Seattle authors to tell of function of microbes in soil at Friday talk in Port Angeles

David R. Montgomery and Anne Bikle and their new book

David R. Montgomery and Anne Bikle and their new book

PORT ANGELES — Amid all the chatter these days about microbes and probiotics for health, Seattle scientists Anne Bikle and David R. Montgomery are digging in deeper.

In their book The Hidden Half of Nature: The Microbial Roots of Life and Health — which the pair will read from Friday evening at the Port Angeles Library — Montgomery and Bikle look into how microbes affect human health and why it’s key to feed the soil with them.

Admission is free to Friday’s 7 p.m. reading at the library, 2210 S. Peabody St., while copies of The Hidden Half of Nature will be available for purchase and signing by the authors.

According to the website of this event’s sponsor, Port Book and News, Bikle and Montgomery will discuss how they took a barren, clay-packed lot in Seattle and made it into a flourishing garden.

Bikle also will talk about using an increased knowledge of microbes in her fight with cancer.

The pair believe a better understanding of microbes’ role in the health of the Earth and its humans can help farmers restore fields and doctors prevent and treat diseases, according to www.portbooknews.com.

For more information, contact Port Book and News at 104 E. First St. or 360-452-6364.

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