# Living soil

> Living soil is an organic growing medium managed to sustain an active soil food web, so microbes and invertebrates release nutrients and the soil is reused across cycles.

- Canonical: https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/living-soil.html
- Also written: living organic soil, LOS, living soil bed, soil food web, beneficial soil biology
- Glossary category: Systems and media · Evidence: Supported
- Status: Draft: awaiting expert review · Updated: 2026-10-31
- Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), attribute "GenetixBay cannabis glossary"

Living soil is a soil or soil-like mix built from compost, aeration, minerals and [organic amendments](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/organic-fertiliser.md), managed so that bacteria, fungi, protozoa, [nematodes](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/steinernema-feltiae.md) and worms remain active. The organisms break down organic matter and release nutrients, so the grower feeds the soil rather than the plant, usually with top-dressed amendments and water rather than bottled fertiliser.

## In practice

Living soil works best in larger volumes: beds or containers of 40-100 L or more, often reused for many cycles with [no-till](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/no-till.md) methods. Water quality matters (chlorine-free is often recommended), mulch keeps the surface moist, and cover crops can keep roots in the soil between plants. It is forgiving and low-input once established, but slower to correct: [deficiencies](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/nutrient-deficiency.md) are fixed with amendments that take days to weeks to release.

## Myth check

House position: a well-grown hydro run gives a well-grown living-soil run a run for its money, even on taste; plants mostly don't care where their ions come from. Whether a symbiotic soil-plant effect adds flavour is an open question and a candidate [Bay Trial](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/bay-trials.md) (blind taste panel). See [living soil](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/systems/living-soil.md).

## Don't confuse with

- **Super soil**: heavily amended, but not necessarily managed for biology or reuse.

## Related terms

[No-till](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/no-till.md), [Super soil](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/super-soil.md), [Top dressing](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/top-dressing.md), [Mycorrhizae](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/mycorrhizae.md), [Compost tea](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/compost-tea.md)

## Read more

- [Living soil (no-till, water-only organic growing)](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/systems/living-soil.md)

## Sources

1. Brady NC, Weil RR, 2017. The Nature and Properties of Soils, 15th ed. Pearson.