To this end, has anyone performed a side-by-side comparison? Or know of a study that was done on garden legumes (beans, peas, limas, cowpeas, peanuts, etc.) independent of the inoculant manufacturers?

I have always used the proper inoculant on all my legumes each year... and that is the problem; the bacteria are already present in my soil from previous applications. Any trial by me would only demonstrate the relative advantage of annual application of inoculant, vice plants grown with the residual population alone.

To perform a proper experiment on the relative advantages of inoculant application during planting, both the treated & control would need to be grown on new ground (or where legumes have not been grown previously).

Anyone interested?

Now that planting time is approaching for most of the U.S., I am hoping that more GW members will take a greater interest in this experiment.

Jason

It looks like this post got lost and no one really attempted this experiment.

I would like to give it a try next season. I plan on growing Pole beans next year for the first time in ground that has never been under vegetable cultivation(my backyard yard). I will make a note for my next year planting to try out this experiment.

I assume I can get "Legume Inoculant" at my local garden supply centers? Any application advice?

thanks,

Dean

pm2

I asked the master gardeners at the farmers market, and they said that most commercial seeds come pre-inoculated. Said something about there is a visible pick or white dusty coating.

Still, it never hurts to experiment. Just remember, the inoculant is a living bacteria, so store it in a cool place, and it is best to use any inoculant purchased in the year you get it.

It was quite interesting...luckily I had ordered a pack of inoculant online, but wanted to pick up another due to the qty of legumes I'll be planting. Have you ever been looked at as though you were from outer space? Exactly my experience when I asked the gentleman from Home Depot, where their seed inoculant was. "Our what?" he exclaimed, "What's it for?" So I proceeded to explain. He looked at me like I was nuts and said, "It sounds like a real sophisticated product and you'll probably have to go to a real nursery to get it."

I was a bit surprised...but hey, what do you want from HD?

Anyway, I am currently having to plant in containers, so I figured I'd test out half of the legumes (both peas and beans and about 40 varieties) and see the difference in growth and production. Obviously, there is no residual inoculant from previous years, in the buckets. All new soil etc. So, when I get to harvest time, or if I notice any difference between the plants during the growing season, I'll post my results. It will be fun to see which do better or if there will be a difference.

Toni