Solving the Compost Conundrum: Utilizing Microbial Inoculation to Increase Fertility and Soil Health on Small Farms

Commodities

Practices

This project's aim will be the reduction of inputs into soil profiles by small farmers, decrease in costs to early season production, increase in biodiversity of the soil, and an injection into the local economy while simultaneously lowering the farm's carbon footprint.

By inoculating locally-available, less expensive and lower-quality compost with a microbially complete product, farmers will reduce early season costs, create a more sustainable soil, contribute to the local economy (rather than outsourcing to nationally-recognized high-quality compost purveyors), and benefit from a more resilient crop as a result of the healthier soil. 

The soil's ability to maintain its health through this process will be invaluable to farmers who grow on a small-scale, intensive manner, and rely on soil health practices to produce nutrient-dense food. By making compost more alive and longer lasting, small, diversified crop farmers can reduce costs, increase yield, and improve soil health in a relatively short time.

Objectives

1. To prove that microbial life can improve poor compost quality
2. To grow more food with fewer economic and off-farm organic inputs
3. To improve plant disease and pest resistance
4. To extend the life of locally-sourced, lower quality compost
5. To decrease farm costs during early season bed preparations
6. To educate small farms about soil health practices that can achieve the above