The EM® Difference

How EM can impact Trace Elements

17 essential nutrients for healthy plant growth have been identified. We often talk about the macro elements e.g. NPK but the smaller trace elements (or microelements) can often be treated as an afterthought. However it is often the case that they provide the key to how well the other nutrients are used and how well the plant grows, develops and yields.The impact of effective microorganisms is that they play a vital and complex role in plant development and health and therefor the health of whom or what is eating these plants e.g. Humans or Livestock. These trace elements promote the strong, steady growth of crops to help maximise growth potential and produce greater crop. The specific areas trace elements will play a role in crop development is through root development, fruit setting and grain filling, seed viability and plant vigor and health. Trace elements also play a role in stimulating soil biology by proving a food source and contributing to the nutrient cycles in the rhizosphere.Trace element deficiency can be a major factor in a crop delivering poor yields. This results from stunted growth, dieback, poor germination and even plant death.Intensive farming especially cropping removes trace elements form the soil, in addition intensive NPK fertiliser use especially Phosphate can reduce the availability of some TE. It is important for levels of trace elements to be analysed via a comprehensive soil test and then included as part of a fertiliser mix based on cropping rotation and farming system. How EM can impact Trace Elements

EM stimulates the biological environment in the soil to enhance the microbial interaction with plant roots to improve nutrient availability in soil for plant uptake. EM has a dramatic effect on adding and stimulating other microbes in the soil. This creates a diverse and active soil environment. A highly active soil life continually increase soil nutrient availability by transforming unavailable nutrients into bio-available forms for plant uptake which often is the case with trace elements. Microbes can also provide essential nutrients to the plant by releasing critical nutrients when they die.Trial Data

This trial on the Impact of Effective Microorganisms  (EM) on development of Barley, Corn and Chard plants and published in the International Scientific Journal looked at the impact of EM on trace element uptake.Table 2 below shows that EM had a statistically significant impact on Trace element uptake including showing that EM was most elevated in the first season in magnesium content in grain plants while EM s in the second season gave higher beneficial outcome on leaf calcium content in Swiss Chard plant. In addition, Cu, Mn, Zn, and Fe substance of leaf, and grain was essentially (p < 0.05) higher in the EM fertiliser plot than in the control plot. Plants treated with the EM indicated critical improvements when contrasted with the untreated plants.This trial published in the Journal of Society of Ecological Chemistry and Engineering looked at the effect of effective microorganisms (EM) on nutrient contents in substrate and development and yielding of rose and gerbera. The table below from that trial shows that a marked increase was shown for contents of iron, manganese and chlorides in substrates both in the cultivation of gerberas and roses, in case of application of EM.To read the article on our website, click here.

Root Health and Development with EM

Yield successes and failures start in the soil. With a healthy fertile seed bed, germination can be enhanced and root development can be boosted. When root development is inhibited, the climb toward high yields and healthy plants can be a long, uphill battle. There are a whole host of reasons for which Root health is compromised including , poor seed bed development, low fertility, poor biological activity, incorrect crop rotations can help facilitate the growth of soil borne diseases. These diseases impact the crops development and limit the growth potential of the plant. As the population grows and demand for increased productivity from our farmers to provide food while maintaining a sustainable environment rises, protecting our plants root systems and ensuring healthy roots holds one of the keys to helping these high yielding seeds reaching their potential. Starting from the Roots the impact of effective microorganisms is to increase soil nutrient availability.

The main function of roots is to anchor the plant and provide access to nutrients, waters and oxygen in the soil. They provide a large surface area – increased by the presence of root hairs – to enable the uptake and absorption of water and nutrients. The roots makeup and growth have a huge effect on the size and vigour of the plants, adaptation to soils conditions and response to exterior influences e.g. climate and pests. Often dues to the fact that roots are underground they are widely overlooked for their significance in plant health. It has been estimated that 80% of all plant problems start with soil/root problems. The roots of most plants are often prone to attack by soil borne diseases including pathogenic fungi and nematodes. Creating a positive biological environment is essential to allowing roots to thrive and establish access to everything a plant requires. It will also limit the pressure from negative microbes.Root Development with EM

EM enhances plant roots increasing both the number and density of root hairs. It does this through the unique combination of microbes and there action in the soil. EM includes bacteria that produce lactic acid. This is a strong sterilizing compound and can suppress some disease inducing microorganisms and nematode populations. It also contributes to the fermentation and breakdown of the tough cellulose and lignin. In turn the yeasts in EM produce hormones and enzymes that promote plant cell and root division. They use the amino acids and sugars secreted by the photosynthetic bacteria and plant roots and in turn give off substances which are beneficial growing compounds for the lactic acid bacteria. So all three species have a separate role to play, and help each other. They also have a symbiotic or mutually beneficial relationship with the roots of plants. So plants grow exceptionally well and root structure is significantly improved in soils dominated by these microorganisms.Plant hormones, known as auxins, can also be used to stimulate root growth. These two hormones are considered root stimulators. Auxins are known to promote lateral root development so they are more suitable for cuttings versus seeds. EM has been proven to stimulate the production of Auxins in plants. Read more here.Comparison Examples

The image to the upper right shows a Soyabean crop of which part had been treated with EM and a control. Most visible is the high number of fibrous roots on the EM treated plants compared with the control. This coupled with a higher density of roots shows what EM can do when applied to the soil, and the impact it can have on developing crop root structure. The images below show examples of roots (transplant trial to the right and rice on the left) treated with EM compared with an untreated control.Trial Data

The first trial published in the ARPN Journal of Agricultural and Biological Science and titled Effective Microorganisms (EM) and their influence on growth and yield of pigweed (Amaranthus dubians), looked at the effect of EM on Root mass. The results showed that Root dry weight and Root dry mass was highest in soil without organic manure inoculated with effective microorganisms (Table2). There were significant differences (p≤0.05), among the treatments.The next trial published in the Journal of Forestry Research and titled Improving Acacia auriculiformis seedlings using microbial inoculant (Beneficial Microorganisms), looked at the effect of EM on Root and Shoot biomass. It showed the highest shoot and root lengths (30.6 cm and 31.2 cm respectively) were recorded in 2% EM and were significantly (p <0.05) different from control. Both fresh and dry weights of shoots were maximum (8.66 g and 2.99 g respectively) in 2% EM, whereas both fresh and dry weights of root were maximum (2.56 g and 1.23 g respectively) in 5% EM solution.To read the article on our website, click here.

Enhancing Soil Life

These pictures indicate a soil full of active microbial life. This is the conclusion of a trial performed by a soil consultant in Waikato. The block this trial was performed on was a pasture which had sparse pasture and the soil consultant observed that the soil lacked life and smelled slightly anaerobic. Another issue was large amounts of organic matter in the soil that wasn’t breaking down.The soil consultant sprayed some plots with EM to show the farmer what effect adding active soil microorganisms can have. The result was a soil that smelled sweet and exuded soil life. Particularly evident is Mycorrhizal fungi these specialised fungi grow on plant roots and spread far into the soil. Mycorrhizal fungal filaments in the soil are extensions of root systems and are more effective in nutrient and water absorption than the roots themselves. More than 90 percent of plant species in natural areas form a relationship with mycorrhizal fungi enhancing the plants growth performance. These fungi appear in the form of colonies of mould which start out transparent, turning white over time.The differences weren’t only seen under the soil. On top the cover looked healthier and in the many bare patches dock plants germinated. This shows that EM helped to enhance the fertility and create an environment for germination and growth. Unfortunately Docks are not as preferable as grass, however the cattle will still eat them and it provides ground cover. This also demonstrates an improvement in the soil which promoted plant growth. This application of EM would ideally have been followed with some over sowing or over drilling to seed more desirable species into the bare areas.  To read the article on our website, click here.