Habitats for soil microbiology

[phasthound]

Originally Posted by HayBay

In 2001 Ms. Elaine Ingham was a celebrity, fraud. Pertaining to GMO foods.
Grouped in with GreenPeace, The Green Party and David Suzuki and Don Huber.

Any info on how she overcame this title?

I assume you are referring to this. http://www.biotech-info.net/green_lobby.html

You can read her statement here. http://www.saynotogmos.org/klebsiella.html

[HayBay]

that is what I was touching on.

DO you have any info on the letter to the royal commission?

Persistent requests by the New Zealand Life Science Network to the Commission evoked an apology from both Ingham and the Green Party, which had also rested its argument against field trials of GMOs on Ingham's evidence. In a letter to the Commission, Ingham admitted that her doomsday predictions were only "extrapolations from laboratory evidence." Jeanette Fitzsimons of the New Zealand Green Party also admitted that the paper did not support her assertion that a field trial of the GMO would have lead to global devastation.

I also wanted to point this article out too. I get confused reading this stuff. You have mentioned before that organics are only a small part of your business. What about cavalcade?????

Do you use synthetic chemicals?

Horticultural oil, insecticidal soap.


What are the top 10 pesticides you use/sell/recommend?

iHorticultural oil, soaps, neem oil.


If pesticides are used, how much are used per year of each?

Very little spray.

http://www.beyondpesticides.org/info...anics08054.htm

[phasthound]

I think it wise to investigate who is making these claims. New Zealand Life Science Network is a lobbying group in favor of GMO's. http://www.lobbywatch.org/profile1.asp?PrId=77

Their claim that Ingham apologized is a spin on her clarifications presented in the link I provided.

They also make the claim that Ingham's paper does not exist. However you can buy it here, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science...29139398001292

A synopsis:
Research published in 1999 [1] illustrated how the environmental release of GE microorganisms might cause widespread ecological damage.

When a GE strain of Klebsiella planticola bacteria was added to microcosms with sandy soil and wheat plants, the numbers of bacterial and fungal feeding nematodes increased significantly, and the plants died. When the parental, non-GE strain was added, only bacterial feeding nematodes increased, but the plants did not die. The introduction of either strain to soil without plants did not alter the nematode community.

K. planticola is a common lactose-fermenting soil bacterium. The GE bacteria were engineered to produce increased ethanol concentrations in fermentors that convert agricultural wastes to ethanol. Fermentation residues, including the GE bacteria, were proposed for use as a soil amendment.

The study provided evidence that the GE bacteria could persist under conditions found in some soil ecosystems, and for long enough to stimulate changes in soil biota that could affect plant growth and nutrient cycling processes. While it is unclear to what extent these observations occur in situ, the finding that the GE bacteria cause plant death raised the possibility that this soil amendment could kill crops in the fields if it was used.

[phasthound]

http://www.beyondpesticides.org/info...anics08054.htm

In our application business the only EPA registered pesticides we used were Horticultural Oil and Avenger Weed Killer. Both are approved for organic food production.

As you are aware, in our product sales business we do provide organic based fertilizers with Cavalcade.

[Smallaxe]

http://www.soils.usda.gov/sqi/concep...ogy/fungi.html
***The third group of fungi, pathogens or parasites, cause reduced production or death when they colonize roots and other organisms. Root-pathogenic fungi, such as Verticillium, Pythium, and Rhizoctonia, cause major economic losses in agriculture each year. Many fungi help control diseases. For example, nematode-trapping fungi that parasitize disease-causing nematodes, and fungi that feed on insects may be useful as biocontrol agents.***

I'm not trying to be critical here, but this is the type of noninformation that seems to permeate every that I read... Notice: Vericullum disease(is mentioned), and that, "Many fungi help control diseases..." Notice now the switch to more generalized chatter about nematodes and insects, which has nothing to do with "Competing" microbes...

I this far into it and have only seen pre-requisite background to soils biology 101, with no definitive direction to search for various habitats and competing interactions...

Again: Not Trying To Be Critical...

[phasthound]

Axe,

The term "Soil Food Web" is used to imply a very complex system which involves much more than the individual workings of each organism. The whole is far greater than the sum of the parts.

Soil biologists I've spoken with almost always point out that they might understand less than 1/10th of 1% of what is happening between soil organisms and how the effect plant health.

There has been a great deal of study done on the Soil Food Web both in the scientific world and with field work. Much more needs to be done.

I don't know if you will get specific answers to your questions on lawnsite. They are good questions, keep asking them but also do your own research. Look up "Trichoderma and disease control" for a start.

[Smallaxe]

I would be surprised if we knew that much about soil biology... 1/10th is pretty optimistic, even presumptuous...

Thank for the lead-offs I'll look into what they are saying about that subject matter, and maybe get some new information there...
They must have some ideas beyond anaerobic/aerobic environment for some of their more popular microbes, so I'll keep looking...

[Smallaxe]

Here I found an interesting article, that gives some specific info about Trichoderma...
"***"Don't use trichoderma in dry soil. Moisture is a essential factor for its growth and survivability.
Don't put the treated seeds in direct sun rays." ***

They also talked about the T. growing right along side the pathogen excreting the toxins or wrapping around the hyphae of it... So there it could be assumed that the idea of too much water creating an environment for the pathogen would , not inhibit the T.

[Smallaxe]

Also there are some compatability issues that will help to reassure the buyer, that some environments are good and some are bad...

***"Trichoderma is compatible with Organic manure Trichoderma is compatible with biofertilizers like Rhizobium, Azospirillum, Bacillus Subtilis and Phosphobacteria.
Trichoderma can be applied to seeds treated with metalaxyl or thiram but not mercurials. It can be mixed with chemical fungicides as tank mix."***

BTW, this comes from the following:
http://agropedia.iitk.ac.in/?q=conte...-born-diseases

[Smallaxe]

Here is an interesting concept, that may be a Catch 22 for some turf environs...

http://www.biocontrol.entomology.cor...ichoderma.html
***" Since Trichoderma spp. grow and proliferate best when there are abundant healthy roots, they have evolved numerous mechanisms for both attack of other fungi and for enhancing plant and root growth."***

Could it be that growing healthy roots in turf, is the best(most important) habitat, for the beneficial, Trichoderma??