land 2.2 The diseases of crops 2.3 Disease and health in livestock 2.4Soil fertility and human health 2.5 The nature of disease 3 - The Problem of Manuring 3.1 The origins and scope of the problem The phosphate problem and its solutionThe reform of the manure heapSheet-composting and nitrogen fixationThe utilisation of town wastes 3.2 The Indore Process - Some practical points- The New Zealand compost box- Mechanisation- The spread of the Indore Process 3.3 The reception by scientists