Working with the Soil Food Web
Spread that Fall Compost!
Fall finds me smiling for many reasons, not least of which is thinking about all the Soil Food Webbers out there happily and diligently applying microbes to the soil. Where do those microbes come from? Compost of course! Conventional wisdom would have us see compost as a fertilizer; containing soluble nutrients prone to leaching or […]
Biologically Complete Compost
When we are looking to restore life to the soil, our most important tool is compost. But not just any compost. To increase diversity and restore missing groups of plant-beneficial organisms, we need to create an effective inoculum of these microbes. You could think of the inoculum aspect a bit like a yogurt culture or […]
DIY Mycorrhizal Fungi for Veggies
Mycorrhizal fungi are “obligate symbionts”, meaning that they need a host plant to survive. Endomycorrhizal fungi, also called arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi or AMF, are essential partners of 70-90% of all plant species, including the majority of the vegetables in your garden this year. AMF don’t produce mushrooms. They propagate via underground spores, pieces of host […]
And a Roof Overhead
I don’t know about you, but it seems like a lot of people are bracing for this summer to be very hot and very dry. Increasing the amount and diversity of life belowground can help plants build resiliency for these kinds of extremes. We rely on soil microbes to make the spongy soil structure required […]
The Thing About Brassicas
An old feeling hits at this time of year. With the flurry of spring planting behind me and summer watering upon me, I just want to sit back and not think about the garden for quite a while. Go camping. Swim somewhere. The first weeks of July pass and I think dang it, I missed […]
Spring Tips for Nurturing Soil Microbes
With the spring warmth comes that sense of shift in energy and vitality, like something inside us is unfurling. Soil microbes also undergo this transformation, emerging from dormancy to partner again with above-ground life. Plants need both energy and nutrients to unfurl themselves – with the sun and air comes that energy, and with the […]