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Old 01-22-2013, 10:11 AM
CAPT38 CAPT38 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GpsFrontier View Post
While I agree that microorganisms can be beneficial. And as far as I can tell the term "biota" is referring to beneficial microbes. Just the fact that it's a living microorganism does not mean that it's beneficial, so you can't just lump all microorganisms together. Pathogens are microorganisms as well. And yes, if you look at the water through a microscope you will see it's teaming with life, but what life? Beneficial life, or pathogenic life???

If all microorganisms are beneficial, then I guess that the fungi pythium (plant microorganism) that causes root rot is beneficial? It's never been beneficial to me or anyone else, all it does to our plants is kill them. You need to be trained in microbiology before you can even begin tell the difference between a beneficial microbe (biota), and a pathogenic microbe by looking at it (even under a microscope). Beyond the fact that there are two types of microorganisms (beneficial and pathogenic), those can be broken down into two more categories. Plant or animal organisms (both are living organisms). Both plant and animal organisms have both beneficial and pathogenic organisms. So to just lump all microorganisms together and call them beneficial just isn't true.
Great response GPS, and I do agree with you that all micro/organisims are not benifical to your hydroponic system, and you are also correct that biota is mostly benifical organisims sometimes it does get occasional bad ones. Some bacteria is beneficial by providing increased disease resistance for your plant and some bacteria is not so good and will adversely affect plants growth. Its important to know because aerobic bacteria is the good bacteria that you want in your system.....but the more bacteria growth you have is your system the more frequent you should flush your system......organic systems are more prone to pest and disease due to the organic breeding ground provided by the organic fertilizer...... so you ask if you should be worried??? No you shouldnt, this is the reason that we completely flush our system with plain water at least once or twice a month. This should reduce the active bacteria growth, you should be doing this regardless because, the more bacteria you incubate, the more oxygen is used which could eventually suffocate the plant, ( which is a cause of root rot) and most fungi prefer dead and decaying matter. ( most fungi not all ) but if you do notice Blight (pythium) in your system you should clean it immediately and start over. Root-Microbe Symbiosis is a very important factor in plant health, and the presence of mycorrhizal fungi is a plus as they are very effective in providing nutrients to plant roots..........
And then there are the aerobic bacteria which convert ammonia to nitrite one of which is the Nitrosomonas Bacteria they eat ammonia,and they absolutely LOVE it, but Streptomyces is the Doctor of micro organisims it actually secretes compounds that are equal to antibiotics. Trichoderma can be a good fungi to have because they physically attack and destroy pathogenic fungi ( its actually a mold). On the other hand mycorrhizal fungi form an impenetrable physical barrier on the surface of plant roots and help to ward off, pathogens such as fungi pythium,that take advantage of weak and/or damaged roots. Thus the best defense is to keep roots healthy in the first place. You can add silica to your system which will strenghten your plants roots which will help them combat disease.....The disease may still be present, but it is not able to do its damage. Bacillus subtilis, Paenibacillus polymxa, Bacillus circulans, and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens are all benifecal in fighting off pathogens.
So ideally the beneficial microbes out compete pathogenic species and form a protective layer on the surface of living plant roots, in short the good microbes usually fight the bad ones so they are lumped all together in the ecosystem that you created there is no way around it.

>>>>>>>>>>>> How to Avoid a bad case of Root Rot <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
1. Monitor plants and roots frequently
2. Maintain a clean system – change and sterilize reservoir weekly.
3. Design your system to combat pathogens
4. keep your nutrient reservoir between 68 and 72F to maximize root growth ( 80F and up will cause a fast case of root rot )
5. Constant aeration – maintaining high dissolved oxygen levels inhibits pathogens and accelerates root growth
6. Keep a lid on your reservoir to keep plant matter and light out
7. Maintain a low pH of 6.2 or less to inhibit Verticillium, Phytophthora, Fusarium and pythium growth.

Micro Biology is awesome!!! It was my favorite subject in school.

Last edited by CAPT38; 01-22-2013 at 10:17 AM.
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