You have independently discovered the #2 key to building soil health:
2) Armor on the soil
The full list is:
1) Least amount of mechanical disturbance possible (no till)
2) Armor on the soil (either living plants and/or mulches, no bare soil ever)
3) Diversity (both plant and animal biodiversity)
4) Living root in the ground as long as possible (to provide habitat for beneficial soil microbiology)
5) Animal impact (but rotated so there is neither over grazing nor undergrazing)
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Scott
AKA The Redbaron
"Permaculture is a philosophy of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted & thoughtful observation rather than protracted & thoughtless labour; & of looking at plants & animals in all their functions, rather than treating any area as a single-product system."
Bill Mollison
co-founder of permaculture
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