Garden Culture Magazine: US 7

USA - CANADA

ISSUE 7 路 2015

Edition 7 FREE COPY

UN

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Fixture includes 2 LEC lamps & electronic ballasts. Purchase your choice of DE ballasts & lamp separately.

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CONTENTS I INDEX

GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS

37

21

KISS THE GROUND

FERMENTATION

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

KALE

11

68 24 57

TYPE II DIABETES IN CHILDREN

28 WHO’S GROWING WHAT WHERE

IN THIS ISSUE OF GARDEN CULTURE: 9 Foreword 11 Product Spotlight 16 Home Grown Expo 2015 19 Fruit & Veg Murder 21 Genetically Modified Organisms 23 Shorties 24 Fermentation 28 Grow Your Own: Kale 32 Two Under PAR 37 Kiss The Ground 41 Five Cool Finds 42 Life Force and the Garden 48 More Lights Mean More Heat

50 57 61 62 68 73 76 78 83 86 92 99 102

Evil Aspertame Who’s Growing What Where Opinion Piece: Facebook Groups Monsanto Never Rests Type II Diabetes in Children Reflectors Matter Shorties Reflectors 101 Pedaling for a Cure How to Design an Optimal Growroom for your Lights Wasted – the Food Epidemic What is Silicon Plant Growth Hormones

78

REFLECTORS 101

GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

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FOREWORD I CREDITS

FOREWORD Fall is upon us once again. Hopefully you had a bountiful outdoor harvest that has filled your pantry and pockets. Now it’s time to set up the indoor garden. Each year I pretty much shut it down. I keep a couple of herbs going and this awesome ginger that I started last year as a test. But it is nothing compared to the jungle it becomes in the winter.

I have always tried to accomplish my growing goals with as little light wattage as possible. My ultimate goal is to get the entire garden off the grid. Because of this, I am always looking at and trying new lighting technologies. With all the options, the obvious “best” lighting setup is not so obvious.

When it comes to lighting, indoor gardening used to be a lot easier. Ten years ago you had very limited choices: Metal Halide or High Pressure Sodium in 1000W or 400W. There were few alternatives. Today, you have more choices like; LED, Plasma, Induction, LEC and improvements to existing HID technologies.

Which digital ballast to choose and will you get on board with the new Double Ended Bulb craze?

In this edition some of the industries top lighting experts will share their wisdom and help answer those most important questions.

“What lights should I buy, and where do I hang these things?”

Our feature article by Evan Folds continues to look at what we can’t see. “Life Force and the Garden” is but a glimpse into the amazing world of unseen energies. Do they have an impact on your garden? You be the judge.

We want this to become a conversation. Please let us know what you think of these articles or simply share your story with us. Write us a letter, say hi on Facebook or have a cyber stroll in our NEW website. This is our community and together we are changing the world for the better.

Thank You 3 Eric

CREDITS Garden Culture™ is a publication of 325 Media Inc. ED I TO RS Executive Editor: Eric Coulombe Email: eric@gardenculturemagazine.com Senior Editor: Tammy Clayton Email: tammy@gardenculturemagazine.com V P O PER AT I O NS: Celia Sayers Email: celia@gardenculturemagazine.com t. 1-514-754-1539 DESIGN Job Hugenholtz Email - job@gardenculturemagazine.com Special thanks to: Our writers: Tammy Clayton, Callie Coe, Grubbycup, Greg Richter, Amber Fields, Evan Folds, Dr. Betty Martini, Theo Tekstra, Agent Green, Stephen Brookes, Everest Fernandez, Tim, and Kyle L. Ladenburger PUBLISHER 325 Media 44 Hyde Rd., Milles Isles Québec, Canada t. +1 (844) GC GROWS w. www.gardenculturemagazine.com Email - info@gardenculturemagazine.com ADVERTISING Eric Coulombe Email - eric@gardenculturemagazine.com t. 1-514-233-1539 D I ST R I B U T I O N PA R T N ER S • Sunlight Supply • Hydrofarm • Rambridge • Biofloral Website: www.Gardenculturemagazine.com

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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without prior permission in writing from 325 Media Inc.

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Garden Culture Magazine.com

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GARDEN CU LT U R E 10

www.gardenculturemagazine.com

the art of growing

Trey Carskadon Director of Marketing Sunlight Supply, Inc.

h s e fr PRODUCT SPOTLIGHTS

product spotlight

s k c i P s ’ r Edito ople, and roducts, pe p h it w s act xperience had an imp Personal e at why they k o lo r se o A cl companies. ns and me. e on my gard

Ever since we moved to our present home almost 10 years ago, we have not had great success with our outdoor gardens. We are faced with some major challenges. The first is geography, I live in the mountains North of Montreal, and it’s gets really cold up here. The second is topography, being that we are situated at the bottom of a small valley surrounded by forest. The best spot in the garden gets 6 hours of direct sunlight, the worst gets 4. Not to mention the steep decline leading down to the river…

Last winter, Vermicrop Organics had offered to send me some of their Vermisoil, and samples of their dry organic fertilizer line that would revive outdoor gardens.

When springtime rolled around, and Will from Vermicrop asked if 5 yards of soil would be enough, I said “Sure,” without hesitation. In retrospect, it would have been smart to ask: “What’s a yard, really?”

‘Cause I didn’t really know. Now I do. So do my kids.

To clarify, that’s 5 very full pallets, each containing one ton. That’s over 10,000 pounds of soil. They also sent a summer’s supply of fertilizer, a compost tea brewer, and a summer’s supply of compost tea. I didn’t expect so much soil.

Vermicrop Organics Now it’s October, my harvest is almost finished, just leaving those beets in til Thanksgiving (the Canadian holiday... in Oct). I can honestly say that it was my best garden in 10 years.

Which is the reason I wanted to write this testimonial, and feature these 3 great products.

1.

2.

3.

Vermisoil Vermicrop Fertilizers Vermi Tea

I had wanted to build planters for years, and I needed somewhere to put all this soil, so I decided to get to work. With scrap wood leftover from when we built the house 10 years ago, I put together 6 big wooden planters, and filled them with Vermisoil. Friends and neighbors’ also benefited, as I had plenty to share.

From week one I could tell this was going to be amazing. Everything I planted was growing like crazy. I had diligently applied the dry fertilizer, and brewed the tea. Before I knew it we were harvesting zucchinis, and even broccoli in June. This had never happened before.

GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

11

The ORIGINAL

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PRODUCT SPOTLIGHTS

Sun System Unleashes

st a e B w o r The G Billed as “the most powerful grow light available”, Sun System’s Grow Beast is a compelling example of innovation in indoor gardening. Sun System expands its cutting edge Light Emitting Ceramic (LEC) series, with this strikingly unique reflector that houses dual LEC 315 lamps that are vertically oriented on either side of the reflector, along with a built-in double-ended center optic for 600w/750w/1000w/1150w HPS DE lamp operation.

™ prouter S r e p u S

m Premiu n K it o i t a g o Prop rting seedlings new solution for sta Here’s an innovative Propagation per Sprouter Premium or cuttings. The Su ng your seeds lete system for starti Kit provides a comp uter 7” ultraincludes a Super Spro or cuttings. The kit channels, Super th built-in light track clear vented dome wi signed for the tput T5 grow light de Sprouter 18” high ou 10” x 20” tray r Sprouter double thick channeled dome, Supe Propagation” router heat mat, “Art of with no holes, Super Sp g seedlings and pert advice for gettin booklet filled with ex ® Rooting Gel. d a packet of Clonex cuttings growing - an ng media and ect your favorite growi All you need to do is sel n visit For detailed informatio you’re ready to grow! ter.com. www.SuperSprou

The fixture is sold with all LEC components (lights and ballasts) included, but the DE HPS lamp and appropriate electronic ballast (for DE lamp operation) are sold separately. Because of the lighting control the Grow Beast allows, you can adjust your overall wattage from as low as 315w all the way up to 1780w of effective full spectrum growing power. The hood measures 24.9” x 40.5” and features Sun System’s HortBRIGHT insert with 95% reflective insert, and 98% reflective corners. It’s another first for Sun System, and a “Grow Beast” for growers! www.SunlightSupply.com

Spartan

Re p eat Series C ycl e T imer

Titan Controls promises “easy” and “reliable” when it comes to its new Spartan Series Repeat Cycle Timer. Perfect for CO2, pumps, fans, and other 120 volt devices, the Spartan Series Repeat Cycle timer can be set to the “ON” cycle for as little as 5 seconds, up to 30 minutes, and the “OFF” cycle from 5 seconds to 60 minutes. It also features a builtin photocell for day or night use. Titan Control engineers tally over a million cycles in their testing of the Repeat Cycle Timer thanks to premium proprietary components, and their “let’s overbuild it” approach to product development.

Also, it’s easy to tailor your timer cycles by selecting from one of three modes: 24 hour, day, or night.

Clear instructions are included, and it’s three easy steps for setting any one of the three mode s. Just plug your Spartan Repeat Cycle Timer into a 120 volt receptacle, set your timing cycle, and plug whatever 120 volt device you choose into the Spartan Repeat Cycle Timer... you’re good to go! It’s that easy and effective! www.TitanControls.net

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product spotlight M O O L B + G VE

easy to use powdered ble nutrients to plants all in one solu de -gra high ized ron mic s VEG+BLOOM delivers uniquely t costs drastically, and reduce ycle. VEG+BLOOM cuts nutrien lifec t plan the of ses pha of all ops few sco formula, throughout simplify your work. Just mix a unnecessary liquids. POWDERS of tles bot e ltipl mu ing er. mix eith nt les time spe feeding schedu No more need for complicated . feed and er, wat r you into VEG+BLOOM powder depending on the water Four formulas to choose from h hybrid powder contains quality, and medium you use. Eac beneficial additives your all the essential elements, and s, microbes, sugars, amino hungry plants need... Plus enzyme VEG+BLOOM is specifically acids, humics, fulvics & more. and is scientifically designed formulated for flowering herbs, draw out natural essential to increase resin content, robust harvests. aromatics, and ensure healthy,

magical BUT TER

The Magical Butter® machine is the world’s first countertop Botanical Extractor™, designed for creating fantastic recipes, infusing the essence of healthy herbs into butter, oil, grain alcohol, lotions, and more! The MB combines an immersion blender with a digital thermostat and heating unit.

It is scientifically designed for a specific purpose: creating incredible recipes, and botanical infusions with little to no labor. The Magical Butter machine grinds, heats, stirs, and

steeps your herbal extract - all at the correct time intervals and temperature for your climate and elevation. As a result, you achieve your desired infusion easily, safely, and consistently.

1-800-420-4334

14

MagicalButter.com

the biggest indoor gardening event in the UK

Homegrown Expo 2015

BY ERIC COULOMBE

This year’s show was the place to be if you wanted to know more about what is going on in this exciting, and ever-expanding industry.

Once again, the team at the Homegrown Expo welcomed enthusiastic indoor gardeners and business owners from all across the UK, Europe, and the world to the UK’s largest indoor gardening Expo. I continue to be impressed, not only by the professionalism, friendliness and knowledge of the organizers, but by the number and diversity of exhibitors.

Every major distributor, and nutrient brand in the UK was there to answer any and all questions.

If you are the type of person who is hungry for information - there is no place better to learn. Between the 13 distributors, 99% of the products offered in the UK are somehow represented at the show. The gardeners and scientists gathered are amongst the best in the world in their fields. This is the ONLY event in the UK that offers such an amazing group of people under one roof. I am always eager to pick their brains.

Over 50 companies exhibited.

Exhibitor Breakdown

Company Type

#

Company Type #

Nutrient Companies 16 Magazine/Publishing 2 Distributors 13 Ventilation 2 Nutrient Supplements

4

CO2 Booster

1

Biological Supplements

1

Water Filtration

1

Lighting 3 Grow Tent 1 Growing Systems 3 Fabric Pots 1 Rockwool 1 Odor Control 1 16

HOME GROWN EXPO I GARDEN CULTURE

As more and more people rely on Facebook groups for knowledge we have to become increasingly critical of fantastical claims and “game changing” new products.

The Internet is a great place to gather information, and do research, but has its limitations. Especially when it comes to credibility. Nothing can replace live agricultural or lighting scientists when you have complicated indoor gardening questions.

New Attractions • • •

Speakers Corner NPK Technologies Live podcasting all weekend 30 Foot poly tunnel, full of live plants set up in the middle of the convention center.

Not A Stagnant Industry The indoor gardening industry has been rapidly evolving for over a decade. There were fewer than 100 shops in the UK 15 years ago. They had 3 or 4 distributors to choose from, and a limited selection of products. Today, there are over 500 specialty indoor gardening retail shops alone in the UK, and endless online vendors. No one has to drive too far to find a shop, and if they do, all those products are just a click away. They are now serviced by over 20 distributors, countless smaller manufacturers or resellers, and offered thousands of products - often exact or similar copies of what has always existed, and proven popular.

Best Place to See What’s New This show has it all, including the latest new things. New stuff - that’s good. I am always looking for something different that I could try in my grow room. You never know what you’ll see at the show. Companies often time the launch of their new products with trade shows. Attendees are the first to see the latest technologies and trends.

Of course, this is a “trade” show, and you may have to endure a couple of sales pitches, but most of the information is priceless.

Over the past 12 years, I have participated in over 40 indoor gardening trade shows, in Canada, the USA, and Europe. I strongly believe in the overall benefits of being involved in these types of events. Meeting as many industry people and innovators as I can has been especially beneficial in strengthening my overall knowledge, and helped make connections that have been vital to my career. Without trade shows I would not have had all the opportunities, and success that I’ve been blessed with.

It goes without saying, Homegrown Expo 2016 is a must for UK indoor gardening enthusiasts.

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STORAGE I GARDEN CULTURE

BY CALLIE COE

Fruit & Veg

Murder “ARE YOU SPEEDING UP SPOILAGE WITH IMPROPER STORAGE?” Does it seem like your fresh produce is rotting way too quickly? Before you decide the store’s quality has declined, or you’ve done something wrong in the garden... take a look at how you’re storing fruits and vegetables. The problem might be that you are accidentally committing fruit and veg murder.

Death By Gassing

Reduce Food Waste

All fruit and vegetables produce a natural gas called ethylene to ripen. The food industry uses this gas to ripen green-picked produce before sending it on to the grocery store. But some are more sensitive to it than others, and you might be hurrying the process along unwittingly by storing these foods improperly. You can’t keep super producers and the sensitive types next to each other, It’s like sticking bullies in the same room with shy introverts...

They just don’t play well together.

Separate them according to the charts below and you’ll have a longer shelf life. And don’t store stuff in the fridge that should be kept at room temperature - this is also causing decay to set in too quickly. 3

NOTE: Want your avocados to ripen fast? Stick them in a paper bag next to some super producers. The same with unripe bananas… put the power of ethylene to work for you in the kitchen. It’s all natural and ripe for the pickin’ (pun intended).

STORE SEPARATELY AT ROOM TEMP

STORE SEPARATELY IN THE FRIDGE

Ethylene-Sensitive

Super Producers

Super Producers

Ethylene-Sensitive

Bananas (unripe) Bananas (ripe) Apples Broccoli Cucumber Tomatoes Blueberries Brussel Sprouts Eggplant

Transfer to the fridge when ripe

Cabbage

Green Beans Apricots Apricots Carrots Onions

Avocados

Avocados

Cauliflower

Potatoes Mangoes Mangoes Dark Leafy Greens Summer Squash Melons Melons Leeks Sweet Potatoes Nectarines Nectarines Lettuces Watermelon Papayas Papayas Peas Winter Squash Peaches Peaches Raspberries Pears Pears Strawberries Plums Plums 19

Genetically Modified Organisms

BY GRUBBYCUP

G.M.O. I GARDEN CULTURE

GMO TECHNOLOGY HAS THE POTENTIAL TO COMBINE ATTRIBUTES ACROSS SPECIES TO CREATE NEW OR IMPROVED LIFE FORMS”

A Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) is a biological entity capable of transferring or replicating genetic material that has had a portion of its genes replaced with foreign or altered genes. Although it is possible to modify an organism’s genes naturally by breeding, this does not fit the definition of a “GMO” - and in fact under some definitions of GMO even gene splicing within organisms of the same species is not considered a “GMO” if the combination could in theory be achieved through traditional breeding methods (eventually).

THE DANGER IS IN LETTING THE WRONG PEOPLE USE IT THE WRONG WAY, FOR THE WRONG REASONS

GMO technology has the potential to combine attributes across species to create new or improved life forms. Its uses include improved production, higher nutrient content, herbicide and disease resistance, adding bioluminescence to critters that don’t usually glow in the dark, and creating sheep that give spider silk milk. Each change should be evaluated on its own merits. House cats modified to give off a less allergenic dander might be a boon to some people, but increasing their size to that of a large dog could be the starting scene from a horror movie.

An issue with current GMO research is that it’s generally conducted by profit motivated entities who have little encouragement to act in the public good. These companies patent and own the new life forms they create, which may prove problematic if they allow these corporations to “own” the rights to the food supply. As an example of the sort of issues that can arise, consult the situation in California where in the middle of a drought some outof-state corporations have the right to continue to bottle and ship out millions of gallons of water, and others use millions of gallons for fracking, because they have more “right” to the local water supply than the people who live there do.

While the popularity of hybrid seeds discourages seed saving, at least the genes of the parent plants are in the gene pool, and with patience a facsimile of the original plant could be bred for. If private business GMOs dominate food production, then it may prove impossible to find replacements quickly in the event the companies fail to produce enough seed, a flaw is discovered in the product, or they choose to increase the price dramatically.

One argument in favor of GMOs is the potential to improve the nutrient value and harvest size which will be needed to feed the growing population size. This might forestall some of the hunger issues associated with overpopulation, but would not correct the core problem. One possibility of using GMO technology to assist in overpopulation is using it to either reduce fertility in humans, or to adapt humans to live with fewer resources in more crowded conditions.

Investing in social development could develop a less radical solution, but altering the human genome is a possible option.

GMO technology is a powerful tool, and like any tool one can use it either beneficially or banefully. The danger is in letting the wrong people use it the wrong way, for the wrong reasons. 3

GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

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SHORTIES I GARDEN CULTURE

Magic

Water The next time you reach into a store cooler to grab a bottle of water, stop and consider WHERE that water came from.

Why should you care?

Tomato Pollination Facts

The most efficient pollinator of tomatoes is the bumblebee.

Hand pollinated tomatoes will always be of lower quality, and be borne in less abundance. For this reason commercial greenhouses that specialize in tomatoes are now putting bumblebee hives inside the growing area - not honey bees.

Why? Only bumblebees can hang onto a tomato blossom and effectively make more male anthers release their treasure.

They do this by exercising their flight mechanism without moving, which emits a Middle C sound, the vibration of which coaxes the tightly held pollen gate to open... without fail. Time to invest in a tuning fork for better indoor tomato harvests.

The cheaper brands - you know the budget priced bottles are nothing more than filtered tap water. Forget the pictures of mountains on the label and brand advertising. Coca-Cola and PepsiCo are major bottlers of public resource water.

Nothing special here. True natural source water costs a lot more per bottle.

If you fill a glass from the kitchen tap nothing is wasted unless you toss part of it down the drain. For every liter of water these companies bottle, another .63 liters is wasted… but hey, all is good when in the pursuit of profiting off the population with a product no one really needs. That’s what the fake mountains are for to convince you to grab a bottle, rather than a glass.

The bottled water industry does billions in business every year selling you something you already have. They’re working hard to remove your right to water too, turning a public resource into a private commodity.

Now That’s Thirsty A seed must absorb 50% of its weight in water in order to germinate. 3

GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

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BY TAMMY CLAYTON

The Best of Nature’s Spoils

N IO T A T N E M R E FFERMENTATION Just about everyone eats fermented foods regularly toda y An art almost as old as humanity, fermentation is actually ancient food preservation technology, and present in every culture’s cuisine through the ages. Thousands of years ago people discovered how to harness the power of microorganisms to process fresh foods in a controlled spoilage technique. It was the only way to keep many foods from being wasted before refrigeration and canning existed.

What Is Fermentation?

The theory is that long ago people ate food past its prime, because there was no alternative. Over time different cultures developed a way to turn this to their advantage. They say that no one understood the microbiology that makes fermentation possible 2000 to 8000 years ago, and yet they managed to develop an almost foolproof way to keep fresh food edible longer. Not just in one country, or on a single continent, but worldwide. Somehow this doesn’t sound like accidental luck!

24

Just about everyone eats fermented foods regularly today. Some of them are so steeped in tradition you don’t even realize they are fermented. That morning cup of coffee, some teas, breads, cheeses, yogurt, and even chocolate come from some type of fermentation, without which these staples of the Western diet would not exist. And then there’s all the distinctive ethnic fare.

It’s a slow decomposition process brought on by microorganisms, or complex enzymes that brings about a biochemical change by anaerobic oxidation of carbohydrates. And while this happens naturally when foods decay, you can control it for beneficial results.

The process is efficient, and requires little energy, making it perfect for developing countries, remote living, and reducing your carbon footprint.

You can ferment just about anything edible: meats, seafood, dairy, fruits, vegetables, honey, and grains even wine and hard cider. Ferment the fermented? It gives you vinegar.

living foods harness the power of microorganisms and anaerobic oxidation

Types of Fermentation

FERMENTATION I GARDEN CULTURE

creases both Lacto fermentation innt content vitamin and nutrie

There are only two types of fermentation - alcohol and lacto.

Everyone is familiar with fermenting to produce alcoholic beverages, which occurs when yeast and certain bacteria convert sugars and carbohydrates into ethanol and CO2. In order for this to take place you have to add at least sugar, and sometimes yeast, to the recipe to condition the environment for the desired result.

Lacto fermentation is the same, and yet totally different. Here you add salt to start the process, which invites a different set of wild beneficial bacteria - lactobacillus which preserve food with lactic acid. Also known as probiotics, this increases both the vitamin and nutrient content. Fruits and vegetables already contain everything else needed to make the magic happen. But for specific therapeutic needs many today are seeking from fermented foods, adding a starter is important.

Benefits of Fermenting Some people call them living foods, because they contain things like high levels of beneficial bacteria - those probiotics, along with digestive enzymes. Regular consumption promotes good gut flora, boosts your immune system, detoxifies the body, and can make losing weight easier through microbial balance.

How To Ferment Food This isn’t difficult if you follow directions, but it’s suggested you start with simple sauerkraut. Not that high sodium, vinegary stuff in a can or jar, but the real thing. Real sauerkraut is somewhat sour and crunchy - not soft, pickled, and super salty.

Once you’ve mastered that, you might want to try sour pickles - those crunchy, brine-cured delights served in New York style delicatessens all over the US. If you’re in the UK, sampling them before making your own is best likely at Harry M’s in London on St. John’s Wood High Street. There are both sour and half sour versions - depending the amount of salt used in the brine.

Sandor Katz, author of “Wild Fermentation”, and “The Art of Fermentation”, has traveled all over the world reintroducing people to this ancient technology, and learning local recipes and methods from various indigenous cultures. A native of the Big Apple who is also Jewish, he’s got a particular fondness for sour pickles that comes from his roots. Now he lives in rural Tennessee where his fermenting adventures started in 1993 after finding an old crock in his barn, and decided to try making old-fashioned sauerkraut. It was the first step in his fermentation journey.

flora can affect your mental, physical, and emotional health

Because there is no cooking involved, preserving fresh fruits and vegetables this way leaves all the nutritional value intact, and it can actually increase them. There are vitamins it actually adds, such as many B vitamins found in just about anything fermented. Some foods, like cheese curds and natto, provide a great source of vitamin K2.

Mercola suggests that fermented food consumption should begin at birth, because flora can affect your mental, physical, and emotional health. Studies show that unbalanced gut flora is very common in people with type 2 diabetes. They’ve also found that babies with unbalanced gut flora, especially before being vaccinated, are at risk for learning disabilities, ADHD, and autism.

On his website, WildFermentation. com, Katz offers great tips and information through recipes and excerpts from his first book.

He says that both temperature and the amount of salt used affect not only flavor, but the length of time it takes for the process to complete. The more salt used, the slower fermentation takes place, and the same goes for curing room temperature. The faster the ferment, the shorter the shelf-life.

Here’s his recipe for sauerkraut. Be sure that the cabbage is fresh.

Aged heads will have mold already forming, and lack the crispness you’re after. This makes perfect sense. Why would anyone want to preserve food that isn’t freshly picked? It’s lost flavor and vital nutritional value.

GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

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Sandorkraut’s Easy Sauerkraut

FERMENTATION I GARDEN CULTURE

Makes 3.7 L. Timeframe: 1-4 weeks (or more)

Special Equipment • • • •

Ceramic crock or food-grade plastic bucket, one-gallon capacity or greater Plate that fits inside crock or bucket 3.7 L jug filled with water (or a scrubbed and boiled crock) Cloth cover (like a pillowcase or towel)

Ingredients • •

2.3 Kg cabbage 45 ml tablespoons sea salt

Process 1) Chop or grate cabbage, with or without hearts. Place cabbage in a large bowl as you chop it.

2) Sprinkle salt on the cabbage as you go. The salt pulls water out of the cabbage, creating the brine that allows the cabbage to ferment and sour without rotting. The salt also keeps the cabbage crunchy by inhibiting organisms and enzymes that soften it. 3 tablespoons of salt is a rough guideline for 5 pounds of cabbage. He uses more salt in summer, less in winter.

3) Add other vegetables. Grate carrots for a coleslaw-like kraut. He suggests experimenting by adding other vegetables like onions, garlic, seaweed, greens, Brussels sprouts, turnips, beets, and burdock roots. You can also add fruits (apples are classic), and herbs and spices (caraway seeds, dill seeds, celery seeds, and juniper berries are classic).

4) Mix ingredients together. Pack into crock just a bit a time.

Tamp it down hard using your fist, or any sturdy kitchen implement. This fills the crock tightly, and helps force water out of the cabbage.

5) Cover kraut with a plate or some other lid that fits snugly inside the crock. Place a clean weight (a glass jug filled with water) on the cover. This forces water out of the cabbage, and then keeps it submerged under the brine. Cover the whole thing with a cloth to keep dust and flies out.

6) Press down on the weight to add pressure to the cabbage and force water out of it. Continue doing this every few hours until the brine rises above the cover. This can take up to about 24 hours, as the salt draws water out of the cabbage slowly.

Some cabbage, particularly if it is old, simply contains less

water. If the brine does not rise above the plate level by the next day, add enough salt water to bring the brine level above the plate.

Add about a teaspoon of salt to a cup of water, stirring until it’s completely dissolved.

7) Leave the crock to ferment. He stores the crock in a corner of the kitchen, out of the way where it won’t be forgetten. You could also store it in a cool basement if you want a slower fermentation for longer preservation.

8) Check the kraut every day or two. The volume reduces as the fermentation proceeds. Sometimes mold appears on the surface.

Skim what you can off of the surface; it will break up, and you will probably not be able to remove it all. Don’t worry about this. It’s just a surface phenomenon from contact with Sandor Katz, author of “Wild the air. The kraut itself is under the anaerobic Fermentation”, and “The Art of Fermentation” protection of the brine. Rinse off the plate and the weight. Taste the kraut. Generally it starts to be tangy after a few days, and the taste gets stronger as time passes. In the cool temperatures of a cellar in winter, kraut can keep improving for months and months. In the summer or a heated room, its life cycle is more rapid. Eventually it becomes soft and the flavor turns less pleasant.

9) Enjoy. Sandor scoops out a bowl at a time and keeps it in the fridge starting when the kraut is young to enjoy its evolving flavor over the course of a few weeks. Try the sauerkraut juice that will be left in the bowl after the kraut is eaten - a rare delicacy and unparalleled digestive tonic. Each time you scoop some kraut out of the crock, repack it carefully. Make sure the kraut is packed tight in the crock, the surface is level, and the cover and weight are clean. Sometimes brine evaporates, so if the kraut is not submerged below brine, add salted water as necessary.

10) Develop a rhythm. Start a new batch before the previous batch runs out. Remove the remaining kraut from the crock, repack it with fresh salted cabbage, then pour the old kraut and its juices over the new kraut. This gives the new batch a boost with an active culture starter.

A somewhat condensed version from www.wildfermentation. com. Visit Sandor’s website to learn more about the art of fermenting foods. 3

27

BY ERIC COULOMBE

K A LE I S A SU PE R F O O D...

A N UTR ITI O N A L S TA N D O UT I N TH R E E BA S I C A R E A S

Until recently I didn’t even know what kale was. I have a slight memory of seeing it nestled around the veggies in the salad bar when I was a kid. But that is about it. Then I discovered kale chips. I may not have like cooked or raw kale, but I loved the chips. I played around with different recipes; at $7.00 for a 100gr bag I wasn’t going to buy them when I can make the same amount for 50 cents, or less.

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KALE I GARDEN CULTURE

...a truly amazing plant anyone can grow... indoors or out In recent years kale has exploded into the mainstream food world. It seems the public is on a constant search for the next “super foods� that will save them from any given unknown illness. Foods like wheatgrass shots, flax seeds, quinoa, or goji berries, have all had recent nutritional stardom. Would kale be just another health food fad, or would it again become part of our regular diet? It seems that kale might just stick around.

H I STO RY O F K A L E To its credit, kale has a long and rich history. They believe this descendent of the wild cabbage originated as a food crop in Asia Minor thousands of years ago. It made its way to Europe around 600 B.C., and played an important role in early European life, due to its heartiness and ability to grow in cold climates. English settlers brought kale to the United States in the 17th century.

H E A LT H B EN EF I T S Kale is a nutritional standout in three basic areas: (1) antioxidant and anti-inflammatory nutrients, (2) much-needed micronutrients (in which the average US adult is currently deficient), and (3) cancer-preventive nutrients It is part of the same family of foods as broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts, and collard greens. But kale is the only super food in this family, according to ANDI (Aggregate Nutrient Density )

GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

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“A FOO D C ROP FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS”

According to the USDA’s National Nutrient Database, a serving of kale weighs in at 49 calories, containing an impressive 3.6 grams of fiber and 4.28 grams of protein. It is also an excellent source of many important nutrients such as potassium (491mg), calcium (150mg), Vitamin C (120mg), and Vitamin K (9990 IU’s).

In addition to this, it also contains trace minerals like copper, iron and manganese, which are only needed by the body in trace amounts, but perform important functions nonetheless. Offering a source for of these nutrients, in addition to the wealth of antioxidants and vitamins it contains, are the reasons for kale being linked to so many positive health outcomes. And why it has found it’s way back into the hearts and kitchens of health conscious people across the UK and North America.

Vitamin K 1180% Vitamin A 98% Vitamin C 71% Manganese 27% Copper 22% Vitamin B6 11% Fiber 10% Calcium 9% Potassium 8% Iron 7% Vitamin E 7% Vitamin B2 7% Magnesium 6% Vitamin B1 6% Protein 5% Phosphorus 5% Vitamin B3 5% Folate 4%

Without a doubt, adding Kale to your diet is a good move if you want to improve your health, and reduce the risk of disease.

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GROWING K ALE Kale is an excellent cool season crop. It grows best in spring and fall, and can tolerate those first couple frosts.

You can plant kale anytime from early spring to early summer. If you plant kale late in the summer you can harvest it from fall until the ground freezes in winter.

Plant the seeds 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep into well-drained, light soil.

Once your seeds sprout thin to give 8-10” between plants.

Add 6-8” of mulch after last harvest, depending on where you live plants will continue to grow leaves during the winter. Cold frames could also help.

I have grown kale outdoors with success, but it did not prepare me for how this plant would grow in my basement, under artificial lighting.

If my garden had a star last year it was kale. It didn’t matter what system I put it in, it grew like something out of a fairy tale.

I started my seeds with Botanicare’s starter plugs, like Rapid Rooters. They all hit so I planted a bunch. I put 6 in my NFT, 3 in the Ecogrow wall (Vertical System), and 2 in the Current Culture DWC. I tried it in all the hydroponic systems to see which would work best for kale. I kept my sprouts in the plugs until there were lots of roots. 3 weeks maybe, I could have transplanted in 2 weeks but I went for extra roots. I did water them with a mild grow solution once the roots were visible.

Within a week I had enough kale to start pulling off juicy baby leaves to go in our salad, then the plant took over. They grew faster than we could eat them. The

KALE I GARDEN CULTURE

Kale Chip Recipe I love to cook, and I’m not afraid of a complicated recipe, or spending some extra time in the kitchen to create something special. This will require little time, and no cooking skills at all. In fact this one is hard to mess up.

“THEY GREW FASTER THAN WE COULD EAT THEM” “baby leaves” were bigger than my hand, than my head.

I had what seemed endless giant baby kale. I had way more than any family of four could ever consume. So, anyone who came over went home with kale, and basil.

I often neglect certain systems/plants to see what they can take. How sensitive are they in a certain system and do I want to grow this again. Not only did the kale grow well in all systems it thrives in all 3 unlike anything I have ever seen indoors, I can see why it was such a popular vegetable in the middle/dark ages when food security was often a matter of life and death. Even when I cut down a plant completely it would continue to grow from under the cut. And when I pulled it out of the vertical wall, and tossed it in the compost pile outside... it kept on growing.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Take a bunch of curly kale, and separate spine from leaf and any other tougher pieces. Tear them into hand size pieces or slightly smaller. Put them in a big bowl and drizzle oil over. I never measure, but somewhere around 3 tbsp. Depending on leaf structure, you may need more or less. Massage the oil into the leaves until all sides are coated.

Now pour maple syrup on the greasy green guys. 1/2 cup will do, I often put less. Massage again, getting the sweetness into all the nooks and cranny’s.

That’s it.

Place chips to be on a baking sheet, COMPLETELY covered with parchment paper - the kale will stick to any exposed metal. Try not to overlap, but it can get crowded.

I like to sprinkle with salt before they go in.

TURN OFF the oven before you put the tray in, and go to bed.

When you get up, perfect kale chips will be waiting.

If you put 2 trays in at the same time, in the morning take them out. Heat oven to 350 again. Turn the kale over on the baking sheet. TURN OFF the oven, and put the pan in again. They will be ready in 20 minutes to 2 hours.

NOTE: There is no substitute for real maple syrup. If you are looking for the highest quality, I recommend making friends with people from Quebec. 3

If you have an indoor garden and are wondering if kale is good plant to grow indoors - ponder no longer. It is a truly amazing plant that anyone can grow successfully indoors or out.

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31

BY GREG RICHTER

Two Under

R A P

PAR is one of the most misunderstood terms in growing, right up there with EC vs PPM. And yes, light makers sometimes use this confusion to sell or upsell growers on lights, ballasts and reflectors. Here’s my take on PAR, PPF, and PPFD. If you had a set of sunglasses that passed only the light that a plant can use, you’d see a lot less green and a lot more red. You’d have PAR glasses on, and they’d clear up a lot of confusion about how a plant uses light.

PAR MEASURES LIGHT THAT MAKES A PLANT GROW

PAR (Photosynthetically Active Radiation) measures light that makes a plant grow as opposed to Lumens, which measures light a human sees. This is now old news, but until recently Lumens were the only way we discussed grow light power and efficiency. It’s like this: Light is made up of quanta called photons, and there’s a small bazillion of them streaming out of a 1000 Watt grow light you can actually count them. Light output from a grow light is measured as PPF, Photosynthetic Photon Flux, which tells you how many photons are coming out of your light per second.

You’ve seen specs for uMoles/sec, or microMoles per second, which is how many photons in plant-growing colors stream out of your light each second it’s on. A Mole is a quantity, like a dozen, but it’s a fantastically big number, about 6.02 x 10^23, which is just plain huge, but what matters is that PPF can be compared from lamp to lamp...

Apples to Apples.

32

PPF is a more accurate way to determine how “good” a light source is, but is still doesn’t tell the whole story. Plants

use light energy like they eat food.

Nutritional needs change in a plant as it matures, and so do its light energy needs. Most fast flowering annuals require regimented changes to light cycles. They prefer more of the red spectrum during the flowering/ fruiting phases, and more of the blue during vegetative cycles.

Plants require trace amounts of several elements. Without them the plants will suffer, and could even die. UVA, UVB, and IR are also important to a plant’s development, but in terms of their contribution to the PPF, the number is miniscule. So, when measuring PAR you count all those photons, regardless of where they are within the PAR spectrum, and add them all together to get your number. It is better than lumens, but not perfect.

The takeaway is this... when comparing output from equal wattage bulbs – more PAR uMoles per second equals more plant growth per dollar’s worth of electricity. That’s all there is to it. A 2100 uMole lamp grows more plant mass than a 1900 uMole lamp with both lamps running at 1000 Watts.

More growth for the same power – just what growers want.

Ballast makers like to pretend that the same 2100 uMole/s lamp, fed the same 1000 Watts of power from their Boom Daddy Ballast puts out more (never less?) than Brand X ballast. It’s just not true. Power to the bulb = PAR to the leaf. It’s the bulb, reflector, and room layout that counts guys, not so much the power supply.

PAR I GARDEN CULTURE

OUTPUT POWER IS WHAT MAKES BRIGHT LIGHTS

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33

PAR I GARDEN CULTURE

IT’S THE BULB, REFLECTOR, AND ROOM LAYOUT THAT COUNTS Here’s the two common ways to make any ballast look awesome:

1.

Crank it up!

If Jack’s Ballast puts out 998 Watts, and Jen’s Ballast puts out 1125 Watts, which one is brighter on the PAR meter? You guessed it – Jen’s. PAR readings HAVE TO be scaled for output power, or they’re pure pharmaceutical-grade deception. Once you do that, with your PAR sunglasses on, you’d see they’re all the same brightness for the same power. I saw a YouTube video where a guy tested a whole bunch of ballasts to proclaim the Brightest. They were all within 5% of each other, but he never checked output power, so it means precisely zip. One well-known Shenzen ballast maker ships everything turned up about 3.5% to 1035 Watts output. They know PAR meters sell ballasts, and that growers are looking for a difference. There aren’t any. They fool a lot of smart people. I recently tested a well-known American ballast, and found them all blazing along at 1120 Watts on the 1000 Watt setting, and you know, they look brighter.

more PAR uMoles per second equals more plant growth

Greg Richter is Principal Scientist at Revolution Microelectronics and makes ballasts, lighting systems, and electronic controls. He can be reached at greg@ revolutionmicro.com 3 34

PAR READINGS HAVE TO BE SCALED FOR OUTPUT POWER 2.

Paint a smaller spot.

Light is a lot like paint – spread it out over a larger area and it gets thinner. Take a Maglite, and focus it to a small spot – super bright. Open the beam up to a wider spot, and it’s much dimmer. This is why PAR readings over a fixed 4x4 area do not determine which lights are “better”, but they do determine which are brighter over that foot print. Spot or deeper reflectors are going to win every time.

There are no more photons created, but the numbers look fantastic. It is not a brighter reflector, but it will win the 4X4 PAR test every time against a deep air-cooled or Dutch style DE type.

What you want to remember: · The light bulb, reflector, and wattage combo you choose matters more than the ballast driving it. · Pick a reflector that covers your area as uniformly as possible, and maximizes PPFD at the canopy. Choosing the right hood(s) for your space is vital. There is no best reflector, each situation can be unique, and one system or technology may best suit one and not another. Once again it is about number of photons hitting the garden. In a perfect world, you’d be able to mix and match reflectors and wattages to get what you need. · There’s no free lunch – 1000 Watts of power into a 2100 uMole/s bulb blasts out 2100 uMoles/s regardless of who made the ballast, hood, or reflector. Want more light? Turn up the power, buy a better bulb, or clean the reflector. Windex can sometimes grow more plants than Nitrate! · Ballast efficiency counts. Quality, longevity, heat, and EMI levels count. But output power is what makes bright lights.

Buying a good ballast means it’ll be running five years from now, running cool, and running quiet. It doesn’t mean it’ll be brighter. Look for low EMI levels, cool to the touch, and no fans – and save the PAR meter for testing bulbs.. 3

REGENERATIVE FARMING I GARDEN CULTURE

BY AMBER FIELDS

K is s t h e G r o u n d

B U I L D I N G B A C K H E A LT H Y SOIL WITH SUFFICIENT ORGANIC CONTENT A C T U A L LY C O L L E C T S AND STORES CARBON, P O T E N T I A L LY R E V E R S I N G C L I M AT E C H A N G E

AS THE H G IN M R A F E IV T A R E N E REG CHANGE E T A IM L C E S R E V E R O T P O T E N T IA L

An appropriate name for a healthy soil action group, for without the soil beneath our feet, your very life would not be possible. Based in Venice, California, Kiss The Ground works to spread awareness that regenerative farming has the potential to reverse climate change, because building back healthy soil with sufficient organic content is actually collecting and storing carbon.

We don’t need a complex new technology to stop extreme weather and desertification. What we need is to restore cropland and pastureland worldwide to a healthy state again. The plants: trees, understory, and groundcover use photosynthesis and work with micro organisms in the soil to pull excess carbon from the air and store it underground.

Healthy soil with proper levels of organic matter can lock carbon away safely for hundreds of years. Well, that’s the way it once worked, before the age of removing forests for industrial farming, and total mismanagement of soil as a resource.

Government Funded Healthy Soil Currently, California is working on a pioneering Healthy Soil Initiative that will reward farmers who are transitioning to regenerative farming practices in their agricultural industry.

This is first of its kind legislation that Governor Brown dedicated $20 million towards emphasizing that farms and ranches should be managed to store carbon as part of goal to reduce carbon emissions 40% by 2030. Paired with senate bill 367 that will use $65 million, also from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, to pay for on-farm case studies they hope will inspire innovative farmers to change their methods and practices.

Though it is a big first step, state officials and supportive NGO alike are well aware that both $20 and $65 million are pennies when looking at the massive amount of individual farmer investment it will take implementing these changes to really make the difference that’s needed. It’s going to take a

lot more than $85 million to get the ball rolling on rebuilding the soil on California farm and ranch land. Switching gears from the equipment and budget used in traditional agriculture programs will cost farms money many of them probably don’t have to invest, especially during the worst drought in recorded history.

Altering the climate needs to happen a lot faster in California than 15 years in the future. Kiss The Ground is highly aware of the dire need that exists for making progress in regenerating the soils in California right away. This August they launched a campaign petition using their new short film, The Soil Story, urging legislators to fully fund $160 million for regenerative farming and composting bills, and to spread awareness so that helping farmers switch to regenerative agriculture, composting, and other sustainable land use practices like managed grazing to restore pastureland is more possible in the very near future. Their campaign petition received over 23,000 signatures, and over 250,000 views of their video.

It’s Not Just the Government’s Job The greater share of the population today hears about climate change, and feel it is a hopeless situation. What can the average citizen do to stop greenhouse gases from turning vast areas of the world into deserts through extreme weather situations?

The truth is each individual can do more to help the situation.

There are millions of home gardens in North America alone that should employ the same methods as a regenerative GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

37

output

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REGENERATIVE FARMING I GARDEN CULTURE

The Kiss The Ground cre

w

farmer, because every square yard and meter of bare soil adds to the Earth’s inability to balance how much carbon dioxide is in the air. Every home should compost, be it city, suburban, or rural - giving back makes more sense than destroying the key to tomorrow. Compost is protecting garden soil from depletion, returning the soil life, and building back the soil itself to a healthy state.

Benefits Outweigh Alternatives Not just in California, or the U.S. as a national initiative, or even confined to one continent. Climate change is happening worldwide with one place being hotter and drier than it once was, while other people are experiencing record cold, or horrendously powerful storms. Given that half of the surface of this planet not submerged beneath water and perpetual ice is farmland, most of which is at some stage of depletion... It really is this simple. We can correct so much of what is happening by returning soils to a healthy state. Science has been studying this for years.

In places in Africa and Mexico they have turned desertified land back into lush prairie simply by using managed grazing practices to reintroduce the effects of wild herds that once roamed those places. The change comes about readily, and can produce phenomenal results. You don’t see much of this taking place in Britain, Canada, or the United States. It needs to change if we’re going to allow the Earth to do her job in providing a habitable place for its residents to dwell.

Matthew Englehart, farmer, and a source of inspiration to Kiss The Ground, notes that by restoring 1% of organic matter to all agricultural soils would reduce carbon parts per million in the air from over 400 to 350, and 2% more organic matter would be able to reduce that to 300 ppm carbon ... the point which would stabilize the climate again. And with the added bonus of restored watersheds, and more nutrient-dense food for humans, and wildlife.

Repair the soil globally using regenerative farming practices like cover cropping, planned grazing, no-till, composting, and reduction of chemical inputs. Cover cropping, for example, allows plants, that cover the soil, to use photosynthesis to constantly pull CO2 from the atmosphere creating carbohydrates (sugars). Then, they push some of those sugars out of their roots to feed microorganisms who actually build the soil with carbon-based glues. Healthy soil, is aggregated with these carbon glues, and allow for infiltration of air and water.

Air and water allow for life below ground to flourish. When life below ground is abundant, so is life above ground. Additionally, trees and ground cover plants that develop in healthy soils stop erosion, shelter their understory from extremes, and allow for groundwater recharge.

The Petition’s Outcome?

Kiss The Ground is proud of the amazing response they got from Sacramento, and around the world. Though all allocations from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund were delayed till the next legislative session, Kiss The Ground feels that their campaign brought a tremendous amount of support for a conversation whose time has come. They fully believe that their campaign will just grow stronger in the coming months, and all the work that happened this summer will result in even bigger opportunities for the California (and the world’s) transition to regenerative agriculture. Next they will be presenting The Soil Story in Paris for the UN Climate Summit. Follow their progress at: www.KissTheGround.com 3

39

GREEN PRODUCTS I GARDEN CULTURE

cool finds 1

H E I R LO O M TO M ATO E S U N L I M I T E D Tired of having minimal options for heirloom tomato seeds? There’s more to life than growing Brandywines - anywhere. Imagine so many choices, it’s likely to make even a cold climate gardeners’ head spin. Dwarf, beefsteak, determinate, indeterminate - antique varieties and recently developed openpollinated, patent-free selections abound. Discover: TomatoFest.com.

2

I N STA N T D I N O SAU R GARD EN Add some prehistoric fun and greenery just about anywhere - at home or work. These nifty little planters are available in lots of colors, and come with an air plant ready to put some life in your space.

Brights, pastels, or metallic finishes on your choice of dinosaur figure. Be sure to check out their whole shop, the selection is amazing. Available only from Two Trees Botnicals: bit.ly/2-treesbot.

3

N AT U R A L F O O D W R A P Nix the Saran and Cling Wrap. You can keep foods fresh with less waste, and no chemicals or petroleum products. Abeego Flats are reusable food wraps created from beeswax, and natural plant extracts. It comes in 2 sizes - perfect for wrapping a sandwich, fruits and vegetables, cheese, bread, or storage bowls. Rinse ‘em off’, and press ‘em on again.

From EarthEasy: bit.ly/food-wraps.

4

GROW A MONEY TREE Will it bear dollars? Probably not, but it is very unique, and an indoor bonsai project that beginners aren’t likely to kill. They say that if you’ve raised children or pets without losing any, you’re gonna do fine at taking care of a money tree. A great price on the tree in a ceramic planter with options to add a beginner’s bonsai kit and humidity tray. From Bonsai Outlet: bit.ly/mt-bonsai.

5

R EC YC L E D H O C K E Y B B Q TO O L S

Retired sports equipment is pretty plentiful in North America, and Michael Bellino has zeroed in on turning it all into something useful that sports fans will find attractive - like these grilling tools made from old hockey sticks.

Every set is unique, as is normal with repurposed materials, so colors and equipment brands will vary. From Uncommon Goods: bit.ly/bbq-tools. .3

41

BY EVAN FOLDS

BY EVAN FOLDS

LIFE FORCE AND THE

GAR DE N WE SPEND MORE TIME TRYING TO KILL PROBLEMS THAN WE DO TRYING TO INCREASE QUALITY

Life is peculiar. For instance, we can know that we are alive, and not know how we are alive at the same time.

What gives?

Religion has made many a fortune and follower arguing who is right, but one thing most agree on is that the source of life is beyond us. Call it faith or just humility, you can ask any quantum physicist tasking themselves to discover the origins of life, and they will tell you that the further they look the less we know.

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LIFE FORCE I GARDEN CULTURE

OUR INGENUITY HAS MASTERED THE ART OF PROFIT AT THE EXPENSE OF NATURE

A common mistake for people first being introduced to these concepts is to imagine that the messenger is suggesting that the supersensible capacities of living systems are more important than the materialistic capacities. That is not at all what I am doing here.

It seems obvious to consider that a garden is alive, but most only consider the plants themselves, and maybe the microbes in the soil, let alone how they work together symbiotically to grow soil. But life is much larger than this. Most would only consider the materialistic reality of these phenomena, but what we are searching for here is that which is beyond us.

We’re looking for where life comes from, and to do this we must grow our perspective larger than we may have been asked to in the past.

The physical materialistic world is not irrelevant, indeed, it is what we experience in day-to-day life, and a major piece to the wholistic puzzle; but this article is about what we may be missing. Imagine trying to ride a bike with no chain, or without the human awareness that steers us in the right direction?

We have to think our way out of this agricultural conundrum.

What we think, we grow.

There is something different and surreal about life. Life works together on many levels to work. But how exactly?

Life contains physical, mineral, biological, and energetic components. The physical and the mineral components amount to the plowing and fertilizing of conventional agriculture. From a certification level, organic growing completely disregards microbial inoculation and diversity, but at least organic fertilizers feed microbes. However, both methA F O R C E . ods of growing completely ignore and discount the energetic component and FORM, N C E , A N D concept of life force.

What if I asked you to consider that the indoor grow room, or a farm, or the Earth itself is its own individual organism? Rudolf Steiner used the idea of the farm as an organism in his development of biodynamic methods, and through our experience and observation, we can see that the Earth takes a breath between the equinoxes LIFE IS by breathing in and incubating its enerIT IS gy during the winter, and breathing out R E S O N A to express this energy in the summer.

POTENT

IZATION PERSONIFIED. AND WE CAN PLAY IT LIKE A FIDDLE

We experience life, we can observe it, and take advantage of it, but by all means - we take it for granted. Don’t get me wrong, this is not about showing appreciation, or being thankful to be alive; I’m saying that we are alive by default, and that this innately manifests complacency, and a failure of responsibility towards our potential without proper attention.

For example, in modern conventional agriculture farmers use dead synthetic fertilizers and toxic biocides while attempting to grow living food crops. That doesn’t make sense on paper, yet it is how the overwhelming majority of food is grown in the U.S. In fact, most of U.S. agriculture has been genetically modified so that crops are able to withstand these very poisons.

Point and case, we have gone as far as to genetically modify life to take advantage of it.

Our ingenuity has mastered the art of profit at the expense of Nature, but we have not stopped to consider people and the terrible expense we are creating for ourselves. We spend more time trying to kill the problems that we create with our toxic ways than we do trying to increase the product quality.

In many ways, we have lost perspective towards that which is best for us.

Rudolf Steiner’s biodynamic methods are the standard-bearer of energetic farming, but biodynamics does not represent a complete farming system. In fairness, if you read Steiner’s lectures this was not his intention. They asked him to deliver methods of generating and working with the life force of the farm, not concepts such as soil testing for mineral balance, or brewing compost tea for biological diversity.

In our consultation work we call our agronomic approach BioEnergetic Agriculture. If conventional agriculture is drowning, and organic growing is treading water, BioEnergetic Agriculture is swimming where you want to go.

It is this author’s opinion and experience that in order to accomplish the potential of our agriculture we must open our minds to the qualitative and relatively immeasurable concepts of form, resonance, potentization, and life force.

Literally, life is energy. In our own bodies we can identify the nervous system, and the electrical firing of the synapsis in the brain calling our bodies into action, but the true workings of the energies that regulate these life systems are far more subtle and profound.

GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

43

LIFE FORCE I GARDEN CULTURE

WE HAVE TO THINK OUR WAY OUT OF THIS AGRICULTURAL CONUNDRUM We know that life is more than the sum of its parts. The reason that living things do not fall apart into their component pieces is due to the organization and communication of the physical body with, what Steiner called, the etheric body, the astral body, and the I-organization, or ego, of humans.

Plants do not retain an ego or an astral body, only an etheric and a physical body. Throughout life, the etheric body resists decay by providing living substance a different setting, so to speak, than it would otherwise physically have by itself.

THINK OF THE PLANT DISEASES AND PEST INFESTATION LIKE AN INSTRUMENT OUT OF TUNE

These subtle energy bodies are at work in living organisms, and represent the glue that holds life together through the phenomena of resonance and potentization. Resonance is the force generated by pumping on a swing, or the concept of a pendulum continuing its initial momentum. Potentization is the art of working with resonance in order to bring higher order and significance to life experiences. As an example, consider the crescendo of a symphony orchestra where the woodwinds, brass, percussion, and strings work together to move the human spirit with sound. We can leverage resonance and potentization in agriculture with proper intention. Think of the pest infestation, or the plant disease like an instrument that is out of tune.

Resonance and life force may be new concepts in regards to your garden, but they are vital to grasp to leverage the true power of living systems. Our language is very limited as we are not invited to imagine life beyond its physical borders from an educational level, but, interestingly enough, when we investigate the higher energy bodies, and put their merits into application we find that they are perfectly represented by our experience in Nature.

The ego is unique to humans on Earth. Animals cannot see themselves in the mirror, but a human ego can say “I”. The human ego represents the responsibility of free will, and leaves us almost totally disconnected from the rhythms of Nature.

Animals have no ego, but like humans, retain an astral body.

Consider it as the soul body, or the bearer of pleasure and pain, cravings, desires, and passions. It is the astral body that regulates animal instinct. It is also at work in the human dream state.

Without an ego or an astral body plants are more directly influenced by the subtle etheric energies of Nature, and remain completely immersed in her natural rhythms. This is why plants are so heavily influenced by celestial events such as the full moon, and represents the basis for the biodynamic method of farming introduced in Steiner’s Agriculture Course in 1924.

True health, in Steiner’s view, is only achieved when the higher energy bodies are working together with the physical body and one another.

To put it another way, illness occurs in the physical body as precipitation of the imbalances in the wholistic system.

So there is more to life than what is physically here, and life has a force, or an energy that ties us all together. This life force is lost on the average human, as it is on the average modern farmer or popular scientist. All we need for confirmation of this pervasive energy is to take an inventory of the way Nature expresses these energies - the spiral vortex.

We see the spiral vortex in water, snail shells, the tendrils of a climbing plant, the pattern of seed in a sunflower or pine cone, and in every living creature. Even the shapes we see that are not spirals are still patterned according to the sacred geometry of Nature. From the tiniest of particles like DNA to the largest of systems, such as galaxies, the spiral vortex is the pattern template of Nature.

Through resonance and potentization, life moves like an energetic ghost in the spaces between physical substance via the form of the spiral vortex. But outside of itself life is also in resonance with and responsive to its greater environment, including climate, celestial cycles, the structure of water, and the great many subtle energies of Nature and the Universe that work to regulate and communicate in and between living systems.

GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

45

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LIFE IS ENERGY… MORE THAN THE SUM OF ITS PARTS A living system is also responsive to the farmer working the land, who in most agricultural circumstances is not operating in resonance with the wholistic system. This is the innate responsibility of a BioEnergetic farmer, making sure they are not working against the forces that are at work for them.

You can see the pervasiveness of the spiral vortex pattern in the phenomena of the Golden Ratio and the Fibonacci sequence. To generate Fibonacci numbers you add two successive numbers to get the next (0,1,1,2,3,5, etc.). The resulting form is a perfect spiral generated by geometry, but representative of all living forms as a means of manufacturing Nature.

affect the living system through the energetic communication between the physical substances and the potentized water.

So rather than moving the plant physically, the vibrations used in frequency farming and retained in water affect the space retained by the higher energy bodies of the living system and not merely the physical substance itself.

TRADITIONAL AND Far out I know, but taken in context O R G A N I C A G R I C U L T U R E and application it represents the fuCOMPLETELY IGNORE ture of agriculture.

AND DISCOUNT THE ENERGETIC COMPONENT AND CONCEPT OF LIFE FORCE

The Golden Ratio is irrational and cannot be expressed as a fraction. It is in essence the space between the fractions, as the higher energy bodies are for the physical body in living organisms. The math that underlies our physical existence is structured amongst the chaos of life, meaning that the randomness of Nature is actually highly ordered, with life springing from the subtle spiritual realm and living somewhere in between.

Consider that when you get down to an atomic level physical matter is scarce. As communicated by a Bohr model in chemistry upwards of 99.999% of matter is actually space, so it stands to reason that proper energetic stimulation is at least as efficient at moving plants to production than physical substance. In other words, the physical components of a garden such as stimulants and fertilizer are relevant, but they represent only part of the story.

For example, part of our repertoire involves creating what we call “field sprays” that work homeopathically on crops.

When a BioEnergetic field spray is potentized using implosion or succussion and used on a field, water acts to “remember” the vibrations of the materials to which it was exposed. The frequencies contained within the water are actually used to

The goal of BioEnergetic Agriculture is to leverage and combine what we already know about physical agriculture with the concept of life force through a consultive approach that delivers all levels of the incredible cutting edge information and technology available to the modern grower so that they can maximize the true potential of their growing operations.

There are ways to measure these forces, such as Kirlian photography or sensitive crystallization, but these methods are not accepted by popular science because they are not repeatable in the sort of exactness we have come to expect in scientific circles.

The best measurement is experience. If we are to heal and conquer agriculture in any sort of collective way we must lower the standards of measurement we have towards our existence and come to terms with the confidence developed through the experience of growing with subtle energies, developing our own personal agriculture, eating our ideals, and holding ourselves accountable to the responsibility that we have for ourselves and the world that sustains us.

Ideas are a real and tangible thing, and life is a force. It is form, resonance, and potentization personified. And we can play it like a fiddle if we open our minds and provide ourselves the opportunity for reinforcing experience through the generation of supersensible ideas. 3 GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

47

BY GRUBBYCUP

more lights increases the difficulty in keeping it cool enough to support plants

s t h g i L e Mor Mean

BY GRUBBYCUP

e r o m heat

One frequently overlooked aspect of increasing the

size of an indoor garden is the increase in cooling needs that come with the addition of more lights into a space.While a single light can often be cooled with not much more than a fan, more lights increase the heat a garden generates, and increases the difficulty in keeping it cool enough to support plants.

a 10’ x 10’ room should have about 5,000 BTUs of cooling

48

An object with a lot of thermal energy is “hot”, and an object with little thermal energy is “cold”. Generally speaking, placing objects of two different thermal energy levels in contact with each other will result in an energy transfer from high (hot) to low (cold) until then temperatures equalize. This energy transfer from a hot source is commonly known as “heat”.

A hot cup of coffee will lose energy into the air until it becomes room temperature, raising the overall temperature of the room by the same amount. A cold soda will absorb heat from the room until it becomes room temperature, lowering the temperature of the room by the same amount. In a still room, hot air tends to rise, collecting at the top.

The reason that the above principles are important, is that lighting in an indoor garden generates heat, with additional lighting exacerbating heat related issues. Since the heat from lighting can heat a space well beyond what is healthy for plants, some form of cooling is often needed.

In an open space, the greater air mass of the rest of the room (especially the space above the lighting) may provide enough cooling by dilution. An example of this is a single light in a large room with a fan. Heat can escape through the larger airspace, and as long as the space loses as much or more heat than it

TEMPERATURE I GARDEN CULTURE

generates, temperature can be controlled. This works best in situations where there isn’t much heat being generated, and the ambient temperature of the greater air mass is cooler than the desired temperature in the garden.

In a closed space, removing the hottest air from the room will improve cooling. Examples of this are vents at the top of a room that remove the hottest air, allowing cooler air to be drawn in from below, and closed hoods with ducting that draws outside air across the lamp and then out of the room.

By removing the hottest air from the area, the overall level of thermal energy in the room can be reduced. This method works best when there is an existing pool of cool air available to draw from.

Depending on the environment, evaporation can be used to help cool an area (and raise humidity). Water cools as it evaporates, which is how sweating helps cool a person.

Swamp coolers use this principle, by holding a wet material in front of a fan. In a warm, dry climate, these can be both cost effective (they are cheaper than an AC unit to run) and a way to raise humidity in a garden. They aren’t as useful in high humidity environments, however, as they don’t work as well without dry air to evaporate to, and they can even contribute to existing high humidity issues such as mold if the room humidity gets too high.

evaporation can be used to help cool and raise humidity in your garden How much cooling, and which options are appropriate depend on how much waste heat is being generated. When sizing an AC unit, take into consideration the amount needed to maintain the room itself. Local conditions, and the specifics of the location can be used to refine an estimate, but as an example a 10’x10’ room should have something in the ballpark of 5,000 BTUs of cooling just to maintain the room itself, not counting the lights.

Consult HVAC recommendations to generate a baseline room requirement. For each lamp (assuming the ballasts are outside the space) allocate approximately 3.41 BTU per watt hour of lighting (3,412 BTUs per 1000 watts).

removing the hottest air from the room will improve cooling

Air conditioners work by taking a refrigerant, and compressing it under pressure until it can be condensed into a liquid on the “hot” side, which then passes through to the lower the pressure “cold” side where it evaporates causing cooling. A fan moves air across the cold side coils to cool the air, reducing the temperature inside the space, and releasing heat on the “hot” side, located outside of the space to be cooled. For a window AC box unit, the hot side is the end that hangs outside the window, and the cold side exposed to inside. In a “split” AC unit, the hot side and cold sides are split into separate pieces, with connecting tubes to transfer the refrigerant between them.

1 ton of air conditioning is equal to 12,000 BTU of cooling per hour, or about the size of a 10’x10’ room with 2 x 1000 watt lights (5,000 BTU + 3,412 BTU+ 3,412 BTU = 11,824 BTU). Four lights in the same room would need closer to 18,648 BTU (5,000 BTU for the room +13,648 BTU in lights) of cooling, and a 1.5 ton AC (18,000 BTU) might be a better option.

Other heat generating equipment such as a burning CO2 generator will contribute to cooling needs,

as will frequent occupancy.

A cooling system that is too small, will fail to cool enough of the waste heat, and temperatures will rise. A cooling system that is too large, however, will turn on and off too often, shortening the life of the unit. While there is no substitute for a proper evaluation by an air conditioning specialist, rule of thumb calculations can at least give an estimation of cooling needs. 3 GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

49

INTRO BY ERIC COULOMBE LETTER BY DR. BETTY MARTINI

e

aspartame

amag d in a r b e s u a c was found to

If you consume Aspartame, or your children do - please read this article.

50

ASPERTAME I GARDEN CULTURE I received an email from a friend about the passing of what I consider to be an American hero. He never carried a gun, or fought in a foreign land, but he worked tirelessly until the end of his days fighting to tell the truth, to expose aspartame for what it is... poison. His mission to rid our food supply of dangerous chemicals such as MSG and aspartame was for you, your family, and the whole world.

I had a chance to speak to Dr. Martini, one of Dr. Olney’s long time colleagues and friends.

She wrote the following letter…

Dr. John Olney passed WE KNEW IT away on April 14, 2015 at WAS POISON, the age of 83. A professor AND WE DID of psychiatry, pathology, EVERYTHING and immunology at the WITHIN OUR Washington University POWER TO School of Medicine, KEEP IT OFF he was known for his THE MARKET, work on brain damage BUT IT WAS research. He coined the term excitotoxicity in his TAKEN OUT OF OUR HANDS 1969 paper published in Science. Neurosurgeon Russell Blaylock, M.D, wrote the book, “Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills”. In 1996 he was elected to the Institute of Medicine of the United States National Academy of Sciences. He has campaigned for greater regulation of monosodium glutamate (MSG), aspartame, and other excitotoxins for over 20 years.

It was Dr. Olney, and Attorney James Turner who tried to prevent the approval of aspartame. In his 49 page document to the Board of Inquiry of the FDA. The document shows the additive effect of MSG and aspartame to be disastrous. Read it: www.bit.ly/fda-doc At the time, the FDA agreed with Dr. Olney. They originally tried to have the manufacturer, G. D. Searle, indicted for fraud, but both U.S. prosecutors hired on with the defense team, and the statute of limitations expired. The FDA then revoked the petition for approval (www.bit.ly/revoked-petition). At an expo some years ago someone who had worked for the FDA said, “we knew it was poison, and we did everything within our power to keep it off the market, but it was taken out of our hands. Your argument is with Don Rumsfeld who G. D. Searle used to get it on the market.”

G. D. Searle was excising brain tumors from rats (aspartame breaks down to diketopiperazine, a brain tumor agent), putting them back in the study, then when they died resurrected them back on paper.

1. FDA Toxicologist and Task Force member, Dr Adrian Gross stated (Wilson l985): “They (G.D. Searle) lied, and they didn’t submit the real nature of their observations, because had they done that it is more likely that a great number of these studies would have been rejected simply for adequacy. What Searle did, they took great pains to camouflage these shortcomings of the study. As I say filtered it, and just presented to the FDA what they wished the FDA to know, and they did other terrible things for instance animals would develop tumors while they were under study. Well they would remove these tumors from the animals.”

2. An FDA Toxicologist explained why their experiments were invalidated: “It is highly unlikely the FDA Investigative teams found all of the problems with G. D. Searle’s studies. Searle seemed so intent on covering up their misconduct, that it is quite likely that they were able to hide many of the problems from the FDA.” Dr. Olney was so upset with the fraud that he insisted Searle do their studies in his lab where he could oversee them. Indeed, aspartame was found to cause brain damage, so he thought it would not be approved. He did not know that Searle failed to tell the FDA. In the movie, “Sweet Misery: A Poisoned World” you can see Dr. Olney. Here is a clip with Attorney James Turner explaining about Rumsfeld: www.bit.ly/rumsfield-clip.

Rumsfeld said he would “call in his markers” and get aspartame on the market. He was on President Reagan’s

51

TO D AY T H E F D A G E T S O V E R H A LF T H E F U N D IN G F R O M B I IR G PHAR M A AN D B IG CHEM

ED W IE V E R R E E P C I IF T O V E R 9 0 0 S C IE N A R T A M E IS D E A D LY P S T U D IE S S H O W A S Woodrow Monte who wrote the book, transition team. The day after he took IF THE FDA “While Science Sleeps: A Sweetener office someone from the Transition team VIOL ATES ITS Kills” (whilesciencesleeps.com). They called Dr. J. Goyan, FDA Commissioner OWN L AWS must have realized the information was who would have signed the revoked WHO IS LEFT TO out now, and there was nothing they petition into law and fired him. According PROTECT THE could do. In the meantime, epidemics of to his wife they called at 3:00 AM, she was autism and other birth defects, ADD and there. President Reagan knew it would PUBLIC?” ADHD, have flourished throughout the take 30 days to get a new commissioner to world where aspartame (NutraSweet, overrule the Board of Inquiry, so he wrote Equal, Spoonful, Canderel, Benevia, AminoSweet, etc) is an executive order making the FDA powerless to sign the sold. In the movie, “Sweet Remedy”, the ADD people are revoked petition, or do anything on aspartame until he could interviewed and say that before aspartame was approved get a new commissioner. He appointed one of Rumsfeld’s they hardly ever used the terms ADD and ADHD. friends, Arthur Hull Hayes, who did overrule the Board of Inquiry, and put the deadly poison aspartame on the market.

Today the FDA is simply an extension of Big Pharma and Big Chem, and gets over half their funding from them. Dr. The builder of the NutraSweet factory in Augusta who Adrian Gross, FDA scientist and toxicologist, told Congress was a neighbor told me that Searle was selling aspartame aspartame violated the Delaney Amendment, because it even before it was approved. When Jerome Bressler, FDA causes cancer, and therefore they should not have been able compliance officer, who authored the famous Bressler to set an allowable daily intake. His last words will never be Report retired I called to thank him for getting out the forgotten, “And if the FDA violates its own laws who is left facts: www.bit.ly/complete-report. He asked me didn’t I to protect the public?” notice part of his report was missing, and I told him I had.

He said 20% was sealed by the FDA, so the public would In 1986 the Community Nutrition Institute petitioned the never see these horrible studies, and he asked me to get FDA to ban aspartame, because so many were having seizures them. I told Doctors Russell Blaylock and H. J. Roberts who and had gone blind. It was taken all the way to the Supreme called Bressler. Dr. Roberts wrote his congressman, and Court, but again politics won out. So for almost 30 more tried to get the documentation from the FDA who said it years the public has suffered blindness, seizures, and many was confidential, and they would not release it. So the FDA horrible diseases triggered or precipitated by aspartame as was staring at studies that showed neural tube defects, and outlined in the 1000 page medical text, “Aspartame Disease: knew babies would be born with autism, spina bifida, and An Ignored Epidemic”, by H. J. Roberts, M.D. This includes cleft palate - for starters, and refused to warn the public.

MS, lupus, ALS, diabetes, obesity, infertility, birth defects, male sexual dysfunction, myocardial infarctions, and sudden I was able to get these records when Dr. Madelon Price cardiac death. went through thousands of Dr. Olney’s papers and found The FDA knows there are over 900 scientific peer reviewed them. We hand carried these records back to Jerome studies that show aspartame is deadly, but continues to lie Bressler, and added them back to his report just before he in the face of facts. Dr. Ralph Walton did research for 60 died. Finally the FDA released some of the records to Dr. 52

ASPERTAME I GARDEN CULTURE

LL K IN D S IT T R IG G E R S A AND O F P SYC H IAT R IC LE M S , ROB B E H AV IO R A L P S W IT H A N D IN T E R AC T A N T S SS A LL A N T ID E P R E Minutes on scientific peer reviewed studies and funding. He showed that 92% of studies showed the problems and if you eliminated 6 studies that the FDA had something to do with, because of their controversy, and 1 industry summary that 100% showed the problems.

Dr. M. Alemany did the Trocho Study that showed the formaldehyde converted from the free methyl alcohol embalms living tissue and damages DNA. Dr. Alemany told me in Barcelona aspartame would kill 200 million people.

Today aspartame is widely known as Rumsfeld’s Plague.

Dr. Olney’s prophecy of what aspartame would do to the brains of children has now been fulfilled. Even when it first got on the market while the FDA was still on the side of the people and had tried to prevent approval, they told Dr. Olney no child would ever get aspartame. Yet, it remains in pediatric drugs, and over-the-counter pediatric products.

To make matters worse aspartame interacts with drugs and vaccines. It triggers all kinds of psychiatric and behavioral problems, and interacts with all antidepressants. Today the FDA with all the facts in front of them lie to the public, and tell them aspartame is safe. They had full knowledge that aspartame caused neural tube defects and would cause an epidemic of autism, spina bifida, and cleft palate throughout the world, and didn’t even have the decency to add a warning for pregnant women. Dr. James Bowen told them aspartame is mass poisoning of the U.S. and over 100 countries of the world.

A moment of silence for this heroic and brilliant researcher who tried to save the population of the world from this deadly chemical poison. May he rest in peace. 3

Dr. Betty Martini, D.Hum, Founder Mission Possible World Health Intl 9270 River Club Parkway

Duluth, Georgia 30097 770 242-2599 www.mpwhi.com

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Who’s g n i w o r G What

1) Detroit, Michigan

Farming Motown Revitalizing the City of Detroit is a tall order, but change is underway. Artists and artisans are moving in, and urban agriculture is cropping up as blighted buildings come down. The Greening of Detroit works to bring sustainable growth to the people, and the city through planting trees and green spaces, education, training, and employment.

The non-profit organization, active since 1998, has fueled parks and gardens citywide - including 4.5 acres of intensive organic fruit and vegetable farming, and aquaponics. The largest, known as Detroit Market Garden, on the east side next to Eastern Market where the zero miles produce is sold sits on land reclaimed from a derelict, debris strewn city block. This spring they’ve added the Build-A-Garden program to provide urban dwellers with plots to grow their own.

A flock of phoenix rising from the ashes. Learn more: www.bit.ly/greening-detroit

Credit: Lifestyle Greens - The Greening of Detroit

Where

WHAT’S GROWING ON

2) South Bronx, New York

Steve Ritz has been a man on a mission to change the world for impoverished kids in the Bronx. This teacher’s passion for helping his students learn and grow into healthy, aspiring adults is beyond inspiring - and it’s won his urban gardening project the 2015 TedXManhattan Award. Ritz is turning an unused library into a hydroponic learning center where his budding city farmers will produce all manner of fresh healthy food. They’ve already been growing in Tower Gardens on a smaller scale in the classroom, and now it’s grown into The Green Bronx Machine.

An outstanding teacher, Steve loves his work almost as much as he loves these kids, and his 6th graders love him for the positive change he has brought to their lives. Together they

have grown over 30,000 pounds of fresh food indoors and outdoors over the past 8 years as part of math and science lessons. In the process, food desert kids and their families have access to fresh fruits and vegetables harvested at P.S. 55.

The world needs more guys like Ritz! Learn more: www.greenbronxmachine.org

Credit: Howard Simmons/New York Daily News

Raising The Future

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3) Chicago, Illinois

Credit: Sacred Ecology Design

Food Forest 2 Reforesting a city the size of Chicago is best done by planting more than just trees. You need understory too. The Sacred Ecology Design team understands that, and the importance of incorporating sustainable local food production to offset the many food deserts that exist there. They’re now in the process of building the second food forest on the South Side.

Washington Park Food Forest in the historic Bronzeville neighborhood will be the first that’s truly public - open to all.

Permaculture designer, Dallas Wright, is building it to bring hope and nutritious food to one of Chicago’s worst food deserts. They’ve got the understory in place, but finishing the project installation requires further funding to purchase 60 more fruit trees.

Help bring positive change to this impoverished urban community... Donate to their crowdfunding campaign at: www.bit.ly/food-forest.

4) Victoria, British Columbia

Forgotten Fruit

Credit: Vancouver Sun

100 years ago, there were over 700 acres of apple orchards where the city of Victoria now sits. While the developing city ate up orchard lands, many of those heirloom fruit trees still stand, generating tons of fruit

that the property owners do not want. Such a waste!

There’s nothing wrong with the vintage apple cultivars still standing and producing tasty, useful fruit. They’re just not enrolled in industrial agriculture whose imported apples are piled in markets around town.

The Fruit Tree Project, a Lifecycles program, uses volunteer labor to harvest tens of thousands of pounds of apples every summer, and distributes the food to the community in quarter shares. The volunteers naturally get to keep 25% of the harvest, another 25% goes to foodbanks, and the community respectively, while Lifecycles uses the remaining quarter to create retail products like natural cider vinegar, and have plans to start making cider soon.

High five on reclaiming local fruit.

Learn more: LifecyclesProject.ca.

59

COLUMN I GARDEN CULTURE OPINION PIECE

BY THEO TEKSTRA MARKETING MANAGER GAVITA HOLLAND BV

YOU KNOW WHAT GRINDS MY GEARS?

FACEBOOK GROUPS In this columns Theo Tekstra discusses observations in the indoor garden culture. There is sometimes so much urban legend, and so little science in this industry. It is time to “myth bust” some of these urban legends, and have a fresh breeze move through the industry.

I spend a lot of time on Facebook. Not so much to watch all the adorable kitty movies (though I must confess, as a cat owner, I do enjoy them from time to time), but mostly in what is called “industry groups”. I have no less than 5 things that grind my gears in these groups, and I actually wish most did not exist. Facebook is a social media, not meant for storing knowledge.

The first, and foremost, frustration is that whatever you write, is going down the drain in about a week - two weeks max. New topics come up so fast that interesting discussions sink down in the list to be never read again. It is almost impossible to do a good Facebook search by topic, there are no sections, and only current topics get attention.

So you can make your point shortly to a limited number of people for a limited time, because nobody will ever drill down in the list of posts to see if ever someone made an intelligent comment about a particular subject in the past.

Forums are still the best way to preserve knowledge through discussion. They are organized, searchable, structured, and above all: moderated. You can register for notifications on specific topics, and easily organize the sections and topics you are interested in.

The second issue I have is the lack of moderation. Within 4 posts a discussion about daily light integral for example, can drift to making local beer, and what seems to start as an interesting discussion comes to a sudden halt. I have been a moderator and forum admin of large forums for many years, and believe me - it is a real job.

Facebook is a social media, not meant for storing knowledge.

The third thing that drives me mad is the spam. People use these groups for the shameless advertisement of their products. The lack of moderation doesn’t help. Chinese manufacturers in particular do not have a clue what spam is, and even group starters sometimes seem to have no other purpose than to promote their own products.

The fourth issue I have is the trolls. Behind a keyboard many people degrade to blood sucking ticks, and the only way to get rid of them is to just block them. Good riddance. See moderation, point 2!

The final, and most annoying issue is that, though I know that all the effort you put into it is probably pearls for the swine, you keep posting! I admit it. I am a social media junkie.

I engage in the same arguments every time, I try to debunk the urban legends, and I defend myself when attacked.

There are a few cures though. Unplugging your computer, switching off your smartphone and tablet, and going on a boat trip is a refreshing experience. Blocking the trolls is another great feature, given the lack of moderation in most groups. And in a discussion try to introduce the following: agreeing to disagree. At least you can always agree to disagree, and it completely takes the poison out of some discussions. 3

61

BY AGENT GREEN

MONSANTO

NEVER

RESTS

Manufacturers are free to voluntarily label foods non-GMO - after being certified

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MONSANTO I GARDEN CULTURE

GMOs and Monsanto have been hot U. S. topics lately with multiple new developments. As the summer unfurled a lawsuit over fraudulent labeling on Roundup bubbled up in Los Angeles. Mainstream media blacked out that news, even though it went from a California lawsuit to a national class action suit in a matter of weeks.

After DARK In late June, the House Agriculture Committee’s Biotech Subcommittee held a second hearing on the new Monsanto Protection Act (Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act). The demands became more far-reaching with every draft, earning it the DARK label... Deny Americans the Right to Know.

It’s clear whose side of the bread is buttered here. Manufacturers are free to voluntarily label foods non-GMO - after being certified. If this bill passes the Senate, and is signed into law it makes it more costly to identify GMO-free food than not to. Certification will likely cause prices to rise, not because of words on a label, but meeting certification fees and regulations.

the DARK Act is good for farmers who grow GMO crops

Officially referred to as H.R. 1599, the bill initiated by the Grocery Manufacturers Association is touted as good for the farmers, but only those growing GM crops. It certainly will generate new government jobs, and perhaps an income tax increase to cover the added costs.

The DARK Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives Agricultural Committee in mid July, even though 90% of the population wants to know exactly what’s in the food they buy. Supporters say the provisions address consumer food concerns, and industry’s need for uniform rules. If it becomes legislation it: • Overrides state GMO labeling laws.

• Prevents FDA labeling powers on GMOs. • Removes regional GM crops bans protecting non-GMO crops from genetic pollution.

• Creates a mandatory approval process before GMO foods enter the market.

• Food developers must receive food safety certification from the FDA. • Creates a food labeling standard that defines ‘natural’ food. It includes GMOs. • Creates an accredited USDA agents program for GMOfree food certification to ensure labeling integrity.

They’re rushing H.R. 1599 into life… It could hit the House floor for a vote any time now, even though:

“The bill would also severely weaken already feeble federal regulation of GE crops at USDA and FDA at a time when the Obama administration is taking steps to address it.

A lack of federal oversight of biotechnology in agriculture has repeatedly led to incidents of transgenic contamination, with devastating effects to traditional and organic farmers.”

-- Elise Higley, The Hill They’ve accomplished all this since March, while the Genetically Engineered Food Right-to-Know-Act (H.R. 980) initiated in February by Oregon Representative DeFazio, and a similar Senate version introduced by California Senator Boxer have been ignored. So much for Obama’s campaign trail pledge to give Americans the right to know if GMOs are in their food.

That doesn’t further the interests of the lobbies involved.

Top Secret Trade Agreement Monsanto was closely involved in the hush-hush creation of Obama’s Trade Promotion Authority bill the U.S. Senate passed in late June, giving the president the power to initiate

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Monsanto courting Syngenta with a buy-out offer international trade deals without a bunch of resistance.

Congress can no longer do much about such deals - it’s filibuster-proof.

fluctuations. Secondly, once they own the chemicals, they can create their own genetically modified seeds with new or added traits for the U.S. market.

The TPA was quickly signed into law ahead of finalizing TransPacific Partnership agreements, which represent 40% of the global economy. Several industries were found cheering as the TPA headed to the oval office for Obama’s signature.

They believe this will somehow miraculously create jobs in the United States. Right. What it does do is make it a no-no for TTP countries to impose a ban on growing GM crops, or importing GMO foods.

The Real Prize

And those new jobs in the dream machine? Obama also signed into life something called the Trade Adjustment Assistance Act that offers retraining and other benefits to people who lose their jobs because of TTP deals. Nothing like starting at the bottom again.

The Monopoly Board

It’s far bigger. And its multi-faceted.

This move would give them instant access to farmers in 29 countries they haven’t been able to infiltrate. Syngenta resides in a lot more places than Monsanto. Why do you suppose that is? There’s an explanation in this quote from John Sorenson, former president of Syngenta’s global biotechnology division: “I’ve been watching this with fascination. Syngenta fits the European stereotype: hierarchical in structure, deliberate in making decisions, sometimes slow-moving. Monsanto, on the other hand, is very American — Wild West. It has been aggressive, nimble, and singleminded. As a result, it is also widely reviled.”

the TPA removes bans on growing or importing GMOs in TTP countries

Monsanto began courting their closest global rival Syngenta earlier in 2015 with a buy-out offer that eventually totaled close to 3 years’ gross sales. Some in the investment industry don’t see how buying a lower sales volume corporation would be a good move for Monsanto. They’re not looking at the right data - not everything of value is measurable in dollars.

Monsanto is the world’s largest seed maker, but Syngenta is the world’s largest ag chemical producer, and third largest in seeds. The king of GMOs proposed to sell Syngenta’s U.S. seed business to avoid being judged a monopoly or found guilty of antitrust activities, but The Street doesn’t see how that would pan out, since their last seed acquisition took 9 months to get sorted out in court. Perhaps they didn’t consider that this sale may already be a done deal, and possibly within the Monsantosphere to one of their subsidiaries.

It wasn’t U.S. seed sales that Hugh Grant lusts after anyway, and Syngenta’s seed line is bigger than Monsanto’s own. Firstly, seeds are kind of volatile when it comes to yearly pricing and profit margins. Chemicals however, don’t have such wild pricing

Sorenson can’t imagine these companies merging, but he wouldn’t underestimate the big M because, “When Monsanto pursues something, it’s relentless.”

Syngenta is truly a global company with over 28,000 employees in 90 countries. Monsanto is international having 22,000 employees in 61 countries with a vile reputation in many places that’s made their business strong only in the Americas.

Additionally, Monsanto’s GM seed line focuses narrowly on corn and soy, while the Syngenta seed portfolio spans 8 key global crops.

One benefit from this merger that a non-farm person would never consider is data ownership. Syngenta North America head of corporate communications, Paul Minehart says: “If Monsanto dominates seeds, crop protection, and on-farm data, they could create whole-farm offers in which they become a sole source - or at least major source for a farmer, and lock-in the farm

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a merger of the world’s largest farm chemical and seed companies... for multiple years... like a consumer cable company.”

There are issues to overcome in this race to monopolize the global food supply. The U.S. Treasury has concerns about tax inversion. A year ago they could have closed the deal, moved operations to Switzerland, and enjoyed a big tax cut, but they missed that option. Instead, Monsanto will house the Synsanto behemoth in London, which makes the merged company an international business to the United States. Standing in the way of their interests could then be judged a free trade violation under the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership Agreement, a transgression triable by international tribunal.

There are also U.S. regulatory antitrust and monopoly issues, but Monsanto is confident these will not stand in their way. They’ve hired the Wilmer, Cutler, Pickering, Hale, and Dorr lobby group to see to ensure it’s not.

Monsanto’s frenzied campaign for approval is highly unusual in corporate acquisition And then what?

What happens when the need for schmoozing is over? Can a corporation with a department devoted to astroturfing and debunking scientists who disagree with their claims really be interested in helping the farmers around the globe who feed the world?

Once victorious, it would be back to business as usual with more manipulation power than in the past. What will the world be like with Monsanto’s fingers in 90 bottomless cookie jars, and both sides of multiple free trade agreement muscles to flex? It’s a power grab of colossal proportions.

there will be a merger - Bayer's agriculture division is second choice

Syngenta refused three offers by midsummer, but Monsanto wasn’t backing down. While a takeover isn’t out of the question, Grant stated that such a move won’t be used quickly. Should the entire deal fall through in the end, Monsanto planned going after Bayer’s agriculture division as second choice in becoming the global agribusiness dominator while expanding its product portfolios.

U.S. farmers are naturally concerned, but Monsanto insisted that they would still conduct business as usual from St. Louis, Missouri. Doing business yes - as a foreign corporation with U.S. locations. Even Paul Minehart expressed grave reservations over what this would mean to farmers worldwide.

In July, Monsanto executives were busy laying a fluffy spiel on worried US farmers, pleading their case on national and regional broadcasts, and buzzing around Europe meeting with Syngenta stockholders. They insist this merger obsession will only help everyone. Reuters’ summarizes this frenzied approval campaign as “an all-out approach that analysts and marketing experts say is unusual in a corporate acquisition effort, and one that requires Monsanto to walk a fine line.”

But Syngenta refused them for a fourth time, Grant went home empty handed in August, and the media reports that he’ll now concentrate on fixing Monsanto’s profit problems from inside the company.

Profit Problems?

Oh yes, they’re actually losing money. Monsanto stockholders aren’t happy with their investment performance.

Concerned parties breathed a huge sigh of relief with news that the acquisition attempt had ended. But the much courted Syngenta stockholders aren’t happy that the board rejected Monsanto’s bid. There is noise that major investors think it’s time to oust the board, and replace them with more goal appropriate mindsets.

And that is exactly what the beginning of a takeover looks like.

Stockholders need only replace the board of directors and the CEO to give Hugh Grant the keys to Syngenta on a silver platter.

So, that feeling of relief may well have been premature, and the announcement of defeat just one more act of spin. 3

GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

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BY STEPHEN BROOKES

Type II Diabetes in Children we are starting to see substance abuse, which is exactly what diabetes in children is

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DIABETES I GARDEN CULTURE A title I never thought I would have to write, but in this day and age where food, and more importantly, sugary food substances are readily available for us and our children - we are starting to see substance abuse, which is exactly what diabetes in children is. Having the occasional packet of sweets may be a nice treat every now and then, but what we are seeing with the dramatic rise of diabetes in children is bordering on neglect and laziness on the part of the adults looking after those children, which is why I thought it important to raise the issue here. To talk about how we can prevent and alter our behaviour, so we can put this issue back to where it was 50 years ago… Unheard of!

The Science The benefits of a healthy and balanced diet are many and varied.

A diet that regularly includes fruit and vegetables ensures a wide range of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fibre - all of which help keep us in good health, improve our energy levels, and help us maintain a healthy weight. With obesity levels rising in the US, increasingly amongst our children, including more fruit and vegetables in the diet becomes evermore important. A child’s health, both in the short and long-term, benefits immeasurably from good nutrition right from the off. A balanced diet lays the foundations for growth, development, and a blueprint for future good eating habits. In particular, the quality of a young child’s nutrition will influence the likelihood of developing a whole host of conditions as an adult, many of which are preventable. These can range from obesity to cardiovascular disease (CVD), cancers to the evermore prevalent type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

up in the bloodstream. The reasons people develop T2DM are many, varied and complex however, we know there is a genetic predisposition, so if it runs in your family you are at more likely to develop it. Similarly, some ethnic groups are more prone to it. Ageing is another factor as it’s typically found in adults over 40. However, one of the most common risk factors is environmental. Obesity and lifestyle factors account for approximately 85% of the overall risk of developing T2DM. A snapshot of the situation today in America reveals that approximately 30 million children and adults have diabetes, 9.3% of the population. It is estimated that 208,000 are under the age of 20. These are worrying statistics. So, is there anything we can do about it?

A MOTHER ’S DIET HAS A HUGE INFLUENCE ON HER CHILD’S DE VELOPMENT FROM CONCEPTION

Diabetes, or more accurately, diabetes mellitus, is a group of conditions associated with the way in which the body deals with glucose. The body, the brain in particular, needs glucose as a main source of fuel. It is made and stored by the liver, and also comes from the food we eat. Having diabetes means that there is more glucose in the blood than the body needs or can handle, and this can lead to serious health problems with complications such as kidney failure, CVD, blindness, amputation and ultimately, premature death.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a condition that occurs when your pancreas makes insulin, but your body stops responding to it. Insulin is a hormone that controls the amount of glucose in your blood by enabling the body’s cells to use it as fuel. Without insulin, glucose can’t be used, so it builds

For many of us, the answer is “yes” - and it’s mostly down to diet. Good quality nutrition in the early years can have profound effects on how vulnerable a child is to T2DM in later life. Whilst there is evidence to suggest that a mother’s diet has a huge influence on her child’s development from as early on as conception, one of the most important health windows in a child’s life opens when they start to learn how to eat.

Weaning onto solid foods should start at around 6 months, with breastmilk/formula remaining as the main source of nutrition up to the age of 12 months. It is vital that the foods chosen at this very early stage are nutrient dense, to provide a wide range of vitamins and minerals, particularly iron, zinc, vitamin A and D, all of which decrease naturally in breastmilk and which are insufficiently provided by formula. As obesity is a risk factor in the development of T2DM, encouraging a taste for fruit and vegetables from the earliest age is key. We know that these foods provide a wealth of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fibre, all of which contribute to healthy growth and, when combined with suitable portion size,

69

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DIABETES I GARDEN CULTURE

appropriate weight gain. This makes them the ideal weaning foods, whether fresh, frozen, tinned, or dried.

BY 2025, WHO ESTIM ATES THAT 5 MILLION PEOPLE WILL HAVE T2DM

The Gardening A lot of research has shown that children who grow their own fruit and vegetables are much more likely to then eat what they have grown, whether this is broccoli, sprouts, carrots, potatoes, strawberries or pretty much anything. The mere fact that the child has spent time and energy to plant a seed and watched it grow is enough to somehow forget about its “yucky” taste, and they’ll want to sample what they have grown.

Grow some fruit and vegetables with your children, you’ll be surprised at what they’ll now eat, and then use this to your advantage in the supermarket when buying fresh/frozen fruit or vegetables.

over a period of time that will enable them for their whole lives. We all need to start thinking about our children’s health a little more, they really are the formative years for a long and healthy life and it’s never too late to start eating well; as well as having a great hobby in gardening. If we want to ensure our health and wellbeing into our dotage, the earlier we start, the better. 3

INCLUDING MORE FRUIT AND VEGETABLES IN THE DIET BECOMES E VER MORE IMPORTANT

Ask your child, “Do you think this [Insert fruit/ vegetable] will be as tasty as the one you grew”?

Not only does this activity get our young ones eating new foods, but it also gets them into the great outdoors, moving and spending energy, instead of being cooped up in a bedroom playing video games for 9 hours a day.

I really want to hit home the message here, even if we are genetically predisposed to type II diabetes, that does not mean it is guaranteed to happen. With moderate exercise, more fruit/vegetables, and less sugary snacks, diabetes can be a thing of the past. As for our children, do we want the best for them and their future? Let’s start now, and make small changes

References: •

BDA (2014) Food Fact Sheet: Weaning. V6. https://www.bda.uk.com/foodfacts/WeaningYourChild.pdf

•

Diabetes UK (2012) Report: Diabetes in the UK 2012. Key statistics on diabetes. https://www.diabetes.org.uk/diabetes-in-the-uk-2012

•

Hawkes, C., Smith, Trenton G., Jewell et al., (2015) Smart food policies for obesity prevention. The Lancet. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/501406736(15)60163-5.

•

NICE (2014) Maternal and child nutrition. Nice Public Health Guidance 11. Guidance.nice.org.uk/ph11

•

Xinli Jang et al., (2013) Early Life Factors and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

Journal of Diabetes Research. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/485082

•

http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/statistics/

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I keep my reference copy close at hand” JORGE CERVANTES

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THE WORLDWIDE REFERENCE

Available from Hydrofarm, BWGS and major distributors worldwide.

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REFLECTORS I GARDEN CULTURE

BY THEO TEKSTRA , MARKETING MANAGER GAVITA HOLLAND BV

Did you ever realize that about 2/3 of the light that comes out of your fixture goes through your reflector? Choosing an efficient reflector is important for your light levels, but did you ever consider that a reflector change can actually influence your light levels more than changing the lamp? Here is why a regular reflector change is the cheapest way to get more light out of your fixture.

Lamp light maintenance

Reflector Degradation

HPS lamps lose light over time. A good horticultural double-ended HPS lamp has an extremely good light maintenance of about 96-97% over 5000 hours of use.

When you have about 4% less light, for a high value crop it pays off to replace the lamp. During this first year of use the average light levels will be about 2% less than the maximum level, but in the second year this can go up to 6%, which is really noticeably influencing your yield. So for high value crops a lamp change every year pays.

There are basically two types of shiny reflector material: Aluminum sheet material (such as MIRO aluminum), and anodized reflectors. Anodized reflectors are pressed into shape and them anodized with a highly reflective (aluminum) layer. Their reflective surface, though shiny, is not completely flat. The anodizing process is and electrolytic process. The pressing of the base material generates minute cracks, which are not filled by the shiny anodized coating. The maximum reflectance of anodized material is below 90%, and that deteriorates fast, as the uneven surface is prone to collecting dust and dirt.

Not every HPS lamp though has such a good light maintenance. Always refer to the technical lamp information provided by a respected manufacturer to find out what the light maintenance over time is. For metal halide it is a complete different story. Yearly light losses are much higher, sometimes even over 35%, making much more lamp changes necessary. Not only are metal halides much less efficient than HPS, their low light maintenance makes them even less desirable choice for production lighting.

First of all not all “German sheet aluminum” is MIRO® material.

MIRO® reflective material is made by anodizing a base material under vacuum, creating a nanometers thick, incredibly pure, highly reflective multi layered coating which can reach reflective values of up to 98%. As this is a fully flat and even surface, MIRO® aluminum is less prone to collect dirt. Because the top reflective layer is so thin it is almost impossible to clean a reflector without scratching the surface, losing reflectance.

Fortunately the replacement reflectors are relatively cheap.

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THERE ARE BASICALLY TWO TYPES OF SHINY REFLECTOR MATERIAL: ALUMINUM SHEET MATERIAL (SUCH AS MIRO ALUMINUM), AND ANODIZED REFLECTORS MIRO 速 aluminum build up

Even MIRO 速 aluminum reflectors degrade. This is not by oxidation (the top layers are already an oxidized material to protect the extreme pure aluminum layer) but through deposits of sprayed chemicals, calcium from water vapor, dust, Sulphur in the air etc. Combine that with the high temperature of the lamp and you can imagine that these deposits create a serious degradation of your total reflectance. Looking at the reflector it will still seem really clean, but if you take a closer look under a microscope you will clearly see the deposits.

Measure the reflector in a photogoniometer and the loss of reflectance becomes apparent. In general this results in an average loss of 0,5-1% per 1000 hours of use, depending on the contamination. In horticulture we measure the degradation of reflectors for our customers periodically, to be able to recommend reflector changes when necessary. We have built up extensive knowledge about the degradation of reflectors by doing this, it

For high value crops, where high light levels are extremely important, we recommend to change the reflectors once a year or at least once every two years

is part of our day to day practice. So we are able to predict how quickly a reflector degrades in a clean or not so clean environment. Remember that air quality, the use of chemicals, Sulphur vaporizers, misting and dust have a serious influence on the reflectance of your system. A 6% reduction the total output of your system will result in 4% less light as about 2/3 of the light is reflected light. So only changing an (expensive) lamp may not be the cure to maintain optimal lighting. You need to change your reflector regularly. Exchanging a reflector is the cheapest way to get more light out of your system.

When to Change the Reflector?

For high value crops, where high light levels are extremely important, we recommend to change the reflectors once a year or at least once every two years, depending on the external factors. It is no use just changing a lamp, when your reflector adds another 4% of losses. Have you ever heard the story about the customer who bought a new reflector and had much better results than his previous reflector that he used for 3 years? Or the fact that he never ever got the results any more that he got with his first runs? Now you know why.

Reflector changes are necessary. When choosing a fixture make sure that there are replacement reflectors available.

Want to play it safe? Every time when you replace your lamp, replace your reflector. 2% more light results in 2% more yield and that will totally pay for your reflector change. 3

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SHORTIES I GARDEN CULTURE

Grubbycup’s Fables

Tales from the Yeast

Yeast is a fungus that eats sugar, and forms carbon dioxide gas along with alcohol as waste products.

If you add a small amount of yeast to a sugar solution at room temperature, it will reproduce exponentially until either it consumes all the available sugar and starves to death, or dies from high concentrations of yeast excrement (alcohol).

From the perspective of a hydroponic yeast enthusiast (brewer), this is a handy situation. The rapid reproduction means that a small starting yeast inoculation can develop into a large colony in a few days. The carbon dioxide can be used to carbonate beverages, and the alcohol produced is the basis for making alcoholic beverages.

From the perspective of the yeast however, the lack of intelligence and self-control lead to a short lifespan for the yeast colony that often involves dying from its own waste. If it had the ability to control its reproduction, it could keep a small enough population size to live on as a society for months or years from the finite sugar. If it were intelligent enough to learn to create an alternative sugar source, it wouldn’t be limited by the initial sugar reserves, and if it could deal with its own waste pollution the colony could continue even longer. To the delight of brewers everywhere yeast are stupid critters, and cannot do any of these things.

Supposedly, humans are smarter than yeast, yet when faced with the same issues on a larger scale we appear to be making similar thoughtless mistakes. As humans we face overpopulation, reliance on finite resources, and the danger of generating enough waste to render the environment toxic.

Yeast in a sugar solution is doomed, because it cannot think. Humanity is just as doomed if it chooses not to.

Top 10 Jobs In 2025

Urban farmer made the list at #4 according to 3 futurists recently interviewed by Fast Company.

While many great jobs have vanished in recent years, the transition from industrial age to the new age isn’t over. Just as machines have replaced blue collar workers, some surprising white collar careers will evaporate too.

Soon to be replaced by robots, algorithm, and artificial intelligence? Lawyers, accountants, actuaries, private bankers, and wealth managers. They also say that front-line military personnel will be robotic by then.

What are the other predicted top jobs a decade from now?

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BY EVEREST FERNANDEZ

It’s no wonder that beginners simply ask, “Which reflector is the best?” when faced with all the variety of reflectors available on the market these days. Different shapes: rectangular, square, parabolic (yes - people still use those), large and compact; air-cooled and open fixtures; horizontal and vertical lamp mounting; all sorts of different materials, some mirrored, some dimpled.

So much choice! But is it a good thing GROWING It’s not just vertical growing systems for new growers? Well, it may cause SYSTEMS DO EXIST either. Several years ago I revisited them to reflect (ha) on the validity T H AT D O N ’ T U SE some twenty and thirty light of that original, simple sounding R E F L E C T O R S ! ” grows on Vancouver Island, British question—because I’d wager there Columbia, and there was not a is no “best” for everybody. Different single reflector in sight! Instead, bare 1000W lamps are hung reflector styles suit different applications and circumstances. vertically, sometimes on light movers, positioned in between Some growers want deep, penetrating light for flowering rows of large plants—each around four or five feet in height— annuals three feet tall—others want dispersed, moderate light with the lamps illuminating the sides of these monsters. Take for leafier crops. But, before we get on to all that, have you my advice, if you ever visit a grow like this, don’t forget your ever wondered what a grow room would look like with no sunglasses like I did. reflectors at all?

Now—forgive me if that sounds a bit obtuse, but please bear with me. There are many growing systems already in existence that don’t use reflectors! The Ecosystem and the Coliseum are two classic examples—both are highly efficient vertical growing systems. They house two vertically mounted lamps in a central cool tube. Light radiates out at 360 degrees, perpendicular to the arc tubes. Plants are grown all around the cool tube, effectively capturing all those precious photons as they radiate outwards towards the cylindrical canopy. Highly space efficient and productive, I might add.

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Most indoor growers, however, choose the more conventional method of growing plants sat on a tray, or on the floor with grow lights hung above. Of course, without a reflector, a horizontally positioned HID grow lamp will send half of its emissions towards the walls or ceiling, NOT down to the plant canopy where it’s needed. So, a good reflector efficiently redirects all those otherwise stray ultraviolet, visible light, and PAR photons produced from your light source towards your plants. Photons travel in a straight line until they hit a reflective surface, then they change direction. Light hitting a polished

REFLECTORS 101 I GARDEN CULTURE

THERE IS NO “BEST” FOR E V E RY B O DY or mirrored surface obeys the general law of reflection. In contrast, dimpled surfaces diffuse a proportion of the light, sending it in multiple directions.

shorter lifespan than diffused reflectors. Professional growers of high value crops should consider renewing their reflectors every one to two years. This is more frequent than many growers realize.

Obviously the reflector material should have the highest possible reflective index (commonly expressed as a percentage) STOP THE PRESS: There have been some very interesting while not changing or shifting the spectral distribution. At the technological developments in the reflective materials industry bottom end of the materials market, we have plain oxidized that could see reflectivity indexes on grow light reflectors aluminum, offering a paltry 70 to 72% reflectivity. Next up is break through the 97% barrier in the next few years! (Hey, you anodized aluminum. This commonly ranges read it here first!) between 83 to 87%—depending on the R EFL EC TO R quality of the anodizing process. (When the So what do reflectivity percentages mean in M AT ER I A L anodizing quality is low, the reflective surface S H O U L D H A V E the real world of your grow room? Well, a 95 may deteriorate rather quickly.) percent reflective surface will lose five percent T H E H I G H E S T of the initial photonic power to heat—initially POSSIBLE At the top of the pile is PVD (Physical this is absorbed by the reflector material itself, R E F L E C T I V E Vapor Deposition) coated aluminum. This but it also ends up heating your grow room. is the cutting-edge, and is reserved for Two bounces roughly equal a 10% loss, and so INDEX highly specialized, ultra-reflective aluminum on. So, as well as high reflectivity, the reflector products. You will find PVD aluminum materials marketed should be designed to minimize the number of bounces. The under the trade names Miro, Vega, and TR-V that boast greater the proportion of single bounces, the better. reflective indexes from 95 to 97% and even higher. On top The angle that light hits the reflector is also important. Head of ultra-reflection, the PVD coating provides a formidable on collisions (that is, a direct reversal of direction) produce shield against degradation. Don’t get lazy though—reflectors the least desirable effects, transforming your reflector into a must be cleaned regularly as they attract dust and dirt. And photon trap, aka a heater! never use a sulfur burner when your lights are on as it will kill your reflectivity overnight! Mirrored reflectors tend to have a GARDENCULTUREMAGAZINE.COM

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reflected radiation can become trapped, and converted to heat In the case of open reflectors, their shape should allow warm air to naturally flow upwards, out of the reflector, to be dealt with by your grow room’s ventilation system.

Closed, air-cooled reflectors obviously attempt to tackle this hot air issue head on by ducting it away.

Okay, so that’s the basics more or less covered. Let’s move on to what ultimately separates the reflector men from the boys. It really R EFL EC TO R comes down to one word: UNIFORMITY. Remember - UV helps in the fight against M AT ER I A L A good reflector creates an even footprint molds and mildew, as well as promoting S H O U L D H A V E the production of essential oils in some of light, or as close to even as possible, so T H E H I G H E S T crops. Having said all that, air-cooled that all plants receive near to the same POSSIBLE amount of energy. If a reflector creates a reflectors come into their own when R E F L E C T I V E hotspot (that is, an area of extreme light growing heat sensitive crops in confined intensity and high heat) then that spot spaces.

INDEX governs the distance that the reflector must be placed above the plants. This could force you As far as open reflectors go, a longstanding favorite among to raise your lights higher than the theoretical optimal growers is the Adjust-A-Wings series, which as the name distance, reducing the overall intensity over your growing suggests, is capable of being set to be deep, medium, or area, or necessitating the use of more grow lights. wide. Wide-angle reflectors can be placed closer to the plant canopy, whereas deep reflectors require more Hotspots can be reduced through diffusion—created distance. Wide angled reflectors work well in large through embossed or dimpled surfaces or painted and installations where a matrix of multiple light footprints powder coated reflective surfaces. Diffused light, with is carefully arranged to overlap. Smaller reflectors are its photons traveling at many different angles, is able to preferable when used to supplement natural sunlight as penetrate the plant canopy more effectively than nonthey create smaller shadows. diffused light where the majority of photons travel in the same, or similar, downwards direction.

So—do you know which reflector you’re buying next? Or did I just confuse and cloud the issue? Either way, it’s worth Reflectors can be classified as deep, medium, or wide - in talking to your local grow store, and going to the upper terms of the spread of light they produce. Closed, airend of the market, because when growing indoors every cooled reflectors tend to create deep, penetrating beams photon is precious—so make the most of them! 3 of intense light. Often manufacturers design larger fixtures to increase the effective footprint. There is a physical size limit, however, and this is arguably dictated by the angle that You can find “Reflectors 101” and many light hits the glass cover. If the angle is around 43 degrees other informative videos on Everest’s (or less) a lot of radiation will reflect off the glass, rather rather amazing YouTube channel, than pass through it. This reflected radiation can become Just4Growers. Check it out. trapped, and converted to heat. Furthermore, glass is known to absorb UV radiation.

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MBCT 2015

G N I L A D PE

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E R U C A R O F G N I L A PED

M C B T 2 015

It’s an epic annual journey - a ride for cancer research, and this year’s Medical Cannabis Bike Tour was the biggest yet. Over 80 international riders and volunteers rode 420 km or 260 miles in 3 days, passing through Belgium, Germany, and Holland. They raised €100,000 (about $110.000 in sponsorship, and continue to raise money through a crowdfunding campaign with Walacea.com.

Day 1: Valkenberg - Weert: 129 km (80 miles) The adventure began in the pretty town of Valkenberg, near Maastricht, in the south of Holland. Riders used a ‘bingo number’ system to find their way along Holland’s many cycle paths.

This caused a bit of confusion on Day 1. Several riders went AWOL when the tour hit Germany. The support crew spent three hours on a search and rescue mission in deepest, darkest Belgium for a lost cyclist. There was also an unexpected obstacle - a closed bridge between Holland and Germany.

What scenery though! Northern Europe in the springtime – a patchwork of green fields and tree-lined cycle paths, the sun shining. With few hills to climb, this year’s tour was a fast ride - a large leading peloton of 20 or so riders pushing the pace, with two similar sized groups not far behind.

A day of riding in the sunshine came to an end at Weert, where tired cyclists swapped stories from the trail over a good dinner, and the sharing of some of Holland’s finest produce (and no, we’re not talking edam or tulips).

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BIS BIKE THE MEDICAL CANNA RAISED CANNABIS BIKE TOUR RESEARCH €100,000 FOR CANCER Day 2: Weert - Elst: 132 km (82 miles) A very hot and sunny day. Again, the lead pack was quick to advance (a little too quick at times with several wrong turns during the day!). With muscles warmed up, senses tuned, the riders really went for it, urging each other on.

With long flat stretches average speeds were 18-22 m/ph (and up to 28 at times).

Towards the back, at their own pace, the tour included Team Mila - the legendary Queen of Hash, at 70, was the oldest tour rider - on a classic city bike (old school rocks!) and her good friend Tonia, a medical cannabis user riding a hand bike.

No real problems on the ride - apart from a few punctures (Stefan from Germany managed to pick up 5 on just one stretch of road!) and some cuts, bruises, and sunburn. As with all Medical Cannabis Bike Tours, the group bonded very quickly, riders stopping to help each other, and everyone having their own little adventures along the way.

Arriving in Elst, it was more drinks, food, and a veritable smorgasbord of delights from the Dutch world of weed enjoyed by all.

Day 3: Elst - Amsterdam: 137 km (85 miles) Day 3 was more typical of a Northern European summer with long periods of rain and a cold wind, which made it tough for the cyclists, especially when they were riding along rivers and canals. However, it was a beautiful ride through the forests of Gelderland.

Tired muscles today, and a few riders took advantage of the many cafes that lined the route. Stopping to warm up with a coffee and a snack... while the support crew waited anxiously at the lunch spot, fearing the worst!

A better afternoon. A mixture of sun and cloud for the final push to Amsterdam. As the tour approached the city, the skies fell grey once more, the wind strong in the face.

At 6 miles from the finish tragedy struck when MCBT founder, Luc, had a heavy fall after the collision.

The results were not pretty, but with true grit and determination, he was able to join the peloton, which entered the streets of Amsterdam to cheers and rounds of applause from tourists and residents.

As the light faded, the tour arrived on Amsterdam’s Dam Square. Another fantastic tour completed. Old friends rediscovered, new friends made, and another €100,000 raised for this fantastic medical cannabis research cause.

While the tour is over, the race continues... the organisation needs to raise another €85,000 to run the medical trials this Autumn. The Medical Cannabis Bike Tour urges individuals to donate to their crowdfunding campaign at Walacea to help fund groundbreaking independent medical research into cannabis as a potential cancer cure.

Getting a handle on this disease that strikes millions globally every year obviously will take more than the current treatment regimen entails. In 2015 MBCT has provided funding for scientists at GEINO to begin a historic clinical study on treating brain cancer patients with cannabinoids as a first line therapy.

Let’s help them meet their goals, and further the search for a cure. 3

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BY THEO TEKSTRA – MARKETING MANAGER GAVITA HOLLAND BV

TO SUPPORT THIS ARTICLE I MADE THREE CALCUL ATIONS WITH OUR STANDARD REFLECTOR, THE HR96, WHICH IS CURRENTLY THE MOST POPUL AR, FOR 2, 4 AND 10 FIXTURES.

HOW TO DESIGN AN

FOR YOUR LIGHTS Most people start with a room, and then ask a lighting manufacturer how to position their lights in there. Actually that is a bit the wrong way around: lights with specific reflectors have a very specific throw and field. You can tweak the uniformity and light levels for a room to some degree by changing the positions of the lights and using different reflectors, but you need to be lucky to get an optimal uniformity from scratch.

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OPTIMAL LIGHT POSITION I GARDEN CULTURE

In the last issue I discussed how light calculations are made and now we will have a look at what an optimal room looks like. To support this article I made three calculations with our standard reflector, the HR96, which is currently the most popular, for 2, 4 and 10 fixtures. You will see that I used a standard measurement of about 1.1x1.8m (4’ x 6’) per fixture for this example.

In reality in a multi-light room you can even optimize this a bit, but as a rule of thumb this is a good starting point for a good room dimensional design for our HR96 reflector. For other reflectors of other manufacturers this will be different! For a single light room and double light room we actually have a special reflector, but for this calculation I will keep that out of the equation so you can compare the results.

What is a good calculation?

There are a few important things you need to look for in a calculation.

1. Light levels: average, minimal and maximum levels 2. Uniformity (minimum/average is the standard: a few small peaks are never a problem) 3. What scale is used in a diagram

3. What scale is used?

Always look at the scale next to a calculation: it is hard to even measure 50 μmol s-1 m-2 difference if you check the levels with a meter. A fine scale means more uniformity, though a different calculation can use the same colors in a much wider scale. If every different color stands for 25 μmol s-1 m-2 difference that is already very uniform and precise.

How to read a calculation a calculation In a calculation we position the lamps at a fixed height. In the example calculations that is 1.05 m / 3.44 ft above the maximum crop height. In a small room you will see that at lower crop heights you will lose more light than in a larger room with more lights, as you are further away from the light source and the light is spread over a larger surface.

How much light you lose over distance you can see in the calculation results for the different crop heights. In these calculations we choose 0,9 m, 1.2 m and 1.5 m as crop height (about 3 ft, 4 ft and 5 ft). These measuring heights you see in the calculation as the green layers, with the measuring points in a grid where the light intensity is calculated.

1. Light levels Some crops really need very high levels, but it depends on the skill of the grower how high these levels average should be. For a novice grower for example this can be 7-800 μmol s-1 m-2 average, for a savvy grower using CO2 this can be more than 1000 μmol s-1 m-2. For this calculation we went for around 900 μmol s-1 m-2. Savvy growers can always boost their fixtures for higher levels.

The lowest and highest value should not be far apart, because high peaks of light also come with high peaks of radiant heat. So always be sharp for peaks that are more than 10% higher than the average levels, specifically in high intensity calculations.

2. Uniformity In a smaller room you will probably adjust the distance of your light to the crop. This is a good thing, because the ratio of wall surface compared to floor surface is very high, and you will lose light to your walls over distance. In larger rooms that is not so much an issue: 9 ft more distance in height will probably only cost you about 8-10% less light.

We strive to have at least 90% uniformity in a room.

Let’s take a look at how light depreciates in a multi-light room. First of all, you do not lose light over distance: you just spread it over a larger surface, decreasing each single fixture light intensity, but enlarging the footprint.

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THE BIGGER THE ROOM, THE SMALLER THE VERTICAL LOSSES. In fact the only light you really lose is the light that is not reflected by your walls to your plants (absorbed by the wall) or reflected back into the room where no plants are.

There are two more advantages of using somewhat wider overlapping lights: horizontal penetration and distance to your crop. If you light your plants by a narrow beam from the top you only light the top canopy of leafs. Having light come in at an angle penetrates the plants much better.

Remember the sun is also never straight above your plants.

A narrow beam (a deep reflector) results in very high intensity light levels in a small field. All air cooled reflectors are by definition deep reflectors, as the light can not exit the glass at a high angle. This results in having to keep the reflectors at a bigger distance from your plants to get the correct uniformity and light levels.

Also using deep reflectors gives you a steep depreciation of your light over distance, where overlapping light gives you a better vertical uniformity. I can illustrate that by taking the intensity measurements (ppfd) at the different heights in the different rooms:

In this table you see the calculated results of the three rooms we discuss. You will see the average, minimal and maximum intensity at a certain height (grid) in a room, as well as the average uniformity calculated between minimal and average value (so this is the minimal guaranteed average uniformity) and the average uniformity between minimum and maximum value (indicating how far the peaks are apart).

0.92 means 92% uniformity. The Min/Avg uniformity is the basis of the uniformity specification.

OPTIMAL LIGHT POSITION I GARDEN CULTURE The uniformity of a climate room is calculated in the center part of the room, a bit less than a foot from the wall. Near the wall the light levels drop, and taking the complete room into account does not give you a good representation of the actual uniformity. That is also the reason why you should have the plants in the center of the room, with a perimeter around them. If possible, use rolling benches that you can roll open to the perimeter, to create a path between your plants when you are working on them.

This way you utilize your light as good as possible.

Really important is also to evaluate the maximum values, because those are your hot-spots in the room.

Almost 60% of the energy emitted by a lamp is infra-red.

So high light peaks result in high infrared peaks. The peaks should be as low as possible, preferably below 10% of the average value you are aiming for.

Now in all rooms I projected one fixture per 2 square meters surface. The uniformity in all rooms is similar, around 92% at all levels of the room. But the light intensities are quite different!

Light losses Let’s evaluate the light levels in the room, starting with the average value at 1.5 m/5 ft high (crop height). Using the same amount of fixtures per surface you see a difference of 75 μmol s-1 m-2 between the 2 lamp room (888 μmol s-1 m-2) and the 10 lamp room (963 μmol s-1 m-2). That’s 8,5% more light in the 10 lamp room, using the same wattage per square meter.

At the lowest level, 0.9 m/3 ft , the difference is even much bigger: 148 μmol s-1 m-2 or 20% more light in the large room at that level.

The reason for that difference in losses is caused by your walls. In a small room the ration walls:floor surface is much higher than in a large room. A 1x1m room has a 4:1 wall to floor surface ratio (4 meters of wall to 1 square meter of surface). A 5x5m room has a 1:1.25 wall to floor ratio which makes all the difference.

But there is more interesting stuff you can read from this data: Over 2 ft distance you lose 181 μmol s-1 m-2 in the small room (5 ft intensity minus 3 ft intensity). In the largest room you only lose 109 μmol s-1 m-2 over that distance. So you see that penetration of light / vertical uniformity of light is much better in a large room. As from 10-20 lamps you can choose to not even lower your lights any more but install them at a fixed height. The bigger the room, the smaller the vertical losses.

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OPTIMAL LIGHT POSITION I GARDEN CULTURE 2.2x3.6m 4 x 1000W HR96 Now for those who scream “inverse square law�: as you see it is not suitable to use here. We work with reflectors, overlapping light and reflecting walls, not with naked burning point sources of light.

The results As you can see by the spreading of the fixtures in the room they are not positioned in a 4x4ft or 5x5 ft grid. Horizontal reflectors with horizontal lamps do not have a square field: they are wide and rectangular. Also you can see that the distances between the fixtures are different for every room. The last fixtures are very close to the walls, in order to create uniformity and the right light levels near those walls. The distance between the rows of fixtures and the walls is less than half the distance between the rows themselves, because the walls result in light losses as they do not reflect all the light back into the room.

You understand now why you should light rooms instead of rows of plants, and light them completely, to get the right levels of light and the right horizontal and vertical uniformity. The reflective material on your walls is incredibly important when using this type of lighting, as some of that light will be reflected from your walls. Keep a perimeter around your crop and use as much center surface as possible. Think about the type of lighting you are going to use before you design your room. Now the measurements in this article are rules of thumb, but as you see they work very well for the average room. Remember that light equals yield in well maintained climate rooms. 3

5.5x3.6m 10 x 1000W HR96

2.2x1.8m 2 x 1000W HR96

91

BY KYLE L. LADENBURGER

WASTED

THE FOOD EPIDEMIC Food waste levels have increased nearly 50% since 1974

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I would describe our relationship to the food we eat in the United States with one word: detached. Our society has reached a stage where citizens are often oblivious, or just don’t care, about how and where their food is grown. It simply appears in the aisles of a grocery store, or at a restaurant ready for us to consume. And consume, we do, in a gluttonous soiree of excess-induced thoughtlessness. Sadly, however, each year much of the edible food in our country goes wasted, and ends up rotting in landfills.

At the moment, the foods we buy are relatively cheap, and easy to access - so most of us don’t even bat an eye when throwing out perfectly good food. Yet, with this overabundance of food, millions of Americans go without every year, and live with the uncertainty of not knowing from where their next meal will come.

food is tantamount to burning $28-$43 dollars per person every day: it’s just plain wasteful. Don’t assume this is something new, or a recent development. Food waste levels have increased nearly 50% since 1974. This trend shows no sign of slowing down unless we collectively make efforts to curb much of the waste.

According to the USDA 14.3% of U.S. households were food-insecure at some point in 2013, and struggling to supply enough food for the members of the household.

Meanwhile, the majority of us were tossing food in the trash without any second thoughts. As the world’s population soars, and land for farming is continually destroyed for development, it should be time for us to think more consciously about the food we consume - and most importantly, the food we do not.

Edible food is not the only thing that goes to waste all of the water, energy, chemicals, and man hours that go into the growing, packaging, and transporting of these items is therefore wasted as well. The NRDC estimates that annually 25% of all freshwater consumed in the U.S. is used in the production of food, as well as 4% attributed to oil consumptions. Moreover, this translates to a wasted $165 billion dollars, $40 billion from households, and a staggering $750 billion in obtaining and delivering the 33 million plus tons of food waste to landfills where it rots, and contributes to the accumulation of greenhouse gas emissions.

food simply appears in store aisles and restaurants ready for us to consume

Statistics compiled by the Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC) show that we waste between 30% and 40% of all edible food in the U.S annually. Over half of the accumulated waste is a combination of meat, seafood, and fresh vegetables. Yearly this averages out to around 33.5 million tons of perfectly good food being discarded in landfills. These numbers break down to show the average American family wasting over 1,000 pounds per year an equivalent of 1.2 million calories, or 3,200 calories per day.

All that nutritional value wasted when there are so many people that it could feed. Tossing out that much edible

Upon closer inspection, it becomes apparent that the waste contributing to the total loss occurs at multiple spots within the food supply chain. This multifaceted loss begins on the farms with 30% of the harvest never reaching the consumers’ hands. There are several reasons held accountable for waste in this area of the supply. During the trimming and processing loss can occur. Some of the harvest will actually be left to rot in the field due to the fact that it doesn’t match up to the high standards of quality

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30-40% of all edible food in the U.S annually wasted and cosmetic appeal demands of grocers and distributors.

slowly rots, resulting in plentiful amounts of methane being released. Methane is a greenhouse gas that has 21 times the global warming of carbon dioxide, according to the EPA. Food waste in landfills is estimated to total 20% of all human related methane produced each year.

burning $28-$43 dollars per person every day

It doesn’t stop there, additional food loss occurs at the grocery store. Many manufacturers will put a label on food products stating a “sell by date” or “best by date”. These dates are ultimately misleading as they are not actually regulated and do not indicate whether a food is still safe to eat or not. These dates are simply a date suggested by the provider for the peak quality timeframe.

The confusion caused by these arbitrary dates leads to substantial amounts of food waste every year.

Restaurants are another popular place to waste food.

Large portions and sprawling menus that require the restaurant to keep large varieties of food on hand that can easily go bad before eaten often results in perfectly good food ending up in the trash. Not much different from the typical household food waste causes of spoilage, plate waste, and over-purchasing. The EPA estimates that 30%50% of food bought from a store ends up being thrown out by the purchaser for any one of the reasons listed above.

The impact food waste has on our environment should not be ignored. The whole process from farm to manufacturer to store to home or restaurant consumes heavy amounts of energy fueled by the burning of fossil fuels like coal. If the food ends up in a landfill this energy was used in vain.

Furthermore, once the food waste is in a landfill - it sits, compacted, in anaerobic (oxygen-depleted) conditions, and

Some cities and municipalities are trying to start initiatives to encourage the proper composting of food waste from providers and restaurants. This method would reduce the methane released during decomposition, and create a valuable soil amendment or fertilizer that could be sold to gardeners, or used in city parks. Composting is also practiced by many households, and can help reduce the impact of uneaten food on the environment.

Food waste will not be deterred by one single action, but there are several steps we, as consumers, can take to help limit the amount of waste we create. Taking steps such as planned weekly meals and deriving shopping lists to fit the plan a consumer can assure that each item bought will be consumed in a reasonable amount of time before it goes bad.

Freezing items, even leftovers, is a great way of preserving, and stretching the amount of time allotted before a food product does spoil. In turn, building an understanding of when a food product actually will go bad can help us avoid throwing something out that is still edible - even if

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EPA estimate: 30-50% of food bought ends up being thrown out by the purchaser 25% of all fresh water consumed in the U.S. is used in the production of food it is far past its “sell by date”. Eating and preparing smaller portions at every meal can insure that there will be little or no leftovers to worry about.

10 BILLION TONS That’s the total amount of annual global food waste.

Eating out? Most restaurants will give customers smaller portions, usually by request, and often for a lower price than on the menu. Most importantly, we should strive to be ever conscious of how much food we buy and consume, and try our best to be reasonable about how much we purchase. Buying only what one foresees consuming is an excellent way to avoid excessive waste.

In the U.S. we have grown far too comfortable with the foods we eat, and often don’t think of the consequences food waste can have on our society and environment.

Ideally, it would be wonderful if all of the food we didn’t buy or eat was donated to those who really do need it. Unfortunately there is little incentive for farmers, providers, and grocers to donate due to the cost they face in gathering and delivering to a food bank or soup kitchen.

Supporting initiatives and referendums that provide incentives like tax credits to businesses that donate excess food is a positive step to take to help turn this perpetual waste machine in a positive direction. Most important of all, each of us needs to get real when thinking about food consumption and waste, and start taking steps that can lead to noticeable change.

all water, energy, chemicals, and labor used in the growing, packaging, and transporting of these items is wasted too

No food shortage. No reason for starving people anywhere.

Global Food Waste The food waste epidemic is in no way just a problem in the United States and North America. The trend is worldwide, and generally worse in industrialized nations. The European Union took positive steps in 2012 with the adoption of a resolution to cut food wastes by 50% by the year 2020, and in the U.K. a campaign called “Love Food Hate Waste” over the last 5 years has led to at least 50 food retailers vowing to reduce waste within their own operations, from all aspects of the supply chain.

Food waste occurring in underdeveloped countries is comparatively less, and occurs most often at the farm/ producer level. The following is a numerical run down on annual food waste from around the globe: • • • • • • •

West/South/Southeast/Central Asia – 449 million tons (combined) East Asia – 381 million tons Europe – 207 million tons Sub Sahara Africa – 137 million tons Latin America – 134 million tons North Africa – 36 million tons United Kingdom - 16.5 million tons

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Welcome to the first of Garden Culture’s ‘What is…’ series of articles. Throughout these articles we hope to give the beginner, and the experienced grower interesting information based on science, but in an easy to understand manner, the first of the series is on Silicon (Si).

“The biochemistry of Silicon in plants is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma” (Epstein, 2001).

Silicon is still today not as well understood as many of the other elements that we commonly use in our plant feeding regimes, it’s probably not used as widely as other additives and yet it is (in my opinion) one of the most important tools in a grower’s arsenal. I say this because of what it can do for your plants throughout all stages of growth and reproduction, which varies from helping the plant to support itself through stronger cell walls, preventing pests from making their homes on your petunias, stopping disease in its tracks and allowing plants to survive in very hot/cold conditions. If you don’t currently use a Silicon product, get it on your shopping list for the next time you’re at the grow shop and enjoy the sense of calm that this product will afford you.

There are two hypotheses for how Silicon protects a plant, the first one says that the Si acts as a physical barrier, the Si is deposited beneath the cuticle to form a Cuticle-Si double layer and protects the plant mechanically by withstanding pest and disease penetration into the leaf. The other method says that plants supplied with Si produce phenolics, lignin, H2O2, and phytoalexins in response to fungal infection.

Silicon alleviates various abiotic stresses including physical stress (Drought, radiation, high and low temperatures, and freezing) and chemical stress (Salt, metal toxicity, and nutrient imbalance). Si relieves water stress by decreasing transpiration, as this mainly occurs through the stomata, and partly through the cuticle, Si deposited below the cuticle may decrease any losses.

Here’s the science…

Plant roots take up Silicon, chemical symbol ‘Si’, in the form of silicic acid (Si(OH)4), it is then transported from the roots to the shoots via the xylem and distributed around the plant organs depending on transpiration rates of each plant organ. The epidermal cell walls are impregnated with a layer of Si, and become effective barriers against water loss by cuticle transpiration and fungal infections.

Lastly, Silicon is not a mobile element, so any deficiencies will show up on younger leaves. It is not classed as an essential nutrient as a plant can grow and reproduce without it, but for many gardeners, including myself, it is a crucial part of my feeding regime.

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Silicon alleviates stress: physical, chemic al & moisture

s extra it gives plant d growth, rove support, imp er yields and bigg

Silicon in the grow room…

I know some of you reading this may think, “I’ve never used Silicon before and I’m doing great”, but that’s just like saying “I built a house from just bricks and mud and it looks good to me”. Well, if you added cement to those bricks, you could have a bigger house, and one that’s going to stay up a lot longer. Silicon is the cement in that metaphor and including it will give your plant extra support, improved growth, and bigger yields.

There are a lot of silicon products on the market, and some companies say that their Silicon product does not affect pH as dramatically as others, this is a marketing trick and although it’s true what they say, it’s because they have likely watered down the silica so its effect on pH is not as drastic.

Don’t be fooled by creative marketing.

Lastly, the method of adding the silica to the nutrient tank is very important. Here’s what you should be doing to prevent the solution from becoming cloudy, which means the silica has precipitated out of the solution, and become less available to the plant. Firstly, add the silica to your water tank and measure pH, next step is to reduce the pH to 7 and add the rest of your nutrients, lastly adjust pH to desired range depending on the type of plant being grown, this is typically between 5.8 and 6.3. This method, although time consuming is best practice for getting the most out of your plants whilst using silica.

I hope this first article in the ‘What is…’ series has been beneficial to you, and also that you feel that Silica is an additive worth adding to your feeding regime, I can tell you with good authority that it definitely isn’t a Silly-Con… 3

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BY KYLE L. LADENBURGER

Plant Hormones Plant growth hormones, also known as Plant Growth Regulators (PGRs) when developed synthetically, are chemical substances produced within a plant, or in a lab, that stimulates cells into action in order to regulate or control different aspects of plant growth.

The numerous plant hormones and plant growth regulators are categorized into five main classes that are generally grouped according to physical similarities, and the effect that they have on a plant’s physiology. By working alone or in concert with each other, which they often do, they assume the underlying duty of controlling or regulating the growth and development of a plant.

PLANT HORMONES I GARDEN CULTURE Auxins Auxins or Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) was the first class of plant hormones to be discovered. They have a positive effect on cell enlargement, initiating root growth and flower bud formation.

When present an auxin can modify the plasticity of the cell wall, allowing it to become elongated: helping it grow and divide.

Auxins also hinder the growth of flower buds on the lower parts of the stem, where light and exposure to pollinators is limited, an aspect of growth pattern called apical dominance.

PLANT HORMONES AND PLANT GROWTH REGULATORS ARE CATEGORIZED INTO FIVE MAIN CLASSES Molecular model of Auxin

The Auxins Indole-3-butyric acid (IBA), and Naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) are commonly used in the propagation of plant cuttings, and in tissue culture, because of their ability to encourage the initiation of new root growth. Working together with Cytokinin, Auxins help control the growth of stems, roots, and fruits.

Cytokinins Cytokinins, referred to as kinins in the past, were first discovered inside of yeast cells, and are extremely active within plants. They help influence cell division and axillary shoot formation. In addition, cytokinins delay the senescence (breakdown or deterioration) of plant tissue that occurs when cells don’t grow and divide. They also have a positive effect on internodal length, as well as leaf growth. Cytokinins have the ability to mediate the transportation of auxins, and can even override the apical dominance they cause when earlier flowering is needed.

AUXINS INITIATE ROOT GROWTH AND FLOWER BUD FORMATION

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IT IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THAT THESE ARE NOT FERTILIZERS Abscisic Acid

ABSCISIC ACID CAN INHIBIT BUD GROWTH, AND CAUSE SEED DORMANCY

Gibberellins

Referred to as ABA for short, Abscisic acid was originally named such, because it was discovered in newly fallen leaves (abscised leaves), and was thought to be responsible for the shedding of leaves, but this was later found to be untrue. Abscisic acid is considered one of the most important plant hormones or plant growth regulators, and is mainly created during times of stress on a plant. It can inhibit bud growth, and cause seed dormancy - an important regulatory need for plants growing in areas where extreme seasonal changes occur. In plants growing in temperate regions ABA will flow into growing areas of the plant causing them to stop growing as fall turns into winter.

Upon the arrival of spring, the ABA will exit, and growth will begin again. ABA exits relatively slowly so that warm spells midwinter will not activate new growth that will surely die once the cold weather returns.

Gibberellins are the first plant hormones created within a newly germinated seedling, and are even created by certain fungi. Seeds have a storage unit of proteins that are utilized as their first source of food energy. As water enters into the seed, production of gibberellins begins to occur. The gibberellins then initiate the creation of the enzymes that stimulate the active break down of the food storage units, in turn feeding the young plant until it is able to create its own food through photosynthesis.

Abscisic acid also plays a role in stomatal control. Stomata are tiny pore like structures on the leaves and stems that open and close to regulate transpiration within a plant. ABA controls the flow of Potassium (K) and Sodium (Na) into the cells surrounding the stomata, called guard cells, and as these elements, along with water, flood the cells - they swell, and the stomata open up.

PL ANT HORMONES AND PL ANT GROWTH REGUL ATORS HAVE A REAL AND EFFECTIVE PL ACE IN THE PRODUCTION OF FOOD

Gibberellins also play a role in the elongation of plant stems, and encourage the production of flowers. In plants growing outside of temperate regions, gibberellins can even counteract the inhibition of shoot growth, and bud production brought on by Abscisic acid (ABA) - initiating the start of new growth.

Abscisic acid (ABA)

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ETHYLENE’S MOST SIGNIFICANT ROLE IS FRUIT RIPENING Ethylene Unlike the previous groups of plant hormones, Ethylene is not notably water soluble, and will not accumulate within the cells. Instead, it is a gas that is created by the breakdown of methionine, a component of all cells, and disperses from the cell - and thus, out of the plant.

Ethylene’s most significant role is in the ripening of fruits. When the seeds within a fruit reach maturity, production of Ethylene increases, and the resulting higher levels around the fruit cause it to ripen. Delicate fruits, such as field grown tomatoes, are usually picked when they are still green, and then placed in rooms where Ethylene gas is manually provided, and then they begin to ripen.

The extent to which Ethylene is effective is directly correlated to the amount being produced, and the rate at which it can escape the plant. Production is highest in actively growing areas where cell division is constant.

Though plant hormones or plant growth regulators play a major role in plant growth and development, it is important to understand that they are not fertilizers. They are used to manipulate a plant’s physiology to obtain a desired result - be it root development, stunted / accelerated growth or inhibited / enhanced flowering, just to name a few.

Since they have no elemental nutrient value, and are not considered fertilizers or soil amendments, the task of regulating these substances in the U.S. falls under the authority

Ethylene

of the EPA (and similar agencies in Europe and the U.K.) as part of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide & Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Traditionally regulation has been focused primarily on synthetic forms of plant growth regulators. However, the EPA is showing signs of shifting their regulatory presence to include naturally-occurring plant hormones that are found in products like seaweed or kelp extracts.

SINCE THEY HAVE

NO ELEMENTAL

Products that are regisNUTRIENT VALUE, tered with the EPA are AND ARE NOT clearly marked with the CONSIDERED required EPA registration FERTILIZERS OR SOIL number, and information AMENDMENTS, regarding the product, and THE TASK OF its active ingredients can be REGUL ATING THESE found on their online daSUBSTANCES IN THE tabase. If the producer of U.S. FALLS UNDER a product containing natuTHE AUTHORITY OF rally occurring plant horTHE EPA mones, such as kelp, wishes to forgo the traditional EPA plant growth regulator registration the manufacturer has the option to classify the product as a “vitamin – hormone product,” but with one major stipulation that they will have to add to the label the phrase “not for use on food, and other crops intended for human consumption” - even if the product is considered completely safe for those purposes.

In fact, nearly all of the naturally occurring plant hormones are allowed in the production of food crops and, for the most part, the same goes for many of the synthetic plant growth regulators.

The decision of whether or not the substance can be used in food production is determined based on an evaluation of the safety of the material for different rates and uses.

It is important to apply the substance in direct accordance to the directions on the label. Some plant growth regulators have been found to be carcinogenic, and are only intended for use on ornamental plants or turf grass. These include the substances Paclobutrazol (PBZ) and Daminozide (ALAR) that are known as growth-retardants since they inhibit gibberellin production, causing a plant to have stunted vertical growth while still being able to properly flower and fruit.

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BOTH PBZ AND AL AR PL ANT GROWTH REGUL ATORS ARE CONSIDERED POTENTIALLY HARMFUL TO HUMANS WHEN CONSUMED Both PBZ and ALAR plant growth regulators are considered potentially harmful to humans when consumed, but they have also made their way into hydroponic retail stores under the guise of plant fertilizers. This led to an investigation not too long ago resulting in the removal of several products from the market place, and the leveling of heavy fines. The crux of that particular event is the fact that fertilizer manufacturers are not required by law to include every ingredient on the product label, with the reasoning being that the excluded information is considered proprietary, and disclosing it could jeopardize the viability of the company and its brands.

The aforementioned products did not list the plant growth regulators on the label and, in turn, state regulators were essentially tipped off by the claims those marketing the products had made. Claims like “keeps plants short and bushy” - a plant response that plant nutrients cannot achieve alone, caught the eye of inspectors and they decided to test the products in a lab to see what they could

find. And what they found where plant growth regulators, bad ones. The decision by the manufacturer to use these substances without the proper labeling for ornamental use only technically put many people potentially in harm’s way.

For the consumer, the takeaway from this event should be one of skepticism. If a fertilizer or soil amendment product is making claims that seem outlandish or unreal for what is actually being listed on the label, the odds are that it contains a plant growth regulator, and in all reality, the product may be harmful if used to grow a plant that is meant to be consumed.

In these situations the old adage still rings true: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Plant hormones and plant growth regulators have a real and effective place in the production of both food and ornamental crop production. However, it is important that a grower thoroughly research any product in consideration to be sure that it is appropriate, and safe for the type of crop, and application desired. 3

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