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Re: Beneficial Soil Microbes - Steiner BD preps



I work with several biodynamic people.  They sent the samples into Soil Foodweb, and we discussed the preparation of those BD samples.  In every case, the cow horn preparations contained a mix of manure, plant material and in one case, additional silica.  None of the cow horn preparations were sealed into the horn.  You wouldn't be able to get water into the material when it was in the soil if the horns were sealed.  The horn material that I was given samples from were horns in a barrel, where the end of the horn was not sealed.  The materials in the horn were not anaerobic.  In another case, the horns were in containers in the barn, and samples were pulled from those horns.  The starting materials were manure, plant material, and silica.  They were not sealed.

You had not brought up the other preparations until just the last e-mail.  I have not brought them up in any exchange with you.  So accusing me of not knowing how the other preps are made is not kosher.  I have not commented on how they are made in any way.  

If you want to argue about preparation of the BD preps from which I have been given samples, please direct your comments to Steve Storch, Allan Balliet, Paul Fieber, or the Macari Vineyard owners in New York.   They give me the samples, I run the organism assays, they tell me what the samples were made of.  Argue with them, not me, about how the preps were made.    

If you want the DIRECT COUNT data for those preparations, please talk to them.  They have those data.  They have been pleasant to work with, and I'm happy to share data with pleasant people.   

Given that 99.99% of the bacteria and fungi in soil and in good composts cannot grow on plate media in lab incubation conditions, there is no wonder that there's a huge discrepancy between the plate count data you have and direct count data. 

Solvita tests can't begin to separate bacterial versus fungal respiration, much less say anything about diversity.  Solvita tests give you an assessment of carbon dioxide evolved, and that's it.  Does CO2 evolved always relate to organism activity?  What happens if the compost is anaerobic?  If CO2 is not being respired, what can Solvita tests tell you? 

I was also very clear to point out in my original post that these were fresh materials I was talking about, not dried materials.

You have mis-quoted me.  I don't talk about 3 ppm as being a limit for anaerobic conditions.  There is a gradient from facultative anaerobic conditions to completely anaerobic conditions, but the limit that is of interest to most composters is the 5.5 to 6 ppm range. 

You also haven't gotten the prices correct for the SFI assays.  You haven't gotten the number of samples I would recommend from a field correct either.

It would be great for you to try to design a 24 hour aerobic compost tea machine.   Best of luck to you.

Elaine Ingham
President, Soil Foodweb Inc.
www.soilfoodweb.com