It will help but there is a much cheaper way!

If you take a bulb planter to any healthy forest and remove a plug of soil you will capture this and other fungi including mycorrhizal and VAM, plus many of the organisms required for plant growth. Now do the same in a lawn or meadow and you will inoculate the planting area. The reason for producing these things commercially is many areas are little biological deserts so they need to replaced. You donÂt need to inoculate acres just the little spot where you are planting the hosta if it needs it.

"A teaspoon of forest soil can contain up to 40 miles of fungal hyphae."

The fertilizer charge is organic and small exactly what you will get from organic mulch.

eo,

So are you taking a core of soil from each location and then do you work it into the planting area. How big of a planting area does this recipe support?

This is super interesting!!!

Hi Greenguy,

I add this to all of my potted plants and tissue culture plants. I think it really helps to get the new roots established. For me, its all about getting a good root system going :)

Chris

"I add this to all of my potted plants"
Chris

It is more difficult to get things going in pots so purchased inoculants makes sense. A rich biological society grows in the soil at soil temperatures and do not do as well in pots. Dr Elaine Ingham recommends using AACT "aerated activated compost tea" in pots to keep up the biological activity.

"So you are taking a core of soil from each location and then do you work it into the planting area. How big of a planting area does this recipe support?"

This is an inoculation not creating a rich microbiological area. The thing is we cannot deliver these organisms they must move to the plant roots more or less on their own. It won't hurt and may help to pour this into the planting hole but they tend to move where they find food. The big thing is feed the soil, which is organic matter in the form of mulch on top of the soil. The soil works from the top down, certain organisms attack first then it all goes down step at a time with each group consuming the other until the organic matter is humus then things like mycorrhizal and VAM and other fungi living around and on the roots send out hyphae that brings back nutrients to the roots or root area from this rich soil.

Mycorrhizal is really a beautiful symbiotic relationship, it live off the exudates from the roots and feeds the plant to make the plant grow so it will shed food for the fungi.

Now I recommend mixed yardwaste compost as mulch from a municipal compost facility because it is so varied bringing varied food to your garden soil. Take soil from any area growing well, again such as a forest and spread a dusting under the mulch each time you re-mulch although after the process is going well just adding mulch should do it.

I kind of thought it would be best on tc's and small bare root plants.

Chris, have you noticed a difference since using it (growth rate or plant loss). The roots from the plants i got from you were fantastic but you may not have been using it then.

I am hoping it will speed the process of getting the plants/ roots established to reduce the 3 year rule to as little as possible.

my friend that uses a similar product on trees thinks it really helps the roots 'connect' with the soil and get them pumping and growing sooner.

I figured it was worth a try.

"I kind of thought it would be best on tc's and small bare root plants."
Greenguy

I agree, since you are serious about what goes on in your pots and in the soil try bought and collected microbiology. What you bought is not complete but good.

AND it is more important on tree roots than hosta roots.

Does the product have mycorrhizal as well as the VAM?

"I am hoping it will speed the process of getting the plants/ roots established to reduce the 3 year rule to as little as possible."
Greenguy

The sooner you get a rich micro-biological process the better, BIG BUTT you canÂt hurry up the 3 year process but you will have more at the end of 3 years with good biology. Guess that sounds like IÂm talking out of both sides of my mouth. But it takes 3 years to get the soil really humming.

contains myconate - mycorrhizal fungi

the plus in phc flower saver plus is a all organice fert. - feather meal, bone meal, fish meal, seaweed meal

also has the vam fungi, rhizosphere bacillus spp (whatever that is)

from the web site
PHC Flower Saver Plus is a root zone treatment for landscape plantings designed to improve the health, vigor and stress resistance of most landscape plants. It contains four select species of VA mycorrhizal (VAM) fungi in long-lasting spore form that colonize roots to improve absorption of water and nutrients.

Key product benefits of PHC Flower Saver Plus 3-4-3:

Encourages healthy growth and abundant flowering
Helps reduce labor and replacement costs
Contains organic fertilizers and beneficial bacteria to promote natural fertility

they also make a product to spread on top of the soil

interesting stuff imo

Here is a link that might be useful: link to product page

"the plus in phc flower saver plus is a all organice fert. - feather meal, bone meal, fish meal, seaweed meal"
Greenguy

Let me address pots and not the soil.

In pots we have to put almost everything in the pot and it is fine so I could recommend it but it is way, way WAY to expensive to be worth it in the soil when there are many cheap ways to recycle good organic and micro-biological product for the soil.

I read the fact sheet and didn't notice the mycorrhizal in the mix. The main one is glomales and I just glanced at the list for that, it can be found in most any forest duff.

The rhizosphere is the area immediately around the roots, so they must be saying their biology will help populate the roots and promote growth, IÂm sure there is science behind this and should work in pots.

IÂm not taking you are them to task on this just talking about it all in sort of general terms.

Is there a chance that after all the years of adding organic "stuff" to my soil that I have a microbiological flora similar to that of a forest?
Linda C

Is there a chance that after all the years of adding organic "stuff" to my soil that I have a microbiological flora similar to that of a forest?
Linda C

Simple answer, no.

You take as I did scraped off red clay and add organic matter almost yearly and the soil organisms start to take over and change the clay to clay/organic matter.

The plants that are planted do what is called "selecting" for organisms and the organisms select for plants. The point in introducing a rich variety is so the organisms the hosta garden can have the organisms they need.

In the end you will have soil unique to that spot and rich in the things a hosta and whatever else is there needs.

Back to adding forest duff and some meadow/lawn inoculants and you have a wide range of microorganisms, the ones your hosta needs are looking for the hosta they need so they get married and promise to take care of each other