Written by: Lauren Kufske and Guest Author: Jessica Chiartas
Join us as we celebrate the UN World Soil Day at UBC. UBC Botanical Garden and the UBC Farm are situated on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm Musqueam. Soils play both a symbolic and central role in understanding our history with land and in sharing Indigenous land acknowledgements; highlighting the deep connection between Indigenous peoples and their ancestral lands. Soil represents the physical body of land which Indigenous Peoples have lived on, cultivated, and protected for generations. Considering soils in a land acknowledgment, honors the intrinsic relationship between soil and all life (or biodiversity) on earth, as well as the rich heritage and history that the land holds.
Image: The 2024 theme for this year’s World Soil Day as promoted by the UN-FAO.
Soil is a precious and slowly forming resource that in temperate climates like ours, can take up to 1,000 years to form just 1 cm of fertile soil [1]. The UN World Soil Day (Dec 5th) is a great opportunity to highlight the importance of soil and its conservation. A trigger event that has often been attributed as the beginning of soil conservation was the 1930’s Dust Bowl. Heavy farming by early settlers cleared grasses and vegetation on broad swaths of prairie land [2]. This vast exposure of soil combined with intense drought led to wind eroding topsoil off fields in USA states of Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Colorado, and Kansas, and carrying it all the way north to southern Saskatchewan and southeastern Alberta [2]. It took some time for governments to address the source of this environmental crisis but in 1935, the Canadian federal government created the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration to allocate resources to government research in soil erosion and promote sustainable land management [3].
Fast forward to 2002, the International Union of Soil Sciences (IUSS) recommended an international day to celebrate soil. The idea was not mobilized, however, until 2013, when the Kingdom of Thailand and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UN-FAO) joined together to initiate World Soil Day in alignment with the Global Soil Partnership framework [4]. Finally, the UN General Assembly designated December 5th, 2014, as the very first World Soil Day [4]. The initial goal was to share the importance of healthy soil, and initiatives worldwide have helped this effort blossom into global activism for sustainable soil management! Each year has a new theme, and for 2024 it is “Caring for soils: measure, monitor, manage” [4].
What’s in healthy soils?
In order to become stewards of soil it is first important to gain a better understanding of this complex ecosystem. As many of us at UBC Farm and UBC Botanical Garden like to say: soil is alive!
“In a tiny handful of healthy forest soil, we have as many microscopic living beings as we do have humans on this planet”
– Fekre Yohannes Mulugeta, xʷc̓ic̓əsəm Garden Coordinator at UBC Farm
Healthy soil is packed with organisms such as beetles, mites, nematodes, worms, fungi, and bacteria, each filling an important role in decomposition, carbon storage, and nutrient transformation. These organisms make vital nutrients accessible to plants which in turn support other living things, including us humans!
All of these organisms live and move throughout the pores and pathways between sand, silt, and clay particles. These mineral particles originate from the breakdown of rocks; the largest being sand and the smallest being clay. A balance of all sizes of mineral particles is ideal, as this allows for sufficient water retention from clays, and air and water flow between sand sized particles. The glue that holds this intricate system together is soil organic matter (SOM); the dead or decomposing plant, animal, or microbial material that provides much of the rich nutrients found in soil. In your own garden you can boost your SOM with compost from food scrapes and leaf material!
All of the biodiversity, plant conservation, and agricultural research that is done at UBC Botanical Garden and UBC Farm depends on healthy soil. Plants in turn support healthy soil, and this reciprocal relationship is critical to maintain and steward.
Where does the word soil come from?
The word soil comes from the Latin word “solum.” Interestingly, this shares a root with the term “sol,” which refers to the sun. One major distinction between soil and dirt or rocks is that soil is composed in part of organic materials, all of which can ultimately be traced back to solar energy fixed into a plant through photosynthesis. Solum also shares a root with the soles of our feet.
Beyond the word soil itself, phrases or adages that reference soil abound in the English language. When someone does something innovative or pioneering, we say they “broke new ground” or when they are starting something new, they “hit the ground running.” When people come together and find meaningful alignment and connection, we say they share “common ground.” When something is ripe for opportunity, we say it is ‘fertile ground’. When someone is practical and realistic, they’ve got “both feet on the ground.” Similarly, if someone is humble and sensible, we say they are “Down to earth.” The words humble, humility, and even human come from the words humilis and humanus which come from homo meaning “man” and humus, meaning “earth,” or the organic materials in soil.
Why are soils important to our daily life?
Soils are the foundation of our food and agricultural systems. Focusing on regenerating soil health can lead to a host of environmental benefits and ecosystem services such as:
- Carbon storage
- Improved air and water quality
- Water use efficiency
- Preservation/promotion of biodiversity, and more!
Healthy soil supports healthy plants and animals, which leads to healthy people, healthy communities, and a healthy planet. For instance, healthy soils grow more nutrient dense food, which translates to more well-nourished people. Popular ways of gardening – whether in your backyard, a vacant city lot, a local school ground, or a patio container garden – can also help reduce grocery bills, provide beneficial time in nature, and promote community connections.
There are countless soil-lutions (sorry, not sorry for the pun) that lie right beneath our feet, including:
- Soil helps replenish our aquifers and purify our water, removing contaminants along the way.
- Soil can be used to create building materials that are resistant to hurricanes, floods and fires and that help moderate temperatures.
- Soil can be used to build root cellars that preserve food and could reduce our reliance on refrigerators.
- Common antibiotics such as penicillin are found in soils, as well as countless other medically relevant compounds that provide protection against pathogens.
- These same microbes that are so prevalent in soils (as much as 1 billion organisms in a single teaspoon [5]) release energy that can be harnessed and power future energy needs.
What can we do to care for soil?
As we are all inhabitants of this land, we are collectively responsible for the care and health of our soil. In order to conserve and support soil health there are many things that can be done at the local level; either at home, in your community, online, or through supporting soil and plant conservation initiatives.
Image: Friends of the Garden volunteers and Botanical Garden staff harvesting food from the Food Garden.
At home:
- Leave the leaves – leaves provide food and shelter to many organisms in the cold months, and they add nutrients into the soil as they decompose.
- Garden sustainably – grow native plants, mulch bare soil, conserve water and avoid chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
- Start a worm bin or compost pile – close the loop by giving your food scraps back to the soil! More resources for this are available through City Farmer.
- Get to know your soil – learn how to do a quick at home soil health analysis.
In your community:
- Connect with your local community garden or community supported agriculture (CSA) initiative – Search community gardens in Vancouver here.
- Support local seasonal farmers markets and U-Pick farms – Our very own UBC Farm Farmer’s Market starts up again in the Spring of 2025.
- Champion local soil protection and stewardship.
Final Thoughts: Dig Deep and Keep Growing!
Our teams at UBC Botanical Garden and the UBC Farm hope that our appreciation for soils has spread. Whether it is in your own garden, starting a compost bin, joining a community garden, or simply taking time in nature, there are many opportunities to care, dig deep and keep growing. Soil is a fundamental basis of all life on earth, and it is our collective responsibility to conserve and support the earth beneath our feet for future generations.
Want to learn more?
Stay connected with soil and continue learning:
- Dr. Maya Krzic’s open access soil textbook
- UBC Botanical Garden Horticulture Hotline
- City Farmer – worm and compost bin help
About the Authors:
Jessica Chiartas is a post-doctoral scholar and Research Manager of the Center for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm. She completed her PhD in Soils & Biogeochemistry at the University of California, Davis. Her research focuses on the long-term impacts of agriculture on soil health and ecosystem services. She is also founder and creator of Soil Life and RegenScore.
Lauren Kufske is a WorkLearn student at UBC Botanical Garden, where she serves as a Sustainability and Community Programs Facilitator. In her role, she collaborates with Dr. Tara Moreau and the SCP Team to bring community events to life. Lauren is in her fourth year at UBC, pursuing a degree in Environmental Science with a minor in Sustainable Food Systems.
References:
[1] European Commission. (2019, December 5). Soil Matters for Our Future. Agriculture and rural development. https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/news/soil-matters-our-future-2019-12-05_en#:~:text=It%20can%20take%20up%20to,preserve%20and%20restore%20our%20soils.
[2] Colpitts, G., Stunden Bower, S., & Waiser, B. (n.d.). Climate and Change: Making Sense of the Dustbowl Years on the Canadian Prairies. https://drc.usask.ca/projects/climate/
[3] Marchildon, G. P., Kulshreshtha, S., Wheaton, E., & Sauchyn, D. (2007, October 31). Drought and institutional adaptation in the Great Plains of Alberta and Saskatchewan, 1914–1939 – natural hazards. SpringerLink. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11069-007-9175-5
[4] Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. (n.d.). World Soil Day, 5 December. About | World Soil Day, 5 December. https://www.fao.org/world-soil-day/about-wsd/en/#:~:text=World%20Soil%20Day%20(WSD)%20is,Sciences%20(IUSS)%20in%202002.
[5] Ingham, E.R. (2009). Soil Biology Primer, Chapter 4: Soil Fungus. Ankeny IA: Soil & Water Conservation Society. Pg. 22-23. soils.usda.gov/sqi/concepts/soil_biology