# How effective is salting the ground to prevent crops? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 27, 2014, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843 "2014-01-27T14:13:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2014, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/1 "2014-01-27T14:13:20Z")
A offshoot of “Romans salting the earth after the 3rd Punic War. Fact or Myth?” thread My question is, is this a effective method of preventing agriculture in the ways that the Romans were said to use in (but didn’t)? I can understand it killing growing crops for that season, but it would require massive amounts of salt, most likely on the order of how we salt roads today - a huge effort for such a early society. And that salt would be washed away by rain, so perhaps only effective for one season? Or would it persist for many seasons? ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2014, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/2 "2014-01-27T14:25:13Z")
I was wondering about this just yesterday, actually. All the road salt we’ve got around here \*has \*to be killing stuff off- everything that travels on, or lives near, the roads is crusted white from all the road salt. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2014, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/3 "2014-01-27T18:44:24Z")
Bonus question: would irrigating crops with Brawndo, the Thirst Mutilator, kill them off? ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2014, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/4 "2014-01-27T21:33:18Z")
Well, there’s always good ol’ wikipedia to start us off: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salting\_the\_earth](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salting_the_earth) … which takes us to: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soil\_salinity](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soil_salinity) whereupon we can learn stuff like this: > [@](#): > > The consequences of salinity are > [ul] > [li]detrimental effects on plant growth and yield[/li][li]damage to infrastructure (roads, bricks, corrosion of pipes and cables)[/li][li]reduction of water quality for users, sedimentation problems[/li][li]soil erosion ultimately, when crops are too strongly affected by the amounts of salts.[/li][/ul] > Salinity is an important land degradation problem. Soil salinity can be reduced by leaching soluble salts out of soil with excess irrigation water. ---
**Author:** ![JKilez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e5b9ba/32.png) [@JKilez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKilez)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2014, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/5 "2014-01-27T21:35:55Z")
And we have the old [column](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2698/did-ancient-conquerors-punish-their-enemies-by-sowing-captured-fields-with-salt). ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2014, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/6 "2014-01-27T23:41:32Z")
Did you see [this current thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=714183)\*? You’ll find a good amount of relevant info there. (\*maybe out of the corner of your eye?) ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/7 "2014-01-28T00:17:03Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > Bonus question: would irrigating crops with Brawndo, the Thirst Mutilator, kill them off? But Brawndo’s got what plants crave! ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/8 "2014-01-28T00:29:12Z")
**KarlGauss** , I’m pretty sure that **kanicbird** did in fact see that thread, given that he says in the OP that it was his inspiration for asking. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/9 "2014-01-28T00:31:53Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > **KarlGauss** , I’m pretty sure that **kanicbird** did in fact see that thread, given that he says in the OP that it was his inspiration for asking. You’re being too polite! I think I need a nap. :o ---
**Author:** ![Aman27deep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ebca7d/32.png) [@Aman27deep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aman27deep)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2014, 7:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/13 "2014-02-03T07:09:46Z")
Salt definitely works, but it really needs to be in massive quantity (you’re talking perhaps a pound per square foot) or it won’t work. > [@runner pat](#): > > Spam reported. [spammer name removed]]) Aren’t you kinda spamming yourself :\ ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2014, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/14 "2014-02-03T07:44:27Z")
> [@Aman27deep](#): > > Aren’t you kinda spamming yourself :\ Nah. We always appreciate runner pat’s spam reports and they usually include the name of the spammer. Most of the time the spam reports just get deleted along with the spam, but in this case, since you commented on it I only removed the spammer’s name and not all of runner pat’s post. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2014, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/15 "2014-02-03T19:51:14Z")
> [@Aman27deep](#): > > Salt definitely works, but it really needs to be in massive quantity (you’re talking perhaps a pound per square foot) or it won’t work… How do you know this? ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2014, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/16 "2014-02-03T20:02:17Z")
And at what point in ancient history did salt become common enough to make it a reasonable product to till into the ground? (serious question) Jiminy wouldn’t it take a massive amount of salt just to wreck a single acre? Who’s going to haul all that salt around on the off-chance they might run into an opportunity to do in someone’s farm? Seems a lot simpler just to slaughter all the locals and claim the land for one’s own. ---
**Author:** ![lisiate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f05b48/32.png) [@lisiate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisiate)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2014, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/17 "2014-02-03T20:57:05Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > How do you know this? Some guy called [Cecil Adams](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2698/did-ancient-conquerors-punish-their-enemies-by-sowing-captured-fields-with-salt)estimates 31 tons per acre will do the trick. Which google tells me is 0.0459136823 pounds per (square foot) which seems a lot more doable. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2014, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-effective-is-salting-the-ground-to-prevent-crops/679843/18 "2014-02-03T23:13:26Z")
Apologies but methinks your google fu is on the blink. 31 (US) tons = 62,000 pounds avoirdupois 1 acre = 43,560 square feet ergo salting @ 1.42 lbs/sq foot