Snow in Winter Means Better Soil in Spring
March 2008 News From The Farm SP News Article
Christine Mason,
Farm Manager
A person can gauge how cold it is in Wisconsin by how much sound the snow makes when you walk on it. If you can walk through the snow silently, it is time to let the kids go out and play. But when snow starts to make noise, the temperature is probably somewhere in the single digits; when it gets really loud and squeaky, the thermometer is usually somewhere below zero (without the wind chill). Squeaky snow for me means that it is time to throw on another layer of clothes and prepare to endure. If you have spent time in the upper Midwest during these extremes in temperature, you know that it can literally take your breath away!
I happen to be a cold weather wimp. I do not adapt to Wisconsin winters well and I am cold from about Thanksgiving to Memorial Day. I really don't think that I belong up here, except for one thing–this weather sure is good for the farm.
Extreme frost helps to forgive some of the damage done during harvest on wet soil. We had a lot of rain late in the summer of 2007 and we could not avoid driving on some fields when they were a little too soggy. Soil structure is absolutely critical on an organic farm, and when you drive on a wet field you tend to create compaction and rob the soil of the loose, crumbly structure that we work so hard to achieve.
Compaction shrinks the open "pockets" present in healthy soil. These pockets facilitate oxygen and water exchange, which are both beneficial for microorganisms to thrive. A living soil with a nice crumbly structure can break down green manures, allow water to filter slowly, and sustain good crop yields. I sincerely believe that the soil itself must be alive and flourishing in order for the crops to thrive so that in turn, we thrive. (Have you ever smelled good, organic dirt after a rain–it smells earthy and alive!)
Almost every acre here at the Standard Process Farm went into winter blanketed by a cover crop, but even when it gets cold and these crops freeze and die, the ground underneath them is still alive. When sub-zero temperatures penetrate the soil, the water found within the soil freezes and creates a layer of ice underneath the surface. These layers of solid ice expand within the soil as they freeze and "lift" the soil above them (ever heard of frost heaving?). Obviously, the deeper the frost, the deeper the layers. As the water expands during freezing, it creates pressure powerful enough to break up clods and loosen the soil above the frost layer. This helps erase some of the damage done by compaction.
We are experiencing some really cold weather here this winter. We have already gone through two cold fronts that have left us at 30° F below our normal temperatures for extended periods of time. When spring finally arrives and the soil warms up, these extremes in temperature should once again help us sustain a loose crumbly soil for Standard Process vegetables to thrive in. Until that time arrives, I will just stay bundled up.