Let’s face it: Most sci-fi movies end badly. Like Frankenstein’s monster, the thing we were trying to “enhance” ends up mutating and sabotaging our noble pursuit of scientific inquiry. But what if, instead of trying to outsmart nature, we simply worked with it?  Enter biologicals: where pests are foiled by targeted RNA molecules, your tomatoes team up with friendly fungi, and every seed comes with its own microbial booster.

Shaun Berry, head of innovation at Scotts, is already cultivating this future garden. Berry has spent more than a decade working on biologicals, and his vision sounds like the most wholesome sci-fi plotline ever written: vibrant gardens that collaborate with biology instead of brute-forcing it.

Biologicals aren’t new. Humans have used compost, manures, and plant teas since, well, forever. But Berry says we’re entering a golden age. In the early 2010s, these products were “niche… too expensive… not the best quality.” Today, he sees an abundance of innovation that, he says, puts this practice “in the right place at the right time” to bring advanced biotech to home gardeners. Here’s a closer look.

Yester-gardening was often about spraying well with lawn food and pesticides, but today, Shaun Berry says the biggest innovation coming is precision. One rising star: RNA-based biologicals that target pests at the genetic level, silencing the exact genes that let them reproduce or eat — like GLP1’s for beetles.

While this tech is still mostly in large-scale agriculture, Berry sees it as part of the broader shift from broad-spectrum chemicals to targeted, biology-aligned tools. And it reflects what consumers increasingly want: effectiveness with less unintended impact to the environment.

Dirt is the foundation of all plants, so poor soil drainage gives them shaky ground to stand on. Roots have allies, however, beneath the ground: a mushroom megalopolis, known as mycorrhizal, which help support healthier soil. “It helps with absorbing water and helps with nutrients,” Berry says. “It forms a nice symbiotic relationship, where the plant gives it energy and it gives the plant nutrients.” Research suggests carbon linked to fungal growth tends to persist longer in soil than carbon from roots alone, and studies in crops like chickpeas show inoculation can boost plant growth and yields. 

In a world where water is becoming more valuable, a simple fungal coating becomes watershed tech, helping moisture reach the plant and not evaporate. In addition to water, mycorrhizae-coated roots store carbon more stably than roots alone. And here we thought mushrooms were just villains in Mario. Turns out they moonlight as infrastructure.

If fungi are the civil engineers of the garden, then bacteria are the foot soldiers. Berry points to one bacterium in particular called Bacillus. This hearty genus coats seed in “spore” form, then — sleeping-beauty-like — awakens with the kiss of moisture and earth. “The grass seed is germinating, [and] the biological is going to germinate along with it,” he says.

Once active, they help protect the fragile seedling, release nutrients, and kickstart growth. They’re so good at this, Berry says, that “[they’re] the backbone of most biological treatments… probably the one you will find in nine out of 10 products.”

Gardeners want a straightforward path to these results, so Berry and team are working to make that super-simple.  “We want to put it on the grass seed… on the lawn food… [so people] don’t have to do anything differently.” For example, Scotts is experimenting with coating grass seed with Bacillus biostimulants to make your lawn fill in faster. “If we can shorten the germination time from 14 days to maybe 10 days or seven days, we know [customers] will be happier…they’ll feel empowered,” Berry says. In short: Your garden gets more bang for the buck, and you don’t have to shake up your gardening routine.

Though gardeners already have plenty of biologicals to wield, Berry still has a wish list. At the top: tools that make composting even more rewarding for home gardeners. Get them to the nutrient-rich endgame sooner by breaking down waste faster, and without the smell. Heat is deadly in the heap, though. Compost gets hot enough to kill many microbes, so Berry is seeking out hardy strains of these tiny workers that can work their magic for the mainstream market.

Then there’s biochar (aka the good kind of burnout): It involves adding carbon-rich materials like charcoal into soil to improve its structure and has been in practice for centuries. “It has a huge opportunity,” Berry notes, “[but] different biochars do different things.” The challenge is using the right amount, in the right context, without over-hyping it. His team is exploring how biochar could pair with biologicals for even bigger gains.

Berry uses a “flying car” analogy to describe how biologicals are beginning to take off. Right now, biologicals are helping us hover above the old road, offering smarter growing methods. “Genome sequencing, AI, and bioinformatics… [are] the exciting flying-car part,” Berry says. The cheaper it is to sequence that DNA, the faster we can identify the traits to match each trait to each function. 

With the rise of AI-powered genetic sequencing, gardeners may soon have access to a Swiss-Army-knife microbe that does it all — a full package of fungicide, insecticide, and a root-boosters. That will replace the standard “engine” of the old chemistry, and herald in a new era. “The car is hovering…not flying yet,” Berry says. But make no mistake: It’s going to help us soar to new stratospheres.