Salt makes most crops fail to grow. So why is the land that the Netherlands reclaims from the sea — which has been under salt water for ages — useful for agriculture?

Question

Salt makes most crops fail to grow. So why is the land that the Netherlands reclaims from the sea — which has been under salt water for ages — useful for agriculture?

In: Biology

Answer 1

[https://edepot.wur.nl/211289](https://edepot.wur.nl/211289)

“When the muddy deposits have accumulated sufficiently to rise

above the normal summer tides, the salts are consequently washed out of the

upper 20 to 30 cm. of the muddy deposits by the summer rains to such an

extent that the original salt vegetation (Seaweed, Salicornia, etc.) gives way

to a grass flora. These grass-grown deposits are called “kwelders”; they are

covered only by the high tides, especially in winter. When the kwelder is

high enough a dike is built to keep out the sea water; the kwelder is now

transformed into a young sea-polder.”