Abstract: An apparatus is provided which promotes and enhances the development of microorganisms in the ground, which microorganisms are indispensible for promoting the growth of vegetation, including plants and trees, by recycling water and circulating air to the zone in which the roots of the vegetation are located. The apparatus includes a relatively severely flared, frustoconical skirt portion which is adapted to cap the roots of vegetation within the ground. It also incorporates a small, generally cylindrical collar which extends above the ground and which surrounds the trunk of the vegetation being protected. A plurality of drains, formed by channels along the interior surface of the skirt and collar, extend over the length of generatrices of the apparatus and serve to conduct water and air to the roots of the vegetation. The apparatus is formed by two identical members, each of which has a dimension greater than one-half of the collar and one-half of the skirt.

Abstract: The substance results from the combination of an old cooled manure of which the fermentation is terminated, seeded with fresh animal dejections, particularly from sheep. This mixture is slightly wetted and held in an air-tight chamber, for example in thick plastic envelope, perfectly sealed, and at a mean temperature. Said substance, which is like a compost, is of a dark color without any particular smell, slightly pasty, releasing a blackish juice when it is sprinkled with water, after having deposited said substance on the soil at the foot of the vegetable to be treated.