Get this: you can generate lignite (low-grade coal) in your garden?? Fast! IF you get the composting setup right.
The first half of the video is very detailed, nuts & bolts of soil and chemistry. The actual images of the site and how they did it starts at about 50min.
Soil science is the study of some of the most complex systems imaginable, and sadly still badly neglected-- especially considering how crucial it is to the foundations of our biosphere and survival. Much of this presentation is over my head, and it's tough for me to wade through all the "um, uh, uh"ing, but... wow!
I'll try to summarize:
There's a distinctive layer of black stuff under the soil of the Amazon, and people tend to assume it was built up from fires in years past (biochar is becoming a popular analogue), but researcher Scott Goode says it's created through much the same process that forms coal under peat bogs. That can take millions of years, but under the right conditions it can happen MUCH faster-- and all driven by biological action.
The idea here is you're trying to mimic the layers of soil activity under an old-growth forest, inside a trench 2' deep and 1.5' wide that's anaerobic at the bottom. Doing this in your own yard, Goode calls a "Climate Victory Garden". The trenches bracket your growbeds, and you don't stir or turn them-- you just have to keep filling them from the top, and once it gets going it's got quite an appetite.
Important note: while healthy soils can hold large amounts of carbon (80% of a forest's carbon is underground, only 20% is in the vegetation you can actually see), that carbon only stays put while the web of organisms using it stays healthy. Lignite on the other hand is a mineral that pretty much isn't going anywhere unless it catches on fire. This project demonstrates how to get BOTH the living system AND build long-term carbon storage at the same time.
One bit I really appreciate, about 1h16min in he is asked, "So what about the carbon market, what are they paying for?"
His reply starts with: "Really similar to the biofuels market, it's essentially a scam!"
Today was so cold and dank on the #allotment so prioritised pollarding elders on our plot and part coppicing to thin out a hazel on a neighbour's and processing all of the 'leavings' as the best way of keeping moving to stay warm. So now we haz some new hazel rods to remain bamboo free.
Working under the orange tree today, building up the #hügelkultur using pieces from the #DragonFruit vine I’m pruning. Beautiful cool morning but warming up to a high of 27°c (81°F) later. #MastodonGardening#Gardening
We use #Hügelkultur here too as we have wet land so not so good for those plants that require drier roots. It also soaks up water to feed those plants when droughts occur. The gentle warmth from below also keeps those roots slightly warmer too.