Re: [Aroid-l] A. titanum, organically

From: "Jared R. McKinley" <jaredr.mckinley at gmail.com> on 2009.03.09 at 21:52:17 I raise spores of specific mycorrhizae, and keep my compost as aerobic and fungal as possible to raise all the native beneficial fungi I can (same with the beneficial bacteria, nematodes, and microarthropods--feeding it lots of fungal foods like kelp, fish emulsion, and keeping it on the woody side). I use the microscope to monitor my compost, and tea inoculants). EM is mostly some interesting facultative anaerobic microbes that are raised on cabbage in Japan. I find their product to be inconsistent (I monitored the product myself through the microscope). It is an ok food even if the microbes are dormant or dead. If you have not already done so, a good starting place is here: http://www.soilfoodweb.com/ Elaine Ingham teaches VERY interesting courses on making good quality compost and compost tea. I don't agree with EVERYTHING she says. But I agree with her more than anyone else out there. Her background is in microbiology and she works directly with a very diverse group of people (everyone from agriculture outfits, to nurseries, to compost companies, landscapers, home gardeners, botanical gardens, etc.). The books available on their website are great. jared Dear Jared, Aloha. Others on this forum can advise you on Amorphophallus. I utilize organic growing methods although all the new nursery stock I buy has been grown in a conventional way. =A0I am a firm believer in vermiculture and my composting worms produce great castings and compost tea. =A0I also have large compost piles and I have used a product called E-M or effective microorganisms. =A0It is still a mystery to me exactly how it works, but it has shown promise in my garden. I use it only sporadically at any rate. =A0Other than that, I do not use heroic methods to grow my plants. =A0I do not have a big pest problem and I only spot treat things with an organic orange solvent if I need to. =A0Julius told me to use well rotted cow manure on my plants and I can attest to the effectiveness of dung. I have also used horse manure with good results. =A0I only spot fertilize as well. =A0I like to grow my plants slow and tough...they can resist pests in a better fashion. In potted plants, I use coconut chunks with great results. =A0However, the shredded coir product has not performed well...it decomposes too quickly in my humidity and plants can suffer. Can you elaborate on the fungal based techniques you use? By the way...your Anthurium looks most like Anthurium andicola from Veracruz, Mexico. Aloha, Leland --000e0cd1519aeb285c0464b6a5a7----===============5506091947369753269==

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