When Tim Scott dug up two pairs of cotton long johns from his fields in Barton, Cambridgeshire, the difference was impossible to miss. One pair, buried in unploughed soil, had been reduced to little more than an elastic waistband and a label. The other, placed in a recently ploughed strip, looked almost as good as new.
Scott, who manages land at Lark Rise Farm, set up the experiment to see how soil management shapes microbial activity. He buried the first pair, decorated with a green tractor, in a field managed with direct drilling and no ploughing. The second, marked by a red tractor, went into a control strip that had been ploughed after years of regenerative farming. Both pairs spent two months underground.
On retrieval, the contrast was dramatic. The unploughed soil had almost entirely consumed the cotton, leaving only the waistband and tag. In the ploughed strip, the fabric was barely touched. Scott noted that, after a quick wash, the second pair could have been worn again. The experiment made visible what usually stays hidden: the biological activity within soil, and how it can differ between fields managed in different ways.
Microbes at Work
Scott explained that direct drilling preserves the soil’s structure and the microscopic life within it. In the unploughed field, microbes had enough stability and resources to break down nearly all the cotton. By contrast, ploughing disrupts soil structure and can disturb microbial communities and their activity. The result, Scott argued, shows how farming practices can support or undermine the living environment beneath crops.
Soil health, but, is assessed through several linked functions. These include structure, biological activity, nutrient cycling and water regulation. UK government guidance defines sustainable soil management as practices that maintain or improve the environment services provided by soils while protecting the functions that support them. A single buried cotton garment is a striking visual indicator, not a measure of every aspect of soil health.
What the Test Shows and What It Doesn’t
The experiment was simple: two identical garments, buried for the same period in two differently managed plots. The outcome was clear, but the test included no laboratory analysis or moisture measurements, and it was not repeated. It is so a vivid demonstration, not scientific proof that all unploughed soils will decompose cotton at the same rate. Moisture, aeration, temperature, soil structure and microbial communities can all affect how fabric breaks down. Its value lies in making the invisible visible, not in offering universal conclusions.
Farmers and growers also use practical field checks to build a broader picture of soil condition. The Land Gardeners’ guidance recommends counting earthworms in a 20 × 20 × 20 cm soil volume and repeating the check over time; its slake test examines whether dried soil aggregates remain intact when placed in water. The organization advises growers to “Count earthworms in early autumn or late spring.” These observations complement, rather than replace, more comprehensive soil assessment.
Soil Health and Broader Implications
Microbial activity in soil is impressive for breaking down organic matter, cycling nutrients and supporting healthy plant growth. Scott says biologically active soils are also less prone to erosion, filter water more efficiently and store more carbon. These benefits align with the philosophy of the Countryside Regeneration Trust, which owns Lark Rise and focuses on restoring land and wildlife while supporting rural economies. The Earth Trust describes regenerative practices such as reducing soil disturbance and increasing plant diversity, alongside the use of cover crops and herbal leys. These approaches aim to improve soil structure and build organic matter.
Reduced cultivation is not a single prescription for every field. A Farm Carbon Toolkit case study of Lincolnshire farmer Colin Chappell describes a transition that began in 2017, when his farm became an AHDB monitor farm. He initially switched one 8.5-hectare field to direct drilling; during the 2018 to 2022 transition, he reported yields at about half their previous level while working toward more sponge-like soil. From 2022, he tested cultivation at different depths and used low-disturbance subsoiling to address compaction after flooding. The example illustrates how soil-management decisions may be adapted to local conditions rather than reduced to a simple choice between ploughing and no-till.
Scott’s experiment echoes a broader trend in European agriculture, where regenerative practices are gaining ground. For example, the rapid expansion of pistachio farming in Castilla-La Mancha, described in this report on Spain’s pistachio boom, highlights how changing land management can reshape both productivity and the environment.
Scott’s buried underpants may seem like a quirky test, but the message is serious: the way we treat soil has consequences that reach far beyond the surface. The experiment offers a rare, tangible glimpse into the hidden world that sustains our food and landscapes, while broader field checks and soil-management measures help explain the many processes at work beneath our feet.
