Does tilling destroy the soil food web? #climatechange #soil #natureshorts

Tilling is the practice of turning over and breaking up soil before planting, usually with a machine or hand tool.

Using 3D scans, a research team in the UK led by D. Luke R. Wardak demonstrated how no-till farming allows larger, well-connected pores to form in soil and facilitate water and nutrient flow, while tilling breaks up the soil into smaller, less connected pores. This disruption inhibits the hidden worlds of microorganisms—the bacteria, nematodes, protozoa, mycorrhizal networks and others that live beneath the soil surface and make these processes possible.

And these tiny creatures make a big difference. Degraded soil cannot hold water to grow vegetation or create cooling, and poor land use devoid of a healthy soil food web sends water down drains, to rivers and oceans, without allowing it to hydrate and cool the Earth.