By Kaitlyn Ersek on Mar 29, 2024 9:30:00 AM
Several years ago, we wrote a blog post that featured the "Top 5 COOLEST Soil Microbes Ever". The response from the Holganix community has been overwhelming, prompting us to delve deeper into the important biology found in Holganix Bio 800+ products. Today, we're thrilled to present a closer look at some of the powerful microbes that make our product stand out.
In this blog, we provide an overview of some of the powerful microbes found in the product. Click a link to skip to the topic of your choosing or continue scrolling to read the full report.
- Diversity Is A Key Theme!
- How Does Holganix Bio 800+ Work?
- Want To Learn More About The Soil Microbes In Holganix Bio 800+?
When discussing microbes – diversity is a key theme!
“Go for diversity,” states Holganix President of Agriculture, David Stark Ph.D. “If you are going to use a microbial for soil health, fertilizer efficiency, and to drive yield in year one, use something diverse. You need something that doesn’t just have bacteria, but also protozoa, amoeba, and fungi. Your soil is designed to have these different types of microbes, and like an engine, each part has a job to do to make the engine run.
For example, bacteria are good at immobilizing nitrogen in the root zone, but they tie it up. The nitrogen is released back to the crop as fungi and protists consume the bacteria. So, all microbe types are required to get your soil to work at maximum efficiency, which for soil means retaining and cycling nutrients, holding water, repelling pathogens, and building good soil structure. And if you use a biologically diverse product, you will find it’s a valuable tool that will allow you to be more profitable, while building the value of your land. Diversity of microbes is key.”
At the end of the day, when it comes to microbial products, the microbe count is important, yet diversity is even more critical. By having a product filled with a diversity of life, the soil and plant are prepared for whatever hurdle it needs to face. Whereas a single microbial strain may assist with one single, targeted problem, a microbial product with a huge diversity of species is better equipped to handle problems in a changing environment.
“Consider the environment you are asked to grow crops in,” explains David. “Are the soils the same from property to property? Do climate conditions change day-to-day or hour-by-hour? Are the pathogens and stressors that are attacking your crops changing?” A diverse microbial product can parachute in an army of specialists, each of which is capable of filling gaps to balance the biological requirements of the soil.
Want to learn more about why diversity is critical when selecting a microbial product for your farm? Watch the 10-minute video below featuring a conversation with Holganix President of Agriculture, David Stark. If you are reading this blog via email, click here to watch the video.
Soil Microbe #1: Yeast
Found in Holganix Bio 800+ are many species of yeast, microbes of the fungus kingdom. Certain yeast species are known for their plant growth-promoting abilities. The plant growth-promoting effects of yeast in these genera include phosphate solubilizing, barriers to pathogenic bacteria and fungi, production of plant growth hormones, and other effects.
Soil Microbe #2: Trichoderma
Trichoderma, a fungus species present in Holganix Bio 800+ products colonizes plant roots creating a barrier to disease infection. They also enable plant uptake of essential nutrients including iron, phosphates, magnesium, and manganese. Additionally, Trichoderma species stimulate photosynthesis and produce plant growth hormones, further promoting root growth.
Soil Microbe #3: Penicillium
Penicillium fungi are also found in Holganix Bio 800+. Like Trichoderma, Penicillium stimulates plant growth by stimulating plants to produce plant growth hormones.
Soil Microbe #4: Beneficial Nematodes
Beneficial nematodes are present in Holganix Bio 800+ products. Nematodes can be often classified as beneficial and pathogenic nematodes. In the soil, pathogenic nematodes attack plant roots reducing root effectiveness, while beneficial nematodes eat bacteria, fungi, and pathogenic nematodes as a benefit to plants. The nematode waste material produced by beneficial nematode in soil is an important result of the nitrification process providing an available source of nitrogen to plants.
Soil Microbe #5: Bacteria
Holganix Bio 800+ contains many genera of bacteria such as Azotobacter, Azospirillum, Bacillus, Klebsiella, Lactobacillus, Paenibacillus, Pseudomonas, Rhizobium, and Serratia. These genera are found in soil and collectively are called plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB). In the soil, these organisms promote the decomposition of organic matter making nutrients available to plants. These PGRBs also promote plant growth in many other ways including nitrogen fixation, nutrient solubilization, plant disease control, production of plant growth-promoting hormones, induction of plants to produce plant growth-promoting hormones, and protection from plant growth stressors such as drought and salt.
How Does Holganix Bio 800+ Work?
Holganix Bio 800+ contains an entire microbiome or community of organisms that are both abundant and diverse. A single jug of Holganix Bio 800+ contains more than 800 species of active microbes, microbe food, and nutrient enhancers.
In summary, soil microbes contained in Holganix Bio 800+ include both phosphorus, iron, and micronutrient solubilizing bacteria, nitrogen-fixing bacteria, plant growth promoting bacteria, plant debris degrading bacteria and fungi, Trichoderma fungi, Penicillium and beneficial nematodes.
Working together, microbes in Holganix Bio 800+ along with microbes already present in the soil, optimize the uptake of nutrients farmers apply, maximizing nutrient efficiency and minimizing yield loss from disease, predacious nematodes, and other plant growth stressors. Microbe food in Holganix Bio 800+ helps obtain rapid establishment of the beneficial microbes, while nutrient enhancers work with the microbes to promote strong root growth and healthier plants.
Check out this 4-minute video featuring an explanation of the science behind Holganix Bio 800+ by Holganix President of Agriculture, David Stark Ph.D.
Want To Learn more about the soil microbes in Holganix Bio 800+?
Holganix Bio 800+ harnesses the power of over 800 species of beneficial soil microbes, microbe food, and nutrient enhancers to promote optimal plant health with fewer fertilizers, pesticides, and water needed.
To ensure that each batch is teeming with microbes, Holganix uses DNA fingerprinting as a critical function of its manufacturing process.
Read about the core components in the Holganix Bio 800+ products by downloading our ingredient list using the button below.