Can Microbes Help Your Garden Grow?

3 min read-

For anyone trying to grow pepper plants or other kinds of food in the garden, there are a couple of different ways to aid plant growth and development – some that may even shock you. One of the best ways is with beneficial microbes that live in the soil and inside plants. Just as there are more microbial cells in our bodies than human cells, the same is true for plants. Plant associated microbes act similarly to the human microbiome which aids in the digestion of food, access to nutrients, and defense against harmful intruders. More importantly, the microbes inside plants can protect them against temperature and water stress, something that happens every year in most gardens.

Microbes Help Your Garden Grow

Beneficial microbes in plants can help them in a variety of ways. Some pathogens’ development is slowed. They can accomplish this by outcompeting or inhibiting pathogens.

All plants in nature have symbiotic relationships with microorganisms (fungi and bacteria). Microbes and plants can have a mutually beneficial connection, which means they benefit each other. This can comprise of nitrogen-fixing and phosphorus solubilizing bacteria and fungi such as mycorrhizae that offer nutrients to plants that would otherwise be unavailable or fungal endophytes that live inside plants and confer heat and water stress tolerance.

Top 4 Benefits of Adding Microbes in Your Gardens: 

1. Releasing nutrients into the soil 
   Microbes are necessary for releasing nutrients into your garden soil, where they are needed by your plants. In all ecosystems, microbes play an important role in nutrient recycling. The carbon and nitrogen cycles are perhaps the two most well-known processes.
2. Nutrient uptake in plants
   Did you know that microbes are required for plants to absorb these nutrients? To get nutrients from the soil, most plants rely on mycorrhizal partnerships. Plant roots and certain soil fungi form symbiotic relationships known as mycorrhizae. The fungi develop in tiny hairs that are finer than the tiniest root hair and serve as vital channels for delivering nutrients, moisture, and carbohydrates from the soil to the plant roots.
3. Soil structure
   Organic matter is abundant in healthy soil. This organic matter is necessary for the soil to retain moisture and nutrients, as well as to nourish the soil microbes. Many gardeners and farmers grow dependent on fertilizers, insecticides, and herbicides when soils lack organic matter. Until recently, it was considered that the major source of organic matter in the soil was dead plants and animals. Recent developments in our knowledge of soil formation, however, show that the most permanent forms of soil carbon come from dead microbial organisms rather than dead plant components. While plant matter is the primary source of carbon in our soils, it is microbes that consume the plant matter and ensure that at least part of the carbon is maintained in the soil. Microbes are the foundation of a healthy soil structure that is rich in organic materials.
4. Increased disease resistance
   Farmers and gardeners have known for a long time that particular soils protect plants from certain soil-borne illnesses. Disease-suppressive soils are what they’re called. Beneficial bacteria in the soil are thought to have inhibitory effects on specific disease-causing pathogens. These helpful soil bacteria aid in disease prevention. Furthermore, optimum microbial activity will result in better, more productive soils, allowing plants to grow stronger and healthier while also being more resistant to pests and diseases.