Patent ID: 6336772
Filing Date: 2002-01-08
Classification: A01C,A01G,A01H,B09C,C05F,C05G,Y10S

Abstract:
A method of degrading an organic chemical in soil, which organic chemical is toxic to vegetation, such chemical or a precursor thereof having been added to the soil or to plants grown in the soil as a herbicide or pesticide, said method comprising:(a) mixing with the soil an aqueous nutrient in quantity and under such conditions that it causes rapid proliferation of microorganisms added to or naturally present in the soil which directly attack and degrade such organic chemical or which acquire the ability to do so; (b) such mixing being under conditions which cause rapid proliferation of the microorganisms and of microorganisms which are capable of using the chemical as a nutrient; and (c) allowing such proliferation to continue until the added nutrient is depleted and the microorganisms attack and degrade the chemical as a nutrient source, wherein the nutrient comprises: from about 25.0 to about 70.0 weight percent water soluble carbon skeleton/energy component, the carbon skeleton energy component selected from the group consisting of mannose, lactose, dextrose, arythrose, fructose, fucose, galactose, glucose, gulose, maltose, raffinose, ribose, ribulose, rutinose, saccharose, stachyose, trehalose, xylose, xylulose, adonose, amylose, arabinose, fructose phosphate, fucose-p, galactose-p, glucose-p, lactose-p, maltose-p, mannose-p, ribose-p, ribulose-p, xylose-p, xylulose,-p, deoxyribose, adonitol, galactitol, glucitol, maltitol, mannitol, mannitol-p, ribitol, sorbitol, sorbitol-p, xylitol and mixtures thereof; from about 0.005 to about 70.0 weight percent of a complexing agent selected from the group consisting of calcium lignosulfonate, sodium lignosulfonate, ammonium lignosulfonate, potassium lignosulfonate and mixtures thereof; a water soluble nitrogen source in an amount effective to provide from about 0.3 to about 15.0 weight percent nitrogen in the composition; and a water soluble phosphorous nutrient source in an amount effective to provide from about 0.2 to about 5.00 weight percent phosphorous.