AgList AI

Chat with AgList AI.

Loading AgList AI

MetaGrow F, plate 1 of 2

MetaGrow F product image

MetaGrow F

bySustainable Growing Solutions, LLC13 endorsements

Crop & Soil HealthBiofertilizersMicrobial Inoculants

MetaGrow™ F Fungal Dominant Inoculant

MetaGrow F (F) has a large and diverse fungal population to build higher level soil health and plant beneficial functions. Use F after establishing a well-functioning soil microbe population with MetaGrow ST or 5X+ with microbe food sources.

MetaGrow F is the perfect product to complete the Regenerative Farming soil restoration process.

The fungal components of soil microbe populations is often the last to successfully colonize and perform their important plant beneficial functions. We often see well farmed regeneratively farmed soils that have successfully rebuilt their soil bacterial population, diversity and function; but even after 20 plus years of their program the essential fungal population component is still missing.

MetaGrow F microbes are grown at our plant from a microbe culture that is completely different from (but complementary to) our other vermiculture based products. The microbes in F come from a higher trophic level source than earthworms, which is naturally fungal-dominant and supports other higher trophic levels of soil life such as beneficial nematodes and arthropods.

In addition to fungi and Mycorrhizae, MetaGrow F also includes a broad spectrum biology including bacteria, archea, actinomycetes, yeasts, micro-algaes, and bacteria phages.

PLANT BENEFICIAL FUNCTIONS Microbe populations in F include:

  • Nitrogen Fixing - 20 different species of Nitrogen fixing microbes at total populations of 1x10^8/ml – both free living soil Nitrogen fixers as well as nodulating Rhizobium N-fixers for legumes.
  • Phosphorus Solubilizing - more than a dozen species at total populations of 1x10^9/ml including endophytic fungi which perform much of the plant phosphorus delivery. Many competitor microbe inoculant products are missing these vital workers.
  • Cation Chelating - dozens of Siderophore microbe species at total populations of 1x10^9/ml improve plant nutrient status of Potassium, Calcium, Magnesium, Manganese, Molybdenum, Copper, Iron and Zinc.

MetaGrow F also contains organic acids, amino acids, vitamins, enzymes and plant bioactive compounds. These bioactive compounds are built up in our MetaGrow products so the plants respond right after application. Competitor microbe products have to produce these compounds over time after application (which ours also do) which means our products provide faster and more effective plant response than competitor inoculants.

  • Liquid shelf-stable product that mixes easily for irrigation and foliar use
  • Compatible for tank-mixing with all fertilizer inputs
  • Suitable for organic crop production. CDFA-Organic listed.
  • Proven on over 70 different crops on every soil type to improve soil health and crop production

Establishing diverse fungi in the microbial community provides many crop benefits:

  • Supplies and builds soil organic matter (SOM) – 1% SOM increases in a year are not uncommon;
  • Extends the root network and effectiveness, which improves drought tolerance and nutrient efficiency;
  • Improves soil structure and porosity, which:
  • Improves soil oxygen exchange for healthier roots and microbe metabolism;
  • Increases soil water infiltration rates which reduces erosion, runoff and ponding of water - enabling earlier planting;
  • Improves soil moisture holding capacity of lighter textured soils;
  • Increases soil Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) which improves soil nutrient retention and plant nutrient availability;
  • Provides plant growth factors for increased germination rate, stronger and faster emergence with more uniform stands;
  • Reduces the frequency and severity of plant diseases by improved nutrient status and natural plant defense processes.

Application Guidance

MetaGrow F can be used as a seed treatment, root dip, in-furrow at planting, transplant water, irrigation injection and foliar application.

Typical irrigation rate is 2 to 4 gallons per acre, monthly during the irrigation season or just before important crop growth phases. It’s also recommended on crop and cover crop residue to aid decomposition and future nutrient availability.

For best results, apply together with MetaGrow MFOOD or CFOOD (0.5 lbs per gallon of F) and with other components of a balanced biological fertility program. Please refer to the product label for additional information and follow the advice of a qualified agronomist.

Food Safe Production Process

MetaGrow microbes are grown at our facilities from a diverse range of microbe cultures sourced from all over the world. No manure or waste product is used in our source materials. We utilize an intensively aerobic production process which assures pathogens and other plant toxins are not present. MetaGrow products are tested and certified free of pathogens. There are no application restrictions on re-entry or days to harvest.

SGS MetaGrow Success Principles

MetaGrow inoculants are designed to correct various imbalances in soil health, while also providing an extremely broad spectrum of microbes that repopulates the entire beneficial soil microbe biology. Our inoculants provide many different microbe species for each plant beneficial function. As a result of this diversity, MetaGrow products work well on all soils and all crops.

SGS MetaGrow crop programs lower the total cost of inputs by reducing the need for fertilizer and pesticides. When plants achieve proper biologically supported nutrition most pest and disease problems just don’t occur.

At SGS we believe that healthy plants direct healthy soil biology to actively deliver the nutrients they need, when needed and in the proper balanced proportion.

Plant Directed Microbe Delivered Nutrition

Application timing

  1. 01Pre-PlantingApplied
  2. 02At PlantingApplied
  3. 03Early Post-PlantingApplied
  4. 04Vegetative StageApplied
  5. 05Flowering/BloomingApplied
  6. 06Fruit Set/Mid-SeasonApplied
  7. 07Late-SeasonApplied
  8. 08Post-HarvestApplied
Label intervals0 Day Pre-Harvest Interval

Specifications on file

Product details

General purpose
Crop & Soil Health
Product type
Biofertilizers
Product subtype
Microbial Inoculants
Composition type
Living Organisms
Science/technology
Microbial Technology, Fermentation Technology, Symbiotic Relationships
Primary compounds
Algae, Amino Acids, Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF), Azospirillum spp., Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, Bacillus pumilus, Bacillus spp., Bacillus subtilis
+ 14 moreBacillus thuringiensis kurstaki strain SA-12, Beauveria bassiana strain GHA, Enzymes, Fulvic Acids, Humic Acids, microalgae, Mycorrhizal Fungi, Organic Acids, Organic Carbon, Phosphorus Solubilizing Bacteria, Rhizobium spp., Seaweed Extracts, Trichoderma harzianum, Trichoderma spp.

Crops

Crop categories
Broadacre Crops, Horticultural Crops, Permanent Crops, Row Crops, Specialty Crops, Cereal & Oilseed Crops
Crops
Alfalfa, Almonds, Apples, Apricots, Artichokes, Asparagus, Avocados, Bananas, Barley, Bean, Beans crops, Beans dry
+ 136 moreBeans green, Beets, Berries, Blackberries, Black-eyed Pea, Blueberries, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Butternut Squash, Cabbage, Cane berries, Carrots, Casaba, Cassava, Cherries, Chinese Cucumber, Chinese Okra, Citron Melon, Citrus, Cotton, Cowpea, Cucurbits, Cucumbers, Cruciferous, Crenshaw Melon, Crookneck Squash, Date palm, Dry onions, Eggplant, English Pea, Fennel, Field Bean, Field Corn, Field Pea, Filbert, Flowering plants, Forage grasses, Fruiting Vegetables, Garbanzo Bean (Chickpea), Garden Pea, Garlic, Golf courses, Grapefruit, Grapes, Grass seed, Hay, Hazelnut, Head Lettuce, Hemp, Herbs, Hops, Hubbard Squash, Kale, Kidney Bean, Kiwifruit, Leaf Lettuce, Leeks, Lemons, Lettuce, Lima beans, Limes, Melons, Millet, Mung Bean, Muskmelon, Mustard Greens, Navy Bean, Nectarines, Nongrass Animal Feeds, Oats, Okra, Olive, Onions, Oranges, Ornamental, Parsnip, Peaches, Peanuts, Pears, Peas, Pecans, Persian Melon, Persimmon, Pinto Bean, Pistachios, Plums, Pome Fruit, Pomegranates, Popcorn, Potatoes, Prunes, Pumpkins, Radishes, Raspberries, Rice, Roses, Rutabagas, Rye, Safflower, Scallop Squash, Seed Corn, Shallot, Silage Corn, Snap Pea, Snow Pea, Sorghum, Soybeans, Spaghetti Squash, Split Pea, Stone Fruit, Straightneck Squash, Strawberries, Sugar Beets, Sugar Snap Pea, Sunflowers, Sweet Corn, Sweet Potatoes, Swiss Chard, Table beets, Table grapes, Tangelos, Tangerines, Tobacco, Tomatillo, Tomatoes, Tree Nuts, Triticale, Turf, Turnips, Walnuts, Watermelons, Wax Bean, Wheat, Wine grapes, Winter squash, Zucchini

Application

Application method
Irrigation Systems, Foliar Spray, Banded Application, Drench, Drip Irrigation, Flood/Basin/Border Irrigation
+ 10 moreLiquid Seed Treatment, Hopper Box, Mix in Growing Media, Nutrient Solution, Overhead Sprinkler Application, Planting Hole, Root Dip, Row Application, side dress, Transplant Water

Mode and benefits

Mode of action
BM 02: Microbials with multiple modes of action, Disease resistance, Induced Systemic Resistance (ISR), Mycorrhizal Symbiosis, Nitrogen Fixation, Phosphate Solubilization
+ 1 moreP 06: Microbial elicitor of plant defenses
Suggested benefits
Broad-Spectrum Control, Disease Resistance, Enhanced Plant Growth and Yield, Enhanced Rooting, Extended Root Area, Greater Leaf Area
+ 24 moreFlexible Applications, Improved Ear Development, Improved Fruit Quality, Improved Nutrient Mobility, Improved Pollination, Increased Canopy Development, Increased Nodulation, Increased Photosynthesis, More Nutrient Storage, Multi-Mode of Action, Optimized Transpiration, Organic Nitrogen, Permanent Carbon Sequestration, Photosynthetic Efficiency, Plant Establishment, Plant Performance, Reduced Risk of Phytotoxicity, Residue Digester, Soil Health Improvement, Stomatal Regulation, Stress Tolerance, Toxicity Resistance, Water Holding Capacity, Weed Control

Registration

Registration
Organic, CDFA OIM Registered, Made in USA
Commercial status
Commercially Available

Field endorsements (13)

Endorse this product
  • SF
    Sally Fox
    Farmer

    🇺🇸Brooks, CA

    6/25/26

    This is the most biologically active mix of microbes that I have come across. And I have been at this since the early 1980’s. I hope to never be without this merry band of minuscule helpers. The plants that I am working with have never in the past expressed their traits to their full potential. I can now plainly see. If you are a plant breeder, or simply want your plants to be everything that they can be, these magical microbial helpers are essential.

    Sally Fox

    Photo from Sally Fox

    Liked Improved Soil Health

    Used on Cotton, Cowpea

  • DB
    Dujon Blondel
    Agronomist

    🇺🇸West Orange, NJ 07052

    2/02/26

    MetaGrow F is one of my favorite products to use when doing lawn installations from seed. I love the fact that I can use this product as a seed coat and then put the seed on the intended area with a great inoculant to stimulate the soil.

    Liked Compatibility with Other Inputs

    Used on Grass seed

  • SM
    Sean McNamara
    Farmer

    🇺🇸Winters, CA 95694

    1/30/26

    When it came time to transition our conventional orchard to a regenerative farming system, we needed a big injection of biodiversity to help the soil and trees perform the functions that had previously been deficient, or spoon fed to them. We researched many products to aid in this transition, and ultimately arrived at Metagrow F. We're very happy we did. We performed orchard wide injections, coupled with mFood, from post harvest through leaf fall. In just a few months we have seen improvements in soil structure, smell, porosity and life. We are excited to see what the new season brings for the crop. Dave and team are a pleasure to work with, and generous with their experienced and logical advice.

    Liked Cost-Effectiveness

    Used on Almonds

  • JR
    Jim Ristau
    Agronomist

    1/30/26

    Understanding that most soil systems are highly bacterial, any regenerative practice adoption should consider ways to move the B:F ratio more toward a fungal community. Healthy soils cycle nutrients and residues much more efficiently than bacterial soils. If nothing is balancing out the bacterial population they will dominate and tie up nutrients within themselves rather than cycle them for the growing crop. Fungi and protozoa are the next level of tropism that are present in a healthy, functioning, breathing soil. MetaGrow F and other products from SGS are the backbone of the products that are blended and sold at Elevate Ag, as we are the midwest distributor. We are using MetaGrow F in our roduct line to get the fungal community kickstarted for producers that are wanting to reduce their fertility inputs costs, and start upcycling the nutrients that are already there. We look windows of opportunity to get this product in the ground or on residues in the fall. If there is a product with more diversity or higher concentration of beneficial fungi, we have not found it.

    Jim Ristau, photo 1 of 3

    Photo from Jim Ristau

    Liked Improved Soil Health

    Used on Beans dry, Corn, Wheat

  • CH
    Clayton Handy
    Agronomist

    🇺🇸Corning, CA 96021

    1/27/26

    For nearly two decades, I have farmed, managed, and consulted in orchard systems, and more recently, I’ve worked across a wide range of specialty and row crops. Most of my experience with MetaGrow F has been in orchard settings. Through my various roles, I’ve evaluated and worked with a wide array of biostimulants and biological products. In the end, MetaGrow products — and specifically MetaGrow F — remain my go-to. Biology is foundational to every living farming system, and MetaGrow F stands out for both its diversity (especially its inclusion of fungal species) and its biological density. Again, it is foundational to my biological approach to farming.

    Liked Quality of Product Support

    Used on Almonds, Apples, Avocados

  • JD
    Jason Doebelin
    Farmer

    🇺🇸Mexico, MO 65265

    1/26/26

    MetaGrow F has been a strong addition to our biological program when fungal dominance is the goal. We’ve seen improved residue breakdown, better soil aggregation, and stronger root-to-soil contact over time. It performs especially well in reduced-tillage and regenerative systems where building long-term soil structure and nutrient cycling is a priority.

    Liked Compatibility with Other Inputs

    Used on Corn, Soybeans, Wheat