Soil Biology, Biofertilizers, Soil Amendments – FAQ
Growers, farmers and gardeners all have questions about soil biology, biofertilizers, nutrients recycling, and soil amendments. We’ll talk about a few of the most asked questions I receive.
What Organisms Recycle Nutrients
This is a complex question as there are a number of organisms that recycle nutrients. In fact, microorganisms are involved in all of the major nutrient recycling systems on our planet. Here’s a link to an article on the nutrient cycle with an emphasis on microorganisms.
What are the Benefits of Biofertilizers to Farmers and Growers
There are a number of benefits of biofertilizers including:
- They help make plant nutrients more available to the plants,
- The production of plant hormones,
- Biofertilizers are cost effective when compared to traditional fertilizers
- Reduce the need for traditional fertilizers – Economic Advantages
- Potential Yield Increases
- Improvement in both Soil Physical and Chemical Structure
- Biofertilizers are Eco-Friendly
What is Soil Biology?
Soil biology is the study of the microorganisms in the soil and how they interact with plants and the inorganic materials around them (CO2, N2, Inorganic Minerals, etc.)
Why is Soil Biology Important?
Soil biology is important because healthy soils all have a thriving population of soil microbiology, including bacteria, soil fungi, protozoa, mycorrhiza and more.
Native soils, that is soils that have not been farmed have thriving microbial populations. It’s farming that disrupts the status quo. A smart farmer will pay very close attention to his or her soil biology.
Overfertilization, addition of -cides like herbicides, pesticides and insecticides reduce native soil microbiology.
Why use Biologicals in Farming?
Soil biology has a direct impact on plant growth, soil fertility, soil structure, and carbon storage. Fertile soils are rich in soil biology.
The use of biologicals in farming is not as new as you would think. For many years, farmers and gardeners used manure in their fields. While they may not have known why this helped, they were increasing the soil microbiology.
Now, with the advent of soil microbiology, we use biologicals in farming to increase soil fertility and to reduce agrochemical usage.
Biofertilizers in agriculture and gardening will continue to be an area of interest.
What Organisms Recycle Nutrients?
Bacteria, Trichoderma and other soil microorganisms have a number of benefits in agriculture and for the soil. Here’s a growers guide of some of the beneficial microbes used in agriculture and gardening.
Nutrient recycling is an ongoing, continuous process. Microorganisms are vital to the process.
