HelpfulGardener.com

I had a random thought. (Not an unusual occurrence as you may have noticed )

We all know about not immediately reaching for an insecticide and identifying Garden Patrols and pest insects.

We plant pollen and nectar rich flowers in addition to the edible crops for harvesting, and allow some of the vegetables and herbs to bloom or overwinter and bloom. All to attract beneficial insects and give them a friendly habitat.

...so what about beneficial fungi and bacteria? Many of us make our own compost full of beneficial microbes, and make AACT to incubate them and spray the foliage or apply as soil drench. Some of us make vermicompost, Some of us make bokashi "compost". Mulch helps to preserve the soil moisture and conditions that are favorable for microbes.

Some of us try not to spray too much so as not to harm the beneficial insects.

...so what about beneficial fungi and bacteria? Should we be giving some thought to their existence as well?

Funny you should mention this! I recently read an article on the subject.

I think by gardening in an organic chemical free way, we are encouraging BF. The article that I read says that when the soil is rich, or when the plant is given a synthetic source of food, the fungi are not stimulated to grow and spread, because they are no longer needed.

BF make water and nutrients more accessible to plants. They are ESSENTIAL to organic setups.

So I think by doing what you're doing, you're encouraging them in a big way.

Leaving the root ball in the soil also continues their health. No till systems keep them healthy as well.

Agreed. Your question left me a little confused, applestar. You listed out a whole bunch of things that gardeners like us do to foster beneficial microbes and fungi, like the compost, compost tea, vermicompost, mulch (to mention the ones I do) and then ask if we should be paying attention to them. We are!

and Lindsay was right, no till fits in there. I think one of the main reasons for doing no till is to avoid disrupting the life of the soil.

Btw, I've never inoculated my soil...

What are your thoughts on that?

As usual, I'm rambling and not being very coherent.
My question was leading up to focus on when spraying fungicide and preventives.
I mean I already mostly just do the milk and AACT alternating weeks, IF I do them at all. (I guess I use rubbing alcohol spray on pruners and larger pruned branch cuts.)

This year, I sprayed milk once, have not been able to get AACT going due to my compost in the middle of the bed experiment not allowing for turning the two piles in separate beds. (The one in the middle of the corn is a lost cause -- have not even added to that one....). I might be able to scrounge up some finished compost from the bottom access of the Kitchen Garden compost bin soon.

So all I have been doing all season is cutting off and disposing of spotted leaves as they appear on cucurbits and tomatoes. ...just got me wondering...

Also, the russet mite situation -- full on infestation, the plants nearly dead, then some plants that didn't completely go down showing new growths with no visible signs of infestation. I didn'tt do anything with them except to move the container plants around hoping the Garden Patrol will take notice and take care of them. Those things are basically invisible (without high power magnification) and, in that sense, closer to the microbes -- fungi and bacteria -- in terms of our awareness and perception.

Oh, oh! I also tried WILLOW TEA because. I felt. I HAD to do something for the ground-planted tomatoes with russet mite infestation. Some UK studies were posted on another forum that aspirin dissolved in water and foliar sprayed can activate or strengthen plant immune response. Well I don't keep aspirin in the house, and that's what I'm letting a volunteer willow grow for, so I chopped up bark and branch tips -- I can't remember which is which but one of them contains the correct compound -- and steeped them in rainwater.

Lindsaylew82 wrote:Btw, I've never inoculated my soil...

What are your thoughts on that?

Inoculating the soil with what? ...I guess I haven't done it either

.... I'm glad I'm not the only one! Haha

I guess you can get fungi inoculants for your soil. I've seen them posted with beans and peas?

Do you think foliar sprays like milk and neem are making it down that far? I guess if it immediately rains, but still 2 tbsp of neem oil is what I use to spray the entire garden. That's highly diluted, especially after a heavy rain. Not to mention heavy mulches and grass clippings. That's a pretty large barrier.

While milk may have anti fungal properties, I would think that it would encourage bacterial growth much like a yogurt culture. I'm sure there all kinds of bacterium that live in the soil that feed of these types of sugars. Fungi, too! I have no excuse for using neem, aside from its insecticidal properties. But I feel that it has minimal, if any, effect on my soil health, including bf and bacteria.

Just jotting down thoughts -- may not make much sense at this point but you're welcome to brain storm with me....

Anti-bacterial procedures in the garden :
-- hot compost, but too hot can exceed pasteurization temps and actually kill off good guys while allowing super bad guys to remain.
-- solarization
-- antibiotic like streptomycin injection for trees
-- washing tools and containers with 10% bleach

...antibacterial soaps can damage plant tissue...

Sanitation functions on dishwashers and laundry machines?

I've done bleach soaks on used cups for planting seeds. I've also planted without soaking...rebel???...just lazy.

I've soaked seeds in a bleach solution before planting. Even after fermentation. I've planted seeds without soaking. And, seeds without fermentation.

I've never noticed a difference. Ever.

I used to use alcohol spray religiously, but I ran out of it one year and just kept on pruning... I may have noticed mild difference. I use it off and on now. Mostly on in the early season. Late season is pointless. IMO and IME.

I've never solarized. I can't see the point with the way I mulch which leads me to mulch. I put raw green grass clippings right on my raised rows. I've not noticed it to get REALLY hot the way I apply them. Sometimes 2-4 inches. It's never "sheeted" up. It gets dried out mostly. I only notice it gets REALLY hot (steams in 100 degree weather) if it's mounded in piles! But in those HOTTEST of hot piles, there are fungus growing, breaking things down! . In just a couple of days!

I do a compost pile. Mostly kitchen scraps and left over yard waste. It gets hot when I add grass clippings, but not super hot. I've never measured it's temperature.