MycoGold, a better mycrorrhiza product ?

[forgetiwashere]

1 - This is perfect for prevention of fungas gnats... as the larvae live of fungus and rotting organic material. So trichoderma is helping on the fungal front as well as helping decompose the organic matter quicker tahn the larvae can feed off of it.

 

That is why I recommend it as a Preventative as you want to get rid of the conditions that the larvae will thrive in.

 

bacillus thuringiensis sunsp. israeliensis is a bacteria that will kill the larvae, it can be used in conjunction with other preventative measures, but I would honestly be looking at other measures first as it is quite a costly product

 

Remember preventative measures isn't just about killing off the first signs of the pest, more so it is making the environment unfavourable for the pest and or disease.

 

Hence making it good as a gnat preventative.

 

i know im going to come off like a know it all here but i have been working with all this stuff for a long time, brewing teas and what not and i have done a lot of reading and have some experience to back it up.

 

mycos and trichodermas dont break down organic matter. the plant actually provides them with food. its a symbiotic relationship. the fact the fungus is feeding off of the plant is the reason it causes an immuno response.

 

if you want to break down rotting organic matter you need enzymes, enzymes are produced by beneficial bacteria not fungus. the bacteria secrete enzymes to break down the organic matter into something they can feed on. this is why brewing a tea works so well. not only do the bacteria breed in a tea, multiplying but they are also feeding heavily producing a lot of enzymes. you end up with something similar to hygrozyme etc.

 

im fairly new to coco but one thing i have learned quickly is gnats love coco. pretty much if you have coco you have gnats, well at least in my area you do.

bacillus thuringiensis is the ultimate prevention. it doesnt kill gnats it kills larvae. you will still get the odd adult gnat flying around but they wont breed and multiply.

 

im not saying dont use myco and trichoderma. they are brilliant and i highly recommend them but if you want to prevent gnats you really should invest in some bacillus thuringiensis.

 

look for mosquito dunks they are on ebay for around $8, you can brew them to breed the bacteria or you can crush them up into powder or if you have a res you can just leave a dunk in the res. Or you can buy a bag of bactivate which still shouldnt be too expensive but will have to be bought in bulk (1x 25kg bag will last a lifetime and is great in the veggie garden or whatever and i doubt it would be more than $50 which is what you would pay for a small tub of great white). dont buy bactivate plus which you can get in smaller packages it doesnt have the right bacteria.

 

the three pronged response is the best way to go. mycos trichodermas and bacillus working together for a healthy rootzone.

[Frank Reynolds]

No problem mate, 

 

Trichoderma is not a myccorhizal fungi, it does not infect host roots Rather it colonizes the rhizosphere, excreting specific enzymes that aid in plant growth etc. As far as enzymes (cannazyme etc) go, they only break organic matter down so far, you need trichoderma to completely get rid of such waste from media as cellulose of dead root material etc. 

 

Again i've been growing in coco for ages, too this day i've had a few fungas gnats here and there, but to i have never had my media completely infected with the larvae of gnats. Now i use BT. israeliensis to all hell in ym greenhouse but i have never used it inside??? 

 

Unfortunetly outside im still trying to get on top of my watering regimes, so BT pellets it is which do work great. 

 

But i also have heaps of experience Fungas gnats, think 10,000 infected plants... as well as other pests/diseases, and let me tell you preventing the larvae of the fungas gnats from ever able to call your media home by adding trichoderma/leaving the top part of pot to dry out, will ensure that fungas gnats arent able to live in your media. 

 

I'm not saying bt aint a good thing, You can use BT. israeliensis but imo not needed and quite expensive is what i am trying to get at, and people overlook how effective drying out the media is at killing of larvae as well. 

[forgetiwashere]

I thank you frank and I eat my hat. I was wrong, trichoderma do produce enzymes. I just spent a good while reading more about trichoderma and it seems I had lumped them in with mmyco's because they are a fungus. I know better now thanks to you. Sorry if I was being a dick.

 

Im waiting on a call back from the bactivate rep to find out how much there product actually is but that aside bt shouldnt be that expensive there are loads of bt products available at bunnings, hell yates even have a bt product available at coles and woolies. It just often goes under the name dipel. Dipel is the common name for bt. A little bit goes a long way because they colonise your media. No need to apply every feed. I usually just throw some in whenever I upcan

 

Once I hear back about bactivate I will let you know. Im going to buy some to see if its as good as green bio

[Frank Reynolds]

No worries forget,

 

In regards to BT, yes there are many products, and at first I thought dipel was the same, but after a bit more reading it is in fact a different sub species. Afaik dipel is bacillus thuringiensis subsp. konigii (sp?) which only works for caterpillars. The one we are after is bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israeliensis which attacks the fungas gnat larvae as well as mosquito larvae. I have not seen a product containing this sub species in bunnings myself, and the one at the hydro store is like $50 for 750ml maybe?

[forgetiwashere]

Ok I will be sure to ask the bactivate guy which subspecies bactivate contains. Thank frank

[Train Wreck]

I found this info on Bactivate, to find someone that sells nearby is a little harder...

 

BACTIVATE BACTERIA OUTLINED

 

Bacillus thuringiensis has a strong ability to decompose organic nitrogen components in the soil. It is widely known for its defensive and offensive capacities against soil and plant pathogens. Bacillus thuringiensis will create a crystalline structure which many pests feed upon. Once ingested the crystalline structure will cause paralysis of the pests digestive tract causing starvation and eventual death.

 

Bacillus megaterium has a strong ability to decompose lecithin, calcium phosphate and phosphor tricalcium. The bacteria changes animal and plant remains in the soil into phosphorus salt and those minerals readily available for fast uptake for plants to use for healthy growing. Phosphorus is one of the three major or primary nutrients for plants that were originally rich in the soil. However, most agricultural soils have a lack of phosphorus nutrients because the element is mostly in the organic state which is hardly dissolved and remains as an inorganic substance. Coupled with this is the practice of using phosphate fertilisers in large amounts in search of high yields. This leads to more phosphorus compounds sitting undissolved in the soil. The bacillus bacteria in Bactivate with its phosphorus decomposing effect promote the dissolvability of the inorganic elements that are often already sitting in the soils after heavy over fertilisation which can readily be absorbed by plants. Bacillus megaterium therefore is of great assistance to improve the utilisation of the phosphorus element in the soil for increased and healthy plant growth.

 

Bacillus mucilaginosus is a silicate bacteria which has been accepted and researched earlier and more by former Soviet and Chinese scientists. Silicate bacteria are special in the soil as they decompose any potassium minerals, release potassium and boast azotification. The bacteria metabolize and cause the production of organic acids, amino acids, amylose and hormones for plant utilisation. Meanwhile, the reproduction of the bacteria also suppresses pathogenic cells. The level of potassium can be raised by 33-34%. At present, silicate fertilisers are applied on more than 30 crops in over 20 provinces and districts in China. The bacteria demonstrate the effect for improving the quick-acting phosphate and potassium in soil, thus raising yield and quality as one of the most important elements in microbial fertilisers.

 

Bacillus subtilis is known for its capacity to multiply quickly in the soil. It also shares ability common to the other bacteria in Bactivate in that they have the ability to form a tough, protective endospore, allowing the organisms to tolerate extreme environmental conditions. It has a strong capacity to produce proteinase, diastase and pectase. It is the major bacillus that decomposes animal and plant remains into available nitrogen in the soil. These bacteria live within specialized nodules on the root systems of plants, where they process atmospheric nitrogen into a form available for the plants to use. Thus bacillus subtillis frees up soil nutrients in both soil and air for plant use. I is also known as an antagonistic organism against plant pathogens combining with Bacillus thuriengensis to suppress plant pests and pathogens.

 

Bacillus licheniformis This facultative anaerobe bacteria proliferates in soil. It is capable of decomposing protein and lignin to provide nutrition for plants in forms such as amino acids. It can effectively decompose organic matter in the soil and thereby provides nutrition for the growth of plants

[Faith]

I'm loving this thanks to all the posters you are explaining beneficials I need to learn about right before my eyes.  Much Thanks!

Peace all. v

[ethnoman]

I also use MycoApply. Works well from what I've observed. Smells funky!

[cap'n yNg]

I'm loving this thanks to all the posters you are explaining beneficials I need to learn about right before my eyes.  Much Thanks!

Peace all. v

+1 to that Vinno. 

Fantastic informative thread!! Id love to have that kind of knowledge. Thank you guys for passing it on! 

 

yNg

[forgetiwashere]

I contacted bactivate today and they definitely only sell in 25kg bags or more and at $70 per bag its more than I would like to outlay. The shelf life if stored in a cool dry area is around 12mths and theres no way I could go through all that in 12 mths. Not even if I used it on my veggies and lawn