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  • From: "David Tannen" <david AT centerville.net>
  • To: "Market Farming" <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Mychorrizal Innoculants
  • Date: Fri, 20 Jan 2006 14:19:43 -0600

Nan,
 
It is my understanding that Sclerotium rolfsii is not airborne, but is in the soil and crawls along the ground.  In other words the spores do not travel in the air.  This is an important distinction for me as I have this fungal disease in my greenhouse and if it is airborne I am fighting a losing battle.
 
I am combatting this problem by innoculating my transplants with trichoderma, adding lots of leguminous compost to support beneficial mychorrizal populations and growing mustards as cover crops.  Support for these methods comes from Carl Sams at the University of Tennesee (
http://www.sare.org/reporting/report_viewer.asp?pn=LS03-152&ry=2003&rf=0 and http://www.sare.org/reporting/report_viewer.asp?pn=GS00-002&ry=2002&rf=1), farmer Dale Gies (http://www.newfarm.org/features/2005/0505/gies/index.shtml) and greenhouse guru Steve Moore.  Steve verbally suggested using leguminous compost to support beneficial fungi.  Dr. Carl Sams told me that Sclerotium rolfsii is not airborne.
 
It is extremely important that I have the correct information in order to combat this terrible disease.  Please let me know the source of your information that Sclerotium rolfsii is airborne so that I can adjust my protocal accordingly.  Thanks.
 
David
 
 ----- Original Message -----
Sent: Thursday, January 19, 2006 4:28 PM
Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Mychorrizal Innoculants

In the winter of 04/05 I inoculated our potting mix last spring with two different products from The Green Spot (www.greenmethods.com): "Mycostop" (streptomyces bacteria) and "Rootshield" (Trichoderma harzianum).   The two products were added to all our fresh potting mix.  The mix was used for filling pots for transplanting plants, not for the germination trays. The plants stay in these pots for at least a year (50 different species).
 
I also innoculated into the soil of the permanent raised beds later in spring 05 when temps were higher.
 
We had experienced the loss of at least 1/3 of our perennial medicinal plants that were in raised beds outdoors the summer of 2004 to Sclerotium rolfsii (soil fungal disease that is airborne and ever present in our area).
 
We chose to inoculate our potting mix in the winter of 04/05 assuming we would face the same challenge....we also innoculated all the raised beds that had perennial medicinal plants surviving into the spring of 2005.
 
Since this was not a scientific experiment, we didn't have any control pots (of uninoculated potting mix), so whether it worked or not, I can't say.  
 
We had less loss to the Sclerotium rolfsii outdoors in our beds this past summer 2005, but again, no control plots and too many variables (there was a different species in each of the raised beds, sometimes three different species and the weather and watering schedules were different last summer, as was the weather).
 
I do think The Green Spot is a fine company, and that we got what we paid for in terms of a living product.  They are very helpful over the phone too!
 
nan at dancing goats farm, n. mississippi


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