Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Indigenous Microorganisms
Before we get to purchased products, I should note that we can get some local microbes
for our garden. If you have a forest nearby, taking a few handfuls of soil and putting it into
your compost pile or even into the garden will bring in some different microbes. A meadow
or aquatic system will have yet other microbes. We don't want to be taking wheelbarrows
full of soil out of these ecosystems, but a small amount won't hurt. This is a simple, effect-
ive way of increasing microbial diversity.
Even more fun, we can culture our own microorganisms. There are many methods, one
of which is to gather Lactobacillus bacteria, which are especially beneficial microbes. Per-
sonally, I have mostly just done this for fun because they also come in EM, which I believe
is much more useful. Still, culturing Lactobacillus is a fun experiment and is useful for
people who can't or don't want to bring in many external inputs.
I discovered how to do this from reading a transcript of a talk given by Gil A. Carandang
of Herbana Farms in the Philippines. The way to do it is with some rice and milk. Rinse a
small amount of rice and pour that rinse water into a container, leaving the container
50-75% empty and putting on a loose lid so that air can still get in. The rice can be used
elsewhere, but is not needed anymore for this process. Keep the container at room temper-
ature out of the sun for seven days. Once you see a thin film on the surface, strain the liquid
into a bigger container and add ten times as much milk. In another week or so you may
have some solids floating on top that can go into the soil or compost, and a clear, yellow
fluid underneath that contains the bacteria.
Separate this fluid into another container and add an equal amount of molasses to keep
the bacteria well fed. Store it in the fridge until you're ready to use it. Mix it with 20 parts
non-chlorinated water and spray it on plants, soil and compost. You'll learn how to dechlor-
inate water in the next chapter.
