science
Elaine Ingham, Pioneer of Soil Food Web Concept, Dies at 73
Elaine Ingham, a prominent soil scientist and advocate for organic farming, died on February 16 at age 73 in Fort Mill, S.C. She popularized the 'soil food web' concept and founded the Soil Food Web School. Her death followed a dementia diagnosis last year.
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C. — Elaine Ingham, a soil scientist who popularized the concept of the soil food web and led efforts in the organic gardening and farming movement, died on February 16 in a memory care residence. She was 73 years old at the time of her death.
Her daughter, Jenna Noel, said the death followed a diagnosis of dementia last year. Ingham showed that plants actively orchestrate an underground world where roots exude sugars to attract bacteria and fungi. These microorganisms nourish plant roots and protect them from parasites.
Protozoa and nematodes also play crucial roles in the soil food web.
By managing the soil beneath a plant, growers could prevent pests and diseases aboveground, protect against erosion, and retain water, Ingham stated. 'Dr.
Elaine is largely responsible for the understanding by gardeners and farmers that soil is alive,' said Jeff Lowenfels, a gardening writer, in a column after her death. Ingham advocated replacing synthetic fertilizers with organic compost, criticizing the widespread use of chemicals in farming. She helped write the book 'Soil Biology Primer,' published by the Soil and Water Conservation Society.
Ingham once told an agricultural conference in Texas that she could speak for 'the next three months' on soil topics. 'Mother Nature figured out this system for keeping everything properly balanced approximately 4 billion years ago,' she said. , from 2011 to 2014.
She worked as a research scientist in the department of botany and plant pathology at Oregon State University in Corvallis for 15 years, beginning in 1986. Ingham lived in Corvallis until moving to South Carolina last year. She founded the Soil Food Web School in 2014, which certifies students for work as lab technicians, running compost businesses, and consulting with farmers and growers.
