Decoding Soil Life

Our analysis is based on 16S and ITS rRNA gene sequencing from soil samples. Using this information, we create a functional assessment of the soil based on the relations of the microbial community for each specific site and crop.

BeCrop® provides growers with a tool to evaluate the effect of agricultural practices and pinpoint variance in productivity from different crops and parcels. It also evaluates the risk of plant diseases, which allows for more accurate IPM programs and product applications. Lastly, it provides information about the impact of different product applications on the soil and which parcels might benefit the most from applications to boost soil microbiota.

BeCrop Test

1.  Monitors effects of new practices/applications on the biodiversity and functionality of the soil microbiome.

2. Short-term monitoring of microbial carbon fixing pathways.

3. Adjusts pest management programs by knowing which soil-borne pathogens are present and which ones are not at a particular point.

4. Measures terroir differences between parcels/plots with the microbiome acting as a biomarker.

5. Determines whether nutrient deficiencies are caused by a lack of nutrients in the soil or by a low microbial capacity to make nutrients available for plants (BeCrop+).

BeCrop® Trials

1.  Tests the effect of ag inputs in the soil microbiome.

2. Tests how long certain biological products remain in the soil.  

3. Justifies functional claims of bioactive products.

4. Correlates yield or other output differences with specific functions in the soil.

5. Bioactive product analysis.

6. Justifies compositional claims of biological products.

7. Describes the functional potential of a certain product.

8. Confirms taxonomy and absolute quantification of microorganisms in biological products for manufacturers sourcing their inoculums externally.

BeCrop® does not measure the amount of nutrients, but it does quantify the microbial processes involved in nutrient cycling, such as those that supply plants with available nutrient forms (eg. mineralization or solubilization), and those that immobilize nutrients back into forms not readily available for plants (immobilization).

In addition to BeCrop®, we can provide offer BeCrop+ reports which includes a physicochemical soil test performed by our license partners as an add-on to the BeCrop® functional analysis.

Has BeCrop® compared the differences between two similar reports, one conducted with dead cells and the other conducted with living cells?

Our lab has validated a protocol that uses propidium monoazide (PMA) to capture extracellular DNA which we performed prior to the DNA isolation step. The taxonomic annotation of species in low relative abundance is the most variable. Functional annotation as well as ecological interactions among taxa that are also present in the BeCrop® report are less affected by remotion of extracellular DNA.

However, for biomarker discovery/diagnostic applications, we subscribe to the philosophy that all signals present in the soil, from both dead and living microorganisms, are relevant. Thus, our BeCrop® reports are based on total DNA extraction and amplification. Samples are then compared to other samples derived from the same crop to normalize each of the markers into quintiles. Therefore, we do not recommend removing extracellular DNA for BeCrop® samples, given that interpretation is performed in the context of other samples for which we have performed total DNA extraction.

For self-contained R&D projects where samples are compared side-by-side, we can definitely implement the PMA protocol. Also, for our BeCrop® product report (absolute bacterial quantification of ag inputs), some of our clients request the removal of extracellular DNA to evaluate the viability of their products as well as their shelf life.

Yes, that can be achieved with the utilization of a multivariable analysis.

Resilience, as an ecological index, hinges on the capacity of communities or populations to maintain their state despite stress induced by disturbances like droughts, floods, tillage, or soil pathogens. Its calculation is rooted in ecological network analysis. The published version of the paper where this marker is described can be found here: Network Properties of Local Fungal Communities Reveal the Anthropogenic Disturbance Consequences of Farming Practices in Vineyard Soils

The level of disease risk is based on the abundance of pathogens that cause the disease to occur in the sample as well as the ecological relationships of the pathogen with other microorganisms. Both our disease database as well as the ecological relationships are crop-specific. Samples are compared to other samples of the same crop to normalize the risk into quintiles.