FRESNO — When Coachella Valley lemon grower Mike Weeks feared that his 28-year-old orchard was suffering from disease, he turned to soil specialist Ron Helland. So did operators of a Napa Valley winery when grape yields seemed on the decline.
But Disneyland? Why would a theme park in Anaheim need help from an agricultural biochemist who describes himself as less an expert than "a soil philosopher?"
Because someone had to rescue those three courtyard oaks teetering from weak roots outside Pirates of the Caribbean. And because half a dozen other trees needed a revitalizing boost after being moved for a remolded Autopia ride.
Almost anywhere crops, plants or trees are expected to grow despite difficult climates or conditions, Ron Helland is respected as a quasi-doctor of dirt. With 30 years of experience, this bluejean-clad crusader for a sort of practical organics travels the West Coast and Mexico, consulting on the importance of soil biology.
"The nature of soil is not to be bare and devoid of life except for neatly placed plants every 10 feet, but to be alive, thriving with microbes," Helland said.
Selma organic raisin grower John Woods believes Helland's biologically oriented approach to soil development could bring greater yields while reducing the need for polluting chemicals and pesticides.
"As far as plant nutrition is concerned, he's at the forefront of some work that literally could be world changing" Woods said. "He's that good--and he's done it all by observation and just knowing what he's doing."
Disneyland's horticulture assistant manager, John Schrimsher, said he uses Helland's soil-enhancing products when he sets out seasonal displays such as holiday poinsettias--the semitropical plants that in the Magic Kingdom must sparkle a month early, starting in November.
Schrimsher said Disneyland is careful not to endorse any one product and uses a variety of things on its year-round showcase landscaping. But the soil-nurturing mix produced by Helland's Biologically Integrated Organics Inc. caught his eye after it won praise from a discriminating crowd.
"One of the biggest endorsements is that farmers are using it," Schrimsher said. "Farmers are generally frugal. They will not spend a nickel unless it's going to benefit their crops. The studies on farms opened up my mind about its effectiveness in horticulture."
