I  was interested in using benaficial fungi and bacteria to help my plants grow  .

  So i am trying this product called..." Plant Succes" .
 There seems to be a lot of similar products.
 Do any of you use this product or a similar one ?

Tricoderma and endo- and ectomycorrhizal fungi spores are the special ingredients in all-natural Plant Success Granular.

These beneficial fungi are combined with kelp meal, humus, vitamins and amino acids to encourage spore germination. Plant Success Granular improves soil structure, enhances root development and assists with nutrient and water uptake and retention.

The result is stronger, healthier plants and increased overall yields.

I use mykos and azos. In my experience it helped the roots out a lot. But Its too expensive for me though. My guess is you would probably see improvements with "plant success" though.

I'm using that as well Henry and it's cheaper on ebay than through the web site.

I'll have to check ebay. Thanks for the heads up Tami. They work really well, its just that for the amount of powder you get its too expense.

I really don't believe the plants need quite as much as they suggest either. I lowered the dose and they are still thriving. Also, putting the Azos in water for existing plants can be cut quite a bit. I think 1/2 cup to a gallon is just a little high so I put 1/3 cup and it really stretches the product without and ill effects on the plants.

Yes it was pricy  .. but cheaper if you search diffrent vendors on ebay or amazon .

I am also going to try a diffrent Soluble version of the same product .

Plant Success Soluble is a soil drench for porous soil and contains 9 species of endomycorrhizae & 10 species of ectomycorrhizae, carefully selected mycorrhizal fungi. This product also contains 11 bacterial species, 2 species of trichoderma and biostimulant. It is well suited to a variety of soils, climates and plants. Plant Success Soluble contains mycorrhizal fungi that colonize plant roots and extend the root system into the surrounding soil, greatly enhancing the absorptive surface area of root systems and forming an essential link between plant and soil, which produces seedlings of the highest quality. Also included is specially formulated natural root biostimulant. The plant enjoys improved nutrient and water uptake, and superior field performance. Plant Success Soluble can be stored in a cool dry area for 24 months without loss of viability

Package Features:

• Reduces:
  -Drought stress
  -Water and fertilizer needs
• Increases:
  -Flowering and fruiting
  -Water and nutrient storage and uptake
  -Root growth
• Promotes:
  -Extensive root system
  -Soil structure
  -Plant establishment

Espoma Bio-tone or any of the other "-tone" products...I have used them for years. Its available at Lowes, Home Depot, Walmart and most local nurseries (at least in the Northeast).

Espoma-Tones

As far as application, the idea is to innoculate the soil or container, then provide a healthy environment for the bacteria to reproduce. You should not have to keep adding large amounts. For in ground plants and vegetables I use it only once per year in the spring. For my potted figs, I apply Plant-tone fertilizer once a month. All the Espoma fertilizers have mycorrhizae now. I purchase Garden-tone and Plant-tone in 40 pound bags for $24.00 at a local nursery.

I use bulb tone for the low nitrogen.  20 lbs for $16 and a handful in a 10 gal pot is all it takes.

cool Bob ... do you buy the bulb tone at a big box store like Home Despot or maybe even WallyWorld ?

Mykos30 is much cheaper on Amazon.  ebay it's $10 shipping plus $9 for the product.  Amazon has it for $13 with free shipping

I bought it on ebay because when you buy multiples it saves. Only $1.50 extra for each for shipping.

THRIFTY  TAMI

Yes I use myco inoculant blend, from kelp4less http://www.kelp4less.com/. Kinda like no name brands store for micro. nutrients. Keep this good info going. We can all grow better and stronger .

Zone 8
South West TX

I used this very product today when potting up cuttings, I sprinkled some on the roots and let the rest fall into the planting hole. I've heard great things about this product, I hope my figlets like it.

well a week or so ago i followed the instructions on the plant succes site and poked some hole down to the root ball of my young potted figs and dumped a small amount of the granuals to inoculate the roots ..

My casuall unscientific  observation is that before  plants seemed to be kinda droopy when it was windy or when they were a bit dry .. now after the treatment  they seem to tolerate  this stress better now MORE PERKY

I also dusted the roots of a few bare root plants i was planting  floweres and such ..

ha  my magic dust ,

reading Paul Stamets book MYCELIUM RUNNING How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World .

@rcantor Have you use the http://www.amazon.com/Xtreme-Gardening-4402-Mykos-2-2-Pound/dp/B003STB5N6/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1367703685&sr=8-3&keywords=mycorrhizae

It is just the mycorrhizal fungus I think. I was planning on using diluted mg for my fertilizer with every watering.

Also, Paul Stamets has several good books. He has done a ton of research on fungus.

I don't know about Rcantor but there is at least one person on here that does and says it is really good. I purchased some today
along with the same brand Azos.

Yup, Mike is right, I'm one of those people :)

Thanks I will be purchasing as well.

i would check what types of fungas cultcures are in diffrent products ... some products have cultcures just good for veggies and flowers ..some good for just trees and some have both kinds of cultures ..

I discovered something rather interesting today. I've been applying the mykos and azos to the roots of newly rooted cutting just before planting them in my soil mixture. After a few weeks there is lots of root growth and secondary root growth, but then the root growth stops. I didn't know why. Well, for the last few days I've been trying to acclimate my figs to less humidity by airing them out in the fresh air for longer periods of time. Its very interesting. The azos bacteria is suppose to convert the nitrogen in the atmosphere to a plant usable form. A few days after introducing a higher level of fresh air I started seeing new roots developing and putting on secondary roots quickly. I had drilled holes in the cups to help with moisture control and around those holes is where new white roots are developing next to the older reddish-brown roots. I'm even seeing new roots sprouting out of the exposed part of the cutting that isn't in soil. I don't know if this is just a coincidence, or if the azos and mykos just needed a lot more fresh air to work properly.

I really don't know. Mine never stayed in cups over 2 weeks. When putting them in root riot I up pot directly to 1 gallon, sprinkly them with Sevin powder and put them directly outside in the sun. I have not used the Mykos on anything under 1 gallon only Azos.

curious if anyone has new comments of info on theses types of products ?

hummmmhummm.............. my Plant Success Granular and Saleable are almost gone . time to shop for more miko inoculant  .


any suggestions .

I've never used Mykos or Azos.  The 2 fungi that have been shown to help figs are Glomus intraradices and G mosseae.  Promix HP has G intraradicies so that's enough for me.  I can't find anything that has G. Mosseae except one of Stamets' very pricy concoctions.

I did some reading and bought two packs of Stamets' very pricy concoction .

Actually it was cheaper than most of the competitors  products because more it is more concentrated/less filler stuff and more different strains ?
I will be mixing  some of the Stamets' culture  with  Granular Azomite  right before I apply it to roots when repotting. The Granular Azomite is formed with the micronized dust mixed with a little molasses added to form granules .   

HA HA my own fillers ..this I hope  will just make it easer to distribute the cultures to the roots.  MY Crazy theory .  hummmmm... !

ok I will ad more info soon

[video]https://youtu.be/1VQh1-AV86g[/video]

I saw the "plant success" as well. For my use it looked like a good fertilizer to use with the 3-1-2 ratio we need.

my thoughts on Mycorrhiza products. what types does our figs actually use. these are living organisms and without the proper environment they will die. how do you know you are getting an alive product? what is the spore count? most products use cheap spores that are already in abundance. if it was stored in temps extremes there is probably no spores but how would you know if using a product with other benefits. if you are looking for a product try single ingredients from good source. there are a lot of useless products marketed to gardeners. we already have most of the beneficial soil biology living in our yards. it just needs a little tlc to jump start them. I recommend researching Dr Elaine Ingham.

video above john is a good guy with many good videos but he is a big pusher of products"rock dust" not needed. you can find real work being done like Elaine. rock dust is a whole other topic I don't want to get into, I say watch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVFvMO9-_Ig . this guy does some good research on a lot of these types of products. I know this is a bit off topic but it runs with the idea of you have to be careful you don't become duped into buying something you don't need. a good mycorrhiza product could benefit some people in certain situations, I suggest great white, or mykos look for the spore and type count. even great white uses small amounts of the more expensive spores.  also if you can find a specific strain you need that would be more beneficial.

fyi if your going to use inorganic fertilizer, heavy phosphate fertilizers, even heavy molasses products you are most likely going to kill your living mycorrhiza and beneficial bacteria and fungi in your soil. my philosophy is keep everything in balance not to much.

You're on point about the countless products out there that are marketed to us gardeners that aren't needed or some just plain useless. Most of these people or websites that promote them giving them awesome results are the very same people that sell them or possibly sponsored by the company that sells them. People just need to approach these products with some skepticism. Don't be gullible, and do some research yourself before handing over your hard earned money. I would even do some experiment on your own plants to see if these products do indeed give dramatic results before recommending them to other fellow gardeners. In fact, there's quite a few videos you can find on youtube that shows people performing experiments with control subjects.

People have been successfully growing plants for years and years without all these quick results / magic dust products. I've been telling people to just keep things simple and use compost, and mulch to bring in organic matter into their soil. Don't complicate things. All these micro-organisms already exist in the soil and air, and compost we put into the soil. 

Actually  Paul  Stamets is probably the top mycologists in the world and his products are backed up buy solid science .

His many books are fascinating .

A reall good book of Dr.Paul  Stamets that explanes  the symbiotic relationship between plants and fungi is called "Mycelium Running"

good  read

I will be using some  of his cultures when I repot my larger trees this wimter .

AUSTIN

I did some informal research on the tricoderma and endo/ectomycorrhizal fungi spores that are in "Plant Success." My PhD is not in botany, but the science looks sound. I have used a fair amount the past two years (whenever I remember to) and I am pleased with the results. I would recommend it to anyone as an additive when you are potting up or when you first put a tree of any kind in the ground.

Thanks for comments Gene  .

Have you read any of Paul  Stamets Books on Mycology ,in particular "Mycelium Running" ?

Mr. Stamets has wrote quite a few text books that are good . "Mycelium Running" is more a book of intrest  for laymen .

Stamets' work is solid but his product is for lots of different plants.  The 2 fungi with the best evidence for helping fig trees are Glomus intraradices and Glomus mossea.  All the other fungi are wasted.  I wouldn't add minerals to the spores as they have as much a chance of inhibiting growth as helping it.  Molasses has a lot of iron which can also inhibit fungal growth so use it sparingly if at all.  You're better off just following Paul's instructions.  If he gives you a certain amount of things to add then do it but don't add more.

thanks for the tips rcantor

Here's a recent readable treatment of the subject, go to: http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/gardening-techniques/mycorrhizal-fungi-zm0z14aszkin.aspx

Great article Stephen .

There are some good links with in that article also ,

Thanks

I like to buy from the source so I know the product is fresh I use this product and found it cheap and effective for container culture.
Sure the product contains many fungi we don't need, but it's cheap, and has what we need plus beneficial bacteria that can't hurt.
http://www.fungi.com/product-detail/product/mycogrow-soluble-1-oz.html

Now finding cheap fungi for blueberries is another story! I grow them too. This product does not have the right bacteria for blueberries.

THATS  what I bought drew

thanks for link

Bob, which studies have you gotten access too? I would really rather hear the specifics from the author than your opinion. [QUOTE] The 2 fungi with the best evidence for helping fig trees are Glomus intraradices and Glomus mossea.  All the other fungi are wasted.[/QUOTE]

For me the other fungi are not wasted I grow at least 50 species of plants and having an all in one product is economical, efficient, and just plain awesome! My only complaint is none contain the right fungi for blueberries. I have to buy a separate product.

[QUOTE=hoosierbanana]Bob, which studies have you gotten access too? I would really rather hear the specifics from the author than your opinion. [QUOTE] The 2 fungi with the best evidence for helping fig trees are Glomus intraradices and Glomus mossea.  All the other fungi are wasted.[/QUOTE][/QUOTE]

Yeah, I'd like you to read it that way, too but I can't find the link any more and I've done all the searching I have time to do.  If you have time to search please post it here so we can all review it.  Thanks.

And when I said all the other fungi are wasted, I was referring to the other fungi in his product, not all the other fungi in the world.

[QUOTE=drew51]For me the other fungi are not wasted I grow at least 50 species of plants and having an all in one product is economical, efficient, and just plain awesome! My only complaint is none contain the right fungi for blueberries. I have to buy a separate product.[/QUOTE]

What works better for blueberries?  Is it the same for Southern and Northern highbushes?  Highbushes & lowbushes (rabbiteye?)?

There is painfully little research available but that does not mean that the matter is wrapped up. Here is the comment where I shared a couple abstracts with you last year: http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/show_single_post?pid=1283173588&postcount=26

The first reports that in lab conditions G. mossea, G. etunicatum, G. intraradices, G. macrocarpium, G. caledonium, G. margarita, and G. clarium all increased plant size and uptake of zinc and phosphorus over the control. They name Glomus caledonium and Gigaspora margarita as being the most successful overall. No way to tell how much better any did without buying the article.

The second tested Rhizophagus irregularis and Glomus mosseae and found that figs gained as much as 30% over the control when planted in soil infested with Armillaria mellea. It also says growth was improved in non-infested soil but not how much, or if the survival of fig trees was also improved. No luck finding a free copy of that either to learn more...

And then I just found this one: http://www.scitechnol.com/impact-of-the-arbuscular-mycorrhizal-fungi-and-bacteria-on-biocontrol-of-white-root-rot-in-fruit-seedlings-wrkB.pdf
It is available for free and as luck would have it the study deals with the survival of young plants exposed to white root rot. A good read and very interesting that mycorrhizal fungi and bacteria can amplify plant protection when used together. 

interesting info  thanks

Here's another tidbit:    http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/33234/12/12_chapter%202.pdf

Osman and Abd El-Rhman (2010) studied the effect of organic and bio N-fertilization on growth, productivity of fig tree (Ficus carica). Applying poultry manure +Azotobacter and poultry manure +Azospirillum gave the highest number of new shoots, shoot length, leaf area, total chlorophyll, number of fruits per shoot, yield, fruit volume and fruit length in the two seasons. Also, the same treatments gave the highest TSS, acidity, total and reducing sugar content and leaf minerals content (N, P, K, Ca and Mg %) in the two seasons. The results clarified that  poultry manure + Azotobacter and poultry manure + Azospirillum treatments gained best vegetative growth, productivity and fruit quality

This beneficial fungi is in Sunshine mix #1 with MYC. Available at Agway. Use instead of Pro Mix.