BY CODY J GARRETT - TAIT
W
hether you’re gardening indoors or outdoors, the temperature can have a profound impact on the quality and quantity of the produce you grow. When growing in the dir t, there is a complicated interplay between the plant, soil, and the environment.
Temperature is a significant factor in the success of organic living-soil type growing, as it directly governs how active the microbes responsible for mineralizing organic nutrients are. Without these microbes, the nutrients in the soil are mostly unavailable to plants. It also alters the balance of bacteria and fungi present, as different species thrive at varying ranges than others. In general, higher temperatures favor bacterial growth, whereas fungi seem to be better suited for lower temperatures. The balance for coexistence has been demonstrated in studies to be between 20°C (68°F) and 35°C (95°F) for most crops. Too far south or nor th 80
of these numbers can shift the balance toward either bacterial or fungal dominance. This alters the type and quality of nutrient solubilization occurring. The temperature range of 20°C-35°C (68°F-95°F) is where beneficial microflora is most active and making the most useful compounds for a garden. As the mercury dips, everything slows to a crawl. Similarly, when we look at temperatures outside the upper limits, conditions can start to favor the development of pathogens. As the temperature rises into the more extreme levels, it hits an unsustainable tipping point, causing a collapse of certain species, and subsequently, less desirable types can takeover.
