In Canada there is reasonably wide distribution of such a product under the name of MYKE:

http://www.usemyke.com/mycorise/mycorrhizae/mycorrhizae.html

http://www.usemyke.com/mycorise/gardening/flower/mykeannual/mykeperenn ial.htm

It isn't cheap ie 1.4 dry quart (15 oz) for $13 + taxes.

So what is the prevailing thought re such a supplement for plants? Good horticulture or 'mumbo jumbo'?

It MIGHT be worth it in a greenhouse

First, mycorrhizal fungi are not out there blowing in the wind - they are soil fungi that seldom see the light of day, so the likelihood of you getting what you may need arriving on the breeze is slim to nonexistant. But they do tend to be present in most soils in varying degrees as long as the site hasn't been recently scraped for development or subject to heavy cropping (former farmlands) or heavy synthetic fertilization.

FWIW, most wholesale growers understand the importance of mycorrhizea and use innoculants themselves so it is very likely you are getting a variety just hitchhiking in on the root systems of the plants you purchase. And a number of suppliers of organic fertilizers also include mycorrhizal fungi in their products (ditto suppliers of potting soils and other soil amendments).

Thanks, Rosie

rosiew wrote: How would one know if the mycorrhizal fungi has been added to the product.

One wouldn't. But this is true for most products one buys ie how does one really know the ingredients listed are actually in the product?

Anyone??

For existing perrenials, we suggest to dig some holes around the base of the plant, deep enough to reach the roots.
Then you apply the product in the holes and water generously but not to much to expel the product.
The effect will be good also but the symbiosis will take a little longer to occur.
The major point is to reach the roots, Then the fungi does the rest.

Way too much trouble for me.

And how do you know this?

I think such a statement would be almost equivalent to saying that leaf mold originating in Ontario Canada would not be a beneficial amendment to a garden found in Texas USA.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mycorrhiza

It is estimated that upto 95% of the vascular plants on the planet benefit from mycorrhizal activity. Does one need to purchase mycorrhizal supplements? Probably not, unless you are aware of issues with your soils that would indicate a lack of fungal populations -- as ericwi notes above, developing a healthy, bioactive and organically rich soil will go a long way in creating mycorrhizal activity.

Novascapes, I'm not sure I understand your point......are you implying that link indicates there ARE fungi known as mycorrhizae? If so, you may be misinterpreting the intent. The word refers to a relationship, not an organism - "mycor" means fungus and "rhizo" means roots - and so describes a symbiotic relationship between various fungal organisms and plant roots. There are literally 10's of thousands of species of fungal organisms that function in this manner and are so grouped under the broad heading of 'mycorrhizal fungi' but there is NO single fungal organism referred to as 'mycorrhiza'.

Really? Sematics is the study of meaning in language and since this forum is all about communication, being able to properly convey your thought process, point of view or opinion in an understandable, comprehensible manner is kinda paramount, wouldn't you say?

BTW, I was not intending to criticize you.....it was just very unclear in your post what point you were trying to make. And I'm not sure it was made any more clear with your last post.......sorry :-(

Yes really. If we got rid of everyone on here that did not meet your level of acceptable communication skills then we may have very few left. I would more than likely have to be one of the first to go. On the other hand I have not had a problem conversing with people having their doctorate in microbiology at TAMU over the last 5 years on this very subject.
Look up the definition of "sematics" (your word). Then look up the definition of "semantics".

Just read back to everything kimmsr said.....Why is that i can just about always agree with kimmsr? o yea, because it is science. :)

I'm not at all sure what your problem is or why you are being overly defensive and now progressing to rude. I merely questioned what your point was with that post.....it was not clear, as others have seemed to be confused as well.

Now to leave this trite discussion behind, I will give my point of view.
If you choose to try Mycorrhizal fungi you should choose a product that contains as many different species as possible because different fungi build their association with different plants.
Do not expect Mycorrhizal to be in your compost because many of the ones you need or want will not survive as there are no live roots in the compost. Also many of the spores are short lived and will not be available to the plants when the compost is applied.
Soil that is constantly tilled will have far less Mycorrhizal fungi due to the lack of live roots. If you till you must immediately replant.
High levels of nitrogen or phosphorus have been shown to kill mycorrhizal fungi. If you have very fertile soil then you may not have any or very few species of Mycorrhizal fungi, which probably would not be of any benefit anyway.
Mycorrhizal fungi is not only used to grow better plants but to build better soil without the use of so much commercial or organic fertilizer. It also produces a by-product called glomalin. Glomalin will aggregate sandy soil and reduce errosion. Glomalin also stores a very high percentage of the worlds carbon.

Zog not know fancy words.

Zog not know 'semantics'.

Zog sad.

:-[

I would call myself an educated layperson on this, but it seems from my limited study that many fungi are specific to soils and climates. I tend to agree with the viewpoint that 'just because it works in one place with certain plants doesn't mean it will work somewhere else with another plant'. Unless there is specific data showing a benefit, I would tend to stick to feeding and encouraging my local fungi.

There are scores of experiments showing positive effects, some of them quite striking.

Paul Stamets' recent book "Mycelium Running" is quite interesting even for the non-technical and is full of amazing photos.

That was in the back of my mind when I used the MYKE product this past November weekend when planting a tree. The average consumer has no idea as to the viability of the spores coming out of the container plus in my particular situation these bacteria/spores were being used in quite cold conditions....which also impact on their health.

I had corresponded with the company and the shelf life is 2 years (maximum).

As well according PREMIER TECH BIOTECHNOLOGIES, the manufacturer of "MYKE", the product in the container must be kept at a temperature above 0 C to maintain its efficacy.