From london@sunsite.unc.eduFri Feb  7 14:28:36 1997
Date: Fri, 7 Feb 1997 14:26:37 -0500 (EST)
From: "Lawrence F. London, Jr." <london@sunsite.unc.edu>
To: london@sunsite.unc.edu
Subject: Book: "Legumes of World Economic Importance" Re: N-cycling, living mulches (fwd)

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 6 Feb 1997 09:25:06 -0500 (EST)
From: Elfpermacl@aol.com
Cc: permaculture-mg@ces.ncsu.edu, EarleLA@aol.com, ktsch@inetnebr.com,
    lsc@hplsc.fc.hp.com, Matthew@twinoaks.org, nll@encina.vilspa.esa.es,
    wmh@online.dct.com
Subject: Re: N-cycling, living mulches


>> .............

I must add that some legumes exude nitrogen from their roots.  Jim Duke
remarks on this in place in LEGUMES OF WORD ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE (or something
close to that title--PDBR).  The roots don't wait to die to contribute
nitrogen to nearby plants.  This apparently varies in degree at least from
species to species.  There may be some relationship to mycorhizzal fungi
associates in all this too.

I've got a great photograph of these feeder roots AT THE SOIL SURFACE, right
under newspaper mulch that has been pulled back.  The rootlets are surrounded
by earthworm castings plus residual plant debris.  We published this photo on
the back cover of our soils issue of THE INTERNATIONAL PERMACULTURE SOLUTIONS
JOURNAL and folks who have a copy can read more info about what is going on.
 However, you don't need those facts to know that the mulch/soil interface is
extremely important to plant health, that natural systems deposit nutrients
there, and the air, so important to roots as you point out, is close at hand
from both above and through earthworm "double digging" on all sides.  

That picture is worth a thousand words.

For Mother Earth, Dan Hemenway, Yankee Permaculture Publications (since
1982), Elfin Permaculture workshops, lectures, Permaculture Design Courses,
consulting and permaculture designs (since 1981), and now correspondence
permaculture training by email. Copyright, 1996, Dan & Cynthia Hemenway, P.O.
Box 2052, Ocala FL 34478 USA  YankeePerm@aol.com  

We don't have time to rush.

