[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]
Soil Health & microorganisms
Microorganism population in soil:
I am offering an analogy to you that has many synergy's to soil health, namely, human
health.
When a human, in this case a woman, takes an antibiotic, a majority of the time the will
manifest a yeast infection. This is caused because the antibiotic has damaged the balance
between good bacteria and bad bacteria.
She can eliminate this imbalance in the bad bacteria by take more friendly bacteria. This
is not done by taking modern yogurt(it does not have the bacteria). It can be done by
finding old fashion yogurt with four types of bacteria or going to a health food store and
buying bacteria complexes found in the cold section. The conventional doctors/wisdom
will tell them to take the leading selling drug called lotrimin. This does nothing to solve
the problem, but masks the symptoms.
This analogy applies to the soil. The chemicals that have been used on the soil have
destroyed a great deal of the beneficial bacterial that used to be in the soil. This is
evidenced by the huge business in fungicides. Another is the epidemic growth of the
pathogenic nematode. It is a result of the killing of the nematode trapping fungi that used
to exist in the soil. In this case just adding compost doesn't stop the problem.
I know of bacterial product/complexes that can be added to the soil to stop many of these
fungi.
If practical you can add a composed manure and get some of the same benefits.
The immune system of the soil needs to be revived. Addition Humates could help to begin
the process. Adding a bacterial complex called BioL.F.E. will do that even better because it
will supply bacteria, some of which is nitrogen fixing (average 167 pounds/acre), build
humus and help to produce organic matter by the breakdown of the trash from crops, etc. It
will also, in many cases, increase the uptake of nutrients and make the soils more
malleable. This product manufactures phosphorylated polysaccharides and helps to keep
the pH balanced for crops needs.
In tobacco it has eliminated the need for fungicides for black shank (Phytophthora
Parasitica) and blue mold (Peronosporatabacina) in a multi-year trial in Kentucky. In a
trial in New Mexico it was used on cotton for fusarium wilt and stopped it completely in
one season. Further trials are planned.
Therefore we know and have seen the control of disease in soil by adding beneficial
microorganisms and restoring the soil bacteria levels.
If the soil has been badly damaged and the normal complex of microorganisms are no longer
present the have to be replaced. Mere stimulation of the remaining bacteria will not be
sufficient if they no longer exist in sufficient complexes.
Balance is the key to disease stress.
Just a side note: this approach has worked to stop cancer without drugs/chemo/radiation,
arthritis, heart disease, psoriasis, etc. It is a powerful approach to human health and a
powerful approach to soil health.
Sincerely,
Michael J. Rankin
Global Farming Systems, Ltd.