Why Does Milk Ruin Soil?

Milk Ruining Soil

• It is a myth that milk ruins soil. By and large, it can only make soil a healthier environment for plant growth. However, if you decide to directly water your plants with milk as opposed to watering on a regular basis, the plants will suffer and possibly die. This is because milk has a high concentration of sodium chloride, or salt, which in high doses prevents most plants from absorbing water from the soil. If milk is applied as a substitution for water, it can ruin your soil by adding too much sodium chloride. As long as milk is not the chief liquid being added to a soil, it is not going to hurt a thing.

Soil Amendment

• Raw milk works as an amazing soil conditioner, as bacteria feed off of it and grow within the soil, creating a larger and more diverse population of protozoa, nematodes and other beneficial bacteria in the soil. Using raw milk is essentially the same as using compost tea to help expand the populations of bacteria that are essential to a sustainably healthy soil. In one study, plots treated with raw milk grew 1,100 more pounds of grass per acre than those that were untreated. The soil in these plots was also found to be significantly softer and better aerated, positive traits for any soil to have. Raw milk far from ruins soil. To the contrary, the bacteria found within it are one of the best soil amendments out there.

Bad Bacteria

• It is very unlikely that raw milk will create an environment in which bad bacteria will overcome good bacteria, but the nutrients found in the milk do provide nutrients to bacteria that can cause disease in plants. Usually, bad bacteria are overrun and eaten by good bacteria in a healthy and diverse soil, but there is always a small risk that your soil will become infected with unhealthy bacteria that can ruin your soil.

Bioremediation

• The use of milk in soil may play in the bioremediation of contaminated soils. Lactic acid is being used as a food source for the bacteria Dehaloccoides spp., which is used in soils to remove toxins and heavy metals. Lactic acid is an essential element to the growth and effectiveness of this bacteria, as it cleans up contaminated soils.