Save our soil

You can grow your own food in your garden, on a windowsill or on a shared allotment. It's the most environmentally-friendly and healthy way to get your food.

Growing different vegetables and plants in your garden will help recycle nutrients back into the soil. It also reconnects you with where food comes from.

Leaving soil bare is not good for its health. Rain can wash away soil nutrients, and even the soil itself. Make sure you keep it covered, with plants, edible crops and cover crops.  

Organic matter is the parts of soil that come from plants or animals. It's an essential ingredient in healthy soils. It helps it store nutrients and water. In nature-friendly ways of farming, like organic, farmers use more organic matter, like manure and compost. As a result, organic farms tend to have higher levels of soil microorganisms. This is a good sign of healthy soil. 

An easy way to boost soil organic matter is to apply compost. This feeds your soil with lots of nutrients and microorganisms. Fallen leaves and dead plants will add to soil organic matter, too. It also provides a home for wildlife.

So, why not leave it a bit longer before sweeping up those leaves or weeding out your wilted annual bulbs?

Another way of saving soil at home is to plant flowers and plants that benefit soil health. There are lots of different types. Plants that pull nitrogen from the air help increase the fertility of your soils. Deep-rooting plants stop the soil hardening, promote healthy soil structure, and draw up nutrients deeper in the soil for other plants.

Read soil saving plants you can grow at home to find out more.

Once soil temperatures drop below seven degrees, biological activity in the soil slows right down. Here are some handy tips to protect your soil over winter:

• Test your soil. Check your soil type - clay, silt, sandy, chalky, or loam. Grab a handful and squeeze it. If it falls apart, it’s sandy. If it holds shape like plasticine, it’s clay.
• Mulch around plants. Use biodegradable materials like leaves, wood chips, or straw to create a natural blanket. This protects the soil from erosion, stops weeds, and keeps pests away. Remember to remove it a couple of weeks before planting to allow the sun to warm the soil.
• Sow cover crops. Fast growing plants, known as cover crops or green manures, keep soil covered in winter, protecting it from erosion and recycling plant nutrients. Cold-hardy options like hairy vetch and cereal rye can enrich the soil with nitrogen and attract wildlife.
• Leave winter weeds. Weeds like dandelions and chickweeds provide natural winter cover. Keep them in check by hoeing or applying mulch to stop them getting out of control.
• Cover empty beds. A layer of compost or other organic mulching material will help regulate moisture and reduce damage from heavy rainfall. In spring, remove the cover and let the compost air out before mixing it into the soil.

The way we eat and farm can save our soil. Support nature-friendly organic farming, which improves the health of our soil naturally.

Find your closest organic veg box scheme to support a nature-friendly farmer in your area.

You can also support Soil Association's charity work to save soils. Here are some of the things we are doing to help:

• We work with farmers to test practical solutions. We're out in the field with farmers, trialling new farming methods that can help improve their soils.

• We lobby the government. Our Policy team are working hard to make sure Government treat soil as a fundamental environmental resource and write policies that prioritise and safeguard UK soils.

• We raise public awareness about soils, and the solutions to help save them. We work hard to help citizens understand the importance of soils, and how protecting them can help resolve our climate, nature and health crises.

• We encourage farmers to adopt agroecological farming methods, like organic. Soil health is the most important principle of agroecological farming. By encouraging farmers to transition towards agroecology, we can take a positive step towards saving our soil.