During the lockdown, people have spent more time in their gardens. And it turns out that outside is the safest place to be, so making our outside spaces productive, beautiful and teeming with life is important.
Going green has leapt up the agenda for many people. There is renewed interest in sustainable living, being in tune with nature, and avoiding pollutants like chemicals wherever possible. As we know, overuse of chemicals and fertilisers has damaged soil and plant health, much like the overuse of antibiotics has damaged human health. Therefore, just like humans, plants and soils also need a probiotic. A single teaspoon of good quality soil contains approximately 1 billion microorganisms.
Scientists tell us that soil with a diverse microbial community promotes plant growth, while soil with more homogeneous microbial makeup suppresses growth. Just like us, plants have a microbiome too. It is called the rhizosphere. It's a narrow area of soil very close to the roots where bacteria and microbes influence plant growth and disease suppression. Microbes work to convert nutrients into food for the roots to absorb, produce hormones that stimulate growth, prevent infections, filter out metals and contaminants from the soil and release nutrients.
So, in order to have healthy plants and soil we need to put more microorganisms back into the soil.
Why gardening with microbes is also good for you: Digging in the dirt will make you feel better, why? The digging stirs up microbes in the soil, which are then inhaled and stimulate serotonin, the happy hormone, making you feel more relaxed and happier. And antioxidants produced by microbes give fruit and vegetables their colour and flavour. Research shows that these antioxidants directly benefit health by stimulating the immune system, regulating hormones and slowing the growth of cancer cells.
Our new complete gardening toolkit: I am Sue Allen, co-founder of Microbz. Alongside my husband, I have been brewing microbes for the last 10 years and using them all over our farm in Wiltshire. Together we have developed this range of probiotic gardening products which put billions of microbes back into gardens to nurture healthy soil, grow healthy plants, make thriving compost and keep weeds and pests away. Today we're launching our complete gardening toolkit. It is everything you need for a chemical free garden, rich with microbes. Put the good bugs back into your garden and let them do the hard work for you.
Look after soil and plant health with Plant Boost, Soil Conditioner, get amazing compost with Compost Activator, and maintain a clear pond with Pond Balance.
