How to Use humus in a Sentence

humus

noun
  • If your soil is heavy, coarse sand or humus can be added, and gypsum works well to improve clay soils.
    — oregonlive, 7 May 2021
  • The bar's food menu includes charcuterie boards, humus plates and flat breads.
    — Tirion Morris, azcentral, 27 May 2020
  • If food in landfills just turned into rich humus for the garden, there wouldn't be as much of a problem.
    — Debbi Snook, cleveland.com, 18 Apr. 2018
  • Like all raised bed soils, the overall volume reduces as microbes and plants consume the fine humus.
    — Maureen Gilmer, idahostatesman, 14 Feb. 2018
  • Made with a blend of sphagnum peat moss, humus, and perlite, this potting mix helps ensure good drainage to keep roots healthy.
    — Renee Freemon Mulvihill, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 May 2024
  • The plant thrives in moist, humus-rich woodland soil but also grows in average garden soil.
    — Nadia Hassani, The Spruce, 13 Apr. 2026
  • Brunch might mean a humus bowl layered with lamb and pickled onion, or a shakshuka made with black lime tomato stew.
    — Rai Mincey, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Farmers were instructed to adopt practices that were supposed to build humus.
    — Quanta Magazine, 2 Aug. 2021
  • Try to plant it in fertile humus or neutral soils near water sources, and cut your plants back to ground level after first frost.
    — Nishaa Sharma, The Spruce, 27 May 2026
  • Volunteers are on hand so drivers can pull up, place an order, pay and volunteers will bag and load the humus in your car.
    — Carol Kovach, cleveland.com, 29 Apr. 2018
  • For blueberries to thrive, the soil must be well aerated, moist, very high in humus, and—most important of all—very acidic.
    — The Editors Of Organic Life, Good Housekeeping, 14 Mar. 2017
  • Soil and Water Japanese maple likes a slightly acidic, humus-rich soil with good drainage.
    — Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Nov. 2025
  • When separating clumps, add humus to the new planting area, spread roots out, and water well for smooth transplanting.
    — Kristin Guy, Sunset Magazine, 6 Feb. 2024
  • All these problems are caused by fungi in the soil and can be avoided by rotating crops and by working humus into the onion bed to provide good drainage.
    — The Editors Of Organic Life, Good Housekeeping, 1 Feb. 2018
  • This is a very aromatic, pungent rum that offers up notes of green sugarcane, lemon zest and chocolate all wrapped up in an earthy/humus-like aroma.
    — Joseph V Micallef, Forbes, 29 June 2021
  • Across from the buffet was a large round table with an assortment of cheeses, including brie and parmesan, humus, slices of meats and raw vegetables.
    — Ramona Saviss, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Mar. 2018
  • But the recycling of organics is arguably more important than that of plastics, metal, or paper. Composting transforms raw organic waste into a humus-like substance that enriches soil and enhances carbon capture.
    — Rivka Galchen, The New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2020
  • Including the sand provides better drainage, and the humus in the compost holds nutrients and provides moisture control.
    — Andy Wilcox, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 July 2024
  • About 10 pounds of marinated chicken and about a half-pound of humus and cut tomatoes measured above safe temperatures.
    — Sacbee.com, 27 Mar. 2026
  • Toss spinach and tomatoes into a morning omelet, snack on baby carrots and cukes with humus during the day or try an energizing juice blend of beets, carrots and celery.
    — By Sheah Rarback, miamiherald, 2 Oct. 2017
  • Organic matter serves as food for earthworms, insects, bacteria and fungi that transform it to soil nutrients and humus.
    — oregonlive, 7 Feb. 2022
  • Tall grasses grew on the site for millions of years, and their decomposition created a dark, rich humus that would later prove ideal for cotton farmers.
    — Dennis Pillion | [email protected], al, 12 Nov. 2021
  • This includes decaying plant and animal residues, humus, and living microorganisms.
    — Rae Ford, Martha Stewart, 8 June 2026
  • Older wetlands in areas surveyed by Delta-X aircraft are more diverse, their soil rich with humus from generations of plants.
    — Fox News, 29 June 2021
  • Fallen trees, colonized by fungi and other detritovores, are crumbling into humus.
    — Verlyn Klinkenborg, The New York Review of Books, 6 July 2022
  • The discussion about detritivores, which process waste material into soil by way of their own humus-like waste material.
    — David Gilbert, The New Yorker, 4 June 2017
  • Any organic material and/or humus added to the soil helps retain that moisture, but mulch is a visible conservator.
    — Margaret Lauterbach, idahostatesman, 16 June 2018
  • If humus isn’t doing the stabilizing, perhaps minerals and aggregates are.
    — Quanta Magazine, 2 Aug. 2021
  • The composting process employs billions of microorganisms to break down organics into the essential component of soil called humus.
    — Emily S. Rueb, New York Times, 2 June 2017
  • Collectively, these leftovers become part of the humus of the soil, helping retain water and support soil-dwelling microbes, invertebrates and roots.
    — Katarina Zimmer, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Feb. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'humus.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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