Fungus-fermented corncob scraps make soil crumblier and cucumbers grow much bigger
Wei X, Pan Y, Sun M, Yao G, Feng S
Soil Health
If your garden soil packs down hard or drains poorly, a small dose of fungus-fermented plant waste worked into the soil could loosen it and feed your vegetables, and this trial shows that less can beat more.
Researchers took corncob waste left over from sugar production, let a soil fungus called Trichoderma viride break it down, and mixed it into pots of soil. The soil held together in sturdier crumbs, had more air and water space, and held more nutrients. Cucumber plants grew bigger, with up to 60% more growth above ground, and a mix of about three-quarters of one percent by weight worked best overall.
Key Findings
Aboveground cucumber biomass increased by up to 59.80% compared with untreated soil.
Macroaggregates rose by 3.12% (T3, 1.0%) and 6.09% (T4, 1.25%), and mean weight diameter of soil aggregates rose 26.81-29.76% at 1.0-1.5% application.
The 0.75% rate (T2) gave the highest porosity, chlorophyll content and net photosynthetic rate, and was the most balanced rate overall; plant nitrogen and phosphorus were highest under T2 and T3.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Mixing leftover corncob material fermented with a beneficial fungus into potting soil made the soil crumb together better and grew bigger cucumber plants. A 0.75% mix by weight gave the best all-around results, and plant top growth rose by up to about 60%.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Solid Fermentation Products of Trichoderma viride Improve Soil Aggregation, Soil Nutrient Status and Plant Growth.
Soil degradation caused by intensive agricultural management has become a major constraint on sustainable crop production, highlighting the need for multifunctional soil amendments capable of simul...
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
Species Mentioned
Was this useful?
Want to tell us more? (optional)
Thanks for the note!
Something went wrong — please try again.
Too many submissions. Try again in an hour.
Targeted knockout of a host peroxisomal peptidase confers field resistance to...
The corn in your grocery store and the staple food keeping millions of East African families fed is under serious threat from a viral disease that can wipe o...
Maize, also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. The leafy stalk of the plant gives rise to male inflorescences or tassels which produce pollen, and female inflorescences called ears. The ears yield grain, known as kernels or seeds. In modern ...