During a recent visit to the farm, we did a science experiment to look at how Grandpa's organic farming practices impacted water retention in soil. The kids and Dad collected soil from different areas on the farm to gather a control sample and a sample where the humus has increased over 40 years of organic farming.
It's pretty easy to see which side contains the soil with more tilth.
We sent the same amount of water through both sides and you can see it moving more quickly through the unimproved soil here. More water remained in the soil after five five minutes in the green sample as well.
In the field, that means more efficient watering with greater uptake for our trees of the water we use in irrigation. My kids are so lucky to have a real world laboratory to help them learn about science!