How Can Biological Tech Help Your Operation?

RegenAphex is a biological technology platform designed to deliver readily available carbon and a number of microorganisms to improve soil health, increase crop nutrient uptake, and support plant health.

“The RegenAphex platform, what it is, at its core, is a very rich source of organic carbon in a liquid form that's used to feed microbes, both the microbes that we formulate within the solutions that we use that technology in and feed microbes in the soil that it's applied to," said Alex Cochran, Chief Technology Officer for DPH Biologicals.  "It's a fantastic technology for basically making microbes happy by feeding them.”

Cochran said the new manufacturing process enhances microbial performance.

“AmplAphex is the new technology that we've launched that's a highly-concentrated version of SP 1.  So, we've modified the manufacturing process for this technology. It still incorporates the RegenAphex organic carbon but in a much more concentrated way, which allows us to reduce the use rates by eight times. In a traditional SP 1 application, we were typically recommending two gallons per acre.  This technology is being deployed at one-quarter acre.”

So, what distinguishes AmplAphex from other biologicals on the market?

“AmplAphex uses several key technology components," Cochran said.  "You know, in addition to the RegenAphex Technology Platform that we mentioned, that rich source of organic carbon, it's formulated with a consortium of different PGPR bacteria, Bacillus bacteria, that help drive positive plant health, as well as green micro algae. So, it's that combination of those components that makes it a very unique solution in the marketplace, outperforming many of the technologies that are out there for driving both plant and soil health.”

He noted recent lab trials identified the modes of action in AmplAphex, and Cochran said they may help plants mitigate abiotic stress.

“It's been fairly well known PGPR bacteria, like the ones that are formulated in AmplAphex, when they associate with plants, they can naturally produce phytohormones that help stimulate positive plant health during stressful periods," Cochran added.  "So, we know we've carefully selected the strains that we formulate with for AmplAphex, that they have this capability, when associated with plants, to produce these phytohormones that can then, in turn, stimulate positive plant health during stressful periods for growth.”

Missouri farmer Derek Davis recently spoke about the specific benefits growers can expect from pairing early post-application of AmplAphex with herbicide treatments.

"What we enjoy about it is being able to pair it very easily with a herbicide program, and what we typically see with that is that our crop is staying green longer during points or times of stress, which is common here in central Missouri, once the rains shut off, and that's what we appreciate the most about it.”

While some growers might be skeptical about biologicals, he talks about why they use the products on his Missouri farm.

"First of all, there's this one thing consistent about biologicals, and that's that they are consistently inconsistent, and so, that's a challenge," Davis said.  "What we have found is this. We were fortunate enough early in our journey of looking for biologicals to start working with DPH, and so we appreciate and enjoy the consistency of the product. We have the confidence that when we put it down, we're going to get the results that we're after most of the time and a lot of the time, sometimes more consistent than just using our typical fertilizer program. And for that, that's got a value to it for sure.”

Learn more, or have your specific questions answered by visiting DPH Biologicals Website.

If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail glenn.vaagen@townsquaremedia.com