tera preta - the secret of el dorado

[Steve]

excellent documentary the secret of el dorado
early spanish explorers reported a vast and thriving community in the amazon basin
later explorers failed to find any trace of it so it was assigned to legend

this doco reports the work of more recent scientists, focusing on "tera preta', black earth
it is a type of very dark, fertile human-modified soil found in parts of the amazon basin

- very high charcoal content
- made by adding a mixture of charcoal, bone, and manure to otherwise relatively infertile soil
- very stable and remains in the soil for thousands of years.

some believe it can be replicated in almost any soil and may play a vital role in future food production

enjoy

The Secret of El Dorado | Watch Free Documentary Online

[Aaron Murakami]

Steve,

Thanks for posting that - one of my favorite vids.

I put rock dust, biochar, mychrorrhizal fungus and earthworms in my garden and it made a huge difference.

I don't think I had it good enough for the earthworms to take the biochar and fungus down deep into the ground to get it to "self replicate" itself, but I believe it is possible to replicate that effect.

[Woody]

I have read that terra preta also included man-made ceramic material. I might have read that in the book "1491". An excellent read if you are interested in pre-colombian history.