Soil is much more than a mass of sand and clay, says Prof. Karen Johnson of Durham University – it is a mass of life, with a myriad of tiny micro-organisms carrying out a myriad of processes, and all adding to the life and potential of whatever we decide to grow. If we listen to what the soil needs and feed the soil rather than the plants, then plants and soil will both succeed.

We need, she says, to ensure that the soil contains sufficient micronutrient-bearing minerals to help restore the symbiotic relationships between plants and the wealth of microscopic life that forms the soil microbiome.