Soil Health: Nutrition for Healthy Plants and People

Alexis Schultz, a research scientist for Standard Process, focuses on agronomy research, plant breeding, and crop development on the Standard Process certified organic farm. Bridging the connection between healthy soils, resilient crops, and superior nutrition is at the heart of Alexis’ work. With a deep understanding that our health begins with the soil and the food we grow from it, she’s dedicated to research that strengthens the link between agriculture and well-being. Listen in as Alexis and Dr. Sarah Clarke engage in an educational and inspirational conversation about healthy soil – how to build it and why it’s important for good health. 2:06 What constitutes healthy soil and how healthy soil affects our health 5:10 How the microbiome of each plant compare to the human microbiome 8:32 Keeping soil healthy with regenerative and organic farming practices 11:16 How cover cropping improves the diversity of the root system 14:16 Using compost to enrich soil 17:10 Organic farming practices used to maintain organic certification and prevalence of organic farming in the US 19:45 Plant breeding defined and how it differs from GMOs 22:53 Ancient Oats – history of cultivation and how the nutrient content has changed 25:40 Benefits of seed selection and variety trials 27:38 Growing mountain spinach – does the bright red color of this plant contain more phytonutrients than less vibrant varieties? 29:40 Emphasis on research at the Standard Process Farm 30:56 Alexis as a guest speaker at the Whole Systems Nutrition Virtual Symposium on October 24th