A seed is perhaps the most potent and amazing thing imaginable. A seed is a record of all life that has gone before. Seeds have the power to nourish, clothe and shelter us, and even to clean our air and water. Seeds are quite literally the embodiment of life. Arguably, they are the most precious items on our planet.

However, it may horrify you to know that multinational corporations are seeking to take control over all seeds and, in so doing, the entire planet’s food.

Dan Jason, founder of Salt Spring Seeds, issues a rallying call for us all to learn how to save our own seeds.

In the mid 1980s, the Canadian and US governments had crop research stations across the continent and some quite substantial gene banks preserving our seed heritage. Plant scientists sought to develop locally adapted seeds for disease and pest resistance, nutrition, higher yield and earliness. Such research was done to benefit both farmers and consumers. Information about the seeds and the seeds themselves were shared with pride as part of a longstanding tradition.

Today the seed situation is totally different. Gene banks and research stations have been downsized and neglected. American and Canadian governments have handed over seed research and development to transnational corporations with totally different agendas for our seeds.

Corporate mergers of seed growers have accelerated at such a pace that there are now only a few giant rulers. Patented seeds have become common in catalogues. Plants that have always belonged to everyone are now “owned” by corporations. As ludicrous as it sounds, farmers are being taken to court for saving seed.

Millions of acres of farmland are being planted with genetically altered seed that has had genes from other life forms inserted. It has become almost impossible to find food products in North America that are not derived from genetically modified seeds. A huge majority of North Americans want to have products from genetically modified organisms (GMOs) labeled as such, yet nothing happens. In 2005, the US government overturned the power of state counties democratically to declare themselves GMO-free zones.

What’s Wrong with GMOs?

I consider genetically modified food intrinsically bad because it’s designed with poison in mind. The biotech people claimed they were genetically modifying seeds to create more nutritious food, which would also result in lowering pesticide and herbicide use. The truth of the matter is that virtually all corporate genetic seed modifications have aimed to make plants resistant to weed and bug killers.

If you create plants that do not succumb to herbicides, pesticides and fungicides, then the nature of what we’re consuming is all wrapped up in poison. Tinkering with genes from totally different species and mixing them up in our food has never been done before and has potentially deadly consequences. Yet it is being done with little testing, no consultation and no notification. We, the American and Canadian people, are the guinea pigs.

Instead of less herbicide use, weeds have adapted to become “superweeds” that nothing can effectively control. Perhaps most horrifying: GMO crops have contaminated the nearby crops of farmers trying to grow clean, healthy food, and these same farmers are being sued for patent infringement! The mind boggles.

Terminator Seeds

Terminator seeds followed on the heels of GMO seeds as part of the arsenal of corporate agribusiness promising hope for the future. Terminator seeds have been genetically altered so that plants don’t produce viable seeds. They more transparently reveal the name of the game to be profit and control. Such seeds threaten the livelihoods of all farmers who save their own seed. That minds would design seeds to terminate themselves is incomprehensible to most people and there was enough outraged reaction that experiments were stopped. Yet, in 2005, Canada was trying to overturn the international moratorium on the research. Equally incomprehensible and sinister have been attempts (mostly successful) in the past few years to economically blackmail developing countries with starving populations into accepting genetically modified food as “aid.”

Control of resources has always been the essence of the game for those bent on political power. If you own the oil, the water, the minerals, the land, then you own the people too. However, owning seeds in the manner that it’s happening now is unprecedented. Monsanto Corporation, for example, openly and clearly states its intention to totally control the world food market. That same corporation has dozens of lawyers working full time to make sure farmers don’t save their own seed.

The task of reinventing agriculture is a necessary and crucial one. Probably the most meaningful endeavor for humanity at this time is replanting the global garden. Without a massive international effort to reduce greenhouse gases, stabilize climate change and stop the decline of the earth’s life support systems by using plants, all other good struggles will be overtaken by ecological chaos.

Why not encourage people to have a rewarding livelihood by farming the richness of the earth, to live on the land and derive satisfaction and fulfillment from the infinite beauty and entertainment of nature? Why not start to realize the vast potential for growing food within our urban environment?

Once saving seeds was an eloquently simple process. Seeds belonged to everyone in a sacred sort of way. The confused mindset that blasts foreign genes into seeds, that patents and kills seeds, is clearly one that would destroy the very garden that feeds us.

Industrial agriculture is not going to preserve our priceless treasure of seeds. Neither is there much chance of getting governments to return to the custodianship of our food heritage. That leaves us – you and me – and small-scale farmers, the people who truly love plants, to hand them on to the next generation.

Start Saving

Seed saving is not difficult. Essentially you go to the seeds when they are ready, take them and store them! A key step is making sure they’re really dry.

Getting good seeds at the right time involves knowing the usual lifecycle of a plant and whether a seed will stay true. You can gather them in different ways such as plucking, rubbing, shaking or grabbing. Ways of harvesting are quite quickly obvious but not always so. Make sure you store your seeds in appropriate containers with labels.

Finally: know your plant. Is it an annual, biennial or perennial? Is it self-pollinated or cross-pollinated? (Or perhaps both?) But don’t be daunted by all these questions. People have been saving seeds for millennia and you are the living proof!

WORDS: Dan Jason, founder of Salt Spring Seeds, Canada.

For loads more information including plant-specific advice on saving seeds, check out Dan Jason’s inspiring book: Saving Seeds As if Our Lives Depended On It.

Want to know more? Ok – you asked for it!
www.slowfood.com
www.seedalliance.org
www.growseed.org
www.seedsofdeception.com
www.GMFreeSchools.org
www.centerforfoodsafety.org
www.banterminator.org
www.etcgroup.org
www.savingourseeds.org
www.seedsofchangethemovie.org
www.responsibletechnology.org
www.grain.org
www.thecampaign.org
www.organicconsumers.org

Food is very important stuff! It drives everything we do; it’s the gasoline that our bodies run on. So, when growing crops that we intend to consume, giving them full nutrition is extremely important. Isn’t it?

We asked Randall Shapiro, a passionate exponent of organic growing, to shed some light on the importance of full nutrition when growing consumable crops.

The focus of commercial food production has shifted dramatically over the last 85 years from quality to quantity. The industrialization of food production may seem like a necessary step to cater for the huge rise in our population, but the health of our society has never been the same.

Take, for example, the tomato. If we could only compare a tomato today versus a tomato 100 years ago on a scale of nutrient density, we would see a dramatic difference in the two pieces of fruit; the 100 year old fruit being much more healthy and nutrient dense.

Today, we grow tomatoes to fit neatly into hamburger buns, not for their mineral content and nutrient density. The standard grocery store tomato is grown in a factory. The plant is fed the bare minimum of what it needs to grow and produce fruit. It’s all about fruit weight and dollars. The tomato is picked green and premature and shipped around the world. Slice into a grocery store tomato and you’ll see a white center and taste a tart piece of chalky cardboard. Grown for profit, this tomato contains little more than the 13-17 minerals that were used to grow it. So many of the sugars, amino acids, enzymes and free radicals that are created within a tomato when it is allowed to ripen on the vine are absent – they were never created! The quality and nutrition of the tomato is lost. The diet of the plant is so basic that it is unable to manifest the minerals to provide a nutrient dense fruit. With industrialized agriculture, we are not giving the tomato what it wants to grow and thrive; we are feeding the tomato the bare minimum necessary to produce fruit – quickly. 13-17 minerals is a true fast-food diet! What would happen if we gave the plant the entirety of minerals on earth, allowing it to take what it wants when it wants it?

The opposite end of the spectrum is a tomato grown with a conscious approach to nutrition; a tomato grown with MORE than just the ‘essential’ elements; a tomato grown organically, allowed to have a full life cycle with complete nutrition, and to ripen on the vine. This piece of fruit tastes sweet and has a strong, meaty texture. The center is a deep red. It’s bursting with flavor. All you need is a pinch of sea-salt and pepper and two slices of bread to create a tomato sandwich from heaven! This tomato eclipses the factory-farm tomato in every way; taste, quality, and nutrient density.

Allow me to introduce an old friend of mine – Rudolph Steiner. He was an Austrian scientist who created the principles for modern day organic agriculture. He created biodynamic farming, a premium style of organic horticulture emphasizing subtle energies and soil quality. Biodynamics looks at the farm as its own self-sustaining organism; an organism with the ability to heal itself. Biodynamic farmers emphasize ALL nutrients, not just the ‘primary’ minerals science deems essential. Biodynamic farmers use specific ingredients, called ‘preps,’ to fertilize their soils and crops. It incorporates the influence of our moon, the other planets in our solar system, and even the subtle forces of the stellar universe beyond our galaxy! Harnessing subtle energies to enhance the quality of crop and vitality of the soil are key to biodynamic principles. Obviously, in Steiner’s world, there was no place for chemical fertilizers, or the idea that science can somehow skip nature.

Steiner said, “Nutrition, as it is today, does not supply the strength necessary for manifesting the spirit in the physical life. A bridge can no longer be built from thinking to will and action. Food plants no longer contain the forces people need for this.” (Steiner, The Agriculture Course.)

Steiner said this almost 100 years ago … what! If food didn’t have the proper nutrition back then, we have only continued to decline in health, nutrition, and perspective. This is evident in our staggering incidence of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, developmental disabilities, pharmaceutical sales, and on and on…

It all starts with what we put into our bodies. Thinking about it, it’s pretty obvious isn’t it? We live in a world where food is grown for profit and yield, NOT quality and nutrient density. Therefore, we live in a world full of ‘empty food,’ a place where tomatoes have fewer nutrients than they ever had before. A place where a whole industry of ‘dietary supplements’ has been created over the past thirty years to deal with the fact that the food we eat has nowhere near the nutrient density of the food of our ancestors. It’s simple. Eat ‘empty food’ and your gut will be full, but your body will not be gaining the proper nutrition to be healthy.

We are what we eat, and we are eating empty food! Ouch, but the truth hurts. So when we eat empty food, our will is empty and our awareness of the world, of ourselves, is clouded and fragmented. We can be so much more conscious and awake; we can live to the fullest rather than exist from day to day if we are eating nutrient dense food. If we truly believe that we are what we eat (and we should), then we have to accept that our thoughts, our will, and our action are based on the food-fuel we put into our bodies. What we consume to energize our body, mind, and spirit largely dictates the quality and clarity of our thoughts and actions.

We can eat fast-food every day of our lives, and we will live. We won’t live long, however, and we won’t be healthy. If we grow our own nutrient dense food, if we eat nutrient dense foods, if we are conscious consumers who pay attention to what we buy at the grocery store, if we seek out farmer’s markets and Community Supported Agriculture, if we support our local farms and buy the most nutritious foodstuff we can, we can create far more than a food movement – we can fundamentally change the world for the better.

I believe that nutrient-dense food production is the most under-discussed topic in our society today. Probably because if more people understood its importance, the whole way we produce food would have to change. By consciously improving our growing practices and harvesting crops grown for quality and nutrient density, then we will be healthy, balanced, and able to think in a way that is more potent and pure. Now that is a TASTY path to enlightenment!

Robert Kenner’s new film Food, Inc. seeks to lift the veil on the American food industry.  But is this latest food exposé destined only to preach to the “foody” converted?

WORDS: BORIS BELL

“Which movies are starting soon?”
“Ummmm …. Transformers 2?”
“Hmmmm … what about Humpday?”
“Uhuh … who’s in it?”

Can you guess the next line of this totally fictitious conversation, taking place outside an imaginary movie theater this summer? I suppose it could be anything you want it to be. We could even contrive this little gem:

“I know … why don’t we pay to watch a profoundly disturbing documentary about systemic corruption and contamination in our nation’s food industry? Forget Transformers. I’ve gone right off Megan Fox since I heard she’s getting hitched. Let’s get the lowdown on all these genetically modified crops we’re eating. Look, it’s starting in five minutes. I’ll grab the tickets, you get the popcorn!”

Oh to be a fly on the theater wall if, by some miraculous marketing guile, the promoters of Food, Inc. actually manage to stir the sleeping majority of the American public from their collective, television-induced psychosis and fill those red seats with the “unconverted.” Sadly, I suspect that a statistically significant portion of those who drag themselves away from “The Celebrity Apprentice” at home would rather focus on an assortment of computer-generated robots and, of course, the ever-diverting Miss Fox.

Whatever your preference, Food, Inc. will be a brutal wake-up call for many Americans about the state of their food industry. Since the rise of fast food in the 1950s, the food industry at large has come to be utterly dominated by a few major players who have one mission: to control everybody’s food,  bland and simple, from seed to the supermarket. And they make no secret of that fact, at least. Food, Inc. details how fast food transformed meat production into highly efficient, centralized, and mechanized animal processing plants. Some of the movie’s content will come as no surprise to some, but it’s still far from easy viewing.

Food, Inc. isn’t shy about examining the corporate giant, Monsanto, which controls corn and soy crops through a series of patents. These patents allow them to “own” crops by “owning” the genetic modifications inside the seeds. Monsanto has been able to litigate against non-compliant farmers through legal precedents set by judges like Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, who once acted as a lawyer for Monsanto. The whole system, Food, Inc. suggests, is completely corrupt.

We learn how these huge corporations have infiltrated our government, shaped its policies and introduced ridiculous laws that make it illegal to openly criticize parts of the food industry … and don’t you even dare take a photograph of a cattle ranch facility! We are told the stories of farmers who are prosecuted for owning or renting machinery that allow them to save seeds from their crops. We also discover how the food regulatory agencies are controlled by the very industry they are supposed to be scrutinizing.

Perhaps most importantly, Food, Inc. shows America that “cheap” food comes at a price. The environment, our health, the welfare of animals and the conditions of immigrant workers, we are shown, more than pay the premium on our behalf.

Food, Inc. could have been a woeful depressumentary about the self-administered culling of poor Americans through GMO-ridden junk food. But it ends with a very positive, uplifting message. We can make a change, and we can vote three times a day with the food we put on our plates and in our bodies. Food, Inc. is as much about access to information as it is about access to good, healthy food.

Go and see this movie and I promise that you, like me, will be telling everyone you can to go see it too. Drag them kicking and screaming if you have to.

For more info visit: www.foodincmovie.com

Type HR875 into Google and you’ll find thousands of links to bloggers and independent news sites citing the bill that’s currently being discussed in Congress. Some commentators are up in arms about the “Food Modernization Act” claiming that it could spell the end of small organic farms. Some even go as far to suggest that it could potentially criminalize growing your own food in your backyard! Whereas other commentators claim there’s absolutely nothing to worry about – it really is just about food safety.

So in case you haven’t heard of H.R. 875 (after all, there’s been no mention on Fox, CNN, MSNBC or BBC news), here’s Shelly Roche from www.breakthematrix.com with a breakdown of the bill.

“Control oil and you control nations; control food and you control the people.” – Henry Kissinger

Recent salmonella outbreaks and food contamination scares have sparked a flurry of activity in Washington, resulting in proposed legislation aimed at improving the safety of our nation’s food supply. The goal is to prevent future food-borne illness incidents by expanding the federal government’s role in regulating production, preparation and transportation of food.

The most hotly contested of these bills is H.R. 875, known as the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009, which gained instant notoriety online when a number of bloggers claimed H.R. 875 would criminalize organic gardening, outlaw seed banking and place impossible administrative burdens on small farmers. Advocates for the bill say it is not intended to do any of those things, accusing critics of being alarmists and spreading misinformation. Who’s right? Read on for a crash course in H.R. 875, then please do your own research so you can decide for yourself:

1.  The Basics

Presented under the heading of “food safety,” H.R. 875 would create an extensive new federal agency called the Food Safety Administration (FSA), responsible for keeping our food supply safe by regulating food production facilities (any farm, ranch, orchard, vineyard, aquaculture facility, or confined animal-feeding operation – Sec. 14) and food establishments (a facility owned or operated by a person located in any State that processes food or a facility that holds, stores, or transports food or food ingredients – Sec. 13).

The FSA’s purpose would be to define and enforce strict standards on food production facilities, and would force anybody selling or storing food and selling it to a third party “to register with a new federal regulatory agency, submit to federal inspections, and, perhaps most significant, keep ‘copious records of sales and shipment by lot and label.’ Penalties for infractions will be very, very steep.” (Walter Olson, http://www.reason.com/blog/show/132831.html)

2.  Questionable origins

The bill’s sponsor, Rep Rosa DeLauro (D – CT), received over $180,000 in big agribusiness campaign donations.

3.  Broad language

Broad language gives bureaucrats authority to decide what’s best for us, and then force us to comply.

If passed, H.R. 875’s language would empower federal regulators to make virtually any food-related decision on our behalf. This would present a very real threat to our freedom to grow, buy and eat real foods. Reason Magazine’s Brian Doherty explains the implications of two broadly-worded sections in H.R. 875 which give bureaucrats wide latitude for interpretation.

Consider, if you have the willpower, this blurb:

In Section 203 (b): ‘The Administrator shall, upon the basis of best available public health, scientific, and technological data, promulgate regulations to ensure that food establishments carry out their responsibilities under the food safety law … the Administrator shall promulgate regulations that require all food establishments … —(1) to adopt preventive process controls that—(A) reflect the standards and procedures recognized by relevant authoritative bodies; (B) are adequate to protect the public health; (C) meet relevant regulatory and food safety standards;( D) limit the presence and growth of contaminants in food prepared in a food establishment using the best reasonably available techniques and technologies.’

What if the regulatory bodies — which will be filled, to be sure, with agribiz reps — decide that organic techniques are not the ‘best reasonably available techniques’ that are ‘adequate to protect the public health’ because they don’t use certain pest control techniques?

Or how about Section 206 (c) (3), which says that regulations will “include, with respect to growing, harvesting, sorting, and storage operations, minimum standards related to fertilizer use, nutrients, hygiene, packaging, temperature controls, animal encroachment, and water.”

It is not inconceivable that the government’s bodies of experts may decide that certain organic practices don’t meet the “minimum standards” they decide are appropriate in things like fertilizer and animal encroachment.

4.  Intent vs. Reality

When confronted with the ambiguous nature of her bill, DeLauro insists H.R. 875 is only meant to apply to those engaging in “interstate commerce,” and is not intended to target small farmers or organic gardeners. However, in Sec. 406, H.R. 875 reads: “In any action to enforce the requirements of the food safety law, the connection with interstate commerce required for jurisdiction shall be presumed to exist.” Federal agencies regularly take a broader view of their own jurisdiction, and Sec. 406 grants the FSA the authority to presume interstate commerce exists (whether it does or not) in order to enforce food safety laws.

5. Flawed Logic: Does more government really equal safer food?

Small farms and gardens are fundamentally different from industrial farms, and should not be regulated the same way. All of the proposed food safety bills suffer from a “one-size-fits-all” approach, which gives competitive advantage to industrial producers who have the resources to deal with new requirements, while placing unreasonable burdens on small producers who don’t.

Further, critics question the logic behind adding an additional layer of bureaucracy (the FSA) to solve the problem an existing bureaucracy (the FDA) has been unable to effectively address. Michael Tanner, senior fellow at the CATO institute points out: “The companies that created problems — like the peanut company — they’ve gone bankrupt. The senior officers are out of a job, and in some cases they are being sued and facing jail time. But the government bureaucrats aren’t going to jail. You have more accountability in the private sector than in the government. There seem to be better ways to handle this than expansion of government bureaucracy.”

6.  Be vigilant: It’s not just H.R. 875

In addition to H.R. 875, check out H.R. 814, H.R. 759, S. 425, S. 510 and the National Animal Identification System (NAIS).  H.R. 814 is essentially a mandatory NAIS bill, while the others focus on produce, processed foods and game under FDA jurisdiction.

Although the grassroots controversy has resulted in H.R. 875 being the primary target of critics, watchdog groups are warning that H.R. 759 is the bill most likely to make it out of committee to Congress for a vote. Portions of H.R. 875 and H.R. 1332 are expected to be included in the final version of H.R. 759.

7.  What is the likely outcome if any of these bills pass?

• Small farmers will be subject to crippling administrative and regulatory burdens, coupled with massive fines for non-compliance.
• The supply and diversity of our food will be reduced, forcing more of us to use industrial producers.
• Food safety is unlikely to improve.
• Our freedom to grow, buy and eat real foods will be threatened.
• Billions of tax dollars will be required to fund the FSA.

8.  Vote with your forks: It’s time for a cultural shift toward self-reliance

Those of us who buy locally produced real foods already feel secure about the safety of our food. The farmers we support are meticulous in their growing practices because their livelihoods depend on word of mouth and a strong reputation. As consumers, we have the freedom to take responsibility for our own food safety by getting to know our food producers, learning about their growing practices, and choosing to support those who meet our standards.

It is the mainstream industrialized food system that is dysfunctional, and it is absolutely critical that any new laws address that system without interfering with our right to choose real foods or with our farmers’ abilities to produce safer, healthier foods.

With every meal, each of us has an opportunity to make choices that will shift power away from Washington’s industrial food system and spark a nationwide cultural shift to self reliance through local, seasonal eating and growing more of our own foods.

Here are just a few ways you can help:

• Grow your own!
• Introduce a friend to your local farmer’s market.
• Invite friends over to dinner featuring food produced from your garden or from your local farmers.
• Shake the hand that feeds you – get to know your local farmer (just make sure it’s at a time that’s convenient for them).
• Start a community garden.
• Participate in Community Supported Agriculture (CSA).
• Become a cow-pooler.
• Have conversations about food everywhere you go.
• Wear the message! T-shirts that tell a story about food are a great way to start a conversation.
• Be vigilant about what’s happening in Washington. Do your own research and urge your representatives to act in ways that support real foods.

Have your say by posting a comment below.

The summer months bring sunshine, happiness, escapades and mirth!  But it’s also a time of high risk!  Insects are in abundance and they want to find their way to your indoor plants! We asked our main man Zorro Torro to explain how the war on pests is won through a series of simple preventative methods. Mr Torro, the stage is all yours…

Plant pests and indoor gardens do not mix. The environmental checks and balances that are natural controls out of doors—i.e. weather and predators—are not factors indoors. The indoor garden presents a veritable Garden of Eden to the pest that gains entry. Abundant food, good weather conditions and lack of predators allow them the opportunity to enjoy their two favorite pursuits: eat or suck on plants, and reproduce. Over millions of years they have been self-selecting and are excellent at both activities.

You may remember school graphs and factoids regarding unrestricted reproduction of rabbits: an exponential increase in population could result in one year. Mites and insects have a much faster maturation cycle and produce many more eggs or young than rabbits. In just a few generations, produced in two months or less, a tiny infestation becomes a life-threatening attack on a garden.

There is no stabilization that occurs in nature: in this uneasy equilibrium, pests, plants and predators reach a balance that generates a minimal loss of crop. Indoors, however, the optimum conditions leave their population growth unchecked, bringing plants under siege.

It is for this reason that I firmly believe in a zero tolerance policy for garden pests. (I should probably practice this policy in life too, to eliminate many unnecessary disturbances.) This means that no pests are allowed in the garden. You may have read elsewhere that once your garden is infested it is impossible to eliminate pests. This is wrong. Pests can be eliminated, but it’s a far better idea to keep the growing space pest free in the first place.

Let’s say you purchased some meat that was infested with vermin. You would consider it inedible. Then why would you tolerate eating infested vegetables? Prevention is less costly than cure in material, labor, and injury to the patients—so it is wise to integrate preventative designs and practices for the garden while it is being constructed. If the garden is already in operation it should be retrofitted for prevention.

In 1668 Francesco Redi proved that spontaneous generation was a myth. By covering one jar of meat and not another he showed that maggots did not just appear; they were the result of eggs flies laid in the meat. Organisms don’t just suddenly appear. All pests found in an indoor garden originated somewhere else. Once they wend their way into the garden they find the Promised Land— free food, no species competition, no predators, and a comfortable climate.

There are only a few ways that insects can enter an indoor garden. Blocking their access is the best way to practice preventative medicine and deter plant damage.

THE EASIEST PEST IMMIGRATION ROUTES

• Piggyback a ride on humans.
• Piggyback a ride on pets.
• Ride in on outdoor garden tools.
• Arrive with un-sterile or un-pasteurized soil or planting mix.
• Immigrate with newly acquired plants or clones.
• Fly in through an unfiltered air intake pipe or an open window.
• Crawl in through cracks and holes.

PIGGYBACK A RIDE ON HUMANS

Gardeners should be careful to wear uncontaminated clothing, which can carry pests from outside into the garden.

Insects can catch a ride on humans. When we are outdoors we come in contact with nature. Grass, bushes and trees are all hosts to pests that want to colonize your garden. Mites and aphids are the most likely culprits, but small caterpillars, thrips, fungus gnats and whiteflies also use this route of entry.

All clothing that has had even casual contact with outdoor plants should be considered contaminated. Ninety-nine percent of the time this isn’t true. It is that one bad apple out of 100 that you are worried about. You step on some grass in the crack of the sidewalk and a mite hitches a ride on your footwear. You walk under a tree in the parking lot and a thrips drops on your hat or hair. A pregnant aphid catches on the fiber of your jacket.

PIGGYBACK A RIDE ON PETS

Pets are naturally curious, but should be kept out of the garden because they could be carrying a plant pest.

Pets are worse pest carriers than humans. Fur and bare feet provide good hiding places for the ride into the Promised Land. Pests use dog and cat ears, tails and bellies as handy saddles.

There is just no reason to allow a pet into the garden area. They can provide no useful service to the garden and their presence is harmful. Pets can carry an infection into the garden and transfer it by brushing up against a plant. Their fur is also a problem as it constantly shedding, along with dander particles, which then float in the air with any breeze or air circulation in the garden.

RIDE IN ON GARDEN TOOLS

Outdoor gardens are a hotbed of activity when you get down to the small level. Ants, beetles, and other creatures are scurrying about. Aphids, scale and mites are contentedly sucking plant juices. Whiteflies, gnats and leafhoppers go airborne in their pursuit of vegetation. Underground there is even more activity. Thrips and fungus gnat pupae are maturing for their above ground debut, while fungi, molds and all kinds of micro-life are playing their bit parts in the ecological cycle.

Tools should be cleaned before they are used in the indoor garden to ensure no outside pests are hitching a ride.

Just as plant pests may hitch a ride on you, they can take trips on your tools. All it takes one mite or aphid hiding on a clipper or some thrips pupae or infectious agents on a hand hoe. For this reason tools should not be returned to the indoor garden space after being taken outdoors. Only after the tool is thoroughly washed with no visible plant parts or debris may it be returned to the indoor garden.

IMMIGRATE IN SOIL OR PLANTING MIX

Most planting mixes are composed of either bark or peat moss and other ingredients such as compost, puffed minerals, sand and nutrients. The ingredients have never been in contact with plants or plant pests so they are free of contamination.

Pasteurized or sterilized soils and planting mixes are free of pests and infections. Although soil is not currently a popular medium, a high quality loam can invigorate plant growth when it is included in planting mixes. Pasteurized and sterilized soils are the only ones to use.

Importing unpasteurized planting mixes that contain soil, landscape mixes, or used soil or planting mix can be risky. They all contain a host of microorganisms that may be beneficial but they also may contain insects, their eggs, and other soil dwelling pest and disease organisms. Landscape mixes are not meant for indoor use. Outdoors, the natural balance of nature rules, so insects and other organisms are in a wavy equilibrium. Indoors, these creatures are not subject to natural controls such as weather and predators. When contaminated planting mediums are used indoors the pests they harbor will soon make themselves at home and raise large families—and you know the kids are always hungry.

New plants, even from commercial nurseries, should be quarantined before they are brought into the garden.

IMMIGRATE WITH NEWLY ACQUIRED PLANTS OR PLANTLETS

If you were a plant pest, what would be the most convenient way for you to travel? Hitch a ride on a plant that’s about to go on a journey! All plants imported into the garden should be suspected of harboring pests. Plants from hobbyist gardens, houseplants and outdoor plants are most likely to be infected. Plants from commercial nurseries are supposedly grown in sterile conditions so there is probably less chance of infection from them. Even so, they should be handled with care.

To keep your garden pest and disease free, all incoming plants should go through proper immigration procedures. First, they should be visually inspected. If they show any signs of infection the choice should be made. Are these plants so valuable that they should be disinfected? Even if no pests or infections are apparent there may be problems. For instance, mite, thrips and white fly eggs are hard to find and may be overlooked. They will hatch in three or four days and become apparent.

Using a photo loupe or magnifying glass you get a much clearer look at what’s happening close-up. Any eggs or pests become sharply defined. What were little dots become fearsome creatures with legs, crawling around, messing with your plants.

Quarantine Rules

• New plants should be kept in a totally separate garden area from any clean garden plants. The spaces should be kept as far apart as possible.
• New plants should be cared for only after other gardens are serviced.
• New plants should never be placed with other plants until they are fully certified disease-free.
• New plants should be checked daily. Both telltale marks left by the pest and the pest itself are used as indicators.

FLY IN THROUGH AN UNFILTERED AIR INTAKE PIPE OR OPEN WINDOW

I recently saw an ad for a “travel blind” vacation. You sign up for a tropical weekend and they don’t tell you where you’re going until you get there. Insects travel a lot like that. We’ve discussed how they can hitch rides on people and things. However, they can also become airborne. Swept up by the wind, they travel on air currents. It’s a risky proposition for them and many are lost to inhospitable environments where they drown, roast or starve to death. However, insect survival theory takes the losses into account. Thousands may be lost, but one successful colonization may result in hundreds of thousands or millions of progeny. It’s a risk reward ratio that has helped insects be successful for hundreds of millions of years.

Here’s where the theory literally hits the fan. Gardens are often ventilated using air from outside. On breezy days anything can be caught in a wind current. Even on calm days some pest may be flying around and get sucked into the vortex created by the air intake. The solution is simple. Place filters over all intake tubing. Not only will it protect the garden from pests, but also from dust, dander and fur. Nobody likes to see lint on his or her veggies.

I live in a part of the country that stays mild all year. During the warmest months an open window or door usually suffices to adjust the house temperature. Needless to say, my houseplants are constantly getting infected with scale, aphid and mealy bug infections. Between the breezes and the people walking in and out there’s ample opportunity for pests to get to the plants.

In a serious indoor production garden there can never be an open window. All windows must be kept shut. All air that comes in from outside, whether from under the house, through tubing in the window, or any other outside location must be filtered before it enters the room.

CRAWL IN THROUGH CRACKS AND OTHER OPENINGS

Yards are often a source of infection. Insects that hang out in host plants are only a few feet away from Paradise. If there is vegetation next to the building or house you might wish to change the landscaping. Cover the yard in used commercial carpet, installed upside down. The carpet stops all light from reaching the ground and prevents plants from reaching the light. Cover this with gravel stone or decorative mulch. With no plants growing there’s less chance of herbivore pests hanging out in the back yard. The carpet is thick enough to stop plants from growing through it, but it lets the rain soak through. It is free, and available outside any carpet store. It is convenient to use when cut into three-foot wide strips

Secure the perimeter of the indoor space. Using foam caulking, every crack and crevice should be sealed. Before sealing, place a mixture of 50% each boric acid and cinnamon in the cracks using a small spoon. Boric acid is toxic to many insects if they ingest it. When they touch it, granules stick to the exoskeleton. They lick it off and burn out, inside first. Cinnamon is toxic and repulsive to ants. When the mixture is placed in the crevices it signals to pests, “Don’t crawl here.” Make sure there are no open cracks. Even the cracks in the floors should be sealed to make it extremely difficult for insects to crawl through.

By preventing pests from gaining access to your garden, you won’t have to try to eliminate them later. The old adage proves true: an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of pesticide…

What exactly is “bat guano” and why did it burn the $@#! out of my plants?

Because you used too much of it! Duh! High nitrogen bat guano is composed of the fresh bat poop on the bottom of the cave. After the guano miner dudes mine all the fresh stuff they start to mine the hard floor which is the high phosphorus bat guano. The high phosphorus guano is fossilized high nitrogen guano. Guano which is rich in nitrogen contains a considerable amount of ammonia and ammonium nitrate.  This is what gives the nitrogen component to the fertilizer. The nitrogen is released freely whereas the phosphorus and potassium are slower to release. This is what burned your plants. High nitrogen bat guano should be applied between 1-3 pounds per cubic yard. A tablespoon or two per five gallon pot. Take it easy!

Can you add too much compost tea?

There is good biology and bad biology. You only waste money by over-applying good biology. That is, unless you disturb the natural balance of the soil. In all our years of using compost tea we have never seen a negative effect – unless you drown your plants in it!

Can certain soils be “too rich” for some plants?

Yes, soil is a natural “buffer” for your plants but don’t think it will prevent you from totally frying your plants with too much fertilizer! Many people have proved this fact. Most problems arise through misapplication. Growers read teaspoon as tablespoon. Or guess that they put in 10 mills a liter instead of measuring it. Or they feed, feed, feed, feed, over and over again with no run off from the bottom of their pots. Or simply their pH is off. All these things are really common. Read the manufacturer’s instructions and don’t be afraid to call them up if you have question.

What’s best for fast growing veg? Pre-mixed products or a DIY mix?

Difficult question! In either case you should use a proper balanced soil. It needs good drainage, and rich with no more than 30% good quality compost: try to use 10-15 %.  For most growers (especially beginners) it’s better to buy a good quality soil than to try and make one up – but experienced growers sometimes enjoy the challenge or have a good recipe.

Do you have a tried and tested soil recipe?

The following recipes are great because they are so simple and very effective for growing heavy-feeding, sun-loving plants that enjoy lots of aeration around the roots.

Recipe 1
2 parts coco
2 parts peat
1 part earthworm castings
1 part perlite

Recipe 2
2 parts Sunshine no 4
½ part earthworm castings

Got an organic mix of your own you want to share with us? Tell us about it!

Life is a miracle and cultivating plants is part of that miracle. In caring for our plants we form a symbiotic relationship with them. We watch our plants grow and do everything we can to help them reach their full potential. When we harvest and consume our crops, those same plants we cared for help us to grow! Seasoned gardeners are aware that this is just one relationship, one link in the miraculous chain of life. It’s so marvelous that many beginner gardeners focus exclusively on that ‘link’ – maybe because it’s the one that happens to be most directly appreciable to our senses. But there is a whole universe right beneath our noses that exists just beyond our powers of vision. It is a hidden world of microbiology that exists in the soil itself. We tend to appreciate this indirectly through effects, rather than causes, observing a plant as “healthy” or “diseased.” But with a little knowledge, seasoned with some imagination (or a powerful microscope!) the true extent to which we share this world can be revealed and the way in which we care for our plants is transformed.

A World In A Teaspoon

Okay, enough romantic talk of Mother Nature. Let’s move on to some mind-blowing facts. And these facts really are mind-blowing! Don’t just “uhuh” as you read these. See if you can actually visualize what is about to be described:

Imagine taking a teaspoon and dipping it into some living soil. Lift it up and hold it in front of you. What do you see? A teaspoon of dirt?

A teaspoon of living soil contains 100 million to 1 billion bacteria, 1 to 40 miles of fungal hyphae, and 1,000-100,000 protozoa!

40 miles of fungal hyphae in one teaspoon!? Now do you see we’re talking about another world within our world? What are these organisms? Well, they are all part of this whole chain of life that helps to grow your plants. These organisms are as real as they are small. And in their huge numbers, they play a really important role in plant health and growth. The bacteria eat the exudates (simple sugars, carbons, carbohydrates) that the plant puts out through its roots, which are then eaten by the protozoa. What is excreted by the protozoa is now plant-available nutrients. Beneficial fungi protect the plant from pathogens and harmful microbes, as well as creating pathways in the soil that bring water and nutrients back to the plant from larger distances. Bacteria and fungi work together in decomposing organic material and making the nutrients plant-available. This is a sustainable process known as “nutrient cycling” that allows for the growth of healthy plants, without the need for fertilizers, pesticides, and other chemicals. After all, there’s no one out there putting Miracle-Gro on our rainforests each year, yet look at how successful plants are at growing in these microbial-rich environments!

The War on Terra

Most soil these days lacks the biology necessary to cycle nutrients to the plant and protect it. Where did they go? They were killed off by so-called modern agricultural methods or “the war on terra” – years of abuse including overuse of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, over-tilling, and compaction.

Chemical fertilizers and other -cides contain salts. Remember back to high school science where you learned about the process of osmosis? It’s the movement of water through a cell membrane from a solution of low solute concentration to a solution with high solute concentration. In living soil, water is locked up in the cells of the microorganisms. With the proper biology in place, you can cut back on your watering by up to 30%! When salts in the form of chemical inputs are added to the soil, the water is drawn out of the microbes and they are either killed or go into a dormant state. Now the plant is dependent on you to provide all of its food and protection. That’s why you have to fertilize on a regular basis.

In addition to damaging the biology in the soils, these chemicals are having other impacts of much greater consequence. Nitrates from fertilizers are leaching into our water system, and pesticide exposure has been linked to a variety of serious diseases such as cancer. There’s a reason that lawn companies recommend keeping children and pets off lawns after they’ve been sprayed. These chemicals are highly toxic!

So what’s the alternative? There is a shift from our current N-P-K paradigm towards an organic way of gardening by feeding the microbes in the soil and letting them do the work for us. Our ancient ancestors gardened in this manner long before we knew what bacteria were! Fertilizer was in the form of manures, which were decomposed by the microbes and provided all the nutrients the plant needed.

Creating Life in Soil Again: Compost Tea

Using present day technology, we are now able to add these beneficial organisms back into our soils and feed them through a variety of organic inputs. The three best things you can do for your soil is to top dress with compost, mulches, and compost tea. Since many of you probably already know about the benefits of compost and mulch, I’d like to focus a bit more on compost tea.

When I say compost tea, I’m referring to actively aerated compost tea, or AACT for short. This distinction is important because there is a big difference between throwing some compost or manure in a bucket and letting it sit for a couple of weeks, and AACT.

AACT is an aerobic water solution that has extracted the microbe population from compost along with its nutrients. The concept behind compost tea is quite simple, though the actual process becomes scientific and has many variables that need to be accounted for. The idea is that compost (full of beneficial microorganisms) is put into water and then nutrients or foods for the microorganisms are added to allow the bacteria and protozoa to multiply rapidly and the fungi to grow. Air is sent through the water to keep the dissolved oxygen levels above 6 mg/liter, as this selects for the aerobic microorganisms, which are the ones found to be most beneficial. At the end of the brewing cycle, what you have is a concentrated liquid literally teeming with billions of microorganisms that can be sprayed directly onto the leaf surface of your plants or onto your soil. This puts the “good” biology where the plant needs it to protect itself. It keeps the plant healthier and helps to fight off potential diseases. The “good” biology occupies the infection sites on the leaf surface and survives by consuming the exudates that the plant puts out. The “good” biology then out-competes the pathogens for the space on the leaf surface or around the roots (rhizosphere). This is how plants protect themselves and thrive in nature.

It is possible to make bad AACT. If you don’t start with good compost, don’t add the proper amount of nutrients, or keep the brew sufficiently aerated, you could be selecting for pathogens rather than beneficial microbes and end up with a tea that will have little to no effect on your plant or possibly even do damage.

Along with compost tea it’s important to do applications of other bio-amendments such as soluble seaweed, humic acids, and fish hydrolysate, for example. Seaweed serves as a bacterial food substrate and also provides additional benefits for your plants in the form of growth hormones, increased stress resistance, and faster plant response. Humic acids serve as a fungal food, and also chelate (bond with) minerals in your soil and make them available (many minerals in your soils are “locked up” or unavailable). These sorts of applications work by feeding the microbes, which in turn feed your plants.

When gardening in this manner, it’s important to adjust your application rates or program to fit within the needs of your garden. I’d suggest an initial topdressing of your garden with compost and an application of compost tea, adding soluble seaweed and humic acids to the tea after brewing. Then, another application 2-3 weeks before planting and another one when you plant your starters (adding mycorrhizal fungi into the hole at this time). In the fall, I’d add a mulch to your garden, followed by an application of compost tea (to speed up decomposition over the winter). You may or may not need an organic fertilizer (NPK below 10-10-10) to supplement the rest of your program.

Once an organic program has been established, typical application rates of AACT, humic acids, and seaweed are only 3-5 times per year. Now the plant is in charge, and the organisms are in place to cycle the nutrients for the plant. This is what sustainable gardening is all about!

WORDS: Tad Hussey, Keep It Simple, Inc. www.simplici-tea.com

THE BASICS

What is a Soil Amendment?

A soil amendment is just stuff you add to soil – either a single ingredient or a blend – to help combat micronutrient deficiencies, adjust pH, combat salts, introduce microbial activities, and so much more. But hey, don’t confuse soil amendments with fertilizers – these add formulated food for the purpose of the plant, while soil amendments are used to treat the soil itself. However, that said, many soil amendments are also used in blended fertilizers and provide feeding nutrition.

Types of Amendments

Soil amendments come in many different forms; most are organic, which is preferable for your soils, some are considered “natural” which are derived naturally though not necessarily organic, and some are synthetic. Organic amendments as well as naturally derived amendments are the best way to change your soils from a dead clay heap to a living, symbiotic organism. The categories of amendments include: bark products, plant byproducts, animal byproducts, manure-based, compost and mulch based, and rock and mineral powder based.

Do I Need a Soil Amendment?

As a rule of thumb, all soils love to be amended; the question actually lies in: which amendment do you need? It is best to have your soil tested for pH, micro nutrient deficiencies, salt content and more before applying products that will alter the nutrient value of your soil. Just because lime is a great amendment, it does not necessarily mean that you need it. When selecting a soil amendment you look for how long the amendment will last in the soil depending on your growing season; the soil texture and salinity; the plants you are planting; and the salt and pH content.

Which Amendment is Right for Me?

PLANT BYPRODUCTS

First, let’s take a look at the soil amendments that are made from plants:

Alfalfa Meal

Feeds with 3% nitrogen and is known to contain growth factors and mineral content. Very common ingredient in many blended organic fertilizers.

Coconut Fiber

Great aerator. Excellent soil amendment or a standalone grow medium. Coconut not only provides great aeration but also efficient transfer of nutrients. Check your source though, as coconut can be very salty and this can harm soils and plants.

Cottonseed Meal

Nitrogen super booster! (Between 6-7%.) Only “organic” if it was grown that way – most cotton farms use chemical foods and insecticides. So, check your source. Cottonseed meal is also a very common ingredient in blended fertilizers.

Seaweed

Adds micronutrients and plant hormones! Derived from varieties of kelp harvested from the ocean then dried and ground into a powder form. Contains small amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Many forms include kelp extracts in which compounds are extracted from the seaweed to concentrate the micronutrients and other helpful plant hormones. They are not high enough to correct deficiencies, but kelp provides plants and soils with a vitamin like effect.

Soybean Meal

Adds vital nitrogen to the soil. Usually one of the more expensive amendments, but very useful.

Sphagnum Peat Moss

Great to add to rough soils. Improves moisture retention.

Wood Ash

Another soil softener. Adds essential phosphate and potash. Can be a little high in pH (very alkaline) so go easy on it. Great to add to very acidic soils that are high in nitrogen.

ANIMAL BYPRODUCTS

Blood Meal

Use with caution or risk burning your plants. It’s dried and ground waste from slaughterhouses, primarily steer, and is a strong source of nitrogen.

Bone Meal

Slow release. Another common ingredient in fertilizer mixes, and due to its high amounts of phosphorus, should be used with care like blood meal.

Earthworm Castings

Clean, usually odorless, and can be used on all soil and plants. Castings, when concentrated, are rich in nitrogen but they will not burn plants. Castings vary but can contain magnesium, calcium, potassium, potash, micronutrients, and some trace elements. Grain fed castings tend to be the best and stay in the soil longer, while manure fed castings are a lower grade, but release their nutrients faster. More importantly, worm castings contain tons of beneficial organisms and microbes that help to restore soil life and begin recreating the soil web.

Feather Meal

Products of the poultry industry, the feathers are ground into a meal which contains levels of nitrogen which releases a little slower than other nitrogen sources.

Fish Meal

Ground and dried fish waste. A good source of nitrogen and some phosphorous too. Not to be confused with fish emulsion, which is a liquid form of the fish waste products and less stable.

Oyster Shell Lime

Sometimes grouped with dolomite lime, however it is derived from the shells of finely ground oyster shells rather than being rock-based like dolomite lime. Oyster Shell lime will raise pH, add calcium, and many micronutrients. The microbial life inside of your soil loves oyster shell lime!

Phosphorous Bat Guano

King of the phosphorus amendments! Fantastic crop sweetener! Not to be confused with nitrogen bat guanos, which are more of a manure product, phosphorous bat guanos are ground up fossilized remains of bat poop. The phosphorus releases slowly into the soil over time and contains beneficial microbes too.

Shrimp, Crab, and Sea Meals

Ground waste products from sea going animals that are not fish. Their waste is primarily their shells and exoskeletons which provide an excellent source of major nutrients as well as many micro-nutrients. They break down slowly, thus providing some staying power.

MANURE-BASED AMENDMENTS

Nitrogen Bat Guanos

Bat droppings that are fresher provide a great source of nitrogen. They contain some phosphorus, though not as high of levels as the fossilized bat guanos. Nitrogen bat guano is considered to be the best of the manures as they are nutrient rich, but very stable.

Poultry Manure

Quick and dirty fix of nitrogen – releases very fast. One of the poorer quality manures, but effective if used quickly and properly treated. It can burn your plants, so it must be amended into the soil and watered in before planting. Fish meal is preferable as it is more stable and does not decompose as quickly.

Sewage Sludge / Bio-Solids

Very cheap, very dirty: derived from human waste and whatever else got flushed, such as traces of household chemicals, bleaches, and paints. It can contain many harmful pathogens and heavy metals. Not nice.

Steer Manure

The farmer’s stinky favorite. Derived from steers and some equine. Very potent source of nitrogen and should be used truly to amend soils in preparation of planting. Best for large gardens and not small landscapes or containers. In bagged form, it is still very volatile and breaks down quickly.

COMPOST-BASED AMENDMENTS

Compost

Derived from decayed plant matter such as your left over vegetable scraps. Compost does include decaying animal matter as well, but for most gardeners it comes from vegetable and fruit scraps from your home.

Mulch

Plant and bark materials that are not fully decomposed. Aids moisture retention, decreases temperatures (protects from hot temperatures), weed reduction, and more.

ROCK & MINERAL-BASED AMENDMENTS

Dolomite Lime

Provides calcium, magnesium, and lowers pH quickly. It also helps with the breaking up of clay soils.

Greensand

A clay-type mineral supplement, greensand will provide potassium on a slow release schedule. It is very effective at improving soil structures though not so much as a fertilizer.

Hard Rock Phosphate

Derived from volcanic deposits and highly mineral in composition. The phosphate is not as available as in more traditional, soft rock phosphates, so it is not always the best amendment. However, with its mineral qualities, it can provide slow and steady mineral release into soils.

Humates

Derived from leonardite, humic and fulvic acids, humates help with the active part of soil’s humus. These goodies help with nutrient uptake by plants and assist under the soil too.

Perlite

Volcanic rock “rice crispies.” Perlite is inert and provides drainage and aeration in to compacted soils. Perlite rises to the top when watered, so it is not the best to add to in-ground plantings, though very important for containers and raised beds.

Rock Phosphate

Excellent, slow releasing form of phosphorus. Many sources have been mined deeply and contain levels of arsenic, so get it tested or check your manufacturers MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet).

Vermiculite

Vermiculite is very light and can float in water. It is a great medium for starting seeds and amending soils as it contains some minerals and will help with aeration. Perlite provides better results for drainage and aeration, though.

WORDS: Helen Reid

What is Quinoa?

Chenopodium Quinoa (pronounced ‘keenwa’) is one of the most ancient crops that was domesticated in the Andes of South America. It has been cultivated for more that 6,000 years and is held sacred by the Incas and Aztecs cultures – referred to as the ‘mother grain.’ Quinoa seed looks like a cross between sesame and millet seed and, although treated as a grain, it’s not. It’s related to spinach and to the common weed Lamb’s Quarters. It’s an annual and grows between four and nine feet producing large, beautiful flowers. These amazing blooms vary in color from white to yellow to green to red and even black! The seed also varies in color. The most commonly imported seed is white and yellow, while red Quinoa is now making an appearance in many local grocery stores.

Historically, many rituals (and still some today) were involved in the growing of this beautiful plant. In ancient times the first seed of the season was planted by the emperor (god-king), a cultural ritual and spiritual practice. Consuming the sacred grain was known to sustain the body with long endurance, heighten psychic abilities and bring one to a deeply spiritual place through meditation.

The Natives of the Andes used Quinoa not only as a food but as a medicine. It was used to treat appendicitis, liver problems, urinary tract problems, and infections.

The Crusade Against Quinoa

In 1532, the Spaniards reached the Andes and, in just one year, they destroyed the Quinoa fields and killed the god-king. The Spaniards dominated the Incas and forbade them to practice their ceremonial rituals that revolved around growing and harvesting this sacred plant. Instead they were forced to work in gold mines and grow grains such as barley and wheat. Some natives continued to grow small amounts high in the mountains though. Good on ‘em!

In the past thirty years there’s been a resurgence of Quinoa and farmers are being encouraged to grow organic crops for locals as well as export. This resurgence stemmed from two students, Stephen Gorad and Don McKinley, in the 1970s. Their Bolivian spiritual leader encouraged them to find and eat Quinoa as it was known to bring about deeper spiritual sensitivity during meditation. These students not only found that after eating Quinoa their meditations became deeper, but they felt physically healthier too. They returned to Colorado and began importing Quinoa. Eventually they became the founders of the Quinoa Corporation in 1983. Gorad and McKinley call Quinoa the “super grain of the future.”

Quinoa is highly nutritious and can supply all of the body’s requirements:  carbohydrates, fats, protein, vitamins, mineral, and fiber. The protein content of the seed averages at approximately 16% – compared to wheat (14%), rye (12%), and brown rice (7.5%). It contains an almost ideal essential amino acid content and contains lysine – which is not found in other grains. As a result, Quinoa is considered to be a complete protein, unlike other grains such as wheat, millet and barley. It is more comparable to milk and soybeans and is completely gluten free.

Quinoa is rich in calcium, iron, phosphorus, B vitamins, and vitamin E. It also contains potassium, magnesium, zinc and copper. It is alkaline, low in sodium, has a very low glycemic index and is easy to digest (good for the young and the elderly). Quinoa is a nutrient powerhouse!

Quinoa is easy to prepare and can be substituted for rice, grains and breakfast cereal. It’s great in salads, stir fries, sprouted and even toasted and sprinkled onto any dish. The leaves of the plant are also highly nutritious and can be eaten raw in salads or cooked like spinach.

How to Grow It

Quinoa is a versatile plant that can be grown in many conditions. In the Andes it thrives at high elevations (up to 12,000 ft), grows well in drought conditions and can withstand light frosts. It prefers temperatures under 90 °F (32 °C), and cool nighttime temperatures as well as sandy or loose alkaline soil. It does well in ordinary soil, but does even better with added nutrient, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus.

Quinoa grows especially well on the south coast of British Columbia, as long as soils are light and not heavy clay.  B.C.’s dry warm summers produce healthy yields. Growers on the south coast sow their seeds in late April through May. One gram of seed will yield a 30 to 50 ft row. If soil is too warm, seed will not germinate. Rows should be two feet apart. Germination should take three to four days. Plants should be thinned to 12-18” apart. Regular weeding and some watering (not too much) should produce fine plants. Do not over water, as Quinoa tends to produce larger heads when the soil is fairly dry.

Quinoa is ready to harvest after the leaves have fallen and the dried seed heads remain on the stalk. To determine ripeness of the seeds, press the seed with your thumbnail and if you can barely indent it then it is ready to harvest. Harvest should take place before the rains come, so keep a good eye on the weather. If the seeds get wet, they may germinate right on the plant.

Harvest

Cut the stalks down and lay them on a tarp. Place in a garage or greenhouse to ensure that it’s kept dry. The seed can be removed from the stalk by running your hand down the stalk while wearing a rubber glove. The seed, dried leaves and stems all come off easily. I then place this in a container (box or bowl) and crush it quite well. The chaff (which is lighter than the seed) can then be winnowed off: blown off using a blow dryer or an air compressor.

Quinoa seed is covered with a bitter substance called saponin. This is advantageous for our local gardens and farms, as birds and deer do not like the taste (neither do humans). This substance needs to be rinsed off before using. It can be removed in several ways. I prefer to put the Quinoa into a pillowcase and run it through a cold water cycle of an automatic washing machine twice. This can also be done by using a blender and changing the water about five or six times. In South America, saponin is removed commercially in large tubs. It is still removed on smaller farms by rubbing it over hot rocks (in bare feet!), and then blown off. Saponin has already been removed from the Quinoa that you buy at the grocery store.

Yield

Harvest yields vary depending on soil and nutrient. Plants generally yield one or two ounces, but can yield even more with more nutrient rich soils, where plants can easily yield up to six ounces.

Quinoa is a highly rewarding plant to grow. It boasts a superior food quality than common grains such as wheat and oats, and does not have hulls that need to be removed by machinery prior to cooking. Not only is it highly nutritious and satisfying as a food source, it requires little water, little fertilization, little maintenance, and at the same time looks absolutely beautiful in the garden.

How to Cook Quinoa

Here’s the most basic recipe:

1-2 cups of water
1 cup of Quinoa

If time permits, soak your Quinoa in warm water with 1tbsp apple cider or lime juice for an hour or more, at room temperature. Then rinse your Quinoa and add to cold water in a pot. Bring to boil. Cover, reduce to a simmer, and cook for about 15 minutes. You can also remove the pot from the heat and the water will eventually be absorbed. Quinoa is cooked when the grains turn soft and transparent.

Media Culpa and Water Worries

We all know that the water we use to make up our nutrient solution is a key factor in pH and conductivity variation – it is not the only source of trouble however. Another common cause of unstable pH and salinity is poor quality growing media.  Industrial grade rockwool and gravel are notorious for having very high pH levels that can cause your nutrient pH to rise, often to dangerous levels.  Coco fiber or ‘coir’ can contain high levels of sodium and chloride, typically from seawater since coconuts are often harvested near the ocean; high levels of sodium can be very harmful to plants.  This is where the conductivity, or total salt content, of your nutrient solution becomes a source of stress to your plants – these problems can come from your media or from your water supply.

Consider this example: you want to make up a 1,000 ppm (.5 miliSiemen) nutrient blend for your plants. You test your tap water and find that it is 300 ppm TDS (total dissolved solids).  This means that you can only add 700 ppm of nutrient to make a 1000 ppm blend, 300 of which is unknown or problematic.  With hard water most of this 300 ppm is probably going to be Calcium and Magnesium.  Immediately you have a nutrient imbalance.  At first it is not so bad, but with time the salts will accumulate in the media or soil and leave a salt residue on everything.  Your plants start out stressed and over time it just gets worse.  This is a case where an R/O filter (reverse osmosis) could make a very big difference since it will remove the salts from your incoming water.  An alternative solution is to collect rainwater to mix with your nutrient.

A simple way to test new growing medium is to put some of the medium – rockwool, gravel, soil – into a clean cup, then immerse (soak) the sample in distilled, reverse osmosis purified or “deionized” (purified) water. Let this sit for a while (say, an hour) and then test the pH and EC of the water, note the pH and the EC and continue to let the sample sit. Test the pH and EC occasionally until it has stabilized, it may take days in extreme examples. Has the pH risen to 8.0, perhaps 9.0? Construction grade gravel can go as high as 10.0.  On this scale ‘10’ is absolutely not the ideal – it spells torture for roots and death to your plants!  If the EC rises very much then the media has soluble minerals of unknown character, probably harmful since neutral media is what we’re after here.

Never underestimate growing media as a source of pH problems. This is one of the primary reasons that “waterculture” hydroponic methods are gaining popularity over “media-based” hydroponics. Water-culture systems require less water and nutrient than media-based methods, due to higher efficiencies and reduced evaporation.  However, they are much less forgiving of high nutrient temperatures than media-based systems and lack the ‘buffering’ power of excellent quality media that can help stabilize pH. If you have to use hard water to mix your nutrient then use a specialty fertilizer made for hard water.  Hard water formulations usually will have reduced calcium. Alternatively blend soft water with your hard water to at least get it down to 200 ppm or so.

Water-culture systems are like driving a Ferrari, fantastic performance is possible if you know what you’re doing but you can also get into trouble really fast if you don’t!  You need to ensure your temperatures remain within strict ranges and your water is excellent – this less forgiving environment is not the way to learn unless you are ready for some challenges.  Keep in mind that water-culture systems require very high levels of dissolved oxygen to work well.  Oxygen solubility, like all gasses, is directly related to liquid temperature.  Cold nutrient holds a lot of dissolved oxygen, warm nutrient much less – just as a cold beer is full of carbon dioxide and a warm beer is flat. Temperature controls gas solubility.  For reference 82 °F (28 °C) water can only hold about half as much dissolved oxygen as 58 °F (14 °C) water.  This is a very steep solubility curve.

Nutrient Nasties

The problem of pathogens, or disease, in the nutrient solution can be a serious one. It is not uncommon for this to be a regional and seasonal problem. For example, in Holland during the winter, fungi thrive in the cool and damp environment – the air is full of spores. All kinds of soil and airborne diseases become endemic so growers have to work smart to avoid infestations. One of the reasons Dutch growers adopted hydroponics so readily was to avoid soil-borne diseases.

Nonetheless, hydroponics is susceptible to a host of diseases when things go wrong.  If your nutrient solution becomes too warm, its ability to hold dissolved oxygen is drastically reduced.  This, in turn, leads to oxygen deficiencies in the nutrient which invites many pathogens – these can quickly gain an advantage over the plant.  Pythium can lead to slimy dark roots.  Sick roots cannot supply a plant with nutrients and moisture and soon the part of the plant above the ground, or hydroponic system, stops growing and becomes sickly.  Fungus gnats often precede pythium.  The larvae of the fungus gnats crawl over the roots eating holes into them, then the pythium fungus enters the holes in the roots and the disease begins.  If the nutrient is warm the pythium gets worse until the plants keel over and die!  So remember: dark slimy roots = dead plants = heartache!

Nutrient temperature is one of the most crucial factors in plant health when growing hydroponically.  Simply speaking, it is best if the nutrient solution is like a cool mountain stream bathing the roots.  It is dangerous when nutrient becomes hot, does not flow fast enough to maintain oxygen saturation, or is contaminated by the presence of a sick plant or pathogen. Warm nutrient is where inoculation of roots and nutrient solution with beneficial organisms really pays off.  Generally speaking, the warmer the nutrient, the more important aeration is.

Cleanliness is Next to Crop Success

Keep your growing area clean!  Some growers I know place a sponge-mat soaked with disinfectant at the doorway of their greenhouse and demand that everyone who enters clean their shoes on the mat before entering!  It’s a very wise move.  For similar reasons, don’t allow pets into your growing area.  Dogs, cats, mice and rats are magnets for insects and spores and can easily bring them in from the outside, introducing them to your growing environment can introduce a disaster – take spider mites for example!  Experienced growers attach a fine filter to their inflow fans to exclude insects and spores.  The filtered inflow also gives the greenhouse or indoor garden a positive pressure charge of fresh air.  This is an effective and practical way to prevent insects and disease organisms from entering the greenhouse and endangering the crop. Commercial and research growers know these tricks and apply them routinely.

Discovering Sickness

Finding an infected plant in your hydroponic system is always a shock but don’t panic just yet.  If you move quickly you can reduce the risk of the disease racing through the entire crop.  However, if you are not so vigilant, by the time you notice a problem it could already be way out of control. Plant diseases are a huge subject, so the best and most concise advice is to avoid problems by working clean, planting only healthy, disease-free plants, perfecting the growing environment and closely monitoring the crop. In many cases the infection can start with an infected donor plant from which cuttings are taken.  The donor may look ok,  just weakened by the disease, but the cuttings taken from the infected donor will carry the disease into the hydroponic system where it can spread.  Fungi, like powdery mildew, can enter a crop and spread this way.  It is systemic within the donor plant and continues through the cutting. A good method is to drench, or immerse cuttings in a specialized solution to kill the disease prior to dipping into a rooting stimulant.  This is a very sensitive subject since the regulations prevent manufacturers from discussing pathogens and disease management on their labels and in advertising. Look for products that provide a ‘shield’ or protection for your plants or products containing ‘neem’ or its active compound ‘azadirachtin’.  Neem is an excellent natural pesticide that can be sprayed onto plants to control insects or used as a ‘drench’ to act systemically within the plant.  Put some into a watering can and give your plants a drench periodically to prevent insect and fungi attack. Note that these disease-controlling products can challenge beneficial organisms in the root zone, not a problem with topical or spray application, but definitely an issue when added to nutrient or used as a drench.  A few days after the drench, renew your beneficials with a ‘chaser’ or drench with beneficials a few days after using the ‘shield’, or neem.

If you see evidence of disease in a single plant, don’t miss a beat – remove and destroy it quickly before the disease spreads. Watch the crop closely and remove any other plants that show signs of disease. It is better to lose a few sick plants than to risk an entire crop. Use a product that contains beneficial inoculants mixed with fresh water in a watering can to give each plant’s roots a periodic drenching and establish and maintain a protective colony of beneficials.

If you do encounter disease problems it is a good idea to completely drain and renew your nutrient after removing the sick plants. If it is possible there is nothing better than to flush the system by running fresh water without nutrient for a day.  Use one of the many flushing solutions available to really clean up your media and system, the good ones contain ingredients that will strip away impurities like salt accumulations while maintaining good osmotic pressure for the plants. Flushing between every two to four nutrient changes can help maintain cleanliness in the root zone and in the hydroponic system. Periodic flushing is especially helpful for gravel systems and for soils and ‘soilless mixes’ to remove salt accumulation in the medium. More frequently if your have hard water, less frequently if you have good soft water. Flushing products are also used to clear irrigation sprayers and drippers from salt blockages.

Read on in the third part of this series, when we look at how to introduce beneficial biology into a hydroponic growing environment!