Teaming with Microbes: The Organic Gardener's Guide to the Soil Food Web, Revised Edition Kindle Edition

My wife bought this three-book series Teaming with Microbes, Nutrients, and Fungi. I have studied a lot of material about gardening, plant physiology, chemistry, microbiology, etc., I am an engineer. This book, and all this series appeals to that. If read in the recommended order, you’ll find there is a ton of information that a person should know about. I especially love what I consider, “The New Frontier" in using the electron microscope. The pictures are really awesome. It has proven a lot of theory and adds real knowledge to old-world thinking, that of formula-based gardening. Does it help you plant a plant? Simply put, no. It assumes the reader is a practicing gardener. There is no magic formula in these books, only the background knowledge that every farmer, and gardener might want to learn about. I took this information and blended it with all of my other experience, and now my garden has exploded into a wonderfully healthy model of nutrient dense plant life, yeah, including some flowers for the wife. But I am into the plant health, and how it relates to my own health, that is really the bottom line. Read this series of comparably cheap books (costs about as much for a good hamburger) and take it in as information, as education that most gardeners seem completely ignorant of, and grow a little bit.

This is a truly great introduction to soil ecology that every serious gardener should be familiar with. It covers all the basic elements as well as how to cultivate and support them, and popularizes soil biology by making it very accessible to the lay person. As other reviewers note there are occasional glaring factual errors (ladybird larvae as soil dwellers for example), and one major one worth noting for its safety implications: they claim that making aerated compost tea poses no risk of culturing E. Coli, since the aeration magically prevents anaerobes. E. Coli is of course a *facultative* anaerobe, which quite happily reproduces aerobically. The science of aerated compost tea's benefits is far from settled, but like most "natural" advocates it is presented as best used "early, often, and heavily" and a panacea.Overall these are minor compared to the value of the information presented. If you have a science background or are skeptically inclined skip the forward and preface... the doggerel about "toxins" and "chemicals" read more like the dreadlocked stoner at the farmer's market than evidence-based educational resource and I nearly returned the book unread. Luckily they do get down to actual biology pretty quickly and I found the book invaluable even with these niggles.

Whilst this is an excellent primer on the subject, the author has made some fundamental errors when explaining the science of things. For example, "If you have relatively few hydrogen ions compared to the rest of what is in solution, the pH is low and the solution is acidic. Similarly, if you have a lot of hydrogen ions in solution, then you have a solution with a high pH, one that is alkaline." This is completely inaccurate as the pH drops (and consequently the acidity increases) as the number of hydrogen ions increases. The author also states that fungi produce acids & bacteria alkali's... how does yoghurt or sauerkraut work then? Aren't the acid producing lactobacillus bacteria?Do buy and read this book BUT don't assume that it is right on everything. Read this book critically, and enjoy the authors amazing ability to explain a complex topic in a relatively simple way.

This is a very nice book. It is very informative for the audience for which it was intended --new people to organic gardening or organic gardeners new to this way of building up the soil organically with as little soil disturbance as possible while working along with nature. The first half of the book discusses how the soil food web works. The second half of the book discusses ways to accomplish building up the soil organically without harsh chemicals.

Great book, the first half covers the soil biology to a degree that some may consider boring, but to me really opened up the door to learning about the vast complexity of the ecosystems underground, and what makes them thrive.Only thing I wish they had gone into detail more on was the compost teas; They talk briefly about cell counts in varying teas but dont show how to extrapolste that by using a microscope (yes some people are that into this). They even encourage the reader to purchase a microscope (and even link one sold on Amazon), but give no instruction on how to utilize the newly purchased instrument to better your gardening.Overall, though, the book is a great introduction to the soil food web and how everything in gardening is interconnected, above ground, or below.

Really enjoyed the book. Learned a lot. Most of the material in the book was new to me, and very worthwhile. I would have given it five stars, but I think the book comes up a little short in real-world application. I understand the concepts of a good soil food web and the disadvantages of chemicals and tilling and how this negatively impacts the soil. The authors didn't seem to offer any ideas on controlling grasses and weeds, other than by mulching, and I suppose pulling by hand. In my garden grasses and weeds can't be controlled by constantly pulling them, unless I want to dedicate 12 or more hours per day to the task (and I don't). I think the principles in the book can be applied properly on a very small scale. I have two 5700 sq ft garden areas. Not a farming operation, but larger scale gardening than most people attempt. Tilling the areas in the spring gives me a fighting chance against weeds and grasses. No amount of mulching seems to control the field grass in the gardens unless the ground is turned and tilled. After reading the book I was still scratching my head about that and looking forward to tilling in the spring. Otherwise I found the book to be excellent.

I have only read the first few chapters and I am hooked already. These guys make some technical stuff really easy to understand. I also did not realise how critical, not just important, good soil biology is.I hated biology and chemistry in science at school; but, Jeff and Wayne have communicated how getting it healthy and right, helps me grow better crops in an interesting and understandable way.If you are into farming, gardening, prepping or anything that relates to the soil use, then this is a must have book in your learning arsenal. It really is paramount to understand how it all works underground.Getting this right will give you a stable and sustainable foundation to deal with most of the diseases and attacks on our gardens.If they still do happen then we are probably not doing it right still or, as it mentions in the book, we are transitioning out of the old and into the new... Just like the seasons.It really is worth the money to learn how to do earth care in your own piece of earth that you care for...I am not a "tree hugging greeny", even though my surname is Trees... (LoL). I just want to put healthy food on my table for my kids and our friends. Understanding the soil and how it all works down there. Helps me to help it, then, it helps me in the end.It's a win-win. Care for it and it then provides produce that cares for you...Go for it.. Live well.

For soil biome geeks, this book is full of fascinating information. I am a total beginner with no scientific background, hoping to learn more and improve the soil on my small holding. I am halfway through reading this book and I know I will return to it often.

When I started reading teaming with microbes I wasn't sure what to expect. I've heard a few things about organic gardening but nothing like this! Now I look at the world very differently. I don't walk on the soil the same, I search out and admire the soil food web in my small garden and other places and love it! Best of all my veggies are looking better than ever!!I would highly recommend this book to everyone because this science will make a massive difference to the world and the way we care for it and bring it back from the mess humans have made.Thank you

I purchased this book as it was recommended to me along with another book i purchased. This book sometimes was difficult for me to understand simply because i am new to understanding how soil actually works and the author really knows his stuff and is talking like a scientist. I read this book twice over to really get the information out of it. Other than my lack of intelligence weighing my understanding down, i am very happy i got this book as it has EVERYTHING you need to know about the soil food web.

Provides a clear, scientific justification for gardening in harmony with nature. Good individual chapters on the role of each set of organisms in the soil food web and on specific techniques to support their contribution. A rare balance of theory and practice that totally transformed the way I think about gardening and its place in the wider world. Hard to recommend too strongly.