Springtails (Collembola or Folsomia candida) in Living Soil
Mark AshworthShare
Springtails (Collembola or Folsomia candida) are one of the most abundant macroscopic animal in all of nature. Scientific estimates show about 100,000 individuals per square meter of ground where soil habitats exist. They're a soft bodied cryptozoa found abundantly in decaying matter like leaf litter.
Springtails (Collembola or Folsomia candida) are beneficial to the soil food web, and in our Living Soil system they are an indication of good soil health.
Identification:
Springtails (Collembola or Folsomia candida) are able to be seen with the naked eye as little white creatures. When they're disrupted, they will be seen springing around like little fleas, which gives them the name Springtail.
Purpose:
The common white Springtails (Collembola or Folsomia candida) is found abundantly in indoor living soil systems and acts as detritivores (decomposers). Without question, they are essential in a healthy, balanced soil food web. They assist in breaking down organic matter and making it bio-available to your plants. Additionally, their presence in your soil food web will act as competition for negative pests and even clean up waste matter that could otherwise bring fungal or bacterial pathogens into your soil.
Lastly and easily most important, Springtails (Collembola or Folsomia candida) have been shown to play a positive role in the establishment of plant and fungal symbiosis by helping to carry mychorrhizal spores to expand fungi networks.
Looking for a microbial inoculant developed for Living Soil? We carry Rhizocraft which is a bio-inoculation package containing endomycorrhizae. Rhizocraft in conjunction with healthy soil bio-diversity is a true dream-team in diversity from the microbes to micro-organisms.
Habits:
Springtails (Collembola or Folsomia candida) populations in your living soil will seemingly rise and fall depending on how moist your rhizosphere stays, but generally the populations will recede down to wherever the moisture line is so they're always present nevertheless. This balance is one that can be achieved by keeping a consortia of bio-diversity in your soil.
Our Living Soil Bio-Diversity packs contain not only Springtails (Collembola or Folsomia candida) to assist in decomposition, but they also contain a good assortment of predators and decomposers which will help to balance out Springtail populations and provides ideal diversity for long-term success in Living Soil.
Lifecycle:
Over the span of their life, a female will lay up to 400 eggs. Springtails (Collembola or Folsomia candida) are quick breeders in ideal conditions which is usually warm and moist. After mating, a female will lay eggs which will take about 10 days to hatch. The hatchling are born as tiny adults and over the course of 3 molts, over a 10 day period, they become mature adults. They will keep molting throughout their life with little change in size after reaching adulthood.
Read More About These Key Soil-Based Beneficial Insects
- Oribatid Mites (Oribatida)
- Rove Beetles (Dalotia coriaria)
- Stratiolaelaps scimitus (Hypoaspis miles)
- Springtails (Collembola)
- Red Wiggler Worms (Eisenia Fetida)
- Enchytraeidae (Pot Worms)