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SOIL FOOD WEB BIOLOGY

January 3, 2025

Seed-Sowing in December – Really?

Yes really!  And into winter too… so you have an extra Christmas gift idea up ...

December 1, 2024

Spread that Fall Compost!

Fall finds me smiling for many reasons, not least of which is thinking about all ...

Biologically Complete Compost
October 1, 2024

Biologically Complete Compost

When we are looking to restore life to the soil, our most important tool is ...

Tomatoes in the garden
September 1, 2024

Health You Can Taste

What a sweet time of year.  Well into the growing season there’s such an abundance ...

Brix testing for plants
July 1, 2024

Capturing Liquid Sunlight

Leaves are like little solar panels.  Chasing the sun, they combine solar energy with water ...

Mycorrhizal Fungi
June 30, 2024

DIY Mycorrhizal Fungi for Veggies

Mycorrhizal fungi are “obligate symbionts”, meaning that they need a host plant to survive.  Endomycorrhizal ...

Claytonia perfoliata. An annual edible, native ground cover option.
May 1, 2024

And a Roof Overhead

I don’t know about you, but it seems like a lot of people are bracing ...

April 1, 2024

Seeds with Sense

It blows my mind every time: if you look at current estimates of the amount ...

Hope Farm
March 1, 2024

Seasonal Sampling

Soil biology numbers change across seasonal cycles.  Understanding what mediates the flurries of activity of ...

Winter compost
February 1, 2024

Winter Composting Tips

At this latitude there probably aren’t too many people actively winter composting, unless you have ...

December 1, 2023

Let There Be Air

Compaction is a pretty big deal when you’re trying to grow plants.  How far can ...

November 1, 2023

How’s Your Soil Structure?

It’s always seemed to me like we have a water storage problem, rather than a ...

Hope Farms
October 1, 2023

What Is Regenerative Agriculture?

At it’s most basic, regenerative agriculture involves leaving the soil in better condition than it ...

September 1, 2023

Herbs, Weeds, and a Nice Surprise

The most challenging thing about helping people partner with microbes in their gardens is encouraging ...

Brassicas
August 1, 2023

The Thing About Brassicas

An old feeling hits at this time of year.  With the flurry of spring planting ...

Farming with Fungi
July 1, 2023

Water Woes

I’ve been thinking a lot about water these days, standing for what feels like hours ...

Spring Hill Compost Testing
June 1, 2023

Bring Back the (Right) Microbes!

Every region has unique microorganisms dwelling in the soil, adapted to the climate, flora, fauna ...

April 1, 2023

Spring Tips for Nurturing Soil Microbes

With the spring warmth comes that sense of shift in energy and vitality, like something ...

Forest
March 1, 2023

The Dance of Succession

There’s a dance going on, above and below ground.  It’s an intelligent dance – in ...

Fungi
February 1, 2023

Ancient Relationships

In our fragmented society, where concepts of competition and survival of the fittest pervade our ...

Raining Microbes
January 1, 2023

It’s Raining Bugs

Well, not quite bugs – microbes!  As someone who still squeals every time I see ...

Carrots from the garden
December 1, 2022

Fenna’s Carrots

It’s the last of the dog days of summer (in October!) and we are sitting ...

November 1, 2022

Soil Matters

If you’re anything like me, hearing doom and gloom numbers about the rapidly dwindling diversity ...

Compost with Confidence this Fall
October 1, 2022

Compost with Confidence this Fall

The other day I was asked “how can a compost pile fail?”. This is an ...

Root Feeding Nematode
September 1, 2022

Of Nematodes and Nightshades

Ever gone to the trouble of making compost and applying it, only to be disappointed ...

Rianna and her first thermophilic compost pile.
August 1, 2022

Connecting Dots and Biomes

Rianna and I crossed paths at a friend’s farm.  I was happily hauling buckets of ...