About
Why this site exists
I started Grow Our Ground because I could not stop thinking about what is under our feet.
I am an avid gardener, and I have always loved being outside. Then I watched Kiss the Ground, Common Ground and Groundswell, and something shifted. The idea was simple and a little humbling: soil is alive, it can be harmed, and it can be healed, often by ordinary people doing small things on ordinary ground. I wanted to do more than nod along.
But those films are big, and many of the places in them are far away. I wanted to know what it meant right here: the wind, the dry summers, and the ground we actually have. So I built this. It is a place where people near me can understand their own soil, take practical steps to improve it, and find each other.
What you will find here
- A short plan for your space. Tell it a little about a yard, a bed, a pot or a field, and it gives you a few steps for this season, with the reason for each.
- A journal that shows whether it is working. What you saw, what you did, and what a lab measured stay separate, so you can tell evidence from guesses.
- Your neighbors. Local places, events and projects, and an exchange for leaves, compost, seeds and a helping hand.
Where the advice comes from
Every step was written by a person, not generated, and it points to the sources it is based on: mostly SDSU Extension and USDA NRCS. I am a gardener, not a soil scientist. So each step says "Not yet reviewed by an expert" until someone qualified has read it. When a reviewer has, their name and the month go on it. If you are an Extension agent, a soil specialist or a Master Gardener and would be willing to take a look, I would be very grateful.
What this site will not do
- Make carbon or climate claims. Scientists still disagree about how much carbon soil can hold, and for how long. This site sticks to what you can see and measure in your own ground.
- Diagnose your soil or tell you what to add. It helps you find out where you stand, then points you to a lab and to Extension.
- Sell your data, show ads, or track you. Your email is never shown to other members. Read the privacy page.
Independent
Grow Our Ground is not made by, affiliated with, or endorsed by the filmmakers or the Kiss the Ground organization, USDA, SDSU or any other group named on this site. The films inspired it. The advice comes from the published sources listed with each step.
Be part of it
Add a place you grow, join a challenge, offer leaves, or come to an event. If you run a garden club, a school garden, a nursery, a farm or a conservation program, post your events and projects here, or help us get them right.
With thanks
To SDSU Extension, USDA NRCS and its soil survey, and the South Dakota Soil Health Coalition, whose published work this site builds on, and to the OpenStreetMap contributors behind our maps.
Healthier soil starts small. Thank you for being here.