{"id":51046,"date":"2025-12-15T04:55:54","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T10:55:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nelson.wisc.edu\/the-commons\/?p=51046"},"modified":"2026-03-13T15:16:15","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T20:16:15","slug":"unearthed-five-things-you-didnt-know-about-dirt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nelson.wisc.edu\/the-commons\/unearthed-five-things-you-didnt-know-about-dirt\/","title":{"rendered":"Unearthed: Five Things You Didn’t Know About Dirt"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Where are you right now? What are you standing on? Whether you\u2019re reading this from your backyard or a high-rise, the answer is the same for all of us. (Unless you\u2019re reading this from a boat. That\u2019s a story for another issue.) Somewhere, below your feet, is dirt. Or is it soil<\/em>? Keep digging to find out; here are five things you didn\u2019t know about dirt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Is Dirt Soil?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The jury is out on if dirt <\/em>and soil <\/em>are interchangeable. Per Merriam-Webster<\/em>, the first definition for both nouns pertains to a level of \u201cgoodness,\u201d i.e. dirt<\/em><\/a> = <\/em>\u201ca filthy substance\u201d and soil<\/em><\/a> = \u201c<\/em>moral detriment.\u201d <\/em>Their land-related definitions, however, are more related: \u201cloose or packed soil: earth\u201d for dirt<\/em> and \u201cfirm land: earth\u201d for soil<\/em>. But you won\u2019t find a Department of Dirt Studies on the UW campus, so here\u2019s a soil<\/em> scientist\u2019s definition: \u201cdirt is soil that is out of place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s aliiiiiiiive<\/em>.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Actually, you probably knew that already. But did you know that soils are estimated to house nearly 60 percent of Earth\u2019s species? Just a quarter tablespoon of soil can host more organisms than there are people on the planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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3<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Carbon Keeper<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Soils are critical when it comes to carbon storage. They hold more carbon than the world\u2019s plants, forests, and <\/em>the atmosphere combined. So, how we manage soils directly affects how much carbon dioxide we release into the atmosphere. Methods like organic farming, cover crops, and more can increase soils\u2019 carbon stores \u2014 while also boosting food production. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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4<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Backyard Pharmacy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Soil, and the organisms that call it home, are some of the best sources of natural remedies. Antibiotics, including penicillin, are naturally produced by soil organisms. In fact, scientists just discovered a new soil-based antibiotic that can help stop drug-resistant infections<\/a>. (Please don\u2019t take this as an endorsement to eat dirt, however.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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5<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Slowly, Slowly, Slowly<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Time moves slowly in soil land. The soil beneath your feet could be anywhere from one to more than 10,000 years old. Dig deeper, and radiocarbon dating suggests some soil is millions or billions of years old. As for the \u201cfresh\u201d stuff on top? It can take up to 1,000 years for one inch of topsoil to form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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These Experts Have all the Dirt on Dirt<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Ankur Desai<\/a><\/strong>
Chair, Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences; assistant director, Center for Climatic Research<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Zac Freedman<\/a><\/strong>
O.N. Allen Professor of Soil Microbiology; affiliate, Center for Ecology and the Environment<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Michael Notaro<\/a><\/strong>
Director, Center for Climatic Research<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Thea Whitman<\/a><\/strong>
Visiting associate professor, Department of Soil Science<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n