Soil Probiotics - the use of probiotics to improve soil health and crop yields

Soil probiotics: microbes and nutrients, AMF

Soil Probiotics - What are they?

This article is not about the use of soil-based-organisms (SBOs) extracted to make human gut probiotics. Soil Probiotics extends the concept of the good healthy microbiome into the soil-biome. It looks at how to use good soil bacteria to increase crop and plant growth and how to limit bad (pathogenic) bacteria. The hope is to find microbes that can help increase crop growth. We found a good review by Andrew Frew reporting for The Conversation.

We know that soil is a hugely complex ecosystem with billions of microbes and fungi living alongside plant roots. The symbiotic system between plant roots and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) is well studied (Summary: plants roots transfer sugars to the fungi, in return fungi transfer nutrients (notably phosphorus) to the roots).

Are Soil Probiotics just another bit of marketing spin?

Well maybe! Microbiologists have been investigating with soil microbes for decades.  Even today, most experts report we have identified less than 5% of all soil microbes. So we have a very long way to catch up with what nature has been doing for a million years!

If it is a new spin on an old topic but it gets more funding and more results maybe that's not a bad thing. If it gets a whole load of "silver bullet", "miracle new 'band-wagon' products that are untested that's not going to be helpful.

Where does Biochar Super Compost (SF60) fit into soil probiotics?

We are confident that one of the major benefits of adding SF60 biochar super compost to your soil is the support of soil microbes and the resultant positive effect on healthy plant growth. Whether we should consider this as a soil-probiotic is a little too early to say. We will keep an eye out and review over the coming years.

Buy SF60 Biochar Super Compost