Hummus From Humus

Hummus From Humus.

Hummus is a staple Mediterranean dish made of ground chickpeas, drizzled with olive oil, sprinkled with freshly chopped parsley and served with warmed stone-ground pita breads. Hummus is yummy but it is not a miracle soil-enhancing ingredient.

Humus is.

 Humus is a complex material, but the simplest way to understand it is to recognize it as finished compost. Humus is dark brown, random in its shape and can exist in soils for centuries. If you trek through the woods, you’ll often find beneath the piles of leaves a thick layer of humus. This single material is the workhorse of the forest.

That’s all fine and good, you’re thinking. But here’s where humus applies to you and your California garden – it saves water. According to John Jeavons, inventor of the Grow BioIntensive method, “ Having sufficient humus in your soil can reduce the amount of water you need to grow food by as much as 75%, meaning you may only need 25% of the water you used to use and have a greatly reduced water bill for garden water.”

Adding humus to your yard is very wise. You can do it in many ways. Bagged soil mixes like, Bu’s Blend Compost are loaded with humus. Introducing earthworms into your garden is helpful. Composting like a fiend will provide you with loads of humus. Working humus into clay soil will produce high dividends with a low water cost.

And who knows? With enough humus you could grow a bumper crop of chickpeas and make a fantastic homemade hummus.