EM in the Garden & Home

EM is the abbreviation for Effective Micro-organisms, a cocktail of beneficial microbes that occur naturally, they are not modified in anyway. Each of the effective micro-organisms has a specific task and they also enhance each others working, in other words there is synergy.
EM consists of the following 5 families of micro-organisns:
Yeasts: they manufacture anti-microbial and useful substances for plant growth. Their metabolites are food for other bacteria such as the lactic acid and actinomycetes groups.
Actinomycetes: these suppress harmful fungi and bacteria and can live together with photosynthetic bacteria.
Photosynthetic bacteria: these play the leading role in EM. They synthesise useful substances from the secretions of roots, organic matter and/or harmful gases (e.g. hydrogen sulphide) by using sunlight and the heat of soil as sources of energy. The metabolites developed by these micro-organisms are directly absorbed into plants and they act as nitrogen binders.
Fungi that bring about fermentation, they suppress smells and prevent damage that could be caused by harmful insects.