Soil biology numbers change across seasonal cycles. Understanding what mediates the flurries of activity of these wee beings is helpful in deciding when and how to check who is home in your soil. Numbers peak when plants are actively growing and excreting “liquid sunshine” through their roots. Soil temperature, moisture and other types of microbe […]
At this latitude there probably aren’t too many people actively winter composting, unless you have an indoor space for thermophilic piles (and are hardcore!). Most folks tend to have a static pile out the back, where yard waste is thrown during the warmer months and kitchen scraps tossed year-round. Small worm farms are also becoming […]
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 […]
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 […]
The other day I was asked “how can a compost pile fail?”. This is an excellent question and the answer depends on your definition of compost. The most amusing one I have heard is that “compost is organic matter that has been decomposed in a process called composting.” The Queen of Compost, Dr Elaine Ingham, […]