Farm wood waste is often treated as a disposal problem, but clean woody residues can sometimes serve as useful biological filter media. Shelterbelt trimmings, orchard prunings, small branches, woodchips and selected forestry residues may provide structure for water movement, microbial activity and fungal decomposition. The opportunity is practical rather than automatic. Not every piece of … Read more
Fungal filter beds are a form of nature-based treatment that uses fungi, together with a suitable growing material and supporting microorganisms, to help reduce or transform some pollutants in farm-related water or organic waste streams. They are sometimes considered within mycoremediation—the use of fungi in environmental treatment—but they are not a universal filter or a … Read more
Fungi can become a useful part of a farm’s system for handling organic residues, especially materials that are slow to break down through ordinary composting. Straw, stalks, husks, woody prunings, forestry residues and other clean plant-based materials contain carbon compounds that fungi are well adapted to decompose. With suitable preparation and management, fungal activity can … Read more
Woodchip-based treatment systems are increasingly used to manage nitrate in agricultural drainage, especially where subsurface tile drains collect water and deliver it to ditches, streams or wetlands. These systems use a contained bed of woodchips as a carbon source and habitat for microorganisms. They are often called woodchip bioreactors. Fungi may naturally colonise the wood … Read more
Mycofiltration is an emerging approach to managing contaminated water with the help of fungi growing through an organic filter medium. In an agricultural setting, that medium may include woodchips, bark or other woody materials colonised by fungal mycelium. The resulting bed can intercept runoff before it reaches a ditch, drain, wetland or stream. It is … Read more
When nitrogen and phosphorus leave a farm, the loss affects both farm performance and downstream water quality. Nutrients that were purchased, produced in manure or stored in soil are no longer available to the crop when they move beyond the root zone. They may also contribute to algal growth, oxygen depletion and other water-quality problems … Read more