garden culture magazine: aus 3

UK

EDITIO

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R 1 - ISSU

E 3 · SU

MM

ER 2013

- PRICE: £

3, 99 Electro

Magnetic INTERFERENCE

the hazards of

in your growroom

tomorrow’stastiest tomato

DOIN’ TIMEin the garden

fake foodAQUASCAPING

E M I

phytonutrients

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AU

STRALIA

N ED

ITION

YEAR 2

- ISSUE 3

· 2014

- PRICE: $

4.99

WWW.GARDENCULTURE.NET

GARDENCU LT U R E

AUSTRALIAN EDITION YEAR 2 - ISSUE 3 · 2014 - PRICE: $ 4.99

Gold Label SubstratesCommercial growers worldwide recognise Gold Label as the premium quality substrate

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HydroHydro expanded round clay pebbles have a very solid outer ceramic layer, which limits the uptake of water. They are ideally suited for intense irrigation hydroponic styles of growing. We recommend top watering systems for Hydro.

60/40 MixGold Label Hydrocorn and Coco is an ideal match for high water capacity, lower watering frequency and better rooting. We utilize the 8-16mm Hydrocorn from Gold Label and the purest Gold Label Coco to give to give you the perfect ebb and fl ood growing media which also works well in any pot based systems.

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DRAIAGE

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TEMPERATURE

Growing in gropots will reduce root zone temperatures noteably Growing in gropots will reduce root zone temperatures noteably in comparison to using plastic pots, through the process called evaporative cooling. Allowing your plants to thrive in hot conditions.

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IN THIS ISSUE OF GARDEN CULTURE:

E.M.I.A DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD

7448

7 Foreword

8 Product Spotlight

11 Solar Heated Raised Bed

14 5 Hot Reasons to check your grow room daily

16 Doin’ Time in the garden

22 Tomorrow’sTastiestTomato?

25 Fivecoolfinds

26 Pollinators&Pesticides

30 Nitrogen - the element and its forms

36 Parsley - grow your own

40 Korn - Garden Update

42 Aquaponics:anAustralianEvolution

46 Fake Food

50 Aquascaping

56 What’stheBestTomato?

60 The Home Grown Expo 2014

64 Water Management Strategies

66 Whatisfertilizeranyway?part2

70 True Soil, True Knowledge

74 E.M.I. - a double-edged sword

78 PlantNutrition-part2

82 PhytoNutrients

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT 8

PARSLEYGROW-YOUR-OWN

34

44FAKEFOOD

23

CONTENTS I GARDEN CULTURE

5 gardenculture.net

DOIN’TIME14

scapingaqua

5 COOL FINDS

ROOTSEXCELUR ATOR

Explosive root development

Eradicates brown roots

Speeds up growth time

Protects against disease

Enhances absorption of nutrients through

root zoneCreates a protective �lm

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7

FOREWORD & CREDITS I GARDEN CULTURE

FOREWORD

Imagine everyone having a garden, some are

big, some are small. We would all share differ-

ent fruits and veggies with our neighbors, and…

These utopian ideas about self-sustainability,

food security, and communities coming togeth-

er to heal one another with love and gardening

feels like science f iction. Our reality couldn’t be

more different.

People need to wake up, and see what has happened! The system has failed you. Lets face it the food indus-try regulations are a joke. It is regulated by the govern-ment, and/or in most cases by the companies that are making/processing/chemicalizing the food. Since when does health trump profits when it comes to big busi-ness policy?

The medical system is even worse. The “Band-Aid” ap-proach to health doesn’t work. Big pharma can load you up on any combination of chemical drugs, to fix all your pains, and your personality too. But you can’t grow your own medicine, because that’s illegal. The hy-pocrisy is plain to see, and waiting for the government to do the right thing is not an option.

BUT, you can grow your own food, eat better, and re-alize that the food being offered to you in boxes and cans is full of things that just don’t belong in your body.

Sorry for the rant. But, I am upset, and I want things to change.

We are super excited to be part of the food revolu-tion, our message is clear. Grow a garden; its fun, easy and just might save your life.

Eric

CREDITS

This Edition is dedicated to Lydie Sayers and Gilles Coulombe, ‘Thanks, I wouldn’t have been me without you’

Garden Culture™ is a publication of 325 Media.

E D I TO R SExecutive Editor:Eric CoulombeEmail - [email protected] Editor:Tammy ClaytonEmail - [email protected]

V P O P E R AT I O N S :Celia SayersEmail - [email protected]

D E S I G NJob HugenholtzEmail - [email protected]

Special thanks the following contributors:Maya and Kees Coulombe, Tammy, Nick Jackson, Gaby, Kyle Ladenberger, Jim Otell and Korn, Nicolas Ste. Marie, Everest Fernandez, Jeroen Kateehm, Evan Folds, Grubby, Judd Stone and Celia Sayers

P U B L I S H E R325 Media44 Hyde rd, Milles Isles, Québec, Canadat. +1-855-427-8254 w. www.gardenculture.net Email - [email protected]

A D V E R T I S I N GEric Coulombe Email - [email protected] t. +1-524-233-1539

D I S T R I B U T I O N PA R T N E R SGrowhard Australia

Website : www.GardenCulture.net facebook.com/GardenCulture twitter.com/GardenCulture

© 325 MediaAll 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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PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT I GARDEN CULTURE

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The ProGrow 600W HID Control Gear, brought to you by

WHG. With a starting current of 3.2amps, and a running

current of 2.8amps, which meets all Australian / European

standards is now out. It comes with a 12 months warranty.

Available from all good hydroponic retail stores.

Bud JuiceBud Juice from Grow Australia provides growers

with the best of old and new world technology

in organic gardening. This combination approach

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hancement gives growers a product that achieves

results far beyond what nature intended. When

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mulation gives you the ability to achieve extraor-

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11 11 gardenculture.net

SOLAR HEATED RAISED BEDS I GARDEN CULTURE

I’m tired of cold Aprils. The last two have been miserable.

Then to top it off, just when my greens get ready for harvest,

we get a spell of 32°C days that causes many of my cool

crops to bolt. So, my plan is to harvest the sun to warm up

my beds in March. Maybe, just maybe, I can get a crop of

greens in before the freaky weather ruins another lettuce

crop. If my design works, I can get a fall crop or two in.

Water will pump into the collector only when the sun is out,

as the pump is a solar pump. Heated water circulates into

the rock bed, which will store the heat by day, and release it

when air temps are cool, and at night. Foam insulation and

Reflectex keep the heat from escaping into the ground. A

layer of landscape fabric over the rocks keeps soil out of

the root area. When the sun is not out, or the pump isn’t

operating, the water stays in the reservoir separated from the

rocks by insulation.

BY GREG DRAISS

Water will pump into the collector only when

the sun is out as the pump is a solar pump.

Heated water circulates into the rock bed,

which will store the heat by day, and release it

when air temps are cool and at night.

Solar Heated

Raised Bed

12 VIVA ESPAÑA & TEMPERAMENT The Essential Mix

The Essential Mix

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IMPROVE OVERALLPLANT HEALTH

14

Replacing the sun and the wind, defining seasonal change

indoors, and watering your plants with scheduled perfec-

tion... keeping your prized garden at peak health requires

technology. Once you get all the equipment to automate

every aspect of supporting vitality in your grow room,

while reducing your workload, remember this:

Technology will not take your responsibility as head gardener

from you, and from the day you plugged it in, the clock started

ticking toward the day its going to lets you down.

1) Your Lights! Your plants need these bad boys on for the full required

daylight hours, and at the right height to optimize growing

conditions. If you aren’t in there to adjust the lamps regu-

larly, even every day in some cases, you will lose the sweet

to check your grow room

daily

spot, and your grow will suffer. Ballast, bulb, or timer fail-

ure will leave your garden in the dark, throwing off photo-

period, or worse yet... kill your plants.

Always respect the heat that high intensity discharge lights

produce. Inspect them daily, because malfunction could

lead to fire, and a fire can become devastating on many

levels.

2) Your Fans! These also are very important to have going all the time.

Make sure the fans in your grow area have manual switches

on them. Most indoor garden centers offer this type of

fan. Don’t use digital or remote control fans from big box

stores - they reset with a power outage. So, if your power

flashes, and your lights come back on, your fan won’t. But

any fan can fail while your away, and if you are studious

about adjusting your reflectors to optimize canopy light,

mitigating heat with flow of air is a must. If this flow of air

stops, your canopy gets hot, and your grow suffers.

Technology has a big role to play in our indoor gardens. Automated or not, you are using something that

involves technology. All lighting used by indoor gardeners is technological in nature. Electrical motors used to

pump water or move air, both solid state timers and the kind with moving parts - are still employed quite com-

monly in greenhouses and indoor gardens.

BY JUDD STONE

even the potential for fire

55 Hot Reasons

Here’s five good reasons why you shoul

d

still visit your room every day.

prevent excessive heat...

15 15

GARDENING MISTAKES I GARDEN CULTURE

gardenculture.net

to check your grow room

daily

3) Your Pumps! Your solution for moving your solution. If the pump in your

reservoir fails to come on when it should, your plants don’t

get irrigated. In an intense growing environment that’s not

good, and time is not on your side. If you won’t be going

back into your room for a couple of days, you will be most

unhappy when you return. If only you had just peeked in

once a day...

The flip side of that problem is when a pump sticks on.

Now you have an extensive clean up job

with potential water damage to the build-

ing. Not to mention a new pump to buy.

Both of these scenarios could be caused by

a faulty timer or the controller you have

the pump plugged into, so be sure to check

those before replacing the pump.

4) Hostile Invasion! They move quick. It’s open salad bar in that room 24/7,

and the weather is perfect. Bugs never travel alone. They

like to invite their friends, and have this maddening habit of

reproducing like crazy upon arrival. It doesn’t matter what

kind of bug it is either, they all have this in common.

Thankfully, the other commonality is that the quicker you ad-

dress a bug infestation, the easier it is to recover from it, and

beat them. Bugs could very well be the number one reason

for failed indoor gardens. If you check daily for bugs, or signs

of bugs, you can grow without preventative chemicals, and

address situations as the present themselves. If you check on

your grow room every 3 days, then you are missing the win-

dow of opportunity for bugs to get up to a 3 day head start.

By then things could get ugly.

5) Mercury Rising! For those gardens that absolutely require air conditioning,

losing it is blatant failure. However, you have levels of security

options for this problem.

You can attach your lighting to a high

temperature cut off switch. If your air

conditioning or fans fail, and the tem-

perature rises higher, then the setting

on the cut off switch will shut down

your lamps to prevent excessive heat,

or even the potential for fire. You now

have 24 hours to fix it. But if you’re un-

aware for 3 whole days...

There are so many things that happen in real-time, regard-

less of how “automatic” any particular grow is. With gardens,

we are always at the mercy of Mother Nature, even indoors.

Check on you plants daily, they enjoy having company. 3

“Technology will not take your responsibility

as head gardener from you”

5 Hot any fan can fail while

you’re away

16

“ I FOUND MYSELF FACED WITH 18 MONTHS IN A STATE PRISON” A L L - N AT U R A L R E H A B I L I TAT I O N

What better way to do time, than to watch things grow? Well, okay, I really wouldn’t

wish the experience upon anyone. But if you find yourself in this position…

In October of 2012, I found myself facing 18 months in state prison. All because I

didn’t call the police when someone broke into my home, robbed me, and flipped

my life upside down. Little did I know, this would become such a positive learning

experience for me, and others that I had the fortune of influencing in a positive light.

BY NICK JACKSON

inthegarden

doin’ time


“ I FOUND MYSELF FACED WITH 18 MONTHS IN A STATE PRISON”

Settling in at ‘Hotel’ Santiam, I discovered the

remnants of a garden tended by an older man who

looked a lot like a garden gnome. He had earned

his way there, to the best job on the yard. I made it

my mission to do the same, and join him in the only

positive spot in this place.

Before I knew it he had moved on, and I moved into

his place. I was nominated as lead gardener on a

crew of four. The other three were garden noobs,

so I guess this wasn’t huge achievement, but happily

taken anyway.

In early February of 2013, after four months of

incarceration in another place I called the zoo.

Locked down for 22 hours a day in a cell as big as

most people’s closets. It was such a relief to finally

get my hands dirty, and do one of the things I love

most - GARDEN.

I’ve been gardening since I was a boy, alongside my

grandfather, who was a passionate gardener. It was

a chore that grounded me, and gave me connection

to, and respect for, this earth. Having that and all

freedoms taken away was a very humbling experi-

ence.

The soil in this garden needed lots of TLC, but I

needed a project to keep my sanity intact. I soon

found a lot of other people’s sanity connected with

that patch of ground too.

I’ve always thought gardening was therapeutic and

inspiring, but hearing people talk about the beauti-

ful garden we grew was awesome and fulfilling. They

were constantly me asking questions, monitoring

the growth, and our work. Its beauty was quite a

sight in a place of such despair and negativity. I real-

ized that I wasn’t just doing this for me, I was doing

it for all of them. The ones who couldn’t be out

there lived vicariously through our gardening.

At the beginning the IWP (inmate work program)

coordinator had high hopes and expectations for

that little piece of land. While already a garden,

A L L - N AT U R A L R E H A B I L I TAT I O N

it wasn’t successful. In the end what we did with

this half acre amazed him. None of us imagined we

would grow over 3200 kilograms of food to supple-

ment 480 inmates’ diets with fresh produce. The

gardeners became the popular kids on the block.

We turned the food being served into something

healthy and exciting to eat, rich in vitamins and

minerals that really helped to rehabilitate the mind,

body, and soul. Because as you might guess, our

prison system doesn’t always focus on rehabilita-

tion, it focuses on money - like everything else in

Corporate America.

Sure, they offer a few classes here and there. But

they don’t mind at all if you come back repeatedly,

because it just makes them more money. Prison is

a huge money-making machine that needs taming.

By who? Who knows! Society would be better off

because of it. Not that there aren’t people who

deserve punishment for things they do wrong, but

treating people liked caged animals? I think its time

to rethink this program. Caging animals is wrong,

but humans are a civilized species. Being incarcer-

ated shouldn’t change that.

Back to my experience... The coordinator informed

us of all the work they expected us to do, and de-

livered the news we had no budget. There was no

money to pay for anything we needed. We had to

use existing tools and old seeds from years ago that

had definitely not been stored properly. Not off to

a good start here!

A challenge, I thought to myself…. bring it on! I

instantly asked about donations. He gave me the

path to try to get them approved, and offered any

assistance he could. Now it was time to contact

some good friends in the industry to get the tools

and things we needed donated.

First came 11.5 m3 of natural compost

from the City of Salem. A gener-

ous offering that was enough

DOIN’ TIME I GARDEN CULTURE

doin’ time

18

It was awesome. You could tell that all those plants had

a positive effect on morale, for gardeners and specta-

tors alike. Even the guards had questions, like when

things were ready. They too were eager to try what

we had grown.

The garden made us feel so good in such a bad

place. It became apparent to me that this is what

people needed, to watch things growing, and be

a part of things evolving in a positive direction.

It gives people hope, anticipation that something

good is happening, and that things can change from

nothing into something so beautiful, full of life, and

delicious.

We filled that whole half acre with so many plants

that we had trouble keeping up with harvesting ev-

erything. People had constantly asked to volunteer,

and now I took them up on that offer. I felt like a

volunteer. We were only getting paid about $2.30

a day for working our butt off, but it wasn’t about

the money. This was a labor of love, paying you in

unmeasurable self-satisfaction. It was a release to a

different world, a place I knew and missed greatly.

The garden gave me something to look forward to

every day.

Before I was thrown into this situation, I had filled

my life with so much chaos that I took my morning

chores of watering my garden as a burden, rushing

through it, not truly enjoying the simple things that

really matter. This opened my eyes to all aspects

of life that I never took time to stop and pay re-

spect to or be thankful for its place in my life, and

humble myself to the real things in life that meant

something to me. I had always thought of myself as

a very grounded individual that didn’t take things

for granted. This experience opened my eyes to a

whole new level. Every day I watched plants grow,

my crew grow, and the people around me who were

watching grew too. Gardening should be one of the

first requirements for any form of rehabilitation, it

grounds you, literally...

Filling that whole half acre the way we did amazed

everybody. When it came time to provide more

to give us a nice start on soil amendment. Next, my

good friend, Jeremy Blau with Vital Earth, donated

roughly $5600 worth of organic soils, fertilizers, and

amendments to help us succeed.

We turned and amended that whole half acre by hand

with a shovel using the John Jeavons double dig tech-

nique. This was many weeks of work, but that made

days go by fast. Everyone loved to watch us work, es-

pecially the older guys, who spent a lot of time watch-

ing us through the windows.

After amending the dirt (it wasn’t fit for the title of soil

yet), we made a list of what we wanted to plant, and

where. I had friends who would donate any amount of

seeds that we needed, but prison management wouldn’t

allow it. The IWP coordinator soon managed to get us

a few hundred dollars for seeds from somewhere.

When I get involved in something I give it everything

I’ve got. I talked to anybody and everybody in the pris-

on to try to get funding for seeds and equipment. I was

so happy it finally paid off. So, when it was time to or-

der seeds, I went with a long time favorite, Territorial

Seed Company. They have great seed and such a wide

selection. Naturally, we maxed out our seed budget in

no time.

I ordered things I’d never grown before, and stuff peo-

ple said we couldn’t grow - but we did. We tried start-

ing seeds outside, but there’s just too much rain in an

Oregon spring. So we had little to no success on many

things.

There were two huts on the property that had no

power, but offered a rain-free zone for germinating. So,

I asked the electricians to donate some fluorescent

lights they were going to throw out, and put some

power outlets in these huts. They was fantastic! Not

only did they give us electricity, but bought us a few

brand new T5s too.

We were about to make history - the first Oregon De-

partment of Corrections indoor garden.

I taught the crew how to start seeds, and tend baby

plants. We started some 500 tomatoes, 300 peppers,

eggplant, broccoli, okra, melons... and the lengthy list

goes on. The onions, beans, peas, kale, spinach, car-

rots, beets and squash went directly in the ground with

decent success.

“I WATCHED PLANTS GROW, MY CREW GROW, AND THE PEOPLE AROUND ME”

19 19 gardenculture.netgardenculture.net

amount of veggie trays that were served definitely

increased immensely. I’ll never forget the first time

they served beets, and everybody’s pee was purple.

They were freaking out, and the med line was full.

Too funny!

This experience changed my perspective of the

need to not undervalue everything that happens in

our daily lives, and to never take for granted even

the smallest things that are constantly growing all

around us. All people should have the option to eat

healthy, and those in the situation of incarceration

might need it more, to gain that clarity needed to

make good decisions, and live a longer, healthier

life. 3

DOIN’ TIME I GARDEN CULTURE

19

space, I needed containers. I called my friend Dennis

Hunter from Geopots. He donated lots of different

sized Geopots that could be placed anywhere that

wasn’t being utilized. Perfect for gardening on bark,

rock, or even cement.

One of my top priorities was making sure I had a

fresh beet, garlic clove, and a few kale leaves every-

day. I must admit that we didn’t share many straw-

berries, blueberries, or the watermelons, but the

rest was put on the veggie trays, and distributed

throughout the chow hall.

I’d like to think we changed some peoples per-

spectives and health by supplying such nutritional

food. I got a lot of praise for mpiy expertise. The

THE S.G.I GARDEN

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BIGGERCROPSBETTERHARVESTS

22

BY AMBER FIELDS

Tomato lovers know that mid-summer through frost is the only time you can enjoy tomatoey perfection.

Whether purchased fresh-picked at a farm stand, or harvested from plants grown in your yard, there is just

nothing that can compare at the grocery store. The only place to find distinctive heirloom fruits like Brandy-

wine, Green Zebra, Purple Cherokee... is to grow your own, or find someone nearby who does.

have diluted flavor from excess water. Or worse, wildlife

robs you of your crop by devouring the plant, puncturing

fruits, or feasting on one almost perfectly ripe orb at a

time!

The best tomato weather is warm, and somewhat dry.

Something we have no control of outside, but indoor

tomato growers have complete control over everything. A

fact that doubled greenhouse production of tomatoes over

the 5-year span from 2007-2012. It was a boom driven by

consumer demand for tastier tomatoes, and year around

availability in the greenhouse or grow room, you can create

the perfect summer regardless of freaky weather, the

season, and the natural climate. Since hothouse tomatoes

of the past don’t even come close to meeting today’s

consumer demands, commercial greenhouse tomatoes are

just about all grown hydroponically now.

The early stages of this switch produced much better

fruits than before, but many times though juicier, the flavor

is still lacking due to distances and ripening after being

severed from the plant. A trend that is changing as more

commercial growers establish themselves near heavily

TOMORROW ’S ta st i e s t t om a t o? J U S T M I G H T B E H Y D R O P O N I C

But some summers leave you hanging. Sometimes its

two or more summers in a row between good harvests,

because tomatoes are both easy and tricky to grow. For

seasoned tomato gowers, it all depends on the weather. An

excellent tomato harvest is one of the few things people

can fail at repeatedly, and not give up.

Those highly sought after flavors are complex; a unique

blend of sugars, acids, and gases that have more to do with

our sense of smell than taste buds. You need just the right

growing conditions, cultivar selection, and soil fertility to

produce that tomato heaven sensation devotees of the

fruit tend to obsess over.

The more unpredictable the weather becomes, the less

reliable those heady weeks of tomato delight are in taking

shape, because even with the perfect cultivar, success with

tomatoes requires perfect summer weather. The past

decade has delivered anything but that.

Temperatures that are too high or too cold, too much rain

or not enough at all, these are things that can leave tomato

fans disappointed. Depending on the extremity - plants

wither, disease sets in, fruits split before ripening, or you

H Y D R O P O N I C

t om a t o? de v e l o p b e t t e r f l a v o r

23 23

HYDROPONIC TOMATOES I GARDEN CULTURE

gardenculture.net

S U C C E S S W I T H T O M AT O E S R E Q U I R E S P E R F E C T S U M M E R W E AT H E R

populated areas. This move toward

local growing allows the tomatoes

to remain on the plant longer, and

develop better flavor.

But there are other things, more

scientific control measures that one

can do to recreate the perfect summer for hydroponic

tomatoes grown indoors. The dry weather thing, for

instance. They’ve discovered that by adding salts to the

nutrient solution, the hydroponic tomato grower can more

realistically simulate the perfect summer conditions that

give backyard tomatoes their awesome qualities. Maybe

awesome isn’t good enough to describe the reason so

many to develop such an affinity for them that they will

continue to plant them year after year - knowing that it

might be fruitless effort in the end.

The more we learn about what the perfect harvest needs,

the better the results of growing it indoors hydroponically

will be, and the easier it will become for any indoor gardener

to reproduce that outcome repeatedly, year around. Even

the much treasured summer tomato. 3

TOMORROW ’S ta st i e s t t om a t o?

THE BEST TOMATO

WEATHER IS WARM AND

SOMEWHAT DRY

t om a t o? de v e l o p b e t t e r f l a v o r

THE HYDROPONIC TOMATO GROWER CAN SIMULATE THE WEATHER

CONDITIONS

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H&G GC chess AD 2.pdf 1 19/07/13 5:22 PM

25

I N S I T U WA L L P L A N T E R SGrow where you’re

planted. Swap your crop on a

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25

GREEN PRODUCTS I GARDEN CULTURE

gardenculture.net

cool finds

O L L A S S E L F -WAT E R I N G G A R D E N S Y S T E M

The olla is an ancient method of maintaining soil

moisture. It works beautifully even at extremely

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combined modern

knowledge

to create a

gravity-fed in

ground watering

system. Options

available. Learn

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T H E G A R D E N E R & T H E G R I L LWhere your garden bounty meets

the sizzle of the grill. Stuffed with sage grill chef

advice and mouth-watering recipes for your

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Written by the Food

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BBQ Queens, Judith

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from Fishpond @

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D I S P O S A B L E B O T T L E S P R AY E RRepurpose your empty 2 liter drink

bottles into green garden equipment. Turn any

plastic bottle into a spray applicator in a jiffy with

this handy. Nozzle adjusts from a fine mist to

long distance spraying on trees. Manual push/pull

operation. Get more info @ bit.ly/1rJNbc4

PICKL- IT FERMENTING JARThere are many reasons a Pickl-It Jar would

be welcome addition to your kitchen gadget

artillery. Brine-cured pickles, sourdough starter,

sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir, lacto-fermenting, and more.

Tradition and technology merged to make artisan

foods a breeze. Grab more info or a jar @ bit.

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26

BY AGENT GREEN

The Prime SuspectRead the ingredients on any insecticide at your local garden

center or at home. All of the following are neonicotinoid

chemicals: imidacloprid, clothianidin, acetamiprid, thiacloprid,

dinotedfuran and thiamethoxam.

They kill grubs and earthworms. Without worms, soil will turn

back into rock. The stuff is residual in the soil, and present

in surface water that both insects and

birds use as a water source, increasing

uncontrollable exposure. Birds eat

worms and bugs that have these

pesticides on them or in them.

Hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees

all feast on the same nectars. They may have tested these

chemicals on ducks and quail, but hummingbirds are far

smaller. Lots of birds are smaller than quail. Song birds eat the

seeds and berries off of crops, landscape plants, and garden

perennials treated with neonicotinoid pesticides. It only takes

a few seeds laced with Imidacloprid to reach the lethal dose

reported in industry controlled lab testing.

Is your concern over the situation rising? Sit tight. There’s

more.

In February 2014, an opinion piece published on Forbes.com,

Bee Deaths Reversal: As Evidence Points Away From Neonics As

Driver, Pressure Builds To Rethink Ban, stated that a round of

studies in the US and one in France found that not only were

neonics not killing bees, but that the supposed systemic action

of them did not exist. A discovery that leaves one wondering

what purpose does it serve to coat seed in the powder in the

first place if it is not doing what its professed to do? Curious.

However, the EPA’s original assessment of Imidacloprid begs

to differ with these new studies. They deemed the chemical

had acute high toxicity, but naturally approved it anyway.

Imidacloprid applications protect timber

stands, rubber plantations, and buildings

from termites via a product called Premise

200SC.

Bayer’s Premise brochure it states that

lmidacloprid is extremely water-soluble,

spreads in the soil when wet, but binds to soil particles when

dry. It works by way of paralysis, disorientation, and stops

feeding and grooming habits - leaving termites 10,000 times

more susceptible to deadly soil pathogens to boost disease

obliteration. It does not degrade due to soil pH until levels

reach pH 9, and even then it has a half-life of a year.

The effects of the many applications in the war against pests is

affecting the ecosystem. Imidacloprid, also used in ant bait, has

long-term residual activity in the soil, and is readily absorbed

by untreated plants. Soil testing shows that it is still present

after 2 years - the entire life of the studies. Neonictotinoid

pesticides have spread beyond the boundaries of application

areas. It is being found in a growing list of waterways in lethal

levels. Bayer’s Premise has a soil life of 5 years minimum, but

There’s more to the story on bee decline. Unfortunately, this is a plight shared by all pollination

assistants... butterf lies, moths, hummingbirds, and the rest. Pollen contamination continues to show

a harmful effect on pollinators.

HUMMINGBIRDS, BUTTERFLIES AND BEES

ALL FEAST ON THE SAME NECTARS

pollinators&PESTICIDES

27

POLLINATORS I GARDEN CULTURE

gardenculture.net

TRUCKING BEES ALL OVER THE U.S. CAUSES MORE INBREEDING, AND VAST EXPOSURE TO DISEASE

The Saga Continues

POLLEN CONTAMINATION

CONTINUES TO SHOW A HARMFUL

EFFECT ON POLLINATORS

other Imidacloprid products only last

weeks or months? (See: elitepest.com.

sg/brochure/Premise_200SC.pdf.)

Imidacloprid and clothianidin are both

known causes for bee deaths. Witnesses

have watched tended honey bees feeding on

trees in bloom near cornfields being planted becoming almost

instantly paralyzed and dying. Bayer’s claim that there is no

evidence of this is not true. As of May 7, 2013, there is also

video proof that this does indeed take place. (Visit: youtube.

com/watch?v=xxXXaILuK5s.)

Germany, France, Italy, and Slovenia banned Clothiandidin

in 2008, and bee populations bounced back in areas that

honored the ban, so it’ not surprising that neonictonoids as a

group were very recently banned by the European Union for

an initial two year period. A lot of damage control lobbying and

press was in motion as the EU considered banning all neonics.

The EU chemical lobbyists’ message was that a ban will cost

farmers billions. Now Canada is considering a ban, and the

Forbes piece marks the start of industry damage control in

North America.

It’s not just about the bees. What about the damages being

done to our ecology? These chemicals are lethal to all

creatures with no vertebrae, and toxic to aquatics and fish.

Many questions remain, begging solid non-industry-favored

answers.

29 gardenculture.net

POLLINATORS I GARDEN CULTURE

The Suspect Pool WidensA study published in July 2013 done

by the University of Maryland and

the USDA proves that fungicides are

also to blame. Rather than causing

instant death like neonictinoid

chemicals do, scientists have

discovered that ingesting fungicides

lowers a bee’s immune system,

making them prey to become

infected by the Nosema ceranae

gut parasite believed responsible for

Colony Collapse Disorder.

Researchers in this new study

found an average of 9 pesticides in

every hive, with some containing

dozens. Obviously, the answer isn’t

banning a single pesticide or type

of chemical. The PLOS One peer-reviewed paper shows

that the problem is much more complex due to the toxic

cocktail of contaminants found in hives.

Anything that can entail any given mix of over 100 different

pesticides is a difficult riddle to solve. It could take many

years of investigating the currently available pesticides.

Meanwhile, a rash of new pesticidal products will

continue to be released for agriculture and horticulture

applications. A definitive conclusion is impossible unless

nothing changed in the pesticide arena - no alterations,

and no new product releases. Fat chance that would ever

happen!

Unfortunately, the likelihood of pesticide use on crops and

ornamental plants ceasing is nil. Where managed honey

bees are concerned, it might make more sense to greatly

increase the number of beekeepers and bee breeders. Also

there is the issue of too much inbreeding, and importing

bees from other parts of the world, and different climates...

on top of trucking bees all over the U.S. to pollinate crops

in various seasons. This coming together of hives from

everywhere causes more inbreeding, and vast exposure

to disease as healthy and infected communities merge into

one massive swarm.

Native bees would be acclimated to a region’s climate,

and stand a far better chance at resisting disease than

imported bees and kissing cousin gene pools (as the

EPA’S ORIGINAL ASSESSMENT OF IMIDACLOPRID...

ACUTE HIGH TOXICITY

EPA and USDA has already suggested).

California with its huge almond industry

should have enough local beekeepers to

support their pollination needs. The same

is true of Florida, yet apiarists truck hives

from the New England states to Florida

in winter, and just about every bee in the

nation that shows signs of life shows up to

pollinate California’s almonds.

That is not sustainable agriculture. It’s

ridiculous. If it is profitable to truck bees

such distances to pollinate crops and collect

honey, then an overlooked local business

opportunity exists - everywhere. One that’s

even more profitable with a hugely reduced

carbon footprint, lower costs, and less

stress.

Truth be known, the most efficient nut-tree pollinators are

not honey bees, but mason bees.

The SolutionMaybe it’s time for more people to become locavore

honey producers using native bees. You can keep apiaries

in cities and suburbs. Do some research on beekeeping

and breeding. A visit to your state or county beekeepers’

association website is a good place to start.

Don’t fall for the idea that imported queens give you hives

with better honey production. We had plenty of honey

before all this importing began, and the idea that bees are

year around cash flow machines took root. Not everything

exotic is beneficial locally. You don’t need commercially

raised bees to have an apiary or harvest honey.

Beekeepers in the past had no problems producing honey

reliably without all this nonsense, and they used wild bees.

It is a seasonal endeavor. It can continue in that manner if

you get the right information. Your agenda as a sustainable

apiarist? Make it to produce honey as naturally as possible

for your location and climate. If it doesn’t generate enough

income for an annual salary... diversify. 3

More info: http://bit.ly/neonics-kill

a katz / Shutterstock.com

30

Every living creature on earth requires some form

of the element Nitrogen (N) to live, grow and

reproduce

BY KYLE L. LADENBURGER

Every living creature on earth requires

some form of the element Nitrogen (N)

to live, grow and reproduce. Without

Nitrogen, plant and animal life may have

never become as beautiful, precise, and

awe-inspiring as it is today.

The Essential Element and its FormsN7

This ever abundant element comprises nearly 80% of

the earth’s atmosphere, and plays a key role in amino acid

production - the building blocks for proteins found in every

cell of both plants and animals. Nitrogen is also a factor in

nucleic acids’ development. These are important in DNA

and RNA formation, which contain the genetic information

responsible for proper reproduction and growth of a living

cell.

Of the 13 elemental minerals found essential for proper plant

growth and production, Nitrogen is the most important,

and held within the plant in the highest concentrations. Only

three other elements can rival Nitrogen’s importance to plant

growth. They are Carbon (C), Hydrogen (H) and Oxygen (O).

Plants obtain Carbon and Oxygen as gases from the air, and

Hydrogen from water.

Nitrogen is also essential to chlorophyll production. Proper

chlorophyll production will lead to lush, green vegetative

growth, while signs of Nitrogen deficiency within a plant are

always seen in a yellowing of the leaves. Nitrogen is relatively

mobile inside a plant (able to move throughout as needed),

so the yellowing of leaves often appears in older growth first,

as the plant tries to maintain proper nitrogen levels in the

newest growth.

Nitrogen is beyond important in plant growth and

development. It has a hand in building nearly every plant

structure. But, with regards to plant utilization and uptake,

not all forms of Nitrogen are the same. The key to optimizing

a plant’s growth potential is understanding the different forms

of Nitrogen, and realizing how each interacts with the plant

and the soil/ growing medium too.

Dinitrogen (N2)

Also known as atmospheric nitrogen, dinitrogen is the most

common form available on the planet. Earth’s atmosphere

consists of almost 80% dinitrogen.

With such a staggering abundance of nitrogen available

everywhere, it’s easy for one to think ; “Awesome! A plentiful

source of nitrogen for every plant to use.” Unfortunately,

nitrogen

BY KYLE LADENBERGER

NITROGEN I GARDEN CULTURE


plants can’t take in dinitrogen. However, this abundant source

of nitrogen isn’t completely untapped.

Through a process called Nitrogen Fixation, some soil

microorganisms are able to convert dinitrogen into ammonia

(NH3) with the help of special enzymes. The fixing (combining

with other elements) of nitrogen is also done in small amounts

through lightning strikes and combustion, like from an internal

combustion engine. Most nitrogen-fixing microorganisms live

freely in soil, but some form a type of symbiotic relationship

with the roots of certain plants, the most common being

Legumes.

Legumes are often used as a cover crop between plantings

of high nitrogen commercial crops such as corn, because

the plants encourage colonization and reproduction of

nitrogen-fixing microorganisms. A corn crop drains a lot of

soil nitrogen. A legume crop tilled under helps replenish the

natural nitrogen supply, so the next crop thrives with less

fertilizer applied.

Organic Nitrogen (C-NH2)

This is the nitrogen found within organic matter. It exists

in multiple forms, including urine, feces, and decaying plant

and animal proteins. Organic nitrogen is part of a complex

organic carbon molecule, and cannot be directly accessed by

plant roots. Organic matter must decompose further by soil

microbes into plant-usable/inorganic forms, the first of which

being ammonium nitrogen.

Organic matter does not travel easily through soils. The

Understanding the Nitrogen Cycle

microbes must find and consume it, which can take time. The

rate in which the organic matter breaks down depends on

the environmental conditions within the soil. In warm soils

with adequate moisture levels the rate of decomposition will

be higher compared to cooler, drier soils that do not favor

microbial activity. Rates of decomposition can vary with each

different organic material used as a fertilizer input, making it

hard to predict exactly when, and how much of, the organic

matter is actually converted into a plant usable form of nitrogen.

With organic fertilizers, like earthworm castings and poultry

litter, keep in mind that the percentage of nitrogen and

other nutrients on the label is actually a potential nitrogen

percentage. They’re bound in an organic matrix of sorts that

only time and favorable soil conditions can release, and only

through decomposition by soil microbes will convert into

plant-usable forms.

Ammonium Nitrogen (NH4)

This is the first form of plant-accessible nitrogen to emerge

from decomposed organic matter within the soil. The process

in which specialized soil microbes (fungal) break down organic

matter is known as mineralization. Since mineralization, also

called ammonification, is a biological process, it occurs at

higher rates during the summer months, when soils are warm

and moist.

When a plant takes in ammonium nitrogen it’s used directly

for creating proteins. Ammonium nitrogen exists in the soil as

a cation, an ion with a positive charge. This is an important

point, because it explains how ammonium nitrogen acts

within the soil. Soil particles have a negative charge, attracting

ammonium ions to them. This attraction causes the soil to hold

on to ammonium nitrogen, allowing it to stay put and not be

washed away during rainfalls or watering. How strongly the

soil holds on to the ammonium nitrogen depends on a soil’s

cation exchange capacity.

Soils that have cation exchange capacity have higher levels of

clay and decomposed organic matter (humus), along with the

capacity to hold a fair amount of water. A soil that is sandy and

nitrogen cycle

All House & Garden base A&B are 100% made in Holland, composed of pure liquid base elements, unlike most other “premium” nutrients on the market, we dont use powders or bulking agents.

Because H&G only use a liquid mineral base, this ensures plants can uptake all the available food without having to separate out the unusable compounds. All our base nutrients are made with

computer controlled precision, slightly heated during mixing for extended periods of time to ensure our base nutrients are blended to perfection. All nutrients are batch tested in our state of the art

factory in Holland to ensure the outstanding quality H&G is renowned for. Our base nutrients come in three variations - Hydro / Cocos / Soil, to accomodate the various substrates available.

All House & Garden base A&B are 100% made in Holland, composed of pure liquid base elements, unlike most other “premium” nutrients on the market, we dont use powders or bulking agents.

Because H&G only use a liquid mineral base, this ensures plants can uptake all the available food without having to separate out the unusable compounds. All our base nutrients are made with

computer controlled precision, slightly heated during mixing for extended periods of time to ensure our base nutrients are blended to perfection. All nutrients are batch tested in our state of the art

factory in Holland to ensure the outstanding quality H&G is renowned for. Our base nutrients come in three variations - Hydro / Cocos / Soil, to accomodate the various substrates available.

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NITROGEN I GARDEN CULTURE

Reference: J. Benton Jones, Jr. (2012) Plant Nutrition & Soil Fertility Manual: Second Edition. CRC Press

loamy will have a very low cation exchange capacity. Other

elements also participate in the cation exchange process,

including Calcium (Ca) and Magnesium (Mg).

The ability to bind to a soil in this fashion means ammonium

nitrogen is not likely to wash away by a mass flow of water

through the root zone, and leach into ground waters. This

sounds good, but presents possible drawbacks. Years of

research shows undesired effects from the ammonium form

of nitrogen being a primary nitrogen source. Over time,

symptoms of ammonium toxicity, fruit disorders (such as

blossom end rot) and the decay of the internal vascular

tissues can occur, ultimately restricting the uptake of water

(Jones 2012). However, most of the time this isn’t a concern

as the ammonium nitrogen may not stay in the soil for long.

For, yet another biological process converts the ammonium

to the nitrate form of nitrogen.

Nitrate Nitrogen (NO3)

Through a process called nitrification, ammonium

nitrogen changes into Nitrate Nitrogen by specialized

soil microorganisms (bacterial). Nitrate is a form of the

nitrogen element that is readily used by plants and, like

mineralization, nitrification is a biological process that takes

place at higher rates when soils are warm and moist. During

the hot months of the summer the nitrification process

of ammonium nitrogen to nitrate nitrogen can happen as

quickly as just a few days.

Nitrate is the form of nitrogen most often used by plants,

because its accessibility when found in the root zone, and the

direct use of it for new leaf and stem production. Nitrate

nitrogen in new leaves is then converted to amino acids by

the energy produced through photosynthesis.

Unlike ammonium, the nitrate ion is a negatively charged

anion, and doesn’t participate in the cation exchange

process. It is this negative charge that can pose potential

problems with nitrates in the soil. As stated earlier, soil

particles also have a negative charge so they will effectively

repel nitrate ions. This is a potential problem in that with

the next watering or rainfall the nitrate nitrogen can easily

be washed away (leached) through the soil, potentially

ending up in lakes, rivers, streams and groundwater.

We see the harm nitrate runoff can cause in situations

like the blue algae blooms in the Gulf of Mexico that have

devastated entire ocean ecosystems. Nitrates are a part of the

natural biological process in which organic matter decomposes,

but the excessive use of nitrates in agriculture leads to high

amounts of nitrate leaching and runoff.

On the other hand, nitrate nitrogen, with its accompanying

negative charge, is very suitable in hydroponic growing systems

that recirculate the nutrient solution. It mixes well with, and

travels easily in water, and tends to flow freely through a rooting

medium or substrate without the risk of excessive build up.

The different transformations the nitrogen element undergoes

in its journey from the atmospheric nitrogen (dinitrogen) state

all the way to the nitrate form are all part of a bigger overall

process called the Nitrogen Cycle. With help from specialized

microbial life and the right soil conditions, the nitrogen in the

atmosphere is then converted into plant usable forms - just as

it has been for millions of years. But, completing the nitrogen

cycle calls for one more step.

Through a process termed denitrification, nitrogen changes

from the nitrate form back into the gaseous dinitrogen (N2)

form where it can then slowly move from the soil to the

atmosphere. Denitrification is one more skill of specialized

microbes, however, it takes place under much different soil

conditions than those mentioned earlier. This process will

only occur under anaerobic conditions when there is very little

to no oxygen present. When the soil is completely saturated

by water, like after a flood, denitrification takes place, resulting

in some plant accessible nitrogen being lost from the soil.

By taking a careful look at the nitrogen cycle you see the

possible effect on the overall availability of plant accessible

nitrogen. Without adequate nitrogen, plant growth will be

slow and weak. A yellowing of the leaves will begin to replace

the beautiful healthy green growth we all know and love. And

if allowed to continue down the path of nitrogen deficiency,

the size and quality of the plant’s yield does suffer.

Understanding the different forms of nitrogen, and the

ways they behave in the soil allows a grower to make sound

decisions about plant health and fertilization. I can say this

from experience, it only takes one season of improper nitrogen

management for a grower to see, and realize, exactly why this

element is repeatedly deemed, essential. 3

Nitrogen is beyond important in plant growth and development

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36

Grow Your Own Series

37 37

PARSLEY I GARDEN CULTURE

gardenculture.net

you don't have special needs with

this crop

BY TAMMY CLAYTON

H I S TO R Y & F O L K LO R EPetroselinum is known today as one of the world’s

healthiest foods, yet this globally popular herb was

once as feared as the Devil himself. A relative of

carrots, celery, dill, and lovage - parsley so terrified the

Greeks’ warriors that one savvy Celtic chief saved his

kingdom from hostile invasion by blanketing hundreds

of donkeys with it, and driving them toward the Greek

army. The invaders turn tail, and fled with great haste.

The ancient Greeks associated parsley with death.

“To need parsley” was the same as “one foot in the

grave.” They made wreaths of parsley for funerals.

This association with death continued for hundreds

of years in Greece. The Romans however, were using

parsley lavishly by the 4th Century in celebration, in

the kitchen, for healing, and as a spiritual symbol. Pliny

writes that it restores sickly fish to good health, that

no salad or sauce should be without it, and it worked

wonders at freshening breath. The British learned early

on that sprinkling parsley on the dead lessened the

smell.

Arriving in England in the 1600s, medieval gardeners

believed awful things happened if one wasn’t fully aware

of its powers. Everyone thought that only the man of

the house could plant it safely, but only on Good Friday.

It was a plant whose seeds had to travel back and forth

to hell multiple times before they could sprout. Some

claimed that only a witch could get it to grow.

Surprisingly, this superstitious nonsense actually makes

sense. Parsley is difficult to germinate, super slow to

sprout, and the best time to plant it is in March to April

when abundant spring rains aid it in sprouting more

successfully.

Myth and legend aside, parsley is a popular culinary

herb globally today, most heavily used in Europe and

the Middle East. It is grown worldwide, being spread

hither and yon by conquerors and travelers.

THREE TIMES MORE VITAMIN C THAN ORANGES

H E A LT H B E N E F I T SIn the modern Western diet, we use parsley more for garnish-

ing and color, than as a food. This is sad, because it is a super

healthy green with two types of unusual components with

unique health benefits. The first is the volatile oils; myristicin,

limonene, eugenol, and andalpha-thujene. And then its flavo-

noids; apiin, apigenin, crisoeriol, and luteolin.

Parsley is an excellent source of vital vitamins A and C - three

times more Vitamin C than oranges! It’s a good source of folic

acid that also offers both alpha and beta carotenes. Power-

ful antioxidants that render dangerous free radicals harmless,

and reduces the risk for development and progression of ath-

erosclerosis, diabetes, and colon cancer. It’s also known to be

beneficial in arthritis relief, and root parsley is used in creating

mild laxatives.

While fresh cuttings have more, one gram of dried parsley con-

tains good levels of lycopene, alpha and beta carotene, as well

as Lutein+Zeaxanthin. Four grams of fresh parsley has more

flavor, only 3 calories, and 153% of the Recommended Daily

Value of Vitamin K. It’s an exceptional source of iron and po-

tassium, and rich in magnesium and calcium too.

Parsley has a huge list of medicinal attributes long used in home

remedies from insect bite relief, to curing dandruff, and being

a birthing aid. Discover the amazing list of natural medicine

benefits this ‘culinary decoration’ offers via Google.

GROW NOTE SThough most gardeners treat parsley as an annual, it’s a bi-

ennial - a plant that grows leaves and roots the first year,

and then flowers to set seed in the second year. Once it’s

flowered, a biennial plant dies.

The species grows about 30 - 45cm tall, and requires plant

spacing of 15-30cm. Check your selection’s needs for bet-

ter detail. When seeding directly into rows outdoors, plant

when soil temps warm to 10°C. Don’t worry about frost, it

will be weeks before it can cause damage. Whether sown in

the ground, or in seed trays indoors, planting depth is 5mm.

Parsley puts out deep tap roots, so use a deep pot for con-

tainer growing - at least 30cm tall. For hydroponic growing,

a deep water culture lettuce raft setup, or a bucket system

will best accommodate those roots. You can plant it in the

same system with other herbs or lettuces.

G E R M I N AT I O N · Notoriously difficult to sprout,

no matter what method you plan to use to grow your pars-

ley crop, soaking the seed in lukewarm water for 24 hours

before sowing promotes better germination rates. A brief

freeze helps to jolt it out of dormancy. Consistent mois-

ture is a must. Oasis cubes work great, and covering the

germination tray with a humidity dome is your best bet in

moisture retention. Mist to rehydrate.

Set your seedling heat mat thermostat at 26°C, so the ger-

mination tray doesn’t get too hot.

Be patient. Expect the germination process to take 21-28

days. For easier outdoor growing, start your seed under

lights or in a sunny window 6-8 weeks before garden plant-

ing season arrives.

N O M E N C L AT U R EWhile you’ll find a lot of different named types of parsley

seed for sale, all of them are Petroselinum crispum, though

sometimes listed as Petroselinum hortense. There are re-

ally only four distinct types, and the most

commonly known in the US is Curly

Leaf, because it is more decora-

tive. There is also flat-leaf,

fern-leaf, and one grown pri-

marily for the roots.

P. var. crispum: Truly beau-

tiful plants in the garden, and for

garnishing, you’ll find this variety sold

as Curly Leaf and Moss Leaf cultivars.

These have much richer green foliage

than the other groups.

P. var. crispum neopolitanium: This is the Italian Flat

Leaf type, and most closely resembles the wild species.

Some say this one is much stronger flavored.

P. var. filicinum: You’ll find this variety listed as French

Flat Leaf or Fern-Leaf. It’s lighter green than the crispum

varieties, and a little shorter. They make a nice garnish,

and have very similar flavor to the crispums. It is easier

to grow, better suited to colder climates, and deals with

heavy moisture better too.

P. var. radicosum: This is commonly known as Root

Parsley or Hamburg Parsley, and sometimes listed as P.

var. tuberosum. While uncommon in UK and US gardens,

these delicious roots are wildly popular in Europe and

western Asia. Eat them raw as a snack, or cooked like any

other root vegetable, and use the leaves as a herb. Harvest

the roots as needed from August through April.

38

CONSISTENT MOISTURE IS A MUST


PARSLEY I GARDEN CULTURE

G R O W T H M E D I A Generally, you want nitrogen-rich, moist soil with good

drainage for best results outdoors, though once established,

parsley grows in drier conditions. Quality soilless mixes

with good moisture retention work great for traditional

container growing. You can also grow this crop hydroponi-

cally in coir, rockwool, perlite, and vermiculite.

I N D O O R E N V I R O N M E N TOnce your seedlings emerge, remove the humidity dome.

Take them off the heating mat. Move them under vegeta-

tive lighting. Maintain an ambient temperature of 20-24°C.

Use an oscillating fan to create a gentle breeze. The light

movement will help your plants develop sturdy stems, and

promote natural shaping.

They won’t need nutrients or transplanting to their growth

container or system until a full mature shaped leaf has

formed. Parsley grows best at 14-24°C. It will tolerate high-

er temps, but stops growing at 30°C, and quick to bolt into

flowering at 26.6°C or hotter.

L I G H T I N G Parsley does best in full sun outdoors, but it will tolerate

only 6-8 hours of direct sun a day. To grow this herb inside,

you need a minimum of 6 hours direct sunshine daily too. In

winter, and lacking a large window with Southern exposure,

resort to grow lights.

Like other leaf crops, you’ll have no problem growing pars-

ley under T5 HO fluorescent and CFL fixtures. Since this is

far less powerful than the sun, you’ll want to run your lights

16 hours a day. You can also grow parsley under HID lights

...notoriously slow to germinate...

CONSISTENT MOISTURE IS A MUST

positioned .60-1.21m above the plants (more wattage

= more distance), while T5s and CFLs need to be kept at

12 inches above your crop.

N U T R I E N T SSoil, growth media, and hydroponic reservoir pH levels are

optimum at 6.0-7.0, though this plant will tolerate a range of

5.6-7.5 pH. Parsley will not grow at all if the pH drops lower.

Like most herbs, you don’t have special hydroponic nutri-

ent or garden fertilizer needs. It’s a rich green plant, which

instantly tells you it loves nitrogen. Adding a bit of magne-

sium and calcium is a good move, no matter what growing

method you’re using.

For hydro parsley use any basic vegetative nutrient solu-

tion. Keep nutrient reservoir temperatures at 14-24°C, and

maintain your solution at EC 0.3-0.5 (3-5 CF).

H A R V E S TYou can snip off sprigs and stems continuously. When grow-

ing it solely outdoors, harvest all stems in the fall, and air dry

thoroughly before packing the dried leaves in tight-sealing

jars.

Or ‘harvest’ the entire plant, and pot it up to continue har-

vesting fresh parsley indoors all winter. Cut the plant back

before digging it up. This will give you a steady supply of fresh

cuttings until your new seedlings have grown to proportions

that offer a harvest next spring. Remove any flower stems

right away to keep the old plant alive. Then let it bloom, and

your spent plant will supply you with seed for your next

crop. Seeds ripen in about 4 weeks from flower opening. 3

BY JIM OTELL, KORN GUITAR TECH,

15 YEARS AND COUNTINGupdategarden

Seems like it was a long time ago that we started gardening in our studio. Trying to get everyone involved

in it has been easy, because what we are promoting is good eating. I’m inspired by James (Munky) to eat

right, and pay attention to the food we eat. I do the shopping for the band, and in the past I have put out

the food and snacks. The guys could concentrate on writing.

During recording of Korn 3,

our producer, Ross Robinson,

asked me why I was putting all

this crap out for the guys to

eat. Well, that was the mo-

ment it hit me the hardest. I

love my guys with all my heart,

and want them all happy and

healthy. Munk was already

changing the way he was eat-

ing, so in order to keep up with him, and following in-

structions from Ross, I started looking at labels. I stopped

buying the big boxes of potato chip packs, and quit putting

a bowl of chocolates out. The first major change was re-

placing whole milk with almond milk and rice milk. Then

we moved into the age of granola and probiotics.

I don’t buy bad stuff for the guys these days, but I do have

a little crappy food around, in case someone has a fit, and

wants some good old American engineered, modified, en-

hanced, mass-produced stuff instead. Why not? We all fall

off the wagon once in a while, but it’s not the habit now.

I know a guy, Sluggo, who likes what he calls ‘fat guy food’.

I must admit to partaking in a pizza flavor Hot Pocket now

and then. It’s strange to put that stuff in the studio fridge

now though. And Sluggo, you’ll get converted to a healthy

diet some day, so enjoy it while

you can.

Now that we’re eating better,

and drinking coconut water oc-

casionally for potassium, I am

feeling good. And then we learn

about GMOs. How can we be

sure we ain’t ingesting poisoned

food? Poisoned by pesticides, and

things like Bud Nip, and whatever

else I don’t know about.

Learning about this Bud Nip stuff they put on potatoes

from the store got me wondering. So, I did some ex-

periments of my own with potatoes, and found that with

proper plant food, Bud Nip won’t stop potatoes from

growing.

Actually, everything grows in the hydroponic system we

use now. We are still experimenting on what we like, and

I’m not too sure. We are growing many varieties, like let-

tuce, kale, basil, arugula, spinach, and even some straw-

berries. They were a little tough for us, but now they are

coming up. I feel we will be successful with strawberries. I

strongly believe strawberries are the perfect food, espe-

cially organically grown.

Ko nrGarden Culture’s Eric Coulombe, Jim Otell,

Jonathan Davis and Ray Luzier

40

41

KORN I GARDEN CULTURE

gardenculture.net

I know what we are doing is not considered organic, but

we control the environment. I hope it’s not bad that I

don’t even wash the lettuces and stuff, because I saw the

process. From the Korn farm to my plate, there’s only an

occasional tiny fly that followed me in. Other than that,

there’s no bug problems - nothing like they warned me

about.

The first garden failed while we were on tour. My new

friend, Eric, did not have full understanding of just how

long I intended to neglect the project. We’ve made some

changes in the garden design, and it’s not left totally unat-

tended now.

While the guys and I are on the road, my right-hand man,

Marc, is filling my 200-liter reservoir. My hydro nerd

friend, David, is by checking the nutrients and starting

some seeds. As for seed, we are planting all organic seeds

from trusted companies.

So I watch what I call the ‘garden cam’. So many beau-

tiful bell peppers, tomatoes, and cucumbers came up in

the bucket system fed by an automated hydro system that

I still haven’t learned how to use. My other new friend,

Cameron, has promised me to help get it going. I do think

his hydro system will really help solve my problem of not

being able to know what’s really happening while we’re

gone. 3

Indagro with pontoon

OG reflector 1000W

42

The idea that you could grow fresh-water fish and vegetables together in the backyard intrigued him. He

had to find out if it worked. At the beginning of his first aquaponics grow, the neighbors all shook their

heads over Murray’s latest crazy project. Today, almost a decade later, this guy is a global public figure in

the aquaponics industry, known and loved world-wide, and Murray Hallam’s fish, fruit, and veg operation

near Brisbane produces great abundance. He’s a globetrotting speaker eagerly investigating system designs

in different climates, and teaching others successful techniques.

While there are references to pairing

fish waste and plants in times of antiq-

uity in China and South America, aqua-

ponics has been evolving for a mere

60-70 years. Australia is the ‘epicenter

of modern-day aquaponics’ in the words

of Dr. Nate Storey, whose US-based Bright Agrotech farm

invented ZipGrow Towers that have recently entered the

Australian market. Many of the techniques used globally

today in this niche of the hydroponic industry came from

hobby growers here. In a nutshell, the grassroots movement

here has done a great deal to mold the world’s answer to

truly organic food grown with little water and no soil.

Of course, those unknown pioneers are well-known figures

in aquaponics these days. Hallam got into this form of grow-

ing about the same time as horticulturalist Joel Malcolm,

whose Backyard Aquaponics forum has provided access to

knowledge and the ability for anyone anywhere to inter-

act with other growers, both beginners and seasoned pros,

since 2007. This forum led the movement globally from

Perth, while Joel’s Backyard Aquaponics Magazine fans the

flame of passion for self-sufficiency everywhere with a sim-

ple click of a button.

Ah, but science is important here,

as with any type of hydroponics, and

that’s getting the nutrients right.

Without the filtering buffer of the

soil, experiencing deficiencies, loss, or

failure doesn’t require being way off

optimum, and with live fish tossed into the mix, things get

a bit stickier. If it weren’t for the academic work of Wilson

Lennard, whose PhD work at RMIT proved that an optimal

balance of fish to plants in a totally closed system was possi-

ble - with the same water being used perpetually, it may not

have advanced as rapidly as it has. Symbioponics design and

management methods from Aquaponic Solutions grew out

of Wilson’s research and experience over the past decade.

There have been others in recent times whose names pep-

per the history of modern aquaponics, which spans the last

35 years, but the people who are most influential in driving

the current movement include these Australians.

While the lingering drought and severe water restrictions

may have influenced the intensity that went into conquering

aquaponics science and techniques here at home, it goes

deeper than that. Like people everywhere, concern over

BY TAMMY CLYTON

Australia is the epicenter of modern-day

aquaponics


AQUAPONICS I GARDEN CULTURE

food quality, food purity, food security, and food sover-

eignty rests heavily on the minds of Brisbane, Sydney, Perth,

Melbourne, and beyond. We worry about sustainability,

efficiency, self-sufficiency, food miles, and environmental

impacts. We want truly fresh food with great flavor, and

exceptional nutritional value.

The food industry would love for us to believe that the so-

lution is their model where patented seed, chemicals, and

global shipping will make feeding the world possible. Aqua-

ponics proves their theory is not just all wet, but soggy.

Waterlogged in waste and synthetics, awash in big profit for

the few at the loss of many.

While we may need more foods than you can raise in an

aquaponic system alone, Dr. Lennard has proven that you

can grow 50 food-bearing plants, and at least 20 species of

fish and crustaceans together commercially with profitable

yields. The secret is optimising the fish to plants ratio. If you

get it right, no water is ever removed from the system -

making aquaponics the most water-efficient way of growing

food the world has today.

As this method of production continues to evolve further

solutions will come to pass. Currently it is without a doubt

possible to produce comparable harvests of fish and pro-

duce to conventional methods in far less space, without a

renewable source of water. This is a young science, and to-

morrow will bring us more ways to combat hunger with

greater efficiency.

There’s more? The more we learn, the more new things

will be tried. Changes and additions will be made. For in-

stance, farm practices from the past show us that you can

incorporate two other foods into the fish farming cycle -

chicken and eggs. Poultry processing scraps make excellent

fish food, and chooks can thrive on what is already present

on many aquaponic sites. Not in the closed system, but an

annex that sustainably expands crop support, and increases

what you can produce.

Give a man a fish, and one person can eat for a day. Teach

the world to grow fish and veg with aquaponics, and it can

feed itself perpetually... without chemical input, or trouble-

some environmental impacts. 3

Zacarias Pereira da M

ata / Shutterstock.co

m

More info: • www.BackyardAquaponics.com

• www.PracticalAquaponics.net.au

• www.Aquaponic.com.au

46

F A K E F O O D

BY ERIC COULOMBE

How

L E N T cha n g e d the way I e at

47

FOOD ADDITIVES I GARDEN CULTURE

F A K E F O O D

1. Artificial Flavors

A chemical mixture designed to mimic a natural flavor.

Over 1,700 FDA approved artificial flavors exist.

Health effects:

Companies are not required to identify their flavor

chemical, only that they be listed under the umbrella

of “artificial flavors” on the label. Not being able to

know gives good reason to avoid them.

Examples: benzyl isobutyrate, ethyl acetate, ethyl

methylphenylglycidate (petroleum derivative), methyl

benzoate (petroleum derivative), and hydroxyphenyl-

2-butanone. They can create an artificial flavor from

any number of synthetic chemicals.

Used in: Almost all processed food.

Here is our list of 6 things to

avoid:

She immediately said that I

was to give up coffee. I was

leaving for Spain in a week,

then Seattle two weeks later,

which meant I was going to

miss out on some good coffee. If I had to give up my beloved

morning coffee, she was going to have to give up something

big. What would a 10-year-old miss the most, and need the

least? Sugar. We both agreed, 40 days; no coffee for me, no

refined sugar for her.

If I was going completely coffee-free, then she was going to-

tally sugarless. This was easy to eliminate in food prepared at

home, but what about the sweeteners in other foods she eats?

It was time to do a little research.

Refined sugar, you know, that big bag of white or brown

sweetness in your pantry. Primarily, it’s sugar cane or

sugar beets that have undergone a refining process to

remove the molasses, and well, everything else. The re-

sult, a sugar named sucrose. We went on to read about

dextrose and glucose, which are also plant-based sugars,

and fructose, a fruit-based sugar. High fructose corn syrup was

another that seemed to appear everywhere. It is a super sweet

liquid extracted from corn. Then there were the sugar sub-

stitutes, artificial sweeteners, like Saccharine and Aspertame.

We began to read all the food labels in the house, and on big

brand food at the supermarket. Sugar and his friends were ev-

erywhere. In fact, we discovered over 17 “natural” sweeten-

ers alone. Our research resulted in an endless trail of danger.

There are thousands of chemicals in our food. Some are

more dangerous than others, either because of their tox-

icity, or from the volume consumed because they are in

everything. Other countries have banned many of them,

but the FDA feels they’re safe

enough for Americans.

Making a list of “dangerous”

chemicals is difficult when the

FDA deems them all safe. So,

it’s my word against the FDA? Not exactly, there are tens of

thousands of people, and many from the medical community

trying to fight the FDA and big business to get some of these

substances banned in North America. Chances are they will

never be. Until then we can easily avoid them by not buying the

products that contain certain things.

Last spring my 10-year-old daughter Maya told me that she wanted to “do” Lent. For all of you who are not

familiar, Lent is a Christian ritual, where an individual gives up something they like for 6 weeks prior to Easter. She

got the idea from my mother who observes Lent as an exercise in will power. “Okay,” I thought. “Sure, honey,” I

said, “sounds like a good idea. What do you want to give up?” She told me that we get to pick each other’s Lent.

Each others!? That meant I actually had to ‘do’ Lent. I agreed, not knowing what a profound impact it was going

to have on all of us.


“OVER 1,700 FDA APPROVED ARTIFICIAL

FLAVORS EXIST

LESS THAN 0.5 GRAMS OF TRANS FAT PER SERVING, THE LABEL CAN STATE 0 GRAMS

T H E R E A R E T H O U S A N D S

O F C H E M I C A L S

I N O U R F O O D ”

48

2. Modified Starch

A food additive created by chemically treating starch,

which causes the starch to partially degrade. They use

modified starch as a stabilizer, thickening agent, or an

emulsifier to change texture of a food, increase its sta-

bility, and to extend shelf life.

Examples: propylene oxide (a petroleum deriva-

tive), hydrochloric acid, succinic anhydride, potassium

hydroxide, and sodium hydroxide.

Health effects: None presently known, though

more testing is definitely required. Since it’s commonly

used in baby foods, safety concerns have arisen.

Used in: Baby food, baby formula, powdered drink

mixes, yogurt, Gatorade, Powerade, fruit juices, soda,

bread, and condiments…

3. Artificial Colors

The 9 artificial colors approved for use in food by the

FDA are: FD&C Blue No. 1 - FD&C Blue No. 2 - FD&C

Green No. 3 - FD&C Red No. 3 - FD&C Red No. 40 -

FD&C Yellow No. 5 - FD&C Yellow No. 6

Citrus Red No.2 and Orange B are not widely used.

Health effects: Every single one of these artificial

colors are synthetically derived from coal-tar, and a

known carcinogen. They have also been linked to asth-

ma, hyperactivity, hives, learning difficulties, and more.

Used in: Almost all processed foods.

4. Partially Hydrogenated Oil (A .K.A . TRANS FAT):

Trans fats are made by adding hydrogen to vegetable

oil through a process called hydrogenation, giving the

oils a longer shelf life. Using trans fats in the manufac-

turing of foods helps them stay fresh longer, have a

longer shelf life, and have a less greasy feel.

Health effects: Trans fat raises your “bad” (LDL)

cholesterol, and lowers your “good” (HDL) choles-

terol. It’s been linked to numerous health issues.

Used in: All types of processed foods. In the United

States, if a food product has less than 0.5 grams of

trans fat per serving, the label can state 0 grams of

trans fat.Companies

secretly decide what they want

to put in food


FOOD ADDITIVES I GARDEN CULTURE

5. Sodium Nitrate/Nitrite

This is a flavoring agent, food coloring, and preserva-

tive for processed meats. Prevents the growth of the

bacteria clostridium botulinium, the cause of botulism.

Health effects: Nitrates bind to red blood cells,

blocking their ability to carry life-giving oxygen

throughout the body. Most commonly affecting young

children, and linked to blue baby syndrome. The Linus

Pauling Institute warns of the association between ni-

trates and an increase in brain tumors, leukemia, and

nose and throat tumors.

Used in: Canned, cured, and processed meats. Ba-

con, potted meat, frankfurters, smoke cured tuna and

salmon.

LINKSFDA GRAS explanation: http://bit.ly/about-GRAS

You would think the FDA would have guidelines and pro-

tocol to ensure that food additives are safe for human

consumption. That is certainly a reasonable belief, since

the FDA is, as their website states, “responsible for pro-

tecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy,

and security of our nation’s food supply.” However…

Since 1997, the FDA has passed that responsibility on, al-

lowing food companies to make their own determinations

of a substance’s safety for use in our food. The legal jar-

gon being used is “generally recognized as safe,” or GRAS.

This originally applied to things like oil and vinegar - food-

stuffs that are widely accepted as safe to consume. It’s a

loophole, and allows big business to govern public safety.

Companies secretly decide what they want to put in food

is GRAS, and the FDA openly allows the them to do so.

In short, the food industry—not the FDA—is in charge of

what you eat. Just another shocking failure by the govern-

ment to put favor corporate demands over what is right.

Lent finally ended, and we had changed. I didn’t miss my

coffee nearly as much as I thought I would, and my daugh-

ter understands a little more of the truth about the food

system. Now she is telling people about what she learned.

She told me that I had to write this article, because people

need to know what sort of “fake stuff we are putting in

our bodies, and to help support the businesses who make

the good food and sugar.”

She is right. Teaching your children about the food we eat

is so important. I know, no one taught our generation this

stuff as kids. The truth is, my parents - your parents…

didn’t know any better. A lot of people look at this the

same way I did before that Lent, “I ate apples laden with

DDT, and god knows what other things, and I survived.”

Right? Sure, I am healthy, but we can’t argue with the facts.

Cancer rates are at an all time high, heart disease remains

the #1 killer, and the USA is the most unhealthy country

in the world.

Start by reading labels, and asking yourself, “Do I really

want to eat that, or feed it to my kids?” 3

6. Aspartame

An artificial, sweetener used as a sugar substitute in

many foods and beverages. It was first sold under the

brand name NutraSweet and Equal

Health Effects: Claims that aspartame causes a

number of health problems, including cancer, have

been around for many years. The internet if full of

people’s stories of how aspartame has made them

sick. Unfortunately, like so many other chemicals, it is

very hard to prove an undeniable link.

Used in: Most low-calorie food or drinks.

50

Say goodbye to the tacky fish tank with its crude sunken ceramic castle and plastic plants resting on a

bed of unnaturally colored gravel. You can create totally incredible live scenery instead with mountains,

meadow, paths, rivers, trees, cacti, and maybe even a waterfall.

None of these plants are edible, and the fish are purely

ornamental, but they are absolutely beautiful when you

know what each water plant can do for you. Some of

these aquascape designs look so real, it blows you away

when you find out it is inside a freshwater aquarium.

It’s a hobby that has turned into an international sport

with a number of aquatic gardening associations scat-

tered across Europe, Japan, the USA, and the UK. There

are annual competitions, which like any such event, are

brimming with beauty, politics, and underhanded trick-

ery. Still, getting their aquatic garden design to place

high on the judges’ list of winners and honorable men-

tions is many aquascapers goal.

It is possible to create a beautiful saltwater scape, but

you’re limited to a reef effect. Freshwater aquatic plants

open the doors to crafting unbelievable effects. Like

your hydroponic garden, the aquascape garden needs

good lighting, nutrients, and CO2. There are a variety

of distinct styles within this genre of gardening. Not all

of them are totally submersed, and not every aquas-

caper has animals in their system. Some are in it purely

for the plants, while others mix the garden with fish or

reptiles.

AQUASCAPI NG

T O T A L L Y I N C R E D I B L E S C E N E R Y …

I N Y O U R A Q U A R I U M

BY TAMMY CLAYTON, PHOTOS: ZHANG JIAN FENG, STJEPAN ERDJELIC, STOCK

WATER GARDEN I NG

I N DOORS

51

AQUASCAPING I GARDEN CULTURE

Submerged freshwater aquascapes have a natural,

Dutch, jungle, or biotype style. There are also partially

submersed aqua gardens known as paludariums, which

are the perfect home for reptiles, but you can grow one

without pets in residence too.

There are maintenance chores to perform in the under-

water garden much like all other forms of plant keeping.

Clipping, pruning, and cleaning the environment period-

ically. They’ve shaped the aquatic plants by shearing in

many of the truly sensational natural style aquascapes.

Unlike an entire yard full of landscaping or a huge flow-

er garden, this miniature world confined to the dimen-

sions of your aquarium requires a lot less time keeping

it maintained.

You might be wondering what the difference is between

these styles. Jungle aquascaping is easy to picture. It’s

all on one level with plants densely placed and planted

with the shorter selections in the front graduating to

the tallest in the back. A riot of beauty if you’ve got a

keen eye for plant selection and placement.

A biotype aquascape mimics a certain environment, like

the bottom of the lake nearest to your home, but it also

includes the fish that are native to that place. This style

would best suit a zoo, museum, or nature center where

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AQUASCAPI NG


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realistic its uncanny. They make you want to rush out

and get the biggest tank possible to create one of your

own to enjoy. A word to the wise - start with a small

tank, and figure out getting the right system environ-

ment first. Like any style of gardening, you have to learn

to walk before you can run. 3

tank size doesn’t matter, though you could recreate the

environment small aquarium fish would inhabit.

Dutch style aquascapes are more like an ornamental

garden. The plan uses terraces and planting in rows.

These will have high color reminiscent of a flower gar-

den grown purely for aesthetics.

All of the above are cool, but they pale in comparison

to the natural aquascape. This is where you mold the

underwater garden to look like a real world landscape

with trees and other outdoor plants, hills and moun-

tains, roads, paths, and streams. Some gardens have a

scene across the back that makes the planting look like

it’s part of the setting. This style started in Japan, but

has caught people’s imagination everywhere.

Natural aquatic gardens are mesmerizing. Some of the

designs that have won first place in competitions are so

A VARIETY OF

AQUASCAPING I GARDEN CULTURE

• Paludariums.net

• Aquatic-Eden.com

• UKaps.org

• Aquatic-Gardeners.org

Learn more on

these websites:

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56

BY TAMMY CLAYTON

That depends. What do you want from

this plant? Tomatoes that have great flavor,

you say? But there is more to it than that.

What is the plan for these delicious fruits?

There are three ways we use tomatoes.

Slicing fruits, salad enhancers, and canners.

Naturally, slicers work just as nicely in salads

as cherry and grape types, once you cut them up. Slicing tomatoes also can really well, if you’re

putting up tomato juice and soups. Should you want salsa and spaghetti sauce for the pantry

that is less watery, this calls for adding some paste tomatoes with few seeds and a meatier

interior, like Romas, though you will find some slicers listed in seed catalogs as excellent for

sauces too. The latter being less juicy, and having thicker sidewall meat than

slicers, but juicier than a paste type.

So here you are with your selection of tomatoes growing nicely,

but you seem to have a problem. The plants gave you an ex-

cellent pile of tomatoes and suddenly stopped bearing fruit.

What’s up with that? There are no more fresh tomatoes for

sandwiches and salads!

You picked a ‘determinate’ cultivar.

Some people like the idea of compact, bush-shaped plants.

These will sound best suited to the small indoor garden

too where space is at a premium for a variety of crops.

Determinate tomatoes also don’t require the trouble of

pruning or trellising. The shorter ones might not even

need a cage. Nifty, yes, but they also are best suited to

canning, because they produce the bulk of their fruits all at

once. Then it’s over. So much for summer-long fresh eating.

By the same token, if you’ve selected a variety of indeter-

minate plants with dreams of a wide assortment of flavors in

the salsas you’ll put up with the different tasting fruits... you

might find that you’re not getting enough tomatoes at one time

for canning. Yes, you can acquire quite a pile picking a few every day

and storing them in the refrigerator until you have enough to brew

WHAT’S THE BEST Tomato?

57

THE BEST TOMATO I GARDEN CULTURE

gardenculture.net

top out at about 3 inches wide and 8 ounces in

weight that ripen early providing cold climate

gardens with a harvest. Big Food did not invent

the canning tomato. People have been home

canning tomatoes in jars since canning jar in-

vention in 1858.

By the way, if you’re growing tomatoes for can-

ning, you do not want the low-acid types. These

will not have good shelf life, and may present

you with spoiled sauces and salsas, no matter

how careful you are at putting up only perfect fruits. Any

recipe that incorporates high and low acid foods strikes a

delicate balance, and if your tomatoes are low-acid, it does

away with part of what preserves the stuff in the jar. Sweet

tomatoes are not candidates for canning, even if they do

come from a determinate plant, so beware of catalog de-

scriptions about super sweet flavor for this use.

So, what is the best tomato? It fits your needs. For most

people, a mix of plants is just right to give them the best

tomato for everything. 3

up a batch. But the longer you store fresh to-

matoes, the flavors begin disintegrating, and

the odds are that the older fruits will begin to

develop bad spots. Especially piled in a home

refrigerator. The sheer weight of this mountain

will begin to bruise the fruit on the bottom,

and cause stems to poke through skins.

You can’t can with anything but perfect, un-

blemished tomatoes. Bad spots, pressure

cracks, and stem pokes are a prime location

for bacteria to move in. There are other ways to preserve

these less than perfect fruits, such as chopping and freez-

ing, or slow roasting and freezing, but this likely is not what

you wanted in the first place.

There are those who have the idea that determinate to-

matoes are something created for the food system. They

weren’t. There are a good number of determinate tomato

cultivars found within the heirloom category. They will

have smaller fruits. Some will be on the paste to sauce to-

mato end of the scale, and others are simply slicers that

THERE ARE THREE WAYS WE USE

TOMATOES

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60

The Home Grown ExpoI have been to so many indoor gardening expos I have lost count - let’s say roughly 30.

Even so, the Homegrown Expo stood out as one of the best I have ever attended. Held

on May 31 – June 1 2014, at the Ricoh Center in Coventry, the show was put on by Down

to Ear th Kent, The Grind Magazine, and Garden Culture Magazine.

BY ERIC COULOMBE

gardenculture.net

main room. Of course, not everyone was so

lucky, but there were several other hotels

very close by.

Friday set up went off without a hitch. There

were inevitable problems that were handled

quickly, professionally, and with a smile from

both the Homegrown and Freeman staff. I

cannot say enough good things about the

Freeman Company.

They are the exclusive provider of event

services to Rioch Arena, and a damn fine

bunch of people. I am Canadian, so I wasn’t

totally sure if this type of service is normal in the UK. I asked,

and the answer was a resounding no. These guys are just good.

It was not just their job competency, which was there in spades,

but the manner in which they responded to you. There was not

a problem they couldn’t fix, and they treated us like family. They

were a big part of that total vibe that permeated the show. It

was a happy place.

Another quirky element that really caught my attention was

the carpet. I am so used to the same old stuff at all the USA

shows. Here they laid down this brand new, thin, and I believe

throw-away carpet roll. Not very environmentally friendly, but

certainly convenient. There wasn’t very much to it, but it was

nice under the feet, and looked like a million bucks. Every seam

was perfect, not a bump in the building. (The British government

is BIG on safety.) We all had our high-vis vests on, supplied for

free, thanks to the generosity of the HGE.

Saturday morning we were the first into the room. It was

stunning, over 3500 square meters of sold out space populated

with an impressive list of over 60 exhibiting companies.

ALL THE BIG PLAYERS WERE

THERE, THE UK’S LARGEST

WHOLESALERS, NUTRIENT

COMPANIES, AND MORE GRACED THE HALL FLOOR. IT IS SAFE TO SAY THAT

THIS WAS THE BIGGEST SHOW

OF THIS TYPE EVER DONE IN THE UK

HOME GROWN EXPO I GARDEN CULTURE

61

So, yes, I may be a little biased since I was

involved in putting on this show. But I am

usually my toughest critic, and I loved the

show for so many different reasons. If you

didn’t make it out, you definitely missed

something special.

For one the venue, Ricoh Arena, is a stadium

complex situated in the Rowleys Green

district of the city of Coventry, England,

containing a 32,609-seat football stadium, a

6,000m2 exhibition hall, The DeVere Hotel,

a leisure club, and a casino. What a beautiful

venue.

One of the best experiences of the weekend came when we

were checking in to the DeVere Hotel. My wife was on this trip

with me, and we were excited to enjoy our time alone. Our

initial impressions of the room were mixed. It was clean, and still

had that kinda new feeling, but it was small, and looked like it was

designed for entertaining. That was cool. The big surprise came

when we opened the blinds. They covered the length of the wall,

and rolled effortlessly when I drew them open. A warm, fresh

green light immediately washed over the room and us. Holy s..t,

our room was directly on the pitch. And at that moment the

elusive UK sun was briefly beaming through a small hole in the

clouds.

I have stayed in far too many hotel rooms over the past 10 years.

Many were fancier, and certainly more expensive, but few were

as memorable. It is rare that your hotel room is unique enough

to be part of the experience.

The hotel is connected to the convention center and it took

about 3 minutes from my room to the convention center

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The Main Sponsors included Gavita, MaxiGrow,

HESI, and Dutch Pro. All the big players were

there, the UK’s largest wholesalers, nutrient

companies, and more graced the hall floor. It is

safe to say that this was the biggest show of this

type ever done in the UK.

Throwing a trade show is a risky enough endeavor,

but putting it in a small town on the outskirts of

Birmingham only increases the stress on the

organizers. Footfall was truly a result of marketing,

and hard work.

Saturday was the public day, and I believe the

indoor gardeners from the region came out. We

were by no means overly crowded, but there were

a steady flow of enthusiastic gardeners and allotment farmers

engaging booth workers with questions and expressing interest.

Reviews from the exhibitors were unanimously positive. The

consensus was that they were fairly busy, nothing crazy, but all

in all it was a good day.

Sunday was the big one, trade day, and it was a lot busier. The

official count for unique shops was 120. Storeowners came

from near and far. I met people from Scotland, Ireland, Wales,

Switzerland, and all over the UK. It was visibly busier, and many

booths had crowds of people gathered around to sample their

wares, and learn something new.

One of the original elements of the show was the feature

garden. Two 6X6 meter booths, smack dab in the middle of the

show. One featured only hydroponic equipment. Hydrogarden

was showing their aquaponic system amidst several different

hydroponic gardens GHE and Nutriculture had set up, all

teeming with fresh herbs and flowers. The other showcased

Autopots and Smartpots set up as an English garden - complete

with walkways, a park bench, Roses, Foxglove,

Daturas, and tons of other plants and flowers.

It was beautiful, and an excellent way to show

off the products and technologies at work in an

inviting environment. I am slightly biased when it

comes to this garden, you see, I designed it. :0)

I worked late after the show on Saturday, and

decided I needed to eat to make it through the

night. This made me slightly late for the party

hosted by Hydrogarden and the Homegrown

Expo. They were showing the the Carl Froch vs.

George Groves rematch fight on the big screen in

the bar attached to the complex.

The party venue was in the building complex,

making it super easy to get to. The 200 meter walk down to the

bar was eerily quiet. I found out why when I stepped into the

party. Everyone was there, maybe 500 people packed the bar.

The drinks were free, there was an amazing magician walking

around, and the fight raged on. It was quite obvious that Froch

was the crowd favorite, and when he knocked out the favored

Groves with a savage right in the eighth, the room went wild -

everyone screaming, beer flying... it was great.

After the fight, Hydrogarden provided us with a 5 Pound Casino

chip, and we had a back door entrance to the Casino (which I

was told will never happen again). I turned that 5 Pounds into

20, and stayed up till 3:00 am. It was a great night.

The underlying feeling I got over the

weekend was something like you get

when you’re on a great team. Everyone

else felt it too. It was smooth, it was busy,

and everyone was smiling. It was a special

show that will go down as one of the best

ever. Can’t wait until next year. 3

THROWING A TRADE SHOW

IS A RISKY ENOUGH

ENDEAVOR, BUT PUTTING

IT IN A SMALL TOWN

ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF BIRMINGHAM

ONLY INCREASES THE STRESS

ON THE ORGANIZERS.

HOME GROWN EXPO I GARDEN CULTURE

64

However, one problem with commercial potting mixes is their

core ingredient - cheap pine bark. This often dries out quickly

causing container gardens to become hydrophobic (repel wa-

ter).

These 17 strategies may help you grow healthy

edible gardens, even in tough conditions.

Containers

1) Choose pots wisely to minimize moisture loss.

Avoid porous planters like terracotta or coconut fibre liners

in hanging baskets. These materials leach nutrients and mois-

ture more rapidly than glazed ceramic pots and solid stone.

Dark colours like black, and metal containers heat up quickly.

They provide little insulation, causing the potting soil to dry

out faster, and increase root damage possi-

bilities. If you have dark coloured pots,

position in a shady spot with shade-

loving plants. Keep your light co-

loured, non-porous pots for full

sun areas.

2) Use self-watering containers; drip irrigation or up-

turned bottles to trickle water into your planter; or water

spikes to direct moisture to the root zone.

3) Use pot saucers. Many pots come with matching sau-

cers, or you can make your own. Rather than wasting valu-

able moisture, water not absorbed immediately can wick back

up into the pot as the plant needs it, rather than running out

the bottom. Add a thin layer of gravel to prevent mosquitoes

breeding.

Are you trying to grow a garden with little rainfall? Do you struggle with a dry/hot climate or water restrictions?

Many states around Australia are very dry, or in severe drought. With challenging weather conditions, it’s essen-

tial to adapt growing techniques to keep gardens alive and thriving. Especially, if you want to grow food.

BY ANNE GIBSON, THE MICRO GARDENER

Water Management

Strategies for

grow healthy edible gardens, even in tough conditions

65 gardenculture.net 65

WATER MANAGEMENT I GARDEN CULTURE

gardenculture.net

Growing Medium

4) Improve or make your own potting mix. Add

moisture-holding ingredients like coir peat (rehydrated coco-

nut fibre) that absorbs up to 70% of its own weight in water.

Vermiculite also holds moisture, minerals and is an efficient

insulator. These ingredients may extend the time between wa-

tering.

5) Build healthy living soil. Plants living in a microbially-

active soil are strong and nutrient-dense, having all their min-

eral needs met. You can help create a healthy soil to support

them in dry times by adding organic matter like compost, mi-

crobes, worms, and minerals.

6) Double mulch. Add a feeding mulch e.g. sugar cane,

to build organic matter, hold moisture, and provide nutrients.

Top this layer with a second mulch of pale coloured pebbles

or gravel to help reflect heat, and further improve moisture

holding capacity.

Plants

7) Select short-season crops. They mature faster, and

require less water and energy to grow.

8) Choose easy-to-maintain, low-water needs

edibles like sprouts, microgreens, rosemary, garlic chives,

garlic, nasturtiums, chard, Malabar or New Zealand spinach,

bush beans, pineapples, Italian flat leaf parsley, sage, oregano,

marjoram, and thyme. The mint family are water hogs!

9) Upsize your plants into bigger container gar-

dens, and combine plants with similar water needs. It’s much

more efficient to water 5 large pots every 2-3 days than 15

small ones daily.

Position

10) Locate tall pots and leafy plants so they shade

shorter, smaller ones. Hang or attach pots vertically (one

above the other) so water drips down to those below to mini-

mise wastage.

11) Provide short-term shade protection from the

sun or drying winds to help minimise plant stress. e.g. temporary

portable solutions like shade cloth stapled to stakes or A-frame

trellises. Move them around to where they are most needed, and

fold up when not in use.

12) Move plants into protected, or semi-shaded

conditions to minimise moisture loss. e.g. under trees, taller

plants or a porch.

Maintenance

13) Prune unnecessary growth. Large leaves often tran-

spire more moisture. Provide a ‘haircut’ with secateurs at the

right time of year, to prevent unnecessary water stress.

14) Harvest on time. Pick produce when young and tender,

before fruits and vegetables go past their prime. This helps

reduce water use, minimises transpiration, and con-

serves the plant’s energy.

15) Use a moisture meter so you water only

when absolutely necessary.

16) Time your watering. Water when the air is

still. Watering in windy weather = increased evaporation.

Vegetables also tend to require more water on sunny days with

low humidity.

17) Apply seaweed/fish emulsion as a foliar spray ‘tonic’

or ‘rescue remedy’ for your plants. This helps build resilience and

healthy plant immune systems.

Finally, grow only what you can manage. A small, well-

maintained container garden can provide you with many of your

basic food needs – even in dry conditions. Be realistic with the

time, space and resources you have, so you can find satisfaction

with what you choose to grow.

Water Management

Strategies for

65

Anne Gibson is author of several eBooks, and publishes The Micro

Gardener, an inspiring DIY garden website. As a writer, consultant,

speaker, and community educator, she teaches people how to grow

sustainable, highly productive edible gardens on a budget in urban

spaces. Anne is passionate about helping people grow nutrient-dense

food, upcycling materials in the garden, and maximising yields for

minimal time, money and effort. Visit www.TheMicroGardener.com

for your complimentary eBook.

66

as inorganic ions in water. This then paved the way for estab-

lishing base plant nutrition and the first hydroponic fertilizers.

So artificial fertilizers work because they don’t need help from

Mother Nature to create a growth response in plants. They

are man-made or synthetic, engineered by humans in an at-

tempt to sustain plant growth.

Fertilizer takes on its true potential in hydroponic applications

where the grower cannot assume the soil will provide fertility

and has charged himself with providing complete nutrition. It is

loosely established that there are seventeen elements required

for plant growth to occur, called the

“essential elements”, which makes

up the large majority of hydroponic

fertilizers. This is what a plant has

to have, but not necessarily what a

plant wants.

Just as modern agronomy has drifted

to the lowest common denominator by using as few as three

to five elements to fertilize commodity crops, hydroponic fer-

tilizers have done the same by stopping at the seventeen ele-

ments deemed essential. Think about it, why would Mother

Nature make a soil element not needed in the garden?

Consider the truth in the following statement. The minimum

requirement for accomplishing plant growth does not meet

the conditions for the potential of plant growth. That’s right, it

By definition, fertilizers are a “chemical or natural substance

added to soil or land to increase its fertility.” In other words,

a fertilizer focuses on growing the plant, not the soil. This is

a good thing, but it can also be bad. Human ingenuity is ex-

tremely powerful when properly placed, but it can also result

in empty, toxic food when we resort to growing food for profit

instead of for people.

With the last hundred years of agronomy being defined by

quantity over quality we have resorted to growing obese

plants that fall short of the potential of food. Conservative

estimates report 30 to 50% of crop

yields come from natural or synthet-

ic commercial fertilizer, but when

we bypass the soil’s intelligence, and

fail to imagine that plants want more

than what we have deemed essential,

we end up selling ourselves short.

Soil holds nutrients, but the soil itself is not essential for ac-

complishing plant growth. When microbes break down or-

ganic matter, and the mineral nutrients in the soil dissolve in

water, plant roots are able to absorb them to manufacture

biocatalysts that result in all the amazing metabolic processes

that plants undertake.

This is the basis behind hydroponic applications made possible

by the 18th century discovery that plants absorb nourishment

In Part 1 of this article we discussed fertilizer, and the significant difference of feeding your plant versus feeding

the soil. Now we will discuss how plants use fertilizer to nourish themselves, and how the use of targeted mineral

diversity and biocatalysts can take major responsibility off of the plant to get truly monster yields in the garden.

BY EVAN FOLDS

W E H AV E R E S O R T E D TO G R OW I N G O B E S E

P L A N T S T H AT FA L L S H O R T O F T H E

P OT E N T I A L O F F O O D

WHAT IS

ANYWAY?FERTILIZER MONSTER YIELDS

67

FERTILIZER I GARDEN CULTURE

gardenculture.net

INTRODUCING BIOCATALYSTS INTO YOUR GARDEN IS

WHERE YOU WILL GET THE WOW FACTOR

A R E W E I N T E R E S T E D I N S I M P LY G R OW I N G P L A N T S , O R D O W E

WA N T TO G R OW E X C E P T I O N A L

P L A N T S ? ”

is possible to grow a plant using fertilizers that do not allow it

to grow to its potential, the plant is wanting more, but it has no

way of telling us. The same is true in human health, we can eat

processed foods and survive, but it is only when we seek living

whole foods that we can thrive.

In gardening terms, this means that when people use organic

fertilizers they are unconsciously de-

livering a greater spectrum of nour-

ishment than when using a refined hy-

droponic nutrient. This is where the

quality versus quantity discussion was

born with organic versus hydroponic

cultivation, respectively. The ques-

tion becomes how do we combine

the best of both worlds? Are we interested in simply growing

plants, or do we want to grow exceptional plants?

While hydroponics does accomplish plant growth, it isn’t too

much of a stretch to assume that the plants would desire more

than seventeen elements to grow to their genetic potential.

And then there is the concept of isotopes, or the fact that

individual elements take on variable form in Nature, and the

reality that certain elements not needed in order for plants

to form do influence making other elements available that are

essential. In short, we know enough to grow a plant, but very

little about how to grow plants to their maximum potential.

Plants support the entirety of the mammalian food web, and

there is simply no way that seventeen elements are capable of

supporting this diversity of life. So what are we missing?

The reality is that we may never know, but the good thing is

that if we use diversified products balanced by Nature we don’t

have too. It is human nature in the modern world to try ripping

things apart to discover the truth, but on this subject we must

take a step back, and accept that we may never reach an actual

understanding of complete nutrition in regards to plants. There

is simply too much diversity and variability in all that Mother

Nature manifests to expect any sort of cut and dried answer.

The best most growers accomplish is using a higher nitrogen

fertilizer in the vegetative phase and a higher phosphorous fer-

TA K E M A J O R R E S P O N S I B I L I T Y

O F F O F T H E P L A N T T O G E T T R U LY

I N T H E G A R D E N

MONSTER YIELDS

GARDEN CULTURE I FERTILIZERS

PRECISELY DESIGNEDFOR THE HEAVIEST HARVEST

we know enough to grow a plant,

but very little about how to grow

plants to their maximum potential

68

P L A N T S S U P P O R T T H E E N T I R E T Y O F T H E M A M M A L I A N F O O D W E B , A N D T H E R E I S S I M P LY N O WAY T H AT

S E V E N T E E N E L E M E N T S A R E C A PA B L E O F

S U P P O R T I N G T H I S D I V E R S I T Y O F L I F E

tilizer for the flowering phase. This is relevant to any garden

as it provides the main element required for those respec-

tive stages of growth, but current hydroponic technology

only accomplishes plant growth from a human perspective,

not a plant perspective, and there is a world of difference.

It is also important to monitor the relative concentration of

the fertilizer that’s being delivered. We use the terms parts

per million (PPM) and electrical conductivity

(EC) to reference concentration in fertiliz-

ers. PPM and EC are a different way

of expressing the same number, so

for this article we will use PPM.

PPM means literally parts of ions

per million of water. Again, the

ions are what a plant is eating

when you use fertilizer, or when

a microbe decomposes organic

matter into humus.

It turns out that all plants have

different thresholds for ideal fer-

tilizer concentration. For instance,

lettuce may want 600-800 ppm

and tomatoes may want up to

3500 ppm. If the grower is using

the same amount of fertilizer for

each crop they are not maximizing

the growth of their plants.

When we fertilize plants using soluble fertilizers we’re basi-

cally force feeding them, and if we are not careful to deliver

a balanced fertilizer to stimulate growth, we can leave our

plants obese and vulnerable to pests and disease - just like

people on a fast food diet.

If we use too much fertilizer we can also burn plants. This

is a water stress created by reversing the osmotic gradi-

ents of roots. It’s a tipping point reached when there are

too many ions outside the root versus inside, which sucks

water out of plant roots causing the edges of leaves to die

back, or “burn”.

One of the advantages of hydroponics is that because it

uses soluble fertilizers and recirculates them, the grower

can fine tune the concentration delivered to the plant being

grown. Astute growers knowingly push their plants to the

threshold to learn the limit, then they step off and monitor,

so that the concentration is not being abused. This is the

only way to learn, and one of the major justifications for

cloning plants.

So, a first step is to make sure we are using grow and bloom

phase specific fertilizers that reinforce what the plant is

trying to do at a concentration that justifies the nutrient

threshold of the plant being grown, and to incorporate

some sort of organic materials like kelp, fish or sea minerals

into our fertility regimen, but what if we can use materials

beyond fertilizers to get the most out of our plants? How

can we combine human ingenuity with the

wisdom of Mother Nature in order

to grow better gardens?

When a plant takes in an ionic ele-

ment through its leaves or roots

it proceeds to leverage the glu-

cose energy it manufactures

during photosynthesis to build

hormones and biocatalysts that

carry out the metabolic and

constructive functions of plant

growth.

Introducing biocatalysts into

your garden is where you will

get the WOW factor, where

you can see the results of using

the product in days, sometimes

hours. This rarely happens by

switching to a new fertilizer.

There are many examples of biocatalysts on the market.

For example, amino acids are the building blocks of protein.

Manufacturing of amino acids takes place when hormones

signal plants to build them based on the DNA of the spe-

cific plant, and the developmental stage of growth. You can

buy amino acid products that are stage specific that work

to take the responsibility off of the growing plant.

The same is true for carbohydrates, vitamins, enzymes, and

a range of other constructive endeavors by plants. Essen-

tially, using plant metabolites and biocatalysts to stimulate

growth is to feed the plant what it has to make for itself

before it has to make it. The plant says “thank you very

much,” and puts all of its extra energy into functions that

it wants to accomplish, namely reproductive growth and

fruit production.

The takeaway here is don’t grow your garden for what you

want to get out of it, but what the plant wants to get out of

it. This will result in far happier plants and, in turn, happier

people. 3

PRECISELY DESIGNEDFOR THE HEAVIEST HARVEST

70

BY NICOLAS STE-MARIE, LES URBAINCULTEURS MTL

URBAN GARDEN I NG tec hniq ues

What if we can create a new generation based on true knowledge of growing vegetables, real veggies with

all the nutrients intact, in or on our houses all over the world? Enough food that even the poorest persons

would not have such a huge need for money. You see, printing money and growing your own veggies is

the same thing. The only difference is there’s no bank or big daddy to split your wealth up with! Usually,

people are trying to make more money, because buying food gets more expensive year after year.

But, because we are urban gardeners, when we start cal-

culating the price of the potting mix, fertilizer, plants, and

container we hit a wall! Not a real wall, a perceived obsta-

cle. We, however, realized very fast that creating a garden

with all the soil life - microorganisms, bacteria, and more,

that we can support our life with good food for many

years in the same container without changing anything. If

we were doing conventional growing we might need to

change the substrate every year.

Me and Les Urbainculteurs based in Québec, Canada de-

cided few year ago to create a technique, not a new one,

but an old one - the one that was used for hundred of year

all around the globe. We first ran into a huge problem, the

container! There’s many kinds of container on the mar-

ket, but for us the most important thing was finding one

designed to let the entire root system breath at 100%.

First of all, because it is the primary principal in large field

agriculture to let the soil breathe. Which it does, because

of their soil work, like introducing nitrogen, and turning

the soil again and again. Also they create lighter machines

every year, so they are not compacting the soil anymore!

So they’ve learned something, to let the soil breathe.

We first tried some containers with a self-watering system

at the bottom, like the ones they sell as a ‘1-week watered

container’. After 1 month it happens that the water, which

cannot get oxygen, became an anaerobic system. So we

were cultivating fungus, another thing we didn’t want in

our production. Then standard plastic containers, then

Photos: Nicolas Ste-Marie

71

URBAN GARDENING TECHNIQUES I GARDEN CULTURE


Smart Pro: custom container for production length rows over 100-feet long.

wood that really helps us propagate insect nests, snails,

and more. None of this is good. Finally, 5 years ago we

tried a fabric container. Here too, the market offers a lot

of different kinds, so we tried to figured out which was

best and why. This where our history with Smart Pot and

High Caliper begins.

Why is Smart Pot the winner? This fabric container’s

construction was so simple with no turned hem on the

top, no Velcro, and only one side piece and one bottom

piece. With less parts and stitching I was able to wash

them in the machine with a little bleach, giving us a per-

fectly clean container that we can reuse again and again

for many years. We first looked at these containers,

because they respected the first principal of agriculture

before everything, the oxygen to the roots at 100%.

The result was way better than we expected. I was able

to grow bigger plants in smaller containers and spaces.

The High Caliper crew was so axed on the development

that I was able to create my own custom container like

the Smart Pro for production length rows over 30-me-

ters long.

This container is now one of our main products for roof

top gardening in Canada. The only thing we are adding

on the demand of the customer is some exterior wood

framing. It looks like a stylish wood planter, but without

airflow degradation. The design maintains perfect oxy-

gen to the roots, it’s fast to install, and because of the

We first looked at these containers,

because they respected the first

principal of agriculture before

everything, the oxygen to the

roots at 100%. The result was way

better than we expected.

VASTLY SUPERIOR IN AIR FILTERATION

WINNER!

Australia’s No1 FilterThe tests are back! ACT Laboratories received two samples of carbon to test from(off the shelf) Phresh and Mountain Air™Filters. The test were independently administered by DGS UK Wholesale in the UK andby DGS UK Wholesale in the UK andundertaken by Activated Carbon Technologies, the Uk’s most certified carbonlaboratory and test facility.Needless to say we were not surprised withthe laboratory results...


thick fabric, the humidity level is very easy to control.

Even with excessive rainfall, once it is 100% saturated

a lot of the water leaks out of the container, without

soil of course. If that’s not a genius container, then it is

definitely “Smart.”

Building a roof top gardening company is not easy. First

of all, we need to deal with all the people who already

grow on a rooftop with no technique. On top of build-

ings we have temperatures rising up to 65° Celsius with

the wind blowing 5 to 8 times stronger than on the

street. We need to create a perfect environment up

there that will last for years.

After the technical development, we worked on the fer-

tilizer plan. We started with the average stuff bought at

the local store. Then we hit the garden center, because

they carry better nutrients. Finally, we went to the a

hydro shop, and found just what we needed; humic acid,

beneficial bacteria, systemic insecticide, high efficiency

lighting, micronutrients... all the specific stuff unavail-

able at the garden center store.

Les Urbainculteurs has grown food on roof tops for over

8 years. In those years we were able to recreate all the

life in our soil with local - okay just to be clear, 85%

local products, because we can’t find every single thing

needed in Québec, like the humic and fulvic acids. But

the earthworm marine compost, sea weed, fish emul-

sion, and the separate minerals, and by that I don’t mean

just the N-P-K. I’m talking about all the minerals plants

need, including boron and copper. When I said com-

plete soil, I meant we create real complete soil. That’s

why our crew now includes an agronomist, biologist,

and an agronomy student from a university in another

country every year, because we are developing a strong,

yet simple solution.

The knowledge we’ve gained in the last decades helps

us in getting production contracts with people the in-

dustry never thought would want it before. Here a few

examples: a law firm rooftop (it was perfect for us to

have this client at the beginning), the National Assem-

bly of Québec where they are now growing in the stairs to

the main door, St-Hubert BBQ - a 115-restaurant chain who

now produces their own food.

As an urban farming organization, the expertise we create

allows us to start doing jobs for architectural firms and en-

gineering companies, because in the construction develop-

ment they forgot something very important, the building

owners are paying huge amounts of money in our society for

using the ground floor, but guess what guy’s - there’s another

one on the top! Rent it, start your own project, share it with

your neighbor, whatever, but please don’t let those stunning

spaces go to waste!

Turn your unused rooftops into a garden paradise ;-)

Cheers to the good food and friends! 3

Finally, we went to the a hydro shop, and found just

what we needed; humic acid,

beneficial bacteria, systemic

insecticide, high efficiency

lighting, micronutrients...

URBAN GARDENING TECHNIQUES I GARDEN CULTURE

VASTLY SUPERIOR IN AIR FILTERATION

WINNER!

Australia’s No1 FilterThe tests are back! ACT Laboratories received two samples of carbon to test from(off the shelf) Phresh and Mountain Air™Filters. The test were independently administered by DGS UK Wholesale in the UK andby DGS UK Wholesale in the UK andundertaken by Activated Carbon Technologies, the Uk’s most certified carbonlaboratory and test facility.Needless to say we were not surprised withthe laboratory results...

74

BY THEO TEKSTRA, MARKETING MANAGER GAVITA HOLLAND

EMI CAN DISRUPT OR DEGRADE THE FUNCT

IONING

OF OTHER ELECTRONIC DEVICES

BE SMART WHEN YOU DESIGN A CLIMATE ROOM

A DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD

E.M.I.The introduction of high frequency electronic remote ballasts into the market has created

a new problem: electromagnetic interference (EMI). EMI consists of high frequency signals

which are either conducted (through for example your power cord back to the grid), or

emitted in the form of radio waves (for example by your lamp cord connecting a high

frequency remote ballast to the lamp). EMI can disrupt or degrade the functioning of

other electronic devices. In some cases, this may even lead to life threatening situations,

for example, if medical systems or emergency communication systems are influenced.

So what is that EMI, and what can we do to avoid it? What are the rules and regulations?


E.M.I. I GARDEN CULTURE

- Conducted EMI travels through the power cord of the

device back to the grid, and is distributed over your mains ca-

bles. All devices that are plugged into the same mains supply

will receive this automatically. The interference does not stop

at your house though: a complete block of houses or more,

connected to the same supply, can

be influenced. The frequencies are

approximately 9 kHz to 30 MHz.

Radiated EMI can, for example,

hinder cell phone reception, wire-

less devices such as intercom sys-

tems, monitoring systems and radio amateurs, but it can also

induce bad readings of sensitive instruments such as pH and

ec meters.

Conducted EMI can influence anything that is connected to

the same mains supply, and can cause routers to disconnect,

computers to fail, loss in data, interference on audio and ca-

ble TV systems, etc.

Of the two, the conducted EMI may well be a worse problem

than the emitted EMI.

Electronic ballasts and EMIElectronic ballasts have become popular because they are

efficient, lightweight, run relatively cool, provide a stable

output regardless of mains voltage fluctuations, and can be

controlled. Traditional (low frequency) core-coil ballasts are

quite heavy and become very warm. They can be noisy, as

in humming, and some components degrade over time. But

they are cheap, reliable, and cause no interference whatso-

ever, because they work on the mains frequency: 50/60 Hz!

So why don’t manufacturers make a low frequency electronic

ballast? They do.

There are low frequency electronic ballasts as well. Because

of the electronic nature of the ballast they can still cause EMI

though, and because of the low frequency they are often big

and more expensive. Especially square wave low frequency

ballasts can be noisy on lamps, resulting in (literally!) vibrating

arc tubes. They are also less efficient than high frequency bal-

lasts, and more expensive to produce.

StandardsLet’s get the dull stuff out of the way first: there are two

classes which define how much EMI a device may emit:

a) Class A for industrial use

b) Class B for residential or medical use

In industrial environments the EMI levels are allowed to be

a bit higher. Class B, for residential use, is more strict than

the industrial standard. In Europe, as well as North America,

class A and B are used, and are

very similar. Manufacturers of

electrical devices need to make

sure they do not emit more than

the applicable standard.

EMI, however, is a double-edged sword: manufacturers of

electronic devices should also make sure that their electri-

cal devices are protected against the influence of EMI from

other apparatus to a certain degree. This, of course, makes

things a bit more complicated. Interference you experience

is not necessarily from a device emitting too much, it could

well be that the receiving device is not sufficiently protected

against EMI.

There are many devices that emit EMI, because they emit

radio frequent radiation, for example, cell phones and radio

transmitters. In certain environments it is therefore not al-

lowed to use these, because they would possibly interfere

with sensitive systems. Examples are radio studios and the-

aters (interference with audio systems and wireless micro-

phones), hospitals and airplanes (possible interference with

critical electronic systems). Still, these devices all comply to

regulations.

Radiated and conducted EMIThere are two different types of EMI:

- Radiated EMI works like radio waves, and is emitted by

the equipment like a radio transmitter. Radio waves are very

high frequency: frequencies from 30 kHz and up (long wave)

can cause radiated interference. Medium wave, for example,

ranges from approximately 500 kHz to 1.7 MHz. This emis-

sion can be picked up by devices that are sensitive to these

frequencies, without any electrical connection to the device

generating the EMI.

THE INTERFERENCE DOES NOT STOP AT

YOUR HOUSE

BE SMART WHEN YOU DESIGN A CLIMATE ROOM

I.

Then there is a huge variety in operating frequency: traditional

high frequency ballasts work around 35 kHz, but modern hor-

ticultural double ended systems, for example, work at 120 kHz!

It’s not only this base frequency that causes the problems. High

frequency equipment generates what we call harmonics, much

higher frequencies than the base frequency. They easily reach

the radio frequent spectrum your other devices are sensitive to.

Harmonics are mostly responsible for emitted EMI problems.

Sine wave and square wave both have higher harmonic frequen-

cies. High frequency square wave ballasts in particular generate

lots of harmonics and EMI.

How to avoid EMIIt is almost impossible to avoid EMI with a high frequency re-

mote ballast. The lamp cord connecting the (metal shielded)

ballast to the reflector is the biggest problem for radiated EMI:

it works like an antenna. The longer the cord the bigger the an-

tenna. Shielding the lamp cord is not a solution in many cases, as

it dampens the ignition pulse and can lead to lamps not starting

any more, causes losses in output signal, and in some cases, it

actually causes the frequency of the ballast to go up to a much

higher frequency, possibly even destroying the ballast. This is

why in horticulture only complete fixtures are used, with ballast

and reflector integrated. The lamp cables are integrated in the

metal design, reducing the interference to a minimum.

Conducted EMI is caused by insufficient filtering inside the bal-

last, or just plain bad design, causing high frequency signals to be

delivered back to the grid. This can happen in remote ballasts,

as well as complete fixtures.

Low versus high frequency

Magnetic ballasts output the same frequency as the re-

ceive from mains, so 50 Hz in Europe, 60 Hz in the USA.

This causes a “flicker” in the light, which actually switches

on and off 100/120 times per second. On digital photo-

graphs you see this as light and dark banding. High fre-

quency electronic ballasts switch so fast that the arc in the

arc tube does not extinguish any more, leading to a higher

output, and better efficiency.

EMC Test Centre: Coutesy of EMC Tst Ceneter Zurich 76

IT IS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO AVOID EMI WITH A

HIGH FREQUENCY REMOTE BALLAST. THE LAMP CORD CONNECTING THE (METAL SHIELDED) BALLAST TO THE REFLECTOR IS THE BIGGEST

PROBLEM FOR RADIATED EMI: IT WORKS LIKE AN

ANTENNA

E.M.I. I GARDEN CULTURE


HARMONICS ARE MOSTLY RESPONSIBLE FOR EMITTED

EMI PROBLEMS

Keep your family and neighbors happy and safe

EMI can cause all kinds of mayhem in a domestic environment:

Internet routers that lose connection, Wi-Fi access points that

decrease in performance or lose connection, TV’s and satellite

receivers that show interference, remote controls (for example,

to open your garage door or arm your alarm system) that do

not work anymore, intercom systems that become unusable be-

cause of a loud hum, false alarms in wireless systems, amateur

radio traffic interference, etc. When the neighbors call the cable

guy to search the cause of the problem you are already too late.

It is always better to prevent these problems.

There are several ways to keep your EMI to a minimum:

1. Best option: use complete fixtures! Ballast and reflector are

integrated, so there is no loose lamp cord to emit lots of EMI.

Also they are much easier to wire than remote systems. You

just need to bring power to your climate room.

2. Make sure you have a good earth connection. The use of a

protective earth connection is crucial to avoid EMI in shielded

systems. Always use protective earth for safety, but specifically

for high frequency devices to provide good shielding.

3. Keep lamp cords as short as possible, so keep the ballasts as

close to the reflector as possible. And here I am talking about

just 15 cm of cable instead of 5 meters or more!

4. Keep lamp cords apart from mains cords. If you they cross

or run parallel you can get induction of the high frequency out-

put on your mains supply, causing conducted EMI. This feedback

signal can even destroy your ballast.

5. Never coil your lamp cords, make them too short! A coil

can influence the frequency of your ballast, and can amplify radi-

ated EMI.

So, what should I buy?If a device carries an FCC or CE sign it should be compliant

to the EMI regulations. I say should be, as in reality there are

a lot of things wrong with the testing of electronic equipment.

For CE, for example, the manufacturer may choose to test

the equipment himself, and declare that it is compliant to CE.

If it turns out that it isn’t compliant he will probably get a slap

on the wrist, which in many cases is cheaper than being really

compliant. Specifically manufacturers in cheap labor countries

outside the European Community (where the CE certification

is required) do not really care so much about compliance. The

importer or distributor is responsible.

For FCC compliance the device needs to be tested in a lab

which is accredited by the FCC. In reality though, there is a

huge difference in reports that are obtained from different (ac-

credited) labs from different countries, also depending on how

they test. If you test a ballast, for example, with just 15 cm of

lamp cord it will give you a much better result than with 4 me-

ters coiled next to the ballast. An FCC approval is no guarantee

for absence of EMI.

Be smart when you design a climate room. Think ahead, and

choose products from a reliable manufacturer. Realize that all

high frequency remote ballasts (even the FCC approved) can

emit EMI and that in all cases it is better to use complete fix-

tures. If you use remote ballasts, then place the ballasts as close

to the reflectors as possible, and use very short leads. Never

cross lamp cords and power cables, and make sure all your sys-

tems have perfect ground connections. 3

EMI measuring rooms ideally do not contain metal objects close to the sources, the tables on which the objects are placed are made of wood.

Measuring graphs from a FCC Report of a complete fixture (Gavita Pro 1000e DE) – all levels are below the limits that are indicated by the red line

Conducted EMI

Emmited EMI

78

P L A N T COMPOUNDS OF PHOSPHORUS ARE USED IN RESPIRATION

BY GRUBBYCUP

PHOSPHORUS (P)A required element for photosynthesis, blooming, and root

development. Phosphorus is also used to form nucleic acid,

which is an essential part of living cells. Compounds of phos-

phorus are used in respiration, and the efficient use of nitro-

gen. Important throughout the life cycle of the plant, but use

becomes elevated during flowering.

Phosphorus deficiencies usually manifest as a generalized un-

derperformance of the plant. Leaves may develop a bluish tint.

Phosphorus assists in nitrogen uptake, so symptoms of phos-

phorus deficiency are often similar to a nitrogen deficiency.

An overdose of phosphorus may cause iron and zinc deficien-

cies.

Phosphorus comes from mined rock phosphate, that when

subjected to an electric furnace, or treated with an acid, cre-

ates orthophosphoric acid, which plants can use. To manufac-

ture superphosphoric

acid, they remove wa-

ter from the acid.

You can obtain phos-

phorus naturally from

organic composts or

bone meal.

Sources of phosphorus include ammoniated superphosphate

(5-50-0), ammonium phosphate (18-46-0), and animal manure

(varies). My picks are bone meal (3-15-0), and rock phosphate

(0-30-0).

Rock phosphate is available in two forms, “soft rock” phos-

phate, and “hard rock” phosphate. Soft rock phosphate con-

tains a higher amount of immediately available phosphorus,

and is usually the choice for container soil enhancement. Hard

rock phosphate is better suited to improve a field where crop

plants will grow for several years.

COMPOUNDS OF PHOSPHORUS

ARE USED IN RESPIRATION

79

PLANT NUTRITION I GARDEN CULTURE


POTASSI UM (K)Potassium is important for photosynthesis, carbohydrate and

protein creation, and disease resistance. Used in the “plumb-

ing” of the plant: liquid movement within the plant, stems,

roots, etc. Many enzymatic reactions require potassium, and

it assists in silica uptake.

Potassium deficiency often shows as a yellowing, browning, or

dying of the leaf edges, curled over leaves, followed by yellow-

ing spots in the interior

of the leaf face. Dis-

colored spots may ap-

pear on the undersides

of leaves. Deficiency

symptoms show first on lower leaves as flecking or mottling

on the leaf margins. Prolonged deficiency results in cell death

along the leaf margins, and the plants can show signs of wilt.

These symptoms first display in older leaves, and continue to

work up through the plant to the newer leaves if not correct-

ed. Growth, root development, disease resistance, and bud

size are all reduced.

Overdoses of potassium can result in a calcium and magnesium

deficiencies.

Potassium chloride (0-0-60), potassium sulfate (0-0-50) and

potassium nitrate (13-0-44) are all sources of potassium. I like

powdered kelp (1-0-4) compost (3-1-2), and greensand (0-0-3).

Potassium is also known as potash.

Common forms of potassium used for fertilizer

include:

• Potassium chloride (KCl), the chlorine separates easily,

leaving potassium available for plants.

• Potassium sulfate (K3SO4)

• Potassium nitrate (KNO3)

CALCI UM (Ca) Used in making cell walls, and in some enzyme reactions. It

provides a base for neutralization of organic acids, and facili-

tates the activities of growing points (meristems), especially

with root tips. It may also be of importance in nitrogen absorp-

tion. Using “hard” water may supply enough calcium to meet

plant needs.

Calcium deficiencies can show as

dying or dead tissue on new leaves.

Leaves may curl under. Overdoses

of potassium or nitrogen can cause

calcium deficiencies, even if calcium is

available. Overwatering can also interfere with calcium uptake.

Absorption slows in cooler weather. Root diseases and nema-

todes may cause calcium deficiencies.

Overdoses of calcium may cause iron deficiencies.

Calcium is often added as calcium carbonate (12% Ca), or cal-

cium nitrate (12-0-0 17% Ca).

SULPHUR (S)Used in amino acid and enzyme production.

Deficiency symptoms consist of a general yellowing of the

leaves. Similar to a nitrogen deficiency, but starting in the up-

per leaves, not the lower leaves like with a nitrogen deficiency.

Many plants can generally tolerate quite high concentrations

of sulfur, and overdosing is uncommon. However, over applica-

tion can lock out molybdenum, and hinder beneficial microbial

life.

Sulfur is commonly paired with an-

other nutrient. Potassium sulfate (0-

0-50 18% S) and Epsom salts (13% S

10% Mg) both supply more than one nutrient. I prefer Epsom

salts, as it supplies both sulfur and magnesium in approximately

correct proportions.

POTASSIUM IS IMPORTANT FOR

PHOTOSYNTHESIS

CALCIUM MAY ALSO BE OF

IMPORTANCE IN NITROGEN ABSORPTION

SULPHUR OVERDOSING IS UNCOMMON

N U T R I T I O N

ORGANIC BLOOM STIMULATOR

100% Naturally derived active indredients


M AGNESI UM (Mg) Magnesium is a key element in making chlorophyll, and used in

certain enzyme reactions. Magnesium also assists in phospho-

rus uptake and carbon fixation.

Deficiency symptoms consist of yel-

lowing between veins, which can

lead to dead patches in the affected

areas that cause a mottled appear-

ance. Signs of magnesium deficiency appear first on the oldest

leaves, and progress systematically toward the youngest leaves.

Damage is similar in appearance to zinc and chlorine deficien-

cies. Lack of magnesium can result in premature aging.

Overdoses of calcium and potassium can block magnesium up-

take.

Epsom salts, agricultural lime, and magnesium carbonate can all

supply magnesium.

The last six nutrients iron, manganese, boron, zinc, copper, and

molybdenum are only used in very small amounts.

I RON (Fe) Plants use iron to facilitate chlorophyll production and enzyme

reactions. Iron chelates are soluble, and aid in keeping iron in

solution available for uptake.

Iron deficiency shows as upper

leaf yellowing between the veins

that may progress to cell death of

the affected leaves. New leaves

come out bleached. Yellowing

begins on the lower part of the leaflets. Iron deficiencies can

look similar to a manganese deficiency. Overdoses of calcium,

zinc, manganese, phosphorus, and copper can lock up iron and

cause a deficiency. Basic (pH above 7) conditions or overwa-

tering can also lock out iron uptake.

M ANGANESE (Mn)A plant needs manganese for chlorophyll formation and en-

zyme reactions.

Manganese deficiency consists of yellowing between green

veins, similar to a magnesium deficiency, but appearing first on

the upper leaves, and more mosaic looking. Yellowing may turn

brown as the leaf dies. Basic (pH above 7) environments can

lock out manganese uptake.

BORON (B) Boron aids in the creation and stabilization of the cell walls

in plant cells. It’s required for root tip development and new

growth. It can delay the onset of calcium deficiency, but is not

a substitute for calcium. It tends to keep calcium soluble, and

may assist in nitrogen absorption.

Boron deficiency affects the active growth and root tips first.

Leaf tips curl under, turn yellow, and die. Growth may become

stunted and bushy. High pH may lock up boron.

Z I NC (Zn)Zinc activates enzymic reactions and indoleacetic acid.

Zinc deficient young leaves show yellowing between the veins.

Sometimes a zinc deficiency can lead to plants with shortened

internodes. Zinc deficiency may occur in cold, wet soils, or in

basic pH conditions.

COPPER & MOLY BDENUMPlants need even smaller amounts of copper and molybdenum,

which they use in quantities down to a thousandth as much

as the macronutrients. Organic matter or soil usually has suf-

ficient quantities of micronutrients to fulfill the needs of plants,

but in a highly sterile hydroponic environment you may find the

plants need them added to the system. These are only needed

in trace amounts. For example, water running through house

pipes has been known to pick up enough copper to meet the

needs of plants.

Knowing what nutrients the plant needs is half the battle,

knowing how much is the other half. It is also the more debated

of the two. Reacting to deficiencies and overdoses is one way

to get a feel for how much of which nutrient you should add to

your nutrient solution. Another is to start with someone else’s

best shot at it, and then try to improve on it yourself. 3

(condensed from Grubbycup’s Gardening Notes)

ORGANIC BLOOM STIMULATOR

100% Naturally derived active indredients

MAGNESIUM IS A KEY ELEMENT

IN MAKING CHLOROPHYLL

PLANTS USE IRON TO FACILITATE

CHLOROPHYLL PRODUCTION

PLANT NUTRITION I GARDEN CULTURE

Promising results in preventing certain diseases...

82

BY BRIAN BURK

aracts. According to the U.S. National

Library of Medicine, phytonutrients

have shown potential as photoprotec-

tants. Photoprotectants prevent dam-

age from UV rays, which can lead to

developing skin cancer.

As a whole, research shows a correla-

tion between phytonutrients and preventing heart disease,

tumors, blood clots, asthma, inflammation, and it also has

the potential to slow the aging process. But unfortunately,

getting phytonutrients through our food is stifled by the way

it’s being processed and prepared.

Fruits and vegetables begin their journey in fertilized soils.

The Better Health Channel, run by the state government of

Victoria Australia, states “high use of nitrogen fertilizer tends

to reduce the vitamin C content in fruits and vegetables.”

They also state both organic and non-organic fertilizer ef-

fects nutrient loss in the same way.

During the pre-harvest stage, temperature fluctuations play

a major role in phytonutrient development. According to the

University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural

Resources, light intensity, and changes in climate can cause

fluctuations in the nutrient content of fresh produce. These

influences will differ from year to year, and can become diffi-

cult to overcome. This makes mass farming more susceptible

to nutrient degradation. After the produce has time to “de-

velop,” the harvest begins.

During the harvest, opportunities arise that further enhance

nutrient loss. In an industrialized farming situation, the mech-

Phytonutrients have produced promis-

ing results in preventing certain diseas-

es. According to the American Cancer

Society, there are thousands of known

phytonutrients, but the effects of these

phytonutrients diminish due to the way

industry handles and processes our

food. To fully understand these potential benefits, we must

figure out what a phytonutrient is.

According to Oregon State University, phytonutrients (also

known as phytochemicals) are compounds found in plants.

Some common phytonutrients are carotenoids (alpha-caro-

tene and beta-carotene), chlorophyll, curcumin, flavonoids,

lycopene, and gingerol. Collectively these compounds affect

fruits and vegetables in various ways. Some plant specific

effects, according to the Stanford Cancer Institute, include

protection from ultraviolet (UV) radiation, bacteria, viruses,

and fungi. Also, certain phytocompounds provide fruits and

vegetables with a luscious hue, and rich flavor. But what can

phytonutrients do for humans?

Similar to the effect of antioxidants, phytonutrients may play

a role in reducing the risk of developing various ailments and

diseases. Research has also shown promising results indicat-

ing phytonutrients may prove useful in cancer prevention.

Indoles, which are found in vegetables like broccoli, cabbage,

and kale, contain sulfur and active agents that destroy cancer-

causing chemicals. Another potentially powerful phytocom-

pound is lutein. Research in the study of lutein has produced

favorable results in preventing many diseases, like colon can-

cer, breast cancer, age-related macular degeneration, and cat-

THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF

KNOWN PHYTONUTRIENTS...

You’ve heard about antioxidants, vitamins, and omega-3, but have you heard anything about phyto-

nutrients? What about phytonutrient degradation? The longer they study the nature of food and it’s

effect on our health, the more you need to know.

PHYTO NUTRIENTS


anized picking of fresh produce can lead to bruising and brown-

ing; which impede nutrient development. Once harvested, the

process of packing and transportation begins.

Transportation not only includes the means of moving fresh

produce, but also how they pack and maintain it during move-

ment. Before loading for transport, it’s placed into boxes that

can potentially cause damage to the produce. If overfilled and

stacked on top of one another, box compression ensues. Also

these boxes, after absorbing moisture, can collapse and cause

further compression damage. As in the pre-harvesting stage,

if the produce gets physically damaged, it

causes nutrient loss. Even when packed in

reliable boxes, shipping fresh produce still

can result in nutrient loss.

Not taking the earlier mentioned stages of

phytonutrient degradation into account,

one of the biggest areas of phytonutrient

loss occurs during transit. Whether it’s via

highway trailer, trade ship, or cargo plane,

fluctuations in temperature and relative humidity present the

biggest influence on nutrient content.

Each individual type of produce has different requirements for

shipping but, due to economic concerns for moving massive

amounts of produce, they are often shipped in mixed loads.

This means there are several types of produce being shipped

in one container, which is not the best for nutritional stability.

For example, when traveling cross-country, tarnishing a load

of “fresh” produce can happen in only three or four days. This

is more severe when being shipped overseas where it can take

weeks to arrive at its destination. In order to combat these

climate changes during transportation, most modern forms

of shipping have humidity and cooling systems installed. Since

there is one cooling system per cargo space and fresh produce

loads are often mixed, only part of this produce preserves the

nutritional integrity they entered the container with.

The produce reaches its next destination, which in most

cases is a ripening warehouse, where the produce ripens in a

sealed chamber - not on the vine. To start it off, pallets of pro-

duce go into ripening rooms, where they get fumigated with

ethylene gas for about a week. Ethylene is a gas that naturally

occurs in some fruits, vegetables, and

plants as they ripen or age, and ex-

posing some types of produce to this

gas restarts the interrupted matur-

ing process. However, as the USDA

states, the ethylene used for ripening

today “is a synthetic analog of a natu-

ral gas produced by plants.”

Exotic or off-season produce shipped

long distance, like bananas, avocados, or tomatoes, must be

picked when green and nutritionally underdeveloped. Un-

fortunately, this picked early and ripened artificially produce

thing is necessary to deliver a “fresh product” to your gro-

cery store. According to Washington State University, side

effects of ethylene gas ripening include, loss of chlorophyll,

abscission of plant parts, yellowing of vegetables, and epinasty

(the bending of stems). Another downside, perhaps the most

unfortunate, because they pick the produce early and it’s not

ripened naturally, the loss of nutritional quality cannot be fully

recovered.

TEMPERATURE FLUCTUATIONS PLAY A MAJOR ROLE IN PHYTONUTRIENT DEVELOPMENT

PHYTO NUTRIENTS PHYTONUTRIENTS I GARDEN CULTURE


PHYTONUTRIENTS I GARDEN CULTURE

PHYTONUTRIENT LOSS OCCURS

DURING TRANSIT

Boiling your vegetables can result in many nutrients leaching

into your cooking water. You could either shorten the boiling

time for your produce, or use the cooking water, filled with

nutrients and phytochemicals, to make a stock for soups or

to cook rice. Most phytochemicals and nutrients are lost dur-

ing high heat cooking processes. These include the aforemen-

tioned methods, but also roasting, grilling, sautéing, and dry-

ing. Cooking at a lower temperature, with the least amount

of water, and a shorter cooking time maintains the greatest

amount of phytonutrients in your produce.

But fortunately, there is a way to combat nutrient loss

in fresh produce, having your own home garden. There

are many benefits to growing your own fruits and veg-

etables. According to the Harvard Health Letter, growing

your own food will lead to a larger consumption of fresh

produce and, typically, a greater amount of nutrient yield

versus store-bought produce.

Growing your own allows you to pick what fertilizers and

chemicals come into contact with your harvest. This also

allows you to control when you harvest your crop, pro-

viding the freshest produce you can acquire. Even if you

don’t have a backyard, or one large enough to grow in,

you can still grow hydroponically.

Produce grown hydroponically still has a higher nutrient con-

tent than most store-bought produce. It also has the added

benefit of being isolated from the soil and climate, which al-

lows you to grow a variety of vegetables and fruits that would

otherwise be difficult to grow in some areas. Hydroponics can

provide even greater benefits. Using hydroponics there is a

significant reduction in chemicals to control pests and weeds,

it also uses less water than traditional growing methods, and

you can build growing systems using recycled materials.

As you can see, there are many steps from the field to your

dinner table. During each step, nutrients are being lost, and

food is getting wasted. But there is still hope. The benefits

of growing your own produce is not just about saving money,

preserving flavor, or even keeping our food safe; if more pro-

duce was grown in our own backyard, we could shorten the

steps, and put an end to nutrient loss. 3

The force-ripened produce now gets loaded back on trans-

port trucks, and sent to grocer’s shelves or on to special-

ized packing plants, where it’s put through multiple processing

methods. These processing methods include blanching, can-

ning, and milling.

Before being canned or frozen, a vegetable or fruit may very

well be blanched. Blanching is the process of heating quickly

with steam or water, which causes water-soluble vitamins and

phytochemicals to deteriorate. After blanching, these foods

are now ready for the can-

nery. Safe canning means

heating the food inside the

can again to kill many types

of bacteria and dangerous

organisms. This process

may lead to great loss of

many water-soluble phy-

tonutrients. Although,

fresh food expires faster

than its canned brethren,

fresh food offers a larger

amount of nutrients.

Wheat can already be milled before its trip to the distribu-

tor. Milling is the process of grinding down grains to remove

fibrous husks. Unfortunately, these husks contain a large

amount of the plant’s vitamins, fiber, and phytonutrients. Even

though most wheat products are artificially fortified with

nutrients that are lost, it does not bring the nutrients to its

former state.

Now these processed fruits and vegetable have great shelf life,

and are then sent to the supermarket, but they are not safe

from further phytonutrient loss yet. There is still one major

obstacle in the way of a more nutritious meal, the consumer.

Many home kitchens, in the effort to make foods tastier, pre-

pare their fruits and vegetables in a way that further degrades

the nutritional quality. Peeling and pruning your fresh produce

potentially pulverizes the nutritional value. Most of the vita-

mins and fiber accumulate in or near the skin of fruits and

vegetables, so by removing the skin, you are removing the

nutrients.

net

GROWHARDAUSTRALIA

garden culture magazine: aus 3

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