Why does soil after first rain feel so refreshing and good?
In: Chemistry
Depends on the soil. Much of the world’s prime farmland has been turned to dirt fields with no life in them except the plants we jam in the ground.
The soil is a living network of many creatures and fungi which create an entire ecosystem beneath our feet.
Modern Ag is destroying this ecosystem and creating hard packed dirt that water just runs off. Good, healthy, soil should be like a large sponge and absorb phenomenal amounts of water before there is runoff.
That’s because of something called negative ions. It happens after the rain and gives the odor/refreshing feel
When rain touches the soil bacteria and other tiny organisms living underground become aware of that and secret volatile molecules one of them called geosmin together with some others they produce the earthy scent when they get inside your nose.
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