It's a Jungle in There: Who's Living in Your Soil?

In the late 1990s, Victor Sahakian, staff researcher at Monrovia’s Dayton, Oregon, nursery came up with the idea of composting the ground plant material, using the heat of composting to eliminate pests. After some experimentation, an aerated static pile method of composting was shown to be effective at eliminating the pests. In this system, a 1000-yd3 pile was built with perforated pipes in the pile. A blower is set up to blow air into the pipes, which dispersed the air throughout the pile, keeping it aerated. It is important that the compost pile be aerated in order to promote the growth of thermophyllic organisms which create heat in the pile while decomposing the organic matter. These organisms colonize the pile, and occupy the space which helps to keep harmful organisms from colonizing the pile.

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Author(s): W. Suttle

Section: Soil Management and Growing Media