The Benefit of Weeds
By Sherrie Ottinger - The Tennessee Dirtgirl
I’m sure by now, most of you have at least walked around your yard, looking to find what’s popping up, and you’ve frowned to see weeds are doing better than anything. That is good!!
The definition of a WEED is ANY plant, growing where it’s not supposed to grow. I love oaks, sugar maples, hickories, and would never harm one on purpose…unless they have sprouted against the foundation of the house, or in the gutter, or too close to a structure. At that point they’ve become weeds. I often try to move them to a better location, and sometimes I’m successful. If not, that tree seedling that I love becomes fodder for the compost.
Why do we care where plants grow? I mean, nature has this thing in hand. That’s not enough for humans. We want complete and absolute control. Of everything! You know, on the one hand, that’s a fascinating thing to study. On the other hand, it’s scary!!
Regenerative agriculture is as much about observing, listening, taking note of the natural world, and realizing that we aren’t in charge, as it is about growing groceries, and this week I’m going to do a bit of exploring in the world of what we humans call ‘weeds”.
I’ve quoted Dr. Allen Williams (check out his group’s page, www.understandingag.com) so many times, and I’m going to do so again. Dr. Williams has great respect for what weeds are trying to tell us about the soil, and about our role in it all. He said, “nature will humble you. If you refuse to be humbled, nature will defeat you.” So very true!
Weeds are first on the scene, after a natural disaster or toxic spill. They’re the pioneers for plants higher up the ladder. The first year after a flood or fire, you’ll see lots of certain species growing everywhere. After a year or so, that species will die out, leaving its seeds in the seed bank, for the next event. Other, different species will take their place, doing a different first aid. If left to itself, over time the land will heal and become viable again, and higher order of plants (a.k.a. natives) will become the residents.
What good is a weed, you ask?
They dive deep into the soil and bring minerals up, and make them available to food plants. Their tenaciousness in the soil, and ability to go thru subsoil and mine even the most minute element, is an invaluable service.
When utilized and allowed to grow (I’m not saying to give them the garden!) in a planned way, especially in crop rotation, they can break up hardpan soil like nothing humans and their “toys” can. This allows better root penetration of the food crops.
Weeds condition the soil naturally, over time, and this provides a healthier environment for life that lives below the surface. What does that matter? The web of life beneath our feet is essential to you and me having food on the table. The barter/exchange system that nature has set in place, should put humans to shame!
What else can weeds do?
If you become an observer of nature, weeds can tell you a lot about the condition of the soil. Certain species are in evidence when certain deficiencies occur. “Read” the weed and diagnose the problem. That species will be present until it corrects the problem.
Here in upper east Tennessee, there’s a LOT of shale, and hardpan soil. Clay is our primary earth, and in areas of overuse, abuse, starvation, compacting activities, this soil becomes harder than bricks. Is clay a “bad” soil? Absolutely not! Clay is the most nutrient dense soil on the planet. The key to the nutrient-release is organic matter. So, we plant food crops in clay…which can’t feed the plants. Believe it or not, weeds can help remedy that because they’re deep-divers and feeders, pushing and breaking thru the clay, which allows roots of domestic crops to follow suit. Deeper roots equate to more drought resistant plants. In this case, weeds are acting as companion plants, and help to feed the plants that feed us.
Amazing, right?!
The indigenous peoples knew that weeds were good for food, and medicine, and they knew which ones were best for what remedy. For instance, lamb’s quarters are higher in nutrition and better tasting than domestic greens. Dandelions, all parts of the plant, is loaded with nourishment and healing. Someone who understands this value, and knows how to forage, doesn’t need to buy their green foods.
Livestock love weeds, when given the chance to choose. Sometimes domestic animals need to be shown/taught, but then they will prefer, and pass that knowledge along.
These wild plants we try to control, are nature’s storehouses of nutrients that would be washed or blown away from barren soil. There are some species that absorb, and make neutral, the toxins that may have been spilled, poured, or dumped onto the soil.
I’m not telling you anything new. This knowledge has been around as long as life. No one is hiding it…yet it isn’t taught in most agricultural classes. If you want to know about weeds, and their value, you’re going to need to be patient, observant, and willing to relearn what you think you know.
Dr. Williams spoke at the 2021 USA REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURAL ALLIANCE SUMMIT, last September. (By the way, he’s scheduled to speak at the 2022 Summit this September, as well). He made mention several times of the book he recommends for anyone wanting to learn the true value of weed species to the overall environment. That book was written in 1950, and is still just as relevant and educational, over 70 years later. It’s called WEEDS – GUARDIANS OF THE SOIL by Joseph Cocannouer.
I’ll close with a quote from the book: “Professor Cocannouer does not believe that weeds should be allowed to go rampant and take over our farms and gardens. The function of this book, a pioneering work, is to demonstrate how the controlled use of weeds can be sound ecology, good conservation, and a boon to the average farmer or gardener.”
Consider this. Please.
The Tennessee Dirtgirl
