I have been studying a farming method a Japanese man practicing mainly in Brazil and Japan. There is not much of English information but I found this:
http://www.scirp.org/journal/PaperInformation.aspx?PaperID=51013#.VGSvejTF_Ic
Mr. Yukimi Hayashi is explaining his practice elaborately on his website but it is Japanese (http://freett.com/tenuki/etc/home.htm). I am still learning but as far as I see, it seems he believes high carbon addition to the soil puts the complex underground microorganism world in order which, as the result, is desirable to human being.
Mr. Hayashi believes the filamentous fungi do the key job.
It has been known that ‘somehow’ the soil mushrooms grow over is beneficial for gardens. I skip the mechanism of why (as I am not a scientist + it seems this area has been relatively new and not much of study has been done yet) but the point is it is a fairly known fact over the world. For example, mushroom compost is a widely used soil amendment.
To begin with, filamentous fungi are not the most vigorous creature in the natural environment. Many commercial mushrooms are grown under strictly controlled conditions to enhance the production. In other word, fungi are fairly ‘high maintenance’. However, it is worth it for the benefit they bring to us.
According to Mr. Hayashi, the only thing we need to do is to feed the fungi with high carbon organic matter, not half or full composted but fresh. These are the two significantly different points from standard organic farming practice: 1) high C/N ratio and 2) fresh material over well-rotten/composted. Based on these rules, animal manure is off the list. So is anything to push the nitrogen higher.
It drew my attention because things work for me. I have no manure source on my property but tons of yard waste. I prefer not bringing anything from outside. I have the basic gardening knowledge so that understand some parts of what he says are totally against the golden standards. But there is the fact that he and other practitioners are successfully growing crops.
As I study and practice it farther, I feel I should think how to make the full use of what’s already there. Come to think of it, it’s the same as how I deal with people. Everyone has some strength and potential. I am interested in how to make a good use of it. Each element works differently depending on the environment. Instead of trying to replace the existing element, find the good part of it and put it in the right place. Just like a seed sprouts under the preferred condition, we can sprout, and grow healthy.
So here goes my imagination wild in the field. Gardening is such a fascinating activity.