No-Till Farmer
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Navigating the ‘Wild West’ of Biological Products

December 10, 2024

I’ve heard some people refer to biologicals as the “Wild West” of farming. Huge potential, little regulation. How do you know which ones could work on your farm? Soil health specialist and No-Till Innovator Jim Hoorman helps navigate some of the key factors to consider with biologicals.

“I think farmers need to understand the different functions. We have mycorrhizal fungi, there’s like 250 of those. There’s maybe 34-35 that I know of that impact corn and about 30 some that affect soybeans. The hardest part with biologicals is you have to know what you’re starting out with, and you need to figure out what you need and where you get them. None of those are easy. They’re all expensive. That makes it tough. For example, we’ve got fungus, we’ve got bacteria. Something most people haven’t learned a whole lot about is pseudomonas, and those are the ones involved in rhizophagy. If you have pseudomonas bacteria in your soil, they’re like a double edge sword. Under the right conditions, they help the crop to grow but under bad conditions they cause disease. You have to have the right soil to make all those work.”   

Hoorman will dive deep into the topic during a presentation at the upcoming National No-Tillage Conference, Jan. 7-10 in Louisville, Ky.


Watch the full version of this episode of Conservation Ag Update.

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Noah Newman

Noah Newman started at Lessiter Media in March 2022 as Associate Editor for No-Till Farmer, Strip-Till Farmer and Cover Crop Strategies. He previously worked in broadcast journalism as a sports anchor/reporter for television stations in central Illinois and most recently Jackson, Mississippi, where he was named the state’s sportscaster of the year by the National Sports Media Association. The Cleveland, Ohio, native enjoys engaging with growers, learning extensively about their operations, and sharing impactful stories with the audience.

Contact: nnewman@lessitermedia.com