Carbon: The Most Misunderstood Element in Agriculture

What You’ll Learn

Carbon isn’t just for climate conversations — it’s the foundation of everything happening in your soil. In this episode, Mike explains:

• Why carbon is overlooked in favor of NPK
• What carbon actually does — feeding microbes, building structure, retaining water
• How modern farming depleted soil carbon over decades
• Carbon sequestration — what it means practically for growers
• The carbon-first approach to soil management

Key Takeaways

Carbon Is the Foundation

Every living thing is built on carbon. In soil, carbon is the energy source that drives the entire microbial ecosystem. Without adequate carbon, nothing else works — not your fertilizer, not your microbes, not your water retention.

We’ve Been Mining Our Carbon

Decades of tillage, monocropping, and synthetic-only programs have systematically removed carbon from agricultural soils. We’ve been withdrawing from the carbon bank without making deposits.

Adding Carbon Is High-Leverage

Dollar for dollar, adding carbon to your soil (through humates, compost, or cover crops) delivers more long-term return than any other single input. It’s the multiplier that makes everything else work better.

Who This Episode Is For

• Commercial farmers looking to improve soil health sustainably
• Turf managers wanting to build resilient, self-sustaining turf
• Sustainability-minded growers interested in carbon sequestration
• Anyone curious about why some soils thrive and others struggle

This is Episode 4 of the Ag & Culture Podcast. Subscribe to follow along as we explore the intersection of agriculture and the communities it builds.