Preparing Soil Samples
Preparing soil samples for microscope analysis is easy. The actual analysis has a steep learning curve. It takes a bit of practice. Preparing soil samples is different than preparing compost tea and compost extract samples. In preparing soil samples we are going to be measuring the amounts of micro-0rganisms contained in the soil. That means [...]
Soil Test Equipment
Testing your won soil with a microscope is fun, but there is a large learning curve. It is simple to make the samples, but identifying the animals on the slides takes a lot of practice. Here is a list of items you need for basic microscope soil analysis. These items can be used for analyzing compost, [...]
Diatomaceous Earth
Diatomaceous earth also known as diatomite or kieselgur, is a naturally occurring, soft, silice ous sedimentary rock that is easily crumbled into a fine white to off-white powder. It has a particle size ranging from less than 1 micron to more than 1 millimeter, but typically 10 to 200 microns. This powder has an abrasive [...]
Caterpillars
Caterpillars Use: Spinosad Where to buy this, Click here Videos on Natural Ways to Control Insects. Click here if you want to learn more. More Insect Control. Click here if you want to see more.
Foiloir Layer Case Study – Laurel Bay Leaf Images
The sample is set up with two different stains. One stain shows all of the live bacteria (green) and the dead bacteria (red). Below is the BL (Back Lite) of the Bay leaf. The stomata are shown in semi-bright circles in this image. A stoma is a pore, found in the leaf and stem epidermis [...]
Creating Soil No cost
This is a no cost method to create soil from really neglected soil or soil that had been buried for years and is used a plant beds. Advantages: Free, no money, totally organic (remember chemicals and fertilizers cost money), This makes the best tasking veggies and has the longest lasting impact on soil. Disadvantages: Takes [...]
Gigaspora margarita
Gigaspora margarita probably has a worldwide distribution. The holotype of this fungus has been selected from spores recovered from under Glycine max (L.) Merr. growing in a pot culture containing a root x rhizosphere soil mixture of Gly. max cultivated at the Agronomy South Farm of University of Illinois, USA The EELS detected the presence [...]
Glomus etunicatum
Glomus etunicatum is apparently quite common for tomatos. The fungus has been found in Illinois, Missouri, Florida, and in the Chihuahuan and Sonoran Deserts in North America. G. etunicatum is widespread in the Eastern United States. It has also been found in the Namib Desert in Africa, which suggests that the fungus is indeed widespread. [...]
Bacillus stearothermophilus
Bacillus stearothermophilus is a thermophile and is widely distributed in soil, hot springs, ocean sediment, and is a cause of spoilage in food products. It will grow within a temperature range of 30-75 degrees Celsius. It appears in compost piles at the hot part of the cycle.
Bacillus polymyxa
Bacillus polymyxa takes released (NH4) from Protozoan and Nematodes. It digests it and produces NO2. Bacillus polymyxa is important in established older gardens where there is a higher count of Protozoan and Nematodes. It fixes nitrogen from NH4 as part of the predator/prey nitrogen cycle. Download paper (.pdf) Click here to learn more?
Choosing the Right Pumps
The best and cheapest pump for this application is a diaphragm pump. This is a positive displacement pump with a chamber that does not grind up the micro-organisms. A positive displacement pump causes a fluid to move by trapping a fixed amount of it then forcing (displacing) that trapped volume into the discharge pipe. Here [...]
Orchard Compost Extractions/Teas, Schedules & Recipes
When first establishing an orchard for the first time, fruit trees are generally require very fungal dominated soil. This is expressed as soil F:B (Fungi to Bacteria. General rule of thumb, keep the F:B ration to 100:1) ratio for the plant and the existing soil. The type of foods added to the Extract depends if [...]
Lawn/Turf Compost Extractions/Teas, Schedules & Recipes
When first establishing turf for the first time, you need to know the requirements of the plant you are using. It is always best to put down compost before starting a lawn. This gives the lawn a chance to take hold. For Information on making Compost for the beginner – Videos, Click here You also [...]
Calculations for Amount of Released Fixed Nitrogen From Soil Biology
Calculations for Amount of Released Fixed For Information on bacterial and mycorrhiza inoculants, click here. For More Information on Nitrogen Cycles, click here.
Creating New Soil
Currently, Permiculterists have always claimed that they recovered land or improved soil by adding amendments to soil. They have added everything from rich compost to wood chips to any organic material that makes things grow. All or most is waste products from arborists, kitchens and landscaping companies and etc…. After 6 months, the land produces [...]
Roof Water Catchments Construction Case Study
Here is an example of a neighbor who wants to install a hidden water catchment system in their front yard. The catchment system will be installed in the front yard just left of the front window. All of the roof rain water will be saved in the soil in the front yard. The front yard [...]
Hydroponics/Aquaponics
Hydroponics and Aquaponics almost use the same equipment, but the two methods of growing food or plants are different in the chemistry and root media. Hydroponics and Aquaponics use some sort of medium to hold the plant roots without soil. For hydroponics, chemical nutrients (generally petroleum based) are dissolved in water and then are pumped [...]