Transforming Dirt into Soil
Dirt is dead. Soil is alive. Compost makes the difference.
People frequently ask me about the difference between dirt and soil. We use these words interchangeably, but they are not the same. When we say we are going into the garden to dig in the dirt, we are mistaken. We will dig in the soil. Only if the bed is brand new and has not been prepped in any way will we be digging in the dirt.
Likewise, we grow plants in soil, but when we come inside, we wash the dirt off our hands and clothes. The first has a positive connotation supporting plant life while the latter is an annoyance to be washed away. Yet they are the same thing!
According to the Soil Science Society of America, dirt is ‘displaced soil,’ which would describe cleaning up after gardening. On a larger scale, think of the landslides we have in the canyons after a snowy winter or heavy summer rain.
Soil supports life and has a history. It is layer upon layer of decaying organic matter, which provides nutrients to plants and animals. The layers are the history of that specific place over time. When it’s sitting across a road, however, it becomes dirt with no history and no life. The process of soil creation and history-making needs to start again once the dirt is cleared away.
