Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
In
Teaming with Microbes, Jeff Lowenfels revealed the fascinating facts around the soil food web, all of the tiny organisms that live in soil and aid a plants growth. In
Teaming with Nutrients, he explored how those organisms aid in the uptake of nutrients. And in
Teaming with Fungi, he detailed the symbiotic relationship between plants and fungi--the most important organism living in the soil.
In his new book Teaming with Bacteria, Lowenfels digs into the science behind how endophytic bacteria supplies nutrients to a large array of plants and explains, in accessible language, how this information applies to home gardeners, small-scale farmers, and cannabis growers. Based on cutting-edge science cutting-edge science that will help gardeners increase plant health and productivity, Teaming with Bacteria is a must-have addition to every organic gardener's library.
Synopsis
In his new book
Teaming with Bacteria, Lowenfels digs into the science behind how endophytic bacteria supply nutrients to a large array of plants. He explains, in accessible language, how this information applies to home gardeners, small-scale farmers, and cannabis growers. Based on cutting-edge science that will help gardeners increase plant health and productivity,
Teaming with Bacteria is a must-have addition to every organic gardener's library.
Synopsis
A must-read handbook for organic gardeners and small-scale growers.
Thanks to research conducted over the last few decades, we know that most plants get a significant portion of their nutrients by attracting endophytic bacteria--bacteria that live inside a plant's cells. Through a complex process, plant cells harvest the nitrogen and other nutrients in a bacterium's cell wall and expel the bacterium's protoplasts back into the soil where they rebuild their cell walls, start feeding again, and repeat the cycle. Interesting, you may think, but why does this matter? As it turns out, it matters a lot. The bottom line is this: without endophytic bacteria, plants get fewer nutrients and cannot develop properly.
Teaming with Bacteria not only explains the rhizophagy cycle; it shows you how to harness this amazing process to increase productivity and plant health. In addition, endophytic bacteria increase a plant's tolerances to abiotic and biotic stresses and controlling pathogens. This is exactly what we need if we are to deal effectively with climate change, soil loss, and feeding a rapidly burgeoning population. Gardeners, farmers, and other growers must adjust best practices--and develop new ones--to ensure that the rhizophagy cycle can operate at its most efficient pace and that the right endophytic bacteria can do what they are supposed to do.
Just as Teaming with Microbes introduced gardeners and growers to the soil food web, Teaming with Bacteria adds to that science by sharing the latest research on endophytic bacteria (bacteria that live inside plants) and rhizophagy (plants "eating" bacteria)--discoveries that have profound implications for the practices of home gardeners and small-scale growers.