Researchers at the Hachenburg Forest Education Center in Rhineland-Palatinate use white underpants to test soil quality. The public should help.
The experts from the Hachenburg Forest Education Center (Rhineland-Palatinate) are calling for an unusual action. The aim is to find out more about the nature of the soil and its quality. The tools needed for this: white cotton underpants. “Bild” reports on this.
Those who would like to take part in the experiment should bury two pairs of white cotton underpants in their garden, forest or field. According to “Bild”, the first pair of underwear should be dug up again after a month, and the second pair after another two months. This gives participants the opportunity to observe changes in the soil and draw conclusions about its quality.
According to “Bild”, the background to this unusual approach is serious. White cotton underpants can serve as an indicator of soil health. In humus-rich soils, for example, the underpants disappear quickly because many microorganisms thrive here.
For the action it is important to bury the underpants correctly. A hole about 30 centimeters deep must be dug into which the underpants are placed side by side and then covered. The waistbands of the underpants should stick out and a wooden stick between the underpants should serve as a marker.
After one and two months, the underpants should be dug up and photos sent to the soil laboratory of the Hachenburg Forest Education Center for documentation.
In Switzerland, the population was asked in April to bury a pair of cotton underpants in the ground. The Swiss government reports this in a media release.
The message states that the “Exhibit Underpants” campaign is intended to draw the population’s attention with a wink to a serious and important issue: the health of the soil. Interested parties could use this to find out how healthy and vibrant the soil on their property is. For this purpose, underpants are buried and what happens to them in the ground is monitored.
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