That is the single best book I know on soil and gardening. I think I posted it in here somewhere once before but I can’t remember. If you want a low mantance food plot and are willing to eat things you probably haven’t heard of before permaculture is the way to go. Oh just be careful you start ordering Chelsea Green books and you will have a book case full of them before you know it. They just print too many good books. I think I have given away more of those books loaning them out and never seeing them again then I can count.
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My contention is that soil can be built. The soil we find was laid down by glaciers and natural processes. Then it was modified and adapted by erosion and microbes over time. The soil triangle can be met with human inputs. Will the results last millenia?
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Organic matter definitely improves it. I doubt it will last a millenia, unless I start adding biochar. I guess I added some with the ashes but it was just fines.
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Sean if you dig in my garden and dig in the field near it you see an odd trend. My garden which has been a garden feeding my family for the better part of 100 years is better more productive soil then the land around it. So 100 years on it is actually more productive not less. Your improvements to the soil will last if you teach the next generation how to take care of your land and teach them to get a harvest while improving the soil not robbing it of the resources it will need in the future. I can trace my family back to the revolutionary war on this property. This property might not be in the best repair right now but over all that time it has provided for my family and still is. That is how our efforts stand the test of time. I see it when my nephews come and ask how I raise the garden.
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I haven’t read this book but Josh is not too far from me. I have gone and taken the tour of his setup he truly does live the permaculture life style. If you want to know more about low energy land management check out the video on his page below his book. It is a long video.
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It isn’t an odd trend. It is an expected trend. 
Organic matter helps a lot. I am just amazed at how much the dirt has improved over the last couple of years.
I am not into permaculture at all. I am just into easy, time saving improvements and soil conservation. I keep moving around where I am applying the compost. 3-5 years is enough to have noticeable results.
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