It takes a lot of patience, and good IPM, but living soil has been awesome to me. We often say we grow soil, rather than plants, because of the fact a healthy living soil will provide all the nutrients the plant needs, and all you have to do is water essentially. Speaking strictly from a marijuana perspective (the limit of my experience with living soil), it makes the marijuana taste better and have a better smell. I've seen two different growers, starting with the same clones from the same mother planet, where one grows in soil using bottled nutes, and the other does living soil. The living soil definitely was superior.
With that said, living soil is not practical for everyone. Trying to do it indoors where you also live could create issues if you do not have a good IPM strategy, and fully understand the soil food web. "Teaming with Microbes" by Jeff Lowenfels is an excellent book to learn about how the soil food web works.
So long growers are maximizing THC content and yield per area Hyrdo will outcompete organic soil. Personally I grow organic because I too prefer the taste and I really enjoy composting. However having grown in hydro I can tell you that plants grow bigger, faster, and more potent.
> So long growers are maximizing THC content and yield per area Hyrdo will outcompete organic soil
In my case that's a feature and not a bug of soil-grown marijuana. I'm way more of lightweight compared to my college days and would prefer good taste over potency.
I agree with @wefarrell that it generally gives a lower yield. It can also be very difficult to do living soil on scale, but there are definitely plenty of businesses doing it. Closest to me, in Ann Arbor, Michigan is a place called Apothecare that does living soil on scale for example.
With that said, living soil is not practical for everyone. Trying to do it indoors where you also live could create issues if you do not have a good IPM strategy, and fully understand the soil food web. "Teaming with Microbes" by Jeff Lowenfels is an excellent book to learn about how the soil food web works.