When you add compost to your lawn or garden, you are returning valuable resources to the roots of the plants. And as well as nourishing these roots, you are making healthier soil. Now, here is the really good news: healthy roots and soils produce bigger and better plants, with less pollution, all while protecting us from climate change.

How does feeding compost to plant roots do all of this? The key is in the soil life. Compost feeds the tiny soil organisms that live in a healthy soil. In turn, these organisms, such as bacteria and fungi, recycle nutrients from organic materials, fix nitrogen from the atmosphere, even pull nutrients right out of rock particles, making them available to plants. But that is not the end of the story: they also tie up carbon in the soil (scientists refer to this as “sequestering carbon”). Adding carbon to soil not only makes it more fertile, it also pulls carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, reducing the risks from climate change.

As a gardener, you CAN fight climate change. Just think compost. Remember: the plants in your garden love compost; return to your roots today!