Procedure (IMO) Step 1: Parent Culture
Procedure (IMO) Step 1: Parent Culture
Procedure (IMO) Step 1: Parent Culture
Indigenous microorganisms (IMO) are beneficial players in active soil life, including fungi, yeasts, and bacteria, collected
from soil regionally near an area where they will be applied. The critical element in the production of high quality
IMO is to collect and culture appropriate population of soil microorganisms (fungi-dominant or bacteria-dominant) in
relation to where you are applying it. The IMO should be collected from healthy soil relatively near to the area where the
preparation will eventually be applied. One of the best indications of soil with a high content of beneficial organisms is
the presence of earthworm castings, eggs, or worms themselves.
Materials (IMO)
Step 1:
• 2 parts soil from an appropriate area Methods are adapted
-if you are planning to use with annuals, get soil that is bacterially from Jensen Helen,
dominated (healthy soil where annuals have been cultivated over time) Leopoldo Guilaran,
-if you are planning to use with transplants or perennials, get soil that is
Rene Jaranilla &
fungi-dominant (healthy soil where perennials have been cultivated over
Gerry Garingalao.
time. Bamboo is a great resource for this)
• 1 part bran (wheat, rice, or other)
“Nature Farming
• unchlorinated water Manual.” PABINHI
Step 2: 2006.
• 4 parts brown sugar or molasses
• Water (unchlorinated)
Procedure (IMO)
Step 1: Parent culture
1. Collect materials for step 1
2. Using your hands, break all the lumps in the soil to make a fine powder
3. Mix the soil together with the rice bran.
4. Add enough water to the mixture to achieve 60% moisture content. This is
when the mixture is wet enough to form a ball that will crumble easily.
5. Wrap the mixture in a dark, breathable cloth and place it in a cool dark place
(e.g. in the branches of a mango tree), for 3 days.
6. After this time open the cloth and inspect the molds formed (figure A).
Desirable molds are white although orange and blue molds are also acceptable.
Black moulds are not ok!
Depending on your soil organic matter, you may need to “step up” your IMO culture to a more complex
carbohydrate before adding to you soil. Microbes require organic matter for food, so there needs to be a
certain amount for the culture to establish in your soil and not just crash and die after eating up all the
molasses. Below is a chart explaining which culture you need depending on your soil organic matter.
Percent of organic
IMO Method matter in soil
requiring restoration
Microorganisms collected
IMO Parent More than 4%
locally
IMO
IMO- Parent and sugar 1:1 3-4%
Liquid
IMO
IMO-Liquid and bran 1: 1,000 2-3%
Carbohydrate
IMO
IMO-Carbohydrate and soil 1:1 1-2%
Compost
IMO
IMO-Compost and manure 1:1 Less than 1%
Manure
IMO-Carbohydrate
Spray 1:1000 dilution of IMO-Liquid onto bran pile. It’s best to have the bran pile formed on soil. Increase
moisture level to 60-70% with FPJ, FFJ or 1:500 FAA dilution (or unchlorinated water). Cover the pile with
straw/mulch to keep it moist and control temperature. After 6-7 days it should have white fungi covering the
top. IMO-Carbohydrate is spread on soil surface and is suitable for soils that contain 2-3% organic matter.
IMO-Compost
Mix IMO-Carbohydrate and soil 1:1 in a pile 30-40 cm tall. Moisten to 60-70% with FPJ, FFJ or 1:500 FAA
dilution (or unchlorinated water). Cover with straw or mulch to keep it moist and control the temperature.
After 6-7 days white fungus should be visible. IMO-Compost is applied to soil surface and is suitable for
soils that contain 1-2% organic matter.
IMO-Manure
Mix IMO-Compost and manure at 1:1 ratio and build a mound 30-40cm tall. Mix thoroughly, add moisture
to 60-70% with 1:1000 FPJ, FFJ or FAA dilution (or unchlorinated water). Cover with mulch to keep moist
and to control temperature. Mix with sea water diluted 30 times to enhance IMO-Manure affect. In 5-7 days
white fungus should appear. IMO-Manure is used as a soil cover and is suitable for soils that contain VERY
low organic matter (less than 1%)
Fermented Amino Acid
Fermended Amino Acid (FAA) is a homemade nutrient supplement for both perennials and annuals. Plants
synthesize amino acids from nutrients they obtain from water molecules, air, or soil (dissolved in water).
There are 20 amino acids involved in general and at critical stages of plant growth. Plants absorb them through
stomata. Plants can also incorporate amino acids into the soil to improve the microflora of the soil, facilitating the
assimilation of nutrients. Foliar nutrition as protein hydrolysate provide readymade building blocks for protein
synthesis. Fermented amino acid also contains minerals such as N, P, K, Mg, S, Zn, Cu (almost all of the primary
elements). Although it does provide them, it is typically at lower levels than synthetic fertilizers.
Materials (FAA)
• 1 part animal protein
- fish is high in N (good for application on transplants or young plants)
- Placenta (if not eatten by mother) is very high in micronutrients (good for
fruit trees)
• 1 part molasses
• bucket and/or storage container (you can use anything)
• water (unchlorinated) in a bag or other weight
Procedure (FAA)
Step 1:
1. Chop the fish or animal biomass with a sharpe knife. Bigger chunks are ok,
you don’t want it emulsified.
2. Mix in molasses 1:1 (by weight) in a large container. Coat and submerge all
of the biomass.
3. Exclude oxygen by putting a bag of water on top (or other weighed-down
technique). This will keep it from undergoing aerobic decomposition
4. Cover FAA and fasten using whatever you have (keep flies out). Label it
with the date (figure A). Leave for 30 days.Keep in a shaded, protected area.
Step 2:
5. After 30 days, remove the bag (figure B - after 30 days) and filter the FAA
through a mesh bag into containers for storage (figure C). It should not have
a strong smell (but may smell a little) and oil should be seen on the top. It
should be fairly liquid (figure D). Bury the solid remains in an area that will
later be planted. Store in a cool place and vent twice a week until it doesn’t
burp.
Application (FAA)
• Can try different dilutions to see how low you can go and still get results
(1:1000 dilution is recommended in Natural Farming).
•Stacy Swartz tested 1:500 and 1:100 dilutions on Roselle and found the 1:500
to have the highest yields (including higher than control; figure E)
• Be careful about adding too much. It may acidify the soil. Our IMO is at
around a pH of 4
• Promotes fermenting activity of microorganisms in compost pile.
• DO NOT use
during plant Roselle-FAA Trial
flowering stage, 0.45
production, 0.2
drop. 0.05
0
Control 1:500 FAA Treatment 1:100 FAA Treatment