The soil is not supposed to be a growing medium. The soil is supposed to be a microbiome. Sure, nearly-dead soil can work fine for growing plants. But it resul

The soil is not supposed to be a growing medium. The soil is supposed to be a microbiome. Sure, nearly-dead soil can work fine for growing plants. But it results in less healthy plants and runoff, which then has a cyclical effect. The byproducts of petro-fertilizers end up in the environment, which then ends back up in animals and plants. By not relying on healthy bacteria and fungi to naturally infuse plant roots with the nutrients and water they need, we are only getting short term benefits of reliable production. In the long term we will end up slowly poisoning the ecology that we absolutely need to keep agriculture sustainable.