I am just reading D. R. Montgomery's "dirt" and found a wonderful citation from E. H. Faulkner's 1943. Plowman's Folly:
"Everywhere about us is evidence that the undisturbed surface of the earth produces a healthier growth than that portion now being farmed [...] The net effect of fertilizing the land, then, is not to increase the possible crop yield, but to decrease the devastating effects of plowing"
I only can add, that we also see evidence of perfect pest control in nature. In fact, Faulkner showed in his early experiments that he can reach higher yields per acre of land without using chemical pest control.
E.H. Faulkner, 1943: Plowman's Folly. New York, Gosset and Dunlep
"Everywhere about us is evidence that the undisturbed surface of the earth produces a healthier growth than that portion now being farmed [...] The net effect of fertilizing the land, then, is not to increase the possible crop yield, but to decrease the devastating effects of plowing"
I only can add, that we also see evidence of perfect pest control in nature. In fact, Faulkner showed in his early experiments that he can reach higher yields per acre of land without using chemical pest control.
E.H. Faulkner, 1943: Plowman's Folly. New York, Gosset and Dunlep