Grozine issue 11

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BIG DOLLAR ALGAE BLOOMS | THE TROUBLE WITH DIGITAL HID | STILLS IN THE HILLS | PRO HYDROPONICS FOR EVERYONE | RIDING THE EC CURVE | RAISING TRANSPLANTS-FAST! | ENGINEERED SUNLIGHT VIA PLASMA | ROCKING GEAR REVIEWS

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Volume 2 | Issue 11

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B e s id e s s t a c k in g u p s o m e r e a ll y c o ol grow photos you c a n c li c k a nd c h e c ko u t in t h e p r o c e s s, there are som e g o o d g r o w t ip s y o u m ig h t p ic k u p a lo ng t h e w a y .. .

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WISELY www.rocknutrients.com

WWW.JASEGRAPHICS.COM

Volume 2 | Issue 11

CONTents

TOMATO GROWTH AND YIELD DECREASED WITH INCREASING EC

26 10 LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

12 CONTRIBUTORS

IS MORE 26 LESS Why more is not better.

HYDRO TO SOIL 38

Raising starts fast and sturdy.

42

42 MOONSHINE ROCKET FUEL

It’s illegeal to drink...Wink Wink.

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CONTents BIKSA’S GROW ROOM 16

Homegrown hydroponic profits.

Volume 2 | Issue 11

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PLASMA GROW LIGHTING 18

Manufacturing sunlight.

22

WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A PRO

A deep look into Current Culture Hydroponics.

DOLLAR ALGAE BLOOMS 30 BIG Are you experienced? Get

inducted into the algae boom.

30

34 34

WHAT’S DOWN ABOUT

DIGITAL HID FOR HOME GROWN

Send photos-not radio signals.

FUTURE IS NOW 48 THE Surviving the drought.

GEAR 50

The straight dope: Expert gear reviews.

50 8

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E B I R C S B U S M O C .

E N I E Z T I O S W R E N G .

R U O W T U W O W CHECK

from the EDITOR

LIGHTING THE WAY SHEDDING SOME LIGHT ON HYDROPONICS

BY ERIK BIKSA

Welcome back to another Edition of Grozine, your 100% Free Paperless Hydroponics Publication. This being Edition Eleven is number two in our second volume of E-Publications.

Last edition, our “Perfect Ten� we announced some upgrades to our hydroponics information digital platform in a variety of ways. Many of our long standing followers have noticed the easy to browse and clean modern look of the Edition itself, via JaseGraphics.

Our new state-of-the art website is updated daily with insightful and informative articles that give tips and technologies to modern hydroponics and organics growers. We have been breaking our daily traffic records with each day that passes-thanks to all of you! We are super stoked to be reaching record numbers of growers daily with our message rooted in a passion for hydroponics.

Naturally, a lot of you are finding us and staying connected to Grozine via our FaceBook page. And, may we please say that it is very exciting to see so many like minded peeps with a love for all things leafy and green-and a serious thirst for the tech and know how to take it to the next level.

Here in Edition Eleven we have a look at three different insights into three different crop lighting technologies: We visit Greg Richter of PurGro for the latest in Digital HID (with some insights that you may find alerting) and check-in with Darryl Cotton at Inda-Gro about Underwater Induction Lighting for growing something still very green and in demand-but it may not be what you think it is! We also sit down with Chris Pieser at Chameleon Grow Systems for some straight talk about the future of LEP (Light Emitting Plasma) Crop Lighting.

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Even if you only grow one plant, we at Grozine often say Think Big! Current Culture Hydroponics (CCH2O) has growers thinking bigger and bigger all the time with their very soon to be famous series of high performance large plant hydro systems. This time they broke the mold and went really BIG, but in their wisdom and experience they also went widewith the variety of applications their very-soon-to-bereleased Completely New PRO Series Hydroponics System.

Of course, as always, we have lots of great growing tips and insights that you can put to work right away in your garden for healthier and heavier cropswhile maybe even saving a few dollars and lightening our cultivation foot prints on the earth a little.

Besides giving you the latest technologies and useful and proven grow tips, we also hope to lend some inspiration to all of you from this Edition in seeing the wide range of important applications the skills and technologies you hold as a hydroponics grower offer our rapidly growing planet. Dive in and enjoy!

Peace, Erik Biksa (Editor, Grozine)

CONTRIbutors JEFF EDWARDS

FRAZER LOVE

JORDAN GARTENHAUS

Writer

Writer

Writer

Jeff has been a fixture in the hobby hydroponic industry since 1988. Prior to joining, he was the Assistant Director at NORML. Jeff went on to found and operate Home Harvest Garden Supply as a retail and ecommerce concern for the next 24 years. He is a founding and current board member of the Progressive Gardening Trade Association, formerly known as the Hydroponic Merchants Association. After a short period doing consulting and web development work, he has more recently been working with Rock Nutrients as their marketing manager. He is seriously against typos and works tirelessly to raise the bar. You can reach Jeff at jeff@gardeningadvantage.com

After meeting a fellow UGA student, fully involved in a double major in horticulture and business management, my course in life was etched into stone by my growing mentor, Ryan Trusty.

I took my passion to the next level by packing my college apartment with hydro equipment and mushroom cultivation projects. These home projects turned into a desire to make this my life’s work. Since 2005, I’ve worked with various hydroponics shops (Atlantis Hydro & Flora Hydro) were I served and serve respectively as the branch manager. As if working fulltime at a hydro shop wasn’t enough, I started my own CSA. I built Perpetual Harvest from the ground up, literally. This tiny sub-acre urban farm has given me the gift of feeding the stomach and brains of my family and friends.

Through my work and writing I look to inspire others in the hopes that gardening brings them as much peace as it has brought me. You can contact me via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Jordan is one of those people that always tries to figure out how or why things work the way they do. To that end he earned a BS in mechanical engineering, but shortly after graduating, he realized his time spent in school created more questions about everything around him than answers.

In an effort to prevent from overwhelming himself, he now focuses just on making gardens as fruitful as is scientifically possible. He spends a lot of his time optimizing grow spaces to make the most of the resources available, and also strongly advocates quality automation systems. He would since he co-owns a company that designs and sells their own automation equipment, but despite the conflict of interest he actually does provide excellent insight into the “how” and “why” of gardening. If you want to reach him. www.grohaus-automation.com

CASEY JONES FRASER Writer Casey is an obsessed gardener.

He grows veggies, herbs, and flowers with both traditional and hydroponic methods. His years of botanical experiences have taken him everywhere from Jamaica to Northern California on a quest for more knowledge. You can read his articles in various hydroponics magazines, or visit his retail shop: Garden Grove Organics in the Northern Kentucky region of Greater Cincinnati. www.gardengroveorganics.com

JASON HARYNUK Art Director Jason Harynuk is Vancouver based Creative Director and photographer. He has a passion for creating and is always looking to push his creative boundaries from branding projects to editorial photography. Jason has been published by the likes of Maxim, Rosebud Magazine, Hush Magazine, and Van City Buzz, you can check out more of his work at www.jasegraphics.com.

Special thanks to Christian Long, Chris Pieser, Darryl Cotton & Greg Richter for all of their time and effort in ensuring you get information that helps your garden grow and to Pacific North West Garden Supply for their contribution.

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PLASMA GROW LIGHTING MANUFACTURING SUNLIGHT

BY ERIK BIKSA

Erik: Hi Chris, more & more of our readers are asking for information regarding Chameleon Grow systems Plasma Grow Lighting, could you tell us a bit about your company and your products?

Chris: Sure thing Erik. Chameleon Grow Systems was founded in 2007 when we built the design on the brightest LED Grow Light on the planet (at that time). It was really cool; it had seven different colors and could be controlled by your computer.

We were working on Plant Performance Profiles but quickly realized that it still didn’t have enough light output and it was too expensive to produce.

plasma lighting. This was a no-brainer, plasma has a significantly fuller light spectrum than HPS so I contacted the manufacturer of the light source and we quickly came to a business arrangement, that was a little over four years ago.

Erik: Can you tell us a bit more about why spectrum is so important.

Chris: While the saying “you can’t beat mother nature” is true you certainly can emulate mother nature, meaning that the closer you can get to the spectrum of light that the sun provides plants (PAR) the more healthy your artificial eco-system will be. As a point of reference, the sun has a Color Rendering Erik: That’s interesting, how did you get involved with Plasma? Index (CRI) of 100, Chameleon Plasma Light Systems have a Chris: I have been an Entertainment Producer for about 35 CRI of 95, we would have all been very pleased to get 95 on years and have extensive knowledge of lighting and light our test scores in college. sources. My very good friend is a Horticulture Scientist and I was blown away to see HPS parking lot lights in his research Erik: That’s interesting, we have heard a lot about Plasma greenhouse. It’s hot here in Florida and his greenhouse tem- generating less heat, what’s the deal here? perature was out of control. I suggested to him that I thought I Chris: Plasma does produce light more efficiently but an eleccould come up with better alternatives so I did some research trical watt (from one instrument to another) generates relawith other entertainment professionals and was turned onto tively similar electrical heat loads. The significant difference is 18

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the radiant heat from the lamp itself. This is where additional heat is generated in the case of HPS or MH whereas Plasma has very little radiant heat which equates to less plant transpiration and less artificial cooling required. In addition, in order to efficiently use HPS/ MH growers have been venting their hoods to reduce this additional heat load. All this attention to heat loading in HPS is costly for the fans and the extra cooling required dealing with all this; plasma does not have this problem so there is a reasonable electrical savings and cooling cost between the two technologies.

Erik: Have you seen significant yield differences between the two technologies?

Chris: We have seen similar yields if you compare “watt for watt”, what’s of great importance is the end product. It smells better, looks better and has been proven to produce higher percentages of plant compounds and sugars. Tomatoes and strawberries grown under plasma lighting have a definitive sweetness; the same crops grown under HPS are very bitter in comparison.

Erik: We have heard a lot about a 500w Plasma in the works, what can you tell us about that?

Chris: We have been working diligently with the lamp manufacturer and are pleased to announce that our new 500w Plasma Light System will begin shipping on July 1, 2014. We are doing a special promotion for the first 100 customers so if you have interest you should go to ChameleonGrowSystems. com and email us immediately. We will announce the promotion via our Newsletter, they will go very quickly.

Erik: In parting is there anything else you would like our readers to know?

Chris: You bet, I believe we are the only grow lighting company to offer a 90 day Satisfaction Guarantee, if you are not pleased with the performance send it back, it takes a lot of faith in your product to offer something so revolutionary in this industry but we have the ultimate confidence that you will be pleased, we guarantee it!

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ATTRIBUTES & EXPECTATIONS Chameleon® Plasma Lighting’s most important attribute is the Full-Spectrum Nutritional Light-Energy, generating much less radiated heat than its HID counterparts making it ideal for sensitive plants like seedlings, plugs, transplants, orchids, lettuce, ornamentals and many other crops.

Chameleon® Plasma Lighting is available in 300 & 500 watt units, making this technology flexible for commercial & residential applications. It is important to note that Plasma Light Technology is not a wholesale replacement for traditional HID lighting but an alternative should the application be complimentary to the technology.

DOCTORATE LEVEL – THIRD PARTY RESEARCH & VALIDATIONS Mahmoud Elsohly PhD – Professor, Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Mississippi utilizes Chameleon® Plasma Lighting for conservation, multiplication and improvement of medical marijuana and other medicinal plants Suman Chandra PhD – Professor, Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Mississippi utilizes Chameleon® Plasma Lighting for conservation, multiplication and improvement of medical marijuana and other medicinal plants Donald Abrams PhD – Professor, University of California, San Francisco - Clinical Study of Vaporization as a “Smokeless” Cannabis Delivery System Dr. Roberto Lopez (Associate Professor of Horticulture, Purdue University) is investigating the effects of supplemental lighting in greenhouses from Chameleon® Plasma Lighting, high pressure sodium, and light emitting diodes on seedling (plugs) growth of a variety of ornamental bedding plant crops.

Dr. Chiwon Lee, Professor of Plant Sciences, NDSU confirms Chameleon® Plasma Lighting (in comparison to HPS) produced: • tomato plants with accelerated inter-nodal development, more root mass, plants were faster to flower & fruit with more consistent fruit size & weight and fewer deformities • significant increases in yield (romaine lettuce had 311% more weight/ tomatoes had 38% more fruit that weighed 21% more) • better tasting, fresher more organic produce with enhanced nutritional qualities along with reduced dependency on plant growth regulators & pesticides Dr. Kent Kobyashi – Professor, Tropical Plant & Soil Sciences, University of Hawaii utilizes Chameleon® Plasma Lighting for photobiology and hydroponic crop modeling in the study of micro-greens in relation to traditional light sources 20

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Dr. David Tanenbaum – Professor Pomona College Department of Physics & Astronomy utilizes Chameleon® Plasma Lighting to: characterize the performance of organic photovoltaic cells “Chameleon® Plasma Lighting provides a broad area of illumination with a continuous spectrum at a fraction of the cost of competitive technologies such as Xe, metal halide, and sulphur lamps”.

Dr. Stephen Mayfield – Professor, Molecular Biology, San Diego Center for Algae Biotechnology utilizes Chameleon® Plasma Lighting for: • engineering algae for the production of therapeutic proteins and biofuels • selecting high-light resistant mutants of Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii (green microalgae) Dr. Renee Richer – Professor, Weill Cornell Medical College (Qatar) utilizes Chameleon® Plasma Lighting for: investigating the interactive effects of light levels and other environmental factors on bioactive compound production by desert cyanobacteria. Project targeting neurodegenerative diseases and their treatment Craig Campbell, M.S. - Horticulture Science, Former President, Florida State Horticulture Society Marine Biologists – confirm Chameleon® Plasma Lighting (in comparison to MH) produced: • a more balanced eco-system with less chiller requirements resulting in healthier plant & animal life • significant increases in Coral & Clam weight (109% increase in weight over a 30 day period for 34% less electricity) • brighter more vibrant colors along with exceptional shimmer characteristics Conducting third-party doctorate level research for over four years has given us the knowledge to support our growers with the empirical data needed to validate our full-spectrum plasma technology, providing them with a alternative lighting product that has a significantly longer lifespan than traditional partial-spectrum HID lighting.

CHAMELEON® GROW SYSTEMS – SOLAR GENESIS® PLASMA LIGHTING ATTRIBUTES Robust Product Design to include: • 34% Longer Lifespan (in comparison to HPS & MH) • Exceptionally Efficient Reflector Design, Camera Quality Optics, Proprietary Optical Coating • Aircraft Quality Construction, Salt Water Corrosion Resistant, Wet Location Rated • 10 Year Limited Warranty, 90 Day Satisfaction Guarantee

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What it Takes to be a PRO A DEEP LOOK INTO CURRENT CULTURE HYDROPONICS

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THE PAST: OUR HUMBLE BEGINNINGS While hiking along the massive oak lined banks of central California’s San Joaquin River, Current Culture H2O’s president and co-founder, Daniel Wilson, observed the rivers endless flow and conjured a monumental idea. He noticed the largest trees along the river banks seemed much healthier with their roots dangling in the cool oxygen rich water. His idea would later become the basis for the Under Current™ re-circulating hydroponic system and a new high-performance style of hydroponics. This style which he latter dubbed “sub-current culture” involved passing highly aerated nutrient rich solution through plant roots, much like the ones he observed in the river on that cool spring day.

As an early pioneer of hydroponics retailing in California, Daniel was very familiar with the limited system offerings and their inevitable short-comings. In 2006 along with current partner and then store manager, Christian Long, Current Culture H2O was born. After months of R&D and countless trial runs, the first Under Current was offered for retail sale at the store, it didn’t take long for customers to affirm the systems effectiveness and sales rapidly rose.

THE PRESENT: CONTINUED INNOVATION The original Under Current™ system offerings included only a 6-site and 12-site model in our 8 gallon Growth Module.

Daniel and Christian were quickly urged to expand into larger configurations as demand increased and the systems proved themselves for larger growers. In response, the team introduced several larger variations of the design including: • Under Current ™ XL (25” plant centers), • Under Current ™ Evolution (3-row), • Under Current ™ XL13 (13 gallon/30” plant centers), • Under Current ™ XXL13 (13 gallon/40”plant centers) • Under Current ™ Double Barrel (4-row) Systems.

After 8 years in business and with over 700 authorized dealers worldwide, Current Culture H2O is committed to “Cultivating Hydroponic Evolution”. We now offer 60+ variations of the popular Under Current™ System, a full line of Cultured

Solutions premium fertilizers, innovative growing accessories and a long list of useful California made parts.

The Under Current (UC), even from its early days, was known for producing monster plants. With constant circulation, EC and pH levels remain consistent and high levels of aeration keep nutrients easily available to plants at all times. The UC’s scalability, overall efficiency and modular nature make it a top pick of commercial growers looking to maximize yields while reducing workload and overall plant numbers.

THE FUTURE: BIRTH OF THE PRO (BIGGER IS BETTER) Through constant customer feedback we noticed a re-occurring trend; growers wanted even bigger containers for even bigger plants. In an effort to continue pushing the limits of indoor gardening and yield potential, an even larger, 35 gallon version of the UC was developed: the UC PRO. Early versions of the UC PRO systems incorporated several unique and high quality parts but many growers were slow to adapt the less is more approach.

As interest has grown so has the demand for the PRO which led us to a complete overhaul of the module/lid design to get the most of the massive capacity. The new re-designed UC PRO represents the largest, highest quality, most durable version of our Under Current™ system to-date.

As with every new product we develop, the design process was long and tedious. We started with a long list of wants and developed several initial variations. In an effort to make the parts as multi-functional as possible we tried to incorporate very ambiguous features that would be helpful to a variety of growers.

Constant revisions and R&D led us to the final design. When producing products on a large scale we have to be extra sensitive in our approach to make sure we have no issues moving into final production.

We are confident in our design and feel this to be our best step forward for large scale and commercial growers.

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highly chelated, and extremely pH stable, perfect for the PROfessional grower.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR GROWERS?

A STAR IS BORN: NEW UC PRO SYSTEM The 35 gallon Under Current PRO™ systems will function much like their 8 and 13 gallon counterparts but will feature several unique and up-sized heavy duty components. Every component of the system has been maximized for longevity in adverse greenhouse-style conditions.

The UC PRO Systems include: PRO Growth Module: The reinforced solid ABS PRO growth module features water level indicators, recessed bulkhead coves, easy drain bottom, recessed drain valve cove and custom inlets for our float valve and water inlet tee. Made in CA. PRO Lids: The reinforced solid ABS PRO Lid allows growers to easily transfer plants from our 8/13 gallon systems by simply moving our standard CCH2O Lid and CCH2O Net Pot intact. The PRO Lid will also be available in a 4-site and 6-site model for tighter plant spacing.

All three PRO Lids incorporate dual port-hole access points and air inlet coves. Made In CA. Aqua-Pore PRO Air Diffusers: All PRO systems will come standard with our new Aqua-Pore PRO XL Air Diffusers.

These new diffusers feature a quick connect fitting, are more durable, and have 24

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a porous membrane producing mass amounts of micro bubbles.

PRO Air Delivery System: The PRO Air Delivery system will include the highest quality commercial regenerative blower or linear air pump. It will come standard with up-sized, quick-connect air manifolds fittings and premium quality air hose.

All PRO systems will come standard with “Boneless” Water and Air Manifolds. This will allow growers to tailor their plant spacing for maximum customization.

GROWING IN THE PRO The PRO system would be best situated either in a greenhouse or indoors with a combination of vertical and horizontal lighting. Although we will offer 4 and 6-site lids for the PRO, our single plant sites will be the most impressive on 70”+ plant centers. Starting plants in our 8 gallon systems and growing them to a height of 3-4’ will yield a monstrous 8-10’ finished plant in the 35 gallon PRO when finished. With high levels of aeration and circulation, low nutrient usage will be maximized and yields are expected to be off the charts. Easy integration of pH/EC dosers will further enhance the efficiency making operation simple, even on the large scale.

Our rapidly expanding Cultured Solutions™ line of premium plant fertilizers is made specifically for high-performance water culture and when used in conjunction with the Under Current™ PRO, it gives growers better produce quality and flavor. It’s highly concentrated, clean,

Under Current™ systems and Cultured Solutions™ nutrients are proven on the large scale!

For commercial applications the UC PRO wins in terms of efficiency and yields. The PRO system offers growers the opportunity to fill very large spaces and grow massive plants without the headache of multiple systems and reservoirs. Having fewer larger plants equals higher efficiency in terms of workflow, transplanting, maintenance and harvesting. One UC PRO 32-site system on 70” plant centers can occupy an area of over 2000 square feet. This level of scalability is unprecedented in our industry.

HOW CAN I GET ONE? UC PRO Modules and Lids will be available for sale through our network of authorized dealers this May 2014. Full PRO systems will be available soon after in early summer. Send an email to sales@cch2o.com for the most recent info and to be added to the waiting list.

Keep an eye on our website for updates and information: www.cch2o.com A single site UC Solo PRO will also be available this spring.

The UC Solo PRO will fit perfectly in a 4x4 tent or grow hut. It will come with the Aqua-Pore PRO XL air diffuser, a 30 LPM linear air pump, drain valve kit, CCH2O 8” Net Pot(s), Cultured Solutions Nutrients and your choice of a single, 4 or 6-site PRO Lid.

TO ALL THAT HELPED The team at Current Culture H2O will continue to innovate and push the boundaries of what is possible with hydroponics. We work hard to meet and exceed grower’s needs and make every grower a successful one. We appreciate all of the designers, fabricators, manufacturers, and internal staff that make this possible. We are proud to be US and California made.

$995

300w Commercial Plasma Light System 500w Plasma Light Systems Coming Soon

www.chameleongrowsystems.com

E R O M S I LESS TER

ET WHY MORE IS NOT B ENH AN GART D R O J Y B

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AUS

A

novice hobby-horticulturist over watering a plant for the first time is a bit like a new cook learning that more spice doesn’t necessarily make a dish tastier.

There comes a point where adding more of ‘something’ actually becomes detrimental to the end product. The same can be said for adjusting the nutrient solution strength of your hydroponic system: Any more than “enough” is “too much.”

Although it sounds deceptively simple, in practice giving a plant more than it needs can often times be a difficult habit to break.

In the past when I looked to experts for guidance in finding the ideal nutrient concentration for my crop, the majority said

that I need to feed my plants as much food as they’ll tolerate without exhibiting signs of any stress.

“Look for signs of tip burn,” they’d say, “and then back your concentration off a tad.”

But is that suggestion actually rooted in science, or does it just sound good?

How does nutrient solution strength affect things like fruit mass, brix content, or essential oil production? Thankfully there have been a number of published studies that examine this very question, and we can use their results in order to better understand what’s really ideal for our plants.

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This graph is particularly useful because it clearly illustrates how yield in this particular crop dropped as nutrient solution concentration rises significantly past what’s considered “optimal” for that plant.

Giving a plant more nutrients than it really needs can absolutely reduce it’s yield, even if the plant isn’t exhibiting signs of stress yet.

That graph actually comes from a study where researchers investigated how hydroponic nutrient solution strength affected growth and essential oil production in peppermint plants (Tabatabaie et al.).

You can see any deviation from the ideal nutrient solution strength of 1.4mS (milliSiemens) resulted in a loss of yield.

Note: 1mS = 1 EC = 700ppm (using the 442 conversion factor, which is on most TDS meters commonly used for hydroponics in North America)

Essential oil production at 1.4 mS was 63% higher than it was at 5.6 mS according to the research cited in this article.

Clearly, an example of how severe over applications of fertilizers are not only harmful to the environment and wasteful-they have proven to decrease your crop’s productivity.

Interesting to note is that although growing the plants in 0.7 mS nutrient solution resulted in mineral deficiencies, they still yielded more than plants growing in the most concentrated nutrient solution (1000 PPM versus near 4000 PPM) in common growing conditions.

So in practical terms, what are these results really telling us?

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• The crop has a target or “optimal” EC or Fertilizer Concentration (discussed in mS ) for yields that is dependent on a number of factors. Yield potential declined declined the most leading up to this value. Drastic differences in harvest weights occurred within a steep climb of 0.7mS difference in concentration. That means from increasing nutes from around 650 ppm to 1250 ppm had the biggest impact on yield weight.

• On the way down the hill of yields in the chart, the nutrient concentration is rising. While the difference is more gradual versus not having enough nutrients, it clearly impacts yields in the negative when over applications of fertilizers become compounded over time. Harvest weights suffered the most after the crop began to receive past 2000 ppm versus not supplying enough fertility. More is clearly not always better when it comes to crop fertilizer applications.

Another paper where researchers studied tomato growth in a hydroponic system with varying nutrient solution strengths between 1mS and 9mS (Shwartz & Kuchenbuch).

The researchers were specifically looking to determine the relationship between nutrient solution salinity and water uptake, but maybe not surprisingly they

discovered a strong correlation between EC and plant productivity too. They concluded: “Tomato growth and yield decreased with increasing EC.” Or put a different way, plants in the weakest nutrient solution they tested grew with the most vigor, produced the most vegetation, and developed the largest fruits. As nutrient solution salinity went up, plant productivity went down.

Now, that isn’t to say that you should go out to your garden and immediately dilute your nutrient solution. It does however add another data point suggesting that once your nutrient solution is at an optimal concentration, any additional food will be detrimental to the plant, and ultimately its yield.

And just to drive the point home, a paper published by the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS) studied nutrient concentration on three different types of lettuce and found that “Fresh weight production of the three lettuce varieties decreased with increasing EC level of the nutrient solution” (Abou-Hadid et al.). So, there’s no shortage of evidence showing that nutrients can be detrimental to growth if applied too heavily.

Of course as with most rules there are exceptions. A study I found published in the Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture was conducted to see if intentionally inducing salt stress in tomatoes could improve the total soluble solids (basically total sugar content, as measured on the Brix scale) (Cornish).

As expected, higher EC levels did inhibit yield to some degree, but they found a 1.5x increase in Brix by raising the nutrient solution salinity from 1.5-9.0mS. I found another similar study that came to more or less the same conclusion (Sato).

So, if you have everything in your grow room dialled in nicely, then yes, strategic increases in EC can have particular benefits.

Important to note however, is that both of these studies that found a positive correlation between Brix and

nutrient solution salinity used supplemental NaCl (common table salt) to increase the nutrient solution salinity beyond “normal” levels. Simply adding your favorite fertilizer until your nutrient solution reaches 9.0mS would almost certainly kill your plants in a hurry.

So what should we take away from all of this?

• running stronger nutrient concentrations than is necessary mostly results stunted plant growth • excess crop feeding will empty your wallet quicker • over applications of fertilizers will potentially increase your fertilizer runoff management requirements

“TOMATO GROWTH AND YIELD DECREASED WITH INCREASING EC.”

I see a lot of parallels to laundry detergent companies that shamelessly suggest that you should use significantly more soap than is really necessary in practice. I’ve found it’s usually a reasonable starting point to take your plant nutrient manufacturer’s dosing suggestions and cut them in half and see how the plants do and adjust from there.

These studies also reinforce the importance of keeping a vigilant eye on the nutrient solution concentration.

They demonstrate that even modest swings in EC (increasing or decreasing) can have measurable affects on plant growth and vigor. Maintaining tight control of the nutrient solution strength is critical in order to get the most out of your plants. Buying the most expensive fertilizer and not actively monitoring what the nutrient solution is doing then you’re essentially negating the benefits of that carefully designed nutrient formulation.

All plants have an optimal environment in which they thrive, and by definition they would grow most successfully when those conditions are consistently maintained. So the next time you’re tempted to splash in a little extra nutes into your reservoir for good measure, keep in mind that more is not always better!

IMPORTANT NOTE The optimal EC for your crop is influenced by a number of environmental factors like: — lights — — strains — — grow media — — HVAC settings — When you change these or other factors in your growing set-up, you may need to do a little fine tuning of nutrient feeding strengths to find an optimal nutrient solution target (EC) again.

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A submersible light sensor is positioned just below the surface of the water as we record intensity as a PPFD value. During our trials, test leads are ran to the electromagnets to record lamp operating values. Production systems will not have these test leads.

INDUCTION LIGHTING IN ALGAE PRODUCTION As a hydroponics grower you have either been taught or have learned to avoid algae growth in your growing system.

Algae can be a common sight in hydroponics, where light, water and nutrients come together...the species of algae that results may depend on things like the level of oxygen in your water and how effective your water filtration system is. ”Build it, and they will come”, as they said in the movie Field of Dreams-how fitting!

If you have grown in hydroponic systems for any length of time and lost out due to problems in the root system, you may or may not know, that brown algae may have been the starting point to your crop crash. They say to keep light out of your system for a reason, and brown algae is one of them.

AND NOW.....SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT: As a grower of hydroponics crops, you may be fascinated to know or learn that you can grow algae for health and profit,.

To your benefit, you can use some really cool technological cross overs from hydroponics and what you learned about water management to get started

in an area of industry that may be of considerable importance with a rapidly expanding population and diminishing food resources.

The World Food Organization has called spirulina, a variety of blue-green algae naturally found in Hawaii, as having tremendous potential in meeting the nutritional and other needs people have on earth in a sustainable manner. It has more iron than steak and a wide array of trace minerals that are commonly deficient in many areas of the world diet.

types of potential benefits, in part based on their biological composition when harvested and how they are processed.

As a grower, you may be keen on the fact that algae, like plants, help to trap co2 and produce fresh oxygen in the process while offering nutritional, medicinal and industrial benefits in the harvest. You may even be more interested in learning about the many different avenues you can take in this growing global industry with algae production for commercial and research applications. .

COOL FACTS:

APPLYING YOUR HYDRO I.Q.

Spirulina was declared by the United Nations World Food Conference of 1974 as the best food for the future.

The UN-Food and Agriculture Organisation(FAO) Report on Spirulina 2008 states, “There is a need for both national governments and inter-governmental organizations to re-evaluate the potential of Spirulina to fulfill both their own food security needs as well as a tool for their overseas development emergency response efforts”.

Because algae is photosynthetic, it helps to trap carbon dioxide from thee earth’s atmosphere when it combines water, co2 and light sources-in doing so, different types of algae create different

An impressive example of a breakthrough crossover from the hydroponics trade is Inda-Gro Induction Plant Lighting’s Grow Light’s work in underwater lighting applications using lights similar to their well recognized Pro Induction Grow Lighting Series, with that one major difference: they are submersed directly into a tank of water intended for professional algae culture!

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Here you can see our 3 level switching and dimming from 50-100% output for all of the submerged lamps.

optimal lighting possibilities in cultivating algae for a variety of applications.

This makes it possible to improve algae production as energy efficient induction horticultural lighting has done for hydroponics plant producers who use crop lighting for faster growth rates, bigger yields and healthier plants.

There are several potential benefits to this type of lighting application for increases in cultivated algae production because the induction lighting lighting system is safely placed right into the algae production tank, including: • In thinking modular, for example racking units, this creates a more efficient use of vertical space because there is no lamp to tank distance to account for.

• Energy efficient Induction lighting emits less heat versus HID lighting and would not easily contribute to excessive production tank heat values if used a sole source of light nutrition or applied to supplement lower natural lighting levels or increase day lengths. In some geographical areas or installations this may lower power consumption costs in algae production by creating a gentle heat source in the tank in combination with better lighting for growth.

• A healthy spectrum that better fits the needs of algae better means gives better potential growth rates for every watt of lighting used.

If you aren’t as familiar with Induction lighting as you would like to be, stop by Inda-Gro’s website for a variety or informational sources and white papers on professional grow lighting-and be sure to have a look at some of the eye popping grow photos they regularly update in their growing community of FaceBook.

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We have installed the three lamp/drivers with testing and monitoring equipment to track and record lamp performance characteristics. A chiller-heater was installed to maintain ambient water temperatures at 78 degrees F in both lights on and lights off conditions.

What’s Down about Digtial H.I.D. For Home Grown

SEND PHOTONS-NOT RADIO SIGNALS...

BY ERIK BIKSA

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In 2014 it’s safe to say that Digital HID ballasts have largely replaced traditional Core and Coil (magnetic) ballasts that have been commonly used by indoor gardeners and greenhouse growers across the globe. Besides being much lighter in weight and size, the digital models often run cooler and some models allow growers to “dim” light intensity levels, for example with 50%, 75% and 100% output settings.

Most digital ballasts can operate on 110-270V circuits without any changes made to the ballast system wiring. Magnetic ballasts may be multi-tap ballasts, which allows for changing input voltage-although manually.

Many digital lighting systems claim to improve H.I.D. lamp performance and operating characteristics, but that’s where we start to see the real differences between those cashing in on the trend versus those adapting technologies to improve HID crop lighting for growers.

For a lot of us, we see the lamp strike quicker and may have had an easier time installing the digital ballast versus our old core and coils-so as a grower, we think we are ahead. On top of that we are often told we can run our MH lamps and HPS lamps from the same ballast-so it gets even better then, right?

This is not always the case, unfortunately.

HERE’S WHY The vast majority of HID lamp operating characteristics and the output qualities of your digital ballasts are out of whack. In some cases, way out of whack, ie you’d be better off to keep using your old core and coil HID lighting ballasts in terms of how much Radio Frequency noise is being generated.

Reportedly, where the vast majority of digital ballasts failed (and some failed HARD) in a recent test done by Greg Richter via Pur Gro Electronics is in the area known as RF (Radio Frequency energy).

In simple terms, your household electricity typically operates on 60Hz (magnetic field expands and collapses 60x per second). Hertz (Hz) is a measure of this frequency and it’s what you are tuning on the radio dial (or button). Your HID lamps, by the very nature of their engineering, accept 50-120Hz as the target output frequency from your ballast.

Trouble is, almost every single digital ballast being offered for HID grow lighting is putting out a whopping 30,000 Hz (30kHz), or even a lot more in some cases.

This is by nature a powerful radio signal-seriously! In Greg’s testing, it was revealed that the majority of digital ballasts were not only way beyond optimal lamp operating characteristics, but that the line filtering for this VERY STRONG Radio Frequency was totally inadequate. One popular model was reportedly hundreds of times over the output RF noise levels it was certified to be. Yes, you read that correctly. That’s enough to keep your neighbour from listening to his radio, and enough to get people’s attention.

Which it did. The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) got so many complaints that they went out and bought some bal-

lasts to test. This ended up with one ballast failing so hard they are demanding that FCC block it for import into the US! That report is what spurred Greg to do his testing, to see if they were right or wrong. After a few days in the lab he says they were right.

Where this can cause direct problems for growers in hurting crop performance is by interfering with electronic monitoring equipment and grow room controls. False readings that trigger the wrong changes to your growing environment or reservoir can hurt growth and yields-especially if you don’t know that it is happening in the first place.

HERE’S AN EXAMPLE Our hard working grower checks the reservoir while the lights are on. They don’t like to interfere with the dark period that helps keep their plants in a vigorous state of bloom. The rockwool cubes and slabs are maintained at a strict pH 5.5 to avoid nutrient lock out-this hold true for ALL of the reservoirs in their indoor garden, including the veg and prop areas.

Now what if when the lights were on, as when most growers perform reservoir checks and adjustments, the readings were always false-causing the grower to keep making the same mistakes in very important things like pH, EC and Carbon Dioxide readings?

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Solves it most of the time, and we’ve soldered a lot of RF bypass caps on meters for people.

Obviously that has the potential to hurt crop production and be a source of endless frustration.

In speaking with Greg from PurGro (makers of the GroBot) about the “frequency” of this problem, here’s what he had to say: “It’s a call we get a lot. Someone’s pH meter doesn’t agree with the GroBot and he’s pulling his hair out because they calibrate the same.

We tell them to try it again with the big lights out. Solves it most of the time, and we’ve soldered a lot of RF bypass caps on meters for people.”

If you run some brands of digital higher wattage HID ballasts there’s a good bet this might be happening to you right now with your grow room monitoring-and never mind the fact that you could cause enough radio frequency interference to screw with TV reception for several blocks-with you being and obvious and likely source they can pinpoint if people are complaining.

Check your readings after the lights go out-does your reservoir miraculously read a solid pH point different or several hundred PPMs, in either the CO2 levels or nutrient levels? If so, you know what’s going on now.

Serious and refined digital ballasts for growers are engineered and manufactured to operate at 150Hz, this characteristic has been coined “low frequency digital ballast”.

This important operating characteristic is available only in a handful of models that have been available to indoor hydroponics growers. The majority have carried a premium lighting price tag, which an increasing number of experienced growers have been willing to pay for their gains in cropping.

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Commercial greenhouse growers who ride millions of Euros on slim margins have largely adopted this as their digital HID lighting system of choice-and you can bet if the Dutch Giants do it, it pays for you to do it too.

For innovations like DE 1000W HPS (Double Ended) HID grow lamps to operate as engineered, the need for operating characteristics to match the lamp parameters is absolutely critical in realizing the improved performance characteristics that make them a higher initial purchase.

We aren’t trying to hit the panic button on you-and certainly don’t expect that everyone’s over-revved digital ballasts will wind up in the heap.

Ratther, this is a common problem you may not be aware of. On a positive note, there is reportedly a very inexpensive device Greg may be offering that simply plugs into your existing line to stop massive RF blasts from rocking out of your grow for 12 hours of the day like clockwork via poorly shielded digital lighting systems.

However, we are most stoked to inform that there is super cool on the horizon in H.I.D. crop lighting. Every once in a while a breakthrough comes along that changes the way we think about what we can expect from our standard in grow gear.

While the principle of HID lighting has been around for nearly one hundred years now, for the first time ever an HID ballasts has achieved a feat no other has to date in that time.... stay tuned. Hint-when you see Greg Richter’s name appear in an article on an upcoming technology for growers, you’d be wise to keep your eyes peeled!

HYDRO TO SOIL RAISING STARTS FAST AND STURDY...

BY FRAZER LOVE

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I know this isn’t the weekend for work, but if you’re still pro- per gallon of A & B for full strength grow. Instead of following crastinating on getting your seeds in the ground I’ve got a the mL/gal rate use the 1:1 ratio of A:B at a rate that will give little trick that will boost your yield in less time. you a PPM level of 300-350.

We’re all aware that hydro can push plants to grow several Failing to meet this range will result in major problems that times faster than its soil grown counterpart, but what if your can slow you down or even kill your plants. Above this level garden is outdoors this year? many young seedlings will die due to the high concentration Luckily, there are ways to get the benefits of both worlds. A of fertilizer. The reason they will die is due to the power of hydroponically started seed can germinate 50% quicker and osmotic pressure. Basically, the solution outside of the plants grow to transplant stage 25% faster because you’ll have com- cellular membrane is of higher concentration than the levels plete control over the environment. No worries about cold within the membrane, and as the flow of water moves from a snaps, hungry gofers, or that forgetful brain solute of high concentration to a low concenof yours. tration inside the plant cells, the plant experiWhen a seedling is sown directly into the TIPS ON GROWING ences extreme toxicity. In response the plant spot it’s intended to grow, it’s subject to both SEED GENETICS: begins to die. The converse is true when the the weather and the soil biology. Sowing • You may have a few concentration of naturally occurring minerals seeds too early can be a waste of time if the stragglers that aren’t inside a plant are higher than the solution soil isn’t up to temp (50ºF). Below 50 degrees ready for this dosage outside, and instead of toxicity the plant will seeds remain dormant, and even if the seed level, but they will catch experience extreme deficiencies leading to could sprout at that temperature, the soil up. Worry about the the same problems. biota, or group of biological organisms begin majority, not the ones Continue to use this PPM range until the to go dormant when the temperatures and with poor genetics. first true leaf sets emerge. Once you have a light levels are low. So, to avoid these hurYou’ll want to cull these full leaf set, the plant is ready for more food. dles we can start our babies inside. You may anyway. This is why you Note, do not over water your media. Doing so already start your seedlings in a Hot House should plant 25% more will cause hypoxic conditions resulting in poor or even a closet, but most will make a soil seeds than you intend root-ball development. Allow your media to mix for the seeds. Here we are going straight to use. dry out between watering cycles to keep the hydro.

• It accounts for error, roots from “searching” for more air out of the Going hydro to soil may cause some hesinon-germination, and base of the pot. tation in people, especially if their soil is fully weak genetics. If you Okay, at this stage we are ready to push organic, but there is a way around this, too. don’t cull the weak, our solution concentration to a range of 550We’ll discuss how a little later. you’ll be wasting pre750 PPM moving toward the top of the range First, we need to focus on how to properly cious time and garden over a course of 7-10 days. start your seedlings in hydro. space on a plant that At this point it’s time to increase the PPM The best media types to work with when simply won’t produce level once again in your solution. This time going from hydro to soil would be either coco proficiently. you want to get up to at least 900 PPM. At this or peat. Both are inert and can be found as • You’ll want to do this level all 16 essential elements have reached a common soil component in most organic especially if you plan on individual ppm levels needed to support a media. Rockwool works, but seems to go saving seed for the next fast growing vegetative plant. through greater transplant shock than the crop cycle. Bye-bye This range is what most manufacturother two. When starting with our inert media, recessive mutations due ers use as their application rate due to the we need to soak it with a dilute fertilizer soluto haploinsufficiency fact it meets the standard range of nutrition that will give the very young seedlings the (that’s another lesson). ents required by the plant at this stage of right level of nutrients for this delicate develgrowth. A common name for this solution opmental stage. range is called the Hoagland Solution.

We are only using synthetic fertilizers at this point. You can www.grozine.com/more/history-of-hydroponics/ From here and probably should use some sort of biological inoculant you can only go up. Any lower and your plant will begin to such as compost tea, Great White, or Subculture M & B. This show deficiencies, usually first appearing as Ca or Fe deficiency. will help when it comes to transplanting into organic soil. So, This is where you’ll begin to catch up on that lost time. when mixing your nutrients follow the manufacturer’s sugAfter transplanting your plugs into their final container, gested ratios, but use your PPM level as a target guide. For before going into the ground, your plants will begin to beg example, Cyco Nutrients™ has an application rate of 12mL for food.

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Take a look at these time lapse photos over a week’s worth of growth. It’s amazing what a week can do when you’re system is dialed in. With this increased rate of growth you will be able to cut your transplant time in half. If you’re 2 weeks behind now, you’re still safe!

Once your plants have developed to your liking it’s time to transplant. This is where most people get worried because their plant has been feeding on ionically available nutrients for a month now, and unless your soil has had time to mend, organic compounds must be converted by the biota or biological colony of bacteria, fungi, protozoa, etc. The trick is to already have your plants inoculated.

Remember when I said you need to use compost tea or some sort of microbial inoculant?

This is where it comes in handy. If you’ve been giving your seedlings beneficial inoculants this whole time, then your plant will have an easier time transitioning from hydro to soil.

However, if you have not been inoculating your plants it will still be OK. You may remember the article Erik wrote on compost teas, their benefits, and how to make them. If not, you’ll want to read it. It is absolutely essential that you use these highly active biological teas immediately after transplant and through the life cycle of the plant.

The reasoning behind this is that you have been jumping the biological loop or soil web when feeding nutrients that come readily available in their proper ionic form. In soil the micro-organisms take the organic compounds and turn them into other compounds that are in exactly the same ionic form as synthetic compounds. These compounds are bonded in just the right way for the plant to accept them. Hence, an ion is an ion is an ion.

But, to get to this ionic point in the chemical process of bonding in soil, there must be a highly active rhizosphere to do the organic chemistry homework. The fastest way to get to this point is to provide your plants with plenty of these active biologicals. The sooner you have microbes working on your soil the better the plant will transition from hydro to soil. Below is another time lapse picture of a Brussels sprouts plant. One week after transplant there are no signs of nutrient deficiency, but rather, the plant shows new, vigorous growth.

Hopefully, this lesson and these photos will dispel the myth of it being a bad idea to go from hydro to soil. If you take the proper steps to utilize both nature and chemistry for the plant’s benefit you will get faster, stronger starts that don’t lose their vigor when going from hydro to soil!

Enjoy your weekend, and know it’s all good. You’ve got time.

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I’m from the Bluegrass State. I moved away as a young adult, but Kentucky kicks ass, so I ended up coming home to stay. Growing up in Kentucky, for me anyway, meant an occasional mason jar full of a clear alcoholic elixir known as moonshine. Most people have heard of it, but probably don’t really understand what it is or the culture that surrounds it.

The word “moonshine” can be applied to any homemade liquor, as long as it has been distilled. A few commercial distilleries are now making and selling it on the retail liquor market.

However, true moonshine is made with a fermented corn solution and distilled specifically in a copper contraption called a still. Obviously, “still” is an abbreviation for distillery. The origin of the word “moonshine” is arguable, but it was often made by moonlight, to avoid the watchful eye of John Law and the Revenuers (the cops and the IRS).

Bootleggers were the good old fellas who fermented mash and cooked up the finished liquor, dripping it into ceramic jugs or glass jars. You might be picturing a scruffy guy in overalls, sipping from a jelly jar, and you might be right. But these guys are probably smarter than you think. Fermentation and distillation are detailed processes with precise timing and temperatures. Some of these country boys are using digital thermometers, timers, and pH testers to achieve the ideal corn liquor.

In the days of prohibition in the United States, liquor had to be made at home. While folks in New York and Chicago were importing Canadian Whiskey, Appalachians were pounding out copper and adding yeast to their corn soup.

Even after prohibition was repealed, many of the counties in Appalachian states enforced their own “dry” laws. No problem for those old timers. They didn’t need to buy it in a store, when they were already brewing it behind the shed.

In states like Kentucky, Tennessee, the Virginias, and the Carolinas, moonshine is still made and passed around today. Bluegrass music and NASCAR racing have become intertwined with 44

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moonshine culture, so you’ll see the the ominous clear jar being passed around at racetracks and music festivals. Obviously, we can go buy booze easier than making it, even if we have to drive an hour. There are good reasons some people choose the old school White Lightning over store bought whiskey: it’s fun, it’s a tradition, and it’s surprisingly good! Corn gives the liquor a sweet, smooth aftertaste.

THE BLUEGRASS CONNECTION Bluegrass is that fast pickin hillbilly music that echoes throughout the foothills of Appalachia. The musical instruments (guitars, madolins, banjos, fiddles, spoons, washboards, etc.) were chosen for their portability by early Appalachian settlers.

Climbing over mountains with your family doesn’t allow a piano or a drum set.

I guess some of us grew up thinking it was legal, simply because it’s tolerated.

Once those settlers stuck around, they became “hillbillies.” The name comes from the landscape and the heritage.

Hills and Billies (Irish folks). The clandestine nature of mountain life meant limited travel. Local music and local liquor were the entertainment for rowdy country people looking for a good time.

THE NASCAR CONNECTION Now I might get shot for this, but I do NOT enjoy NASCAR. Driving in circles for hours isn’t my idea of fun. But fast cars are a part of the culture where I grew up, and it’s been a tradition for over fifty years.

Bootleggers needed to sell their spirits to eager customers and neighbors without getting caught. The best method, some thought, was to simply outrun the cops. Moonshiners would tinker with big

American engines and open up exhaust systems to maximize horsepower.

If a moonshine maker was on a run, and the local law recognized him, he would just step on the gas. It became a major point of pride to outrun police. A sweet old lady once told me of her late husband, “Back then, the police around here drove Dodge, so Ronnie bought a Lincoln. It was faster than a Dodge.” Big old American cars had plenty of extra room under the hood for modifications.

Vrrroooooom!!

TODAY’S DISTILLATION LAWS It remains illegal to distill alcohol for drinking, but you can still own a still, still. If you register the device for making fuel alcohol, there is no legal problem.

Moonshine makes a fine fuel alcohol for simple camp stoves, lamps, and lab burners. In fact, you could make fuel for an alcohol lamp that heats the still for your next batch!

For any of your Wildcats reading these words, please believe me; it’s illegal to make moonshine for drinking. I guess some of us grew up thinking it was legal, simply because it’s tolerated. Every Kentuckian I asked told me “Sure, making small amounts of ‘shine for personal use is totally legal.” I had always been told the same thing, but it’s just not true.

HOMEMADE BEER OR WINE? LEGAL. Homemade fuel alcohol? Legal with a registered still, and the government will issue a license to pretty much any adult who files and pays for it.

HOMEMADE LIQUOR FOR DRINKING? ILLEGAL IN ALL 50 STATES. Permits to distill liquor beverages are only offered to professional liquor companies.

So get a still, register it for fuel alcohol, and conduct some experiments.

Take all the proper safety precautions (FIRE HAZARD!), and don’t drink the moonshine. Remember, you are making this stuff for biofuel only.

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IMAGE: CLAWHAMMER STILLS

HOW IT ALL WORKS Now let’s get to the science of making quality corn squeezins. You’ll need to make a batch of sour mash, which is simply corn and water that has been fermented with yeast. The corn is actually flaked maize, which is a dried corn product. While recipes vary, moonshiners mix a few pounds of flaked maize with few gallons of water. Cook it, add barley, stir it, and aerate it. As I stated earlier, the process is very specific. Find a tried and true moonshine recipe, use a kitchen thermometer, and follow every detail of the instructions.

Once you have cooked the mash, it has to sit for two or three weeks. This allows time for the yeast to activate in the solution, which is how the sugar (from corn) is converted into alcohol over 7-14 days. The final week allows the solution to settle out. You can skip the settling period, but your finished product will be cloudy and unfit to drink. Of course, you weren’t going to drink it, were you?

Now that the mash is fermented, the final step is separating the alcohol from the rest of the sour, brown liquid. That’s where the moonshine still comes in. The

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still allows alcohol to evaporate from the mash, leaving water and other ingredients behind. The evaporated alcohol becomes a gas, moving upward though a copper, steel, or glass pipe. The pipe then curves downward, where the gas cool and condenses back into a liquid.

That liquid drips into a jar, and now you have moonshine.

THE STILL Picture a beer bottle with a lid. Now imagine a bent straw sticking out of the lid. If the beer bottle and the straw the were made of copper and three feet tall, it would look exactly like a still.

The body of the still is a big copper pot that holds the sour mash. Typically, copper stills are anywhere from 1-20 gallons. By heating the body of the still, alcohol evaporates and travels up the “straw”, which is sometimes called a flute. Remember, I said it was like a bent straw. The evaporated alcohol reach the highest point in the still and begins to cool. The cooled alcohol becomes liquid and drains down the bent end of the flute, probably into a mason jar.

Once you get accustomed to the process, you can make a new batch every few days, with variations on technique and ingredients. Poorly made ‘shine could be contaminated. Stills are soldered together, and this requires lead-free solder and water soluble flux.

Cheaper solder and flux will leach lead and other poisonous contaminants into to the alcohol. Also, the first 5-10% of a fresh batch could contain methanol or other undesirable substances. If the bootlegger fails to drain off that first little bit, the entire batch could be ruined. Please follow every rule of safety when conducting your experiments.

If made properly, this grain alcohol will never spoil or become cloudy.

Some folks choose to store it in a jar full of cherries, peaches, or strawberries. Apple Pie Moonshine is another Kentucky tradition. It entails loading the jar with apples, cloves, cinnamon, and vanilla, then filling it with rocket fuel. I’ll take it straight, thank ya.

Check out the next issue of Grozine, where I visit a legal moonshine distillery while traveling on The Bourbon Trail!

VOLUME 2 | ISSUE 11

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The Future is

NOW SURVIVING THE DROUGHT

BY JEFF EDWARDS

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A drought is coming...but not the kind of drought you’re probably used to hearing about. Renewed interest and investment in controlled environment food and medicinal gardens has created an urgent need, a need that wasn’t properly addressed during previous peaks of interest in these emerging technologies.

The drought that is about to occur is one of qualified and experienced facility operators, who happen to be the key to the success of any new age farm. Without successful crops, the business fails.

While the fundamentals of plant growth are constant, an experienced field grower will have a hard time adapting to the unique challenges and environmental considerations of a greenhouse or warehouse growing operation.

Hydroponic technology, feeding regimens, climate control, and pest control are just a few of the many differences that would be encountered. Just a few short years ago, it was almost impossible to find comprehensive educational opportunities that focused on Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) and/or hydroponic growth techniques. Traditional farmer preparation organizations such as 4-H and Future Farmers didn’t even include greenhouse and indoor technologies in their curriculums.

Today, however, a multitude of educational options are being offered to students and the general public, and special educational opportunities are being created for military veterans, prisoners preparing for a return to society, as well as programs for those with life challenges.

Many of the modern pioneers of hydroponics and CEA are products of the Controlled Environment Agriculture Center at the University of Arizona. By far, the most established and respected educational institution offering certifiable courses, they also offer an assortment of short programs each year for the general public, which include hands-on focused training for greenhouse hydroponic crop production and live interaction with experienced professionals.

The CEAC at the University of Arizona is best known for its work developing

Controlled Environment Agriculture Center at the University of Arizona

CEA programs in Antarctica and for NASA, but their primary focus remains with practical and profitable greenhouse food and ornamental production.

Another educational pioneer in CEA and hydroponics is Cornell University in New York, conducting. They too offer occasional workshops for growers, teachers and the general public, and have also been involved with work for NASA. Surprisingly, another educational leader in greenhouse production is the University of Florida. While Florida is a leading state for field grown crops, they are also one of the top greenhouse states, many of which have converted to hydroponic growing techniques. As a result, the University of Florida has developed a wide-ranging program to help fledgling and established greenhouse growers in the state.

But you don’t have to just look at schools for educational opportunities.

Many hydroponic businesses now offer educational training courses to inter-

Cornell students fuse design and urban agriculture

ested parties. Often, the training offered by these firms is augmented with ongoing technical consultations... which can often spell the difference between success and failure.

CropKing is one company that has been offering workshops and courses to the general public for many years.

Another way to gain valuable hands-on experience is by working with organizations such as Boswyck Farms, based in New York. Boswyck creates hydroponic farms of any size in any space for schools, social service and community-based organizations.

Archi’s Acres is another enterprise based in southern California that offers training for military veterans through the Veterans Sustainable Agriculture Training program. More than 200 graduates have already completed their classes that cover topics that include hydroponics, drip irrigation, climate control, soil biology, greenhouse management, and more.

So if you’re interested in a rewarding career in the Controlled Environment Agriculture and hydroponic fields, there are many different educational opportunities available today that weren’t just a few short years ago.

Demand for greenhouse technical positions will be strong in the coming years, and experienced help will be scarce. Clearly, those with education, training and/or experience will be the top contenders for the future jobs created in this fast growing industry.

VOLUME 2 | ISSUE 11

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GEAR THE STRAIGHT DOPE: EXPERT GEAR REVIEWS

BY ERIK BIKSA

ROCK NUTRIENTS Resinator (RSN8) www.rocknutrients.com While plenty of hydroponics nutrient supplements are formulated as bloom, flowering or bud boosters there are few specifically formulated to enhance the quality and quantity of essential oil or “resin” production in a variety of crops.

Rock Nutrients Resinator (RSN8 in California) is such a product. After extensive testing, in our opinion and findings it did exactly that. In side by side growing studies-some of which we have available on our website here: growtrials and the rest forthcoming, you will see what we mean.

In our studies, we saw some yield increases in some types of crops, but most notably, we observed a marked increase in resin production-giving greater potential for the overall “yield” for the purposes of resin extractions, ie steam distillation, from the same crop of plant material harvested for extraction.

The increase in resin content and the number of separate nutrient products (carbs, aminos, etc) that it potentially replaces make this a knock-out choice for our soil and soilless gardens when we like it sticky. Concentrated and easy to apply scores points too.

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OASIS Clean Start Wedge Propagation Inserts www.oasisgrower.com

PROFITS FROM YOUR BACKYARD HERB GARDEN

As you may have been learning in your growing pursuits, when it comes to propagation-whether starting new plants from seeds or cuttings, you will likely have your most consistent results when you do it in hydroponics or soilless substrates.

New plants are sensitive and vulnerable to infections from plant diseases and soil parasites, especially when you consider that most propagation conditions are warm and moist, so spores and moulds can breakout quick.

We found Oasis WEDGE propagation inserts to be super effective in producing new plants efficiently-and with very noticeably high levels of overall plant health. Versus our traditional methods, we were able to start a lot more seedlings under the same light source and very importantly, we have been able to maintain them in an exceptional state of plant health for longer periods before they had to be transplanted.

In hydroponics the root system is compact and efficient so you can fit more plants-there’s also a lot more oxygen too for growth and to keep diseases away with the air to water in Oasis WEDGE products. But it also means more watering or misting is required, so if you aren’t around a lot you will want an automated system for keeping the WEDGES from drying out.

Why are we telling you about this book by Lee Sturdivant that you might only find as used via internet mail order? In part because we are sentimental about *Note-for best results, make sure you use a companion OASIS prop flat plastic insert. where we came from and of course, where it is we think we are heading.

Mainly because we think a lot of home hydroponics growers that grow for a hobby might like to see if they can produce income from selling hydroponically grown produce, for example from a seasonal hydroponics garden or year round production greenhouse.

While not what you call “Advanced Marketing” there are always some fundamentals that tend to stand the test of time in a variety of markets and economies.

Learning simple and proven approaches that keep costs low can mean the difference between success or failure when you make the decision to try and create income from what you grow. Buying a state of the art set-up without having some proven produce marketing principles to carry forward is going to set you back fast-to a point you may not easily recover from.

We feel this book fills this important need-don’t expect tons of details-just some simple proven steps that you can build from a manageable and affordable pace to fit your growing goals.

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COMING up

WATER MANAGEMENT + EARLY SEASON TO HEAVY HARVESTS TIPS + BACKYARD BIOLOGICAL BREWING + UNLOCKING HERBS + GREAT GEAR REVIEWS + MORE, MORE, MORE...

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