This International Women’s Day we pay tribute to Dr Elaine Ruth Ingham, groundbreaking US microbiologist and leader in the regenerative agriculture movement, who died last month aged 73.
Elaine was known for her soil science research that brought about the concept of the soil food web. She dedicated her life to making people more aware of the amazing hidden world beneath our feet that enables our food forests and orchards to thrive.
“The news of Elaine’s passing is still being processed by our Soil Food Web community,” said a spokesperson for Dr Elaine’s Soil Food Web School. “Elaine’s dedication to the preservation and restoration of our Earth’s living soil systems leaves a legacy that her students from around the globe, and anyone who follows in her footsteps, now carry on.
“The memory of her approachable nature and talent for adding humour and fun to deeply scientific work is cherished by all who knew her. Elaine will be missed, but her presence will be felt in every compost pile turned, and every microscope slide prepared as we carry on her transformative work.”
Her extensive research work published in the 80s and 90s showed that balancing the complex mix of micro-organisms in our soil, such as fungi, bacteria and nematodes, is key to building healthy, sustainable ecosystems. She believed agriculture should be all about nurturing the soil to ensure the biology is right: once these aerobic micro-organisms are in balance and flourishing, the rest will follow.
Elaine also championed using aerobic compost and compost teas as a soil improver (see this blog from London project manager Lewis McNeill about seeing this in action at Ragman’s Farm ten years ago).
By observing what a plant is telling us, we can all become better orchardists and growers. Elaine was never one for soil testing or creating the perfect pH to grow crops in; she was more interested in the microbial life within it. She argued that if you got your soil biology right, there should be no need to rotate your crops or spread manure.
She spent 40 years putting her knowledge into practice and training farmers, growers and gardeners to become ‘soil doctors’, and many of our own staff have been inspired by her work. As a researcher, educator, and mentor, her pioneering studies and advocacy empowered farmers, scientists, and environmentalists worldwide to restore and sustain soil health.
On our accredited courses we explore indicator plants, which encourages us to look at what is already growing as a good indicator of soil biology and what imbalances might be present. Most problems can be solved by simply adding good compost!
Healthy soils means healthier crops and better health for us as a result. Just as good biology in the soil promotes optimum health, so does the resulting beneficial microbial flora in our gut microbiomes.
It’s vital that we pay close attention to the food we eat, and how we produce it. And as Elaine would say, that all starts with the quality of the soil.
If you would like to help continue her life’s work, her family suggest planting a tree or making a donation to the Soil Food Web Foundation.