The Organic Garden

microlife

Micro-organisms permeate the soil, water and air and have existed for billions of years before any plants or animals existed, and is the most abundant lifeform on earth. The functions of most micro-organisms are benign, or very much to our benefit, and to destroy them would be to destroy ourselves. One gram of healthy soil can contain between one and ten billion micro-organisms.

Apart from the obvious visible animals to be found in the soil(e.g. worms, beetles, etc), there is a milliad of creatures that we are unable to observe. These are micro-organisms, all doing their best to convert humus and other organic matter to plant food with varying degrees of microbiotic activity. We need to be as helpful as we can by providing as ideal a habitat for this soil life as we can. Plenty of organic matter placed on the surface of the soil as a mulch and left for the worms to incorporate will be the best, though not the only thing we can do. If we avoid using harsh chemicals like artificial fertilisers, pesticides and herbicides, we will be really helping the soil life to flourish. A healthy population of soil micro-organisms will maintain an ecological balance, preventing the onset of problems from the viruses or other pathogens that live in the soil.