Terra Preta, or “black earth,” is a man-made soil found in the Amazon rainforest, created over 2,000 years ago. Known for its exceptional fertility, it stands out from the nutrient-poor soils typically found in the region. Unlike other soils, Terra Preta can sustain agriculture for centuries and even regenerates itself …
Articles about the living biology of soil, including microbes, fungi, roots, compost, nutrient cycling and plant–microbe relationships. These pieces explore how healthy soil biology becomes the foundation for resilient plants, nutrient-dense food and healthy ecosystems.
Soil Food Web
Learning to Weed With the Garden, Not Against It
One of the most common misunderstandings in gardening is that weeding simply means removing unwanted plants. When people hear the word weeding, they often imagine clearing everything away until the soil looks clean and bare. At first this can feel very satisfying. The bed looks tidy, the rows look perfect, …
What Weeders Know
When a garden begins to mature, the whole feeling of the place changes. Perennials settle in and claim their spots. Annuals slip between them, filling the open spaces with color and food. The soil is no longer naked and exposed. It is shaded, held, protected. Life returns in layers. Birds, …
A Pilgrimage Rooted in Soil
Pilgrimage usually brings to mind sacred paths across continents, places where saints left traces of miracles behind them. My pilgrimage has stayed closer to the ground. It has taken place in the living experiment of the Project site, a journey fueled by a clear vision and an unclear route. I …
The Silent Ant Army Beneath Our Feet
In the quiet of an Ecuadorian night, while you sleep, a bustling army marches across your garden. Small, coordinated, and persistent, ants can strip a plant of its leaves, harvest every fallen crumb, and carry more weight than their own bodies without you noticing until the damage is done. For …
The Power Beneath Our Feet: Why Real Leadership Grows from the Soil
We are living in a time of disorientation. Many are searching for meaning, for answers, for someone to speak truth in a world that feels increasingly synthetic and detached. We’re told to look to the experts, the institutions, the leaders in suits and robes, the ones who speak from marble …
Biodiversity, Details, and the Weaving of a Living Future
At the Living Ground Project, we are growing far more than gardens. We are cultivating a living system one that begins deep in the soil and extends upward through plants, people, ideas, and the shared heartbeat of community. What I believed I was building in the beginning has transformed. It’s …
Living Landscapes, Living Futures
In this article, I explore the intricate relationships between the soil microbiome, plants, and human health. Through recent discoveries and personal experience, I share how restoring healthy soil is about more than adding microbes, it is about rebuilding the living terrain itself. Together we are learning that the health of …
The Vicious Cycle of Fire, Landslides, and Soil Collapse: A Sustainable Path Forward
Picture a hillside ablaze, flames tearing through dry grass and brittle shrubs, a scene all too familiar after last fire season’s devastation across our mountains. The fires left behind charred scars, thousands of acres reduced to ash. You might’ve thought the worst was over—until last night. A big rain hit, …
The Interconnectedness of Nature and Our Hearts
When I was 30, I had the opportunity to visit my parents in South Africa, and I encountered a mountain-top experience that left a lasting imprint on my heart. Standing before the majestic Drakensberg mountains, I was enveloped by the joy of a breathtaking view, with flowering trees adding vibrant …