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No need to close it Jim, it is an idea as much as a product. The scary thing as I see it is this is a very educated and informed guy who is using real scientific and biological facts to promote an approach to pond keeping. Only in the end it is a misfire if you keep koi in a modern koi pond.
For those interested you can read Dynamic Aquaria ; building a living system by A loveland ( published by Acdemic press) to better understand the realtionship of plants to bacteria and classes of bacteria that impact natural systems in the area of mineralization, nitrification and denitrification.
The trouble is, in our ponds and with our large biomass ( adult koi) the normal levels of denitrification and mineralization must be strictly controled and limited. And definitely not processed as waste treatment plants do!
So to highlite one group of bacteria and somehow have them 'inherit the earth' in our pond dynamic is HOPEFULLY wishful thinking, because if it were true then nitrifers ( THE most important species in our ponds) would be relegated to some minor or absent role, which is just plain silly.
EVERY new pond goes thru some level of heterotrophic explosion, especially in the beginning. The reason is heterotrophic species are numerous and fast producing. The entire idea of a maturing microbial ecosystem is that conditions are provided for the nitrifiers to flourish and dominate and over time, they do. Heterotrophic species then take on, at best, a supporting role.
The greatest error in this tale of heterotrophics is the idea that one species lives "over here" in this place and another speices "lives over there" in that place. The modern view of biofilm is that it is a diverse community in which dominating species ( nitrifiers, and maybe several species ) live and allow other heterotrophic species a niche based on the needs and byproducts of that greater community. So we have many job descriptions within the biomatrix that allow for heterotrophic species to eek out a living. But not dominate roles- that would be a sign of biofouling. - JR
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