Sustainable Land Development Today - February 2008 - (Page 31) rain… Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain… dry the mix to preserve it. This creates a product that is similar to the dehydrated yeast used to make bread at home, according to Flynn. “The cells are dormant when dry, but ‘wake up’ and resume growth when wet,” he said. Another advantage to the dry form is it adds flexibility for dispersal. The mix can be either applied as an aqueous slurry, or dispersed as a dry powder, which will be a great benefit where water is too difficult or expensive to obtain. A challenge that remains is the time it takes for the microorganisms to provide results. It took a couple of years to develop a crust in one of his western Colorado test plots, so the research is also focused on improving the growth rate. But Etra says success is on the horizon for Flynn to refine his process and proceed to market with a commercially viable mix. “I’d say in a couple of years, if not sooner. He basically needs to get more trials out there before people will buy into it, and he will need some kind of financial support to go commercial,” she said. Have all aspects of your project precipitation-ready with coordinated software solutions from Carlson Software – • Carlson Natural Regrade • Carlson Civil • Carlson Hydrology It’s on the Roots A relatively new, commercially-available product that is getting increased notice for erosion control is a naturally occurring fungus that has been around for 400 million years. Mycorrhiza is a symbiosis found in about 95 percent of all plant families — excluding wetland plants and a few other families --and is a relatively new tool for erosion control. It boosts establishment and persistence of native and adaptive species of plants, especially on land that has no top soil or whose soil does not contain the material, according to Etra. Often in disturbed soils, the fungus is gone. In the past, on selected projects, soil containing mycorrhiza had to be salvaged from another site and brought in. When it is worked into the top threeinches of the soil or subsoil or otherwise applied during planting, the fungi will attach and spread over the surface or STEP 1: Turn a disturbed or highly-erosive site* into a low-maintenance, erosion-stable landform with Carlson Natural Regrade, which enables you to naturally optimize lot view lines and sunlight *Natural Regrade exposures, and minimize is also perfect for undisturbed sites, material movement. Then lay enabling you to out your site plan on this valuedesign functional, added landform. beautiful open space plus storm water drainage and treatment areas. Use one, two or all three of these solutions. Full 3D road and site design – both commercial and residential – feed directly into flow calculations and drainage design. A Carlson Software first! And all Carlson users get FREE Carlson technical support – the hallmark of Carlson Software’s renowned customer service. For a complete list of features and contact information for the Carlson dealer ready to serve you, visit or call: STEP 2: Use Carlson Civil to design your 3D streets with intersections and cul-de-sacs. Continue with Carlson Civil for accurate, efficient site grading and pond/channel design with balanced cut and fill, minimizing material import and export costs. STEP 3: Then let Carlson Hydrology calculate Runoff Coefficients based on Layers for various road and site surfaces. Continue with Carlson Hydrology to Find Low Points, Locate Storm Inlets and Structures, and calculate precise flows to each inlet based on the Design DTM. www.carlsonsw.com 800-989-5028 ® Works Simply Simply Works Circle 130 • or www.SLDTonline.com/webcard www.SLDTonline.com 31 http://www.carlsonsw.com http://www.carlsonsw.com http://www.SLDTonline.com/webcard http://www.SLDTonline.com
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