OUR BLOG

As our industry continues to innovate, particularly when it involves harnessing the power of the soil food web and soil biology, new concepts are being introduced. Some have been created with thanks from innovative companies others from pioneering scientists. Yet, one thing remains consistent, our industry continues to evolve to produce better data and better products to nurture better plants with less synthetic inputs.

Due to the innovative nature of Holganix, all of these new terms relate to the Holganix product line.

Here are some of the new terminology we’ve seen floating around the green industry.

1. Biofertilizer

Biofertilizers are products that contain living microorganisms microorganisms, that when applied to the soil and plants, promote plant health and growth by increasing the available supply of nutrients to the plant. They increase the supply of available nutrients by supplying organisms that aid in nitrogen fixation and solubilizing phosphorous to name just a few processes.

Biofertilizers include bacteria such as: Rhizobium, clostridium, Azospirilum and Algae (all of which are included in Holganix and make Holganix a biofertilizer).

2. Plant Probiotics

Plant probiotics are similar to human probiotics. They contain living biological cultures that, when added to the soil, proactively protect the plant’s immune system (think of the soil as the plant’s gut), increase the plant’s ability to uptake nutrients, minerals and moisture and influence plant growth. Another commonly used term to describe plant probiotics is plant biotics.

Examples of Plant Probiotics include: Holganix, SumaGrow and Beesafe products.

Holganix is rich in probiotic content, featuring 800+ species of bacteria and 20+ species of fungi.

You can learn more about plant probiotics by reading this blog article: Plant Probiotics Vs. Human Probiotics

3. Bionutrition

Bionutrition applies to the use of living biological organisms (bacteria, fungi protozoa, etc) and soil amendments that support the growth of such organisms (fructose, molasses, brewer’s yeast, yucca extract etc). Ultimately, bionutritional products promote a balanced soil ecosystem and support plant nutrition (N, P, K and micronutrients) for more efficient uptake by the plant

Holganix is considered a bionutritional plant product.

4. Bioeffectors

A bioeffector is a type of microorganism, group of microorganisms or active natural compounds that can directly or indirectly influence plant health, reducing the need for chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

Bioeffectors include but are not limited to: composting products, algae extracts, biostimlants, biofertilizers, mycorrhizae inoculants, plant growth promoting bacteria (PGPB) and many more.

Holganix can be considered a bioeffector as it contains biostimulant, biofertilizer properties and contains algae, mycorrhizae, PGPB and composting ingredients to just name a few. Other bioeffctors include Pathways and SumaGrow.

5. Microbial Inoculants

Also known as a soil inoculant, microbial inoculants utilize beneficial soil microbes to improve plant nutrition and stimulate plant hormones, thereby promoting plant growth.

There are three different kinds of microbial inoculants: Bacterial (Rhizobacterial Inoculants, Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria, Phosphate-Solubilizing bacteria), Fungal and Composite Inoculants. Holganix can be referred to as a Microbial Inoculant.

6. Biostimulant

Biostimulants are formulations of compounds, substances and microorganisms that are applied to soil and plants to improve plant health, yield and tolerance to weather, disease and insect deduced stresses.

Holganix is a biostimulant.

7. Soil Amendment

A material that can improve the physical or chemical makeup of soil, creating a better soil ecosystem for the plant.

Compost teas, composts and Holganix can all be considered soil amendments.

8. Compost Tea

Compost tea has been utilized for hundreds of years. It is the liquid byproduct of composting and can include vegetable and/or animal by-products. They are commonly produced my niche growers on a region-by-region basis as they are hard to manufacture on a consistent basis (the recipe is constantly influx).

Manufactured compost teas like Holganix (contains a compost tea base) and WormPower (worm castings) offer a more consistent approach to compost tea.