Garden Culture Magazine: UK 7

UK

EDITIO

N YEA

R 1 - ISSU

E 3 · SU

MM

ER 2013

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PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT 10

CONTENTS I GARDEN CULTURE

IN THIS ISSUE OF GARDEN CULTURE:

WHO’S GROWING WHAT WHERE

4262

SAGEGROW-YOUR-OWN

3648organic

VSSYNTHETICNUTRIENTS

52

HUNGER

30

GARDENCULTURE.NET 7

78

CHEAP MAGNETIC

BALLASTS

lettucei grow

FOOD PATENTS

9 Foreword

10 Product Spotlight

13 Stay out

14 GMO Controversy increases

16 Making your own soil mix

21 Horticulturallighting

22 The UK Grow Scene

25 Five Cool Finds

27 Organic music

29 Dirt: good for what ails you

30 Hunger – a growing need

33 Grodan is going to Mars

36 Sage – Wisdom of the Ages

41 Plant Power

42 Who’s Growing What Where

44 Teach ‘em young

48 Organicvs.Syntheticnutrients

52 The problem with Food Patents

54 Wind & Water: sustainable food transport

56 LEDspecifications

58 Seed Diversity

62 IgrowLettuce

68 Reusingyourpottingsoil

72 SupplementalLighting

78 Cheapmagneticballasts

83 StartingonaBudget

FOREWORD

If you are planning to star t your f irst indoor

garden, or are expanding/upgrading your current

one, chances are you will need to make some

purchases.

So you take a trip to your local hydroponics store. If you are new to this, being a bit overwhelmed by the selection is common, especially if you visit several stores. My advice is - do your homework, and question everything. Over the past 10 years this industry has exploded, and so has the number of products offered.

Beware of cheap imitations! Trying to save too much money will often cost you more in the end, especially when it comes to hardware like ballasts and bulbs. Unfortunately, anyone can go to China and buy whatever they want, dress it up pretty, and sell it as a premium product at a huge discount. You think you are getting a great deal, when all you are getting are problems.

Indoor gardening is an art. You are Mother Nature, and control everything. Like in so many systems the whole is as strong as its weakest link. Take time to learn what a plant needs, read books written by experts, and buy good equipment - then you will be better prepared to have a bountiful garden with few problems.

Parting with your hard-earned money can be painful, but the lowest price is rarely the best deal. As a wise man once told me, “ I am too poor to buy cheap.” 3

Eric

CREDITS

Garden Culture™ is a publication of 325 Media Inc.

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]. 1-514-754-1539

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

Special thanks to:Our writers Tammy, Evan Folds, Theo Tekstra, Judd Stone, Jim Oates, Stephen Brookes, Wendy Denney, Kyle Ladenburger, Amber Fields, Darryl Cotton, Brian Burk, Stephanie Whitley, Grubbycup, My beautiful wife and partner Celia, Maya and Kees, Job, Callie Coe, Agent Green and Monsantofor motivating me to fight back.

P U B L I S H E R325 Media44 Hyde Rd., Milles IslesQuébec, 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. 1-514-233-1539

D I S T R I B U T I O N PA R T N E R S• Down to Earth Kent• Maxigrow• Nutriculture DGS• Team Hydro

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.

GARDENCULTURE.NET 9

FOREWORD & CREDITS I GARDEN CULTURE

?INVESTMENT

fresh

Current Culture’s (SCC®) Deep Water technology utilizes

negative water pressure to recirculate oxygenated nutrient

solution through the plant’s root zone. This continuous

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oxygen, creating hyper-aerobic conditions perfect for

explosive plant growth. Constant 24/7 nutrient circulation

ensures pH and EC levels are uniform throughout the

entire system.

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Current

CultureDWC

product spotlight

Established for over 15 years, AutoPot provide growers of all abilities with a watering system that will far exceed their expectations. From commercial glasshouses to domestic greenhouses; growers worldwide choose AutoPot Watering Systems to automatically irrigate their plants without the need for pumps timers or electricity. Thanks to the patented AQUAvalve technology; AutoPot is the only watering system in the world where each individual plant controls their own irrigation, and receives fresh nutrient enriched water exactly when they need it - with zero water loss www.autopot.co.uk

Autopot

In this edition we will feature the products in my garden. I have spent over 10 years experimenting with indoor gardening,

and these are some of my favorites. Although not included in the product spotlight, I would like to give a nod to Can Fans

(I have had the same fan for 10 years), HM Digitals new HydroMaster meter, Opticfoliar Greener Cleaner (‘cause for the

first time with a huge garden I have no bugs), and Fulvic acid in general (I use Organic Rescue Mist, and Pure Gold from

Nutri Plus 29% Fulvic content and is certified organic).

Eric

Garden Gadgets

10

Eric’s

fresh

DWC

product spotlight

Manufactured by the same people

who made the Ecosystem, the

Ecogrowwall is a modular vertical

garden. Simply click the panels

together in whatever configuration

you like and snap to support. All

plumbing hardware is included, easy

compression-pop fittings make

setting up the watering system a

breeze. Each chamber is designed to

support one 48”X6” rockwool slab. Set comes with 5 channels.

When space is a concern, turn your walls into a garden.

www.ecogrowwall.com

Our NFT Gro-Tanks give roots virtually unrestricted access to

oxygen. Yields are typically much bigger than if growing in pots of dirt.

The depth of the recirculating stream is very shallow, little more than

a film of water, hence the name ‘nutrient film’. This ensures that the

thick root mat, which develops in the bottom of the channel has

constant access to nutrients and air.

Nutrient solution is constantly pumped to the roots, there’s no timer

to program.

Because virtually no growing medium is used there’s nothing to

transport or throw away at the end of the season. Very clean, very

easy, and very impressive results.

Perfect for beginners or experts.

www.nutriculture.com

Nutriculture Gro-Tanks NFT

Ecogrow

wall Garden Gadgets

Sunlight Supply is pleased to announce the arrival of the LEC 315 light fixture. The LEC 315 utilizes cutting edge Light Emitting Ceramic™ technology, along with a specially engineered 98% reflective optical cavity. This fixture includes a highly efficient, agriculturally engineered Philips CDM-T Elite Agro Lamp. This lamp offers a greatly improved full color light spectrum, 3100K color temperature, 92 CRI, 33,000 initial lumens (105Lm/W)! Higher amounts of beneficial UV and far red spectrums increase the lamps growth power to the plants. The LEC drive incorporates built-in thermal protection, and the open rated lamp construction reduces radiant heat from the arc tube, and is suitable for open fixture use. www.sunlightsupply.com

Sun System

LEC 315

GARDENCULTURE.NET 11

GARDEN PRODUCTS I GARDEN CULTURE

12

product spotlight

The Adjust-A-Wings Enforcer reflector range have the same essential features as Hygro International’s world-famous Avenger models, save for the Super reflective “glass coated” finish, and the high end price tag. The finish on the Enforcer Wings is 85% reflective, and guaranteed for 3 years. Made by skilled workers, using carefully selected high quality materials and fittings. These reflectors throw a huge light footprint, run nice and cool, produce killer yields, and have gained the respect and admiration of all who use them!www.adjustawings.com

Adjust-A-Wings

Growing in indoor conditions without sunlight not only

requires a good climate, but also a good quality light.

Though one can grow successful under HPS alone, or

a combination of HPS and MH, it is still not the full

spectrum our sun delivers. The Gavita light Plasma

fixtures produce light with a spectrum similar to that

of the sun, making it the ideal supplement

to HPS for serious growers.

Plasma lights alone are perfect for

vegetative periods, or green plants.

www.gavita-holland.com

Following three-years of research and testing The MINIMAX 150 with microprocessor

has finally arrived. We now have CE registration and are ready to impress UK growers.

Running at less than 0.7amp we feel that this little unit will revolutionize indoor grow

lighting. No longer do growers have to compromise with low wattage alternatives that

just don’t do a great job. The MINIMAX 150 operates with either Metal Halide or High

Pressure Sodium bulbs.

• High lumen output (Sunmaster 150W

Dual Spectrum Lamp -17200 Lumens)

• Low bulb temperature

• Full RF filtration

Gavita Plasma

• No need for costly contact/relay controllers

• Comes with full three year guarantee

• Operates with either Metal Halide or High Pressure Sodium bulbs.

www.downtoearthkent.co.uk

The

Minimax 150

I’m not sure what kind of

reception they thought they

would get, but it was nasty. I

went over myself to talk to the

30-something guy in the booth.

“So, is everyone blasting you for

being here?” I asked. He told me

he felt like a cat in a dog show.

I also told him that I despised the company he worked for

and if he had a soul he would quit ASAP, then I left. I walked

about 20 feet and watched, a steady stream of people doing

just what I did. It was a reception that new surfers get when

they are in the wrong spot. I was polite, others were not, at

least 10 people told him to get the f**k out.

It was amazing to watch, a never-ending bombardment of

negative energy focused on this poor unsuspecting employee.

It took about 3 hours or so, and he packed up his stuff, called

his suit-wearing boss, and told him he was going home. I

didn’t give him a kick on the way out or anything, but

it did feel good. We all felt good. Somehow we just

kicked Monsanto out of a gardening trade show.

How did this happen? Who is this group of people

who are so against this company that they could

force the world’s biggest ag/chemical company to flee

with his proverbial tail between his legs. It was you,

and the companies you support. If you own a small

indoor garden shop, and are afraid what will happen

when, or if, the big players like

Wal-Mart, Costco, and the like

gets involved... I think we just saw

the answer. Indoor gardeners

seem to have a general dislike

of companies like Monsanto and

Wal-Mart. It wasn’t financial

motivation that made all those

people turn on that sales guy at the Max Yield show, it was

an ethical action.

I found this event inspiring, and was very proud of the people

who stood up for their beliefs.

It still begs the question, why were they there, and how are

they going to weasel their way back in? I hope they got the

message, but if they didn’t I’m confident we will collectively

make them feel very unwelcome. Sorry Monsanto…wait, no

I’m not. 3

BY ERIC

How did this happen? Who is this group of people who are so against this company that they could force the world’s

biggest ag/chemical company to flee with his proverbial tail

between his legs.

Ira Bostic / Shutterstock.com


MONSANTO I GARDEN CULTURE

product spotlightSTAY

Anyone who knows me knows I despise Monsanto. As it turns out so does most of the indoor gardening

industry, and they let them know it.

Max Yield has been throwing the Indoor Garden Expos for over a decade. They have been an integral building

block for this industry’s development. These shows are an important part of any company’s marketing plan

when trying to enter this market. At least they used to be, until Monsanto showed up.

Monsanto at Max Yield!

Gavita Plasma

14

Present... January 2015, Strassbourg

It appears that those consumer organizations have now

lost control of the legislative body. As of 20 January,

Europe officially ushered in a future favoring biotech giants

in passing a new controversial food law that transfers

the rights involved in allowing, or banning GMO crops to

individual countries. The argument on whether a nation’s

farmers can, or cannot grow Monsanto’s MON 810 maize

has shifted, and they’ve succeeded in getting 7 new GM

crops approved for further discretionary approval per

country.

It’s unlikely coincidental that this happened during the

Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership talks for

securing multilateral growth through commerce between

the US and the EU. No doubt heavy lobbying has quietly

taken place in the months leading up to both this particular

European Parliament session and the TIFF convention - on

both sides of the Atlantic.

Baby StepsBiotech behemoths like Monsanto rose to their current

status in the US and other countries the same way - one

small measure at a time. Bypassing continental government

turns the tables to their favor, for now they can work on

each small entity individually.

No doubt GMO proponents were doing the happy dance

within moments of the highly criticized measure’s approval.

It’s two steps forward for GMO crops, a whole new

continent of possibilities and acquisitions.

Not that GMO crops have done anything to slow world

hunger. The third world still lacks the finances to buy said

food or seed, because that’s the real crux of the problem -

money. But GMOs do however, feed the hunger for wealth,

benefiting profit margins, and shareholders a great deal.

See, there’s that money thing again, but on the opposite

end of the ruler.

In a July fact-finding session on GMO food labeling, US Congressman Schrader asked the EU expert, “Why

does the EU still have their labeling if they’ve come to the same conclusions? Why have they not frankly

informed their consumers that there is no difference?”

The world renown, Dr. Calestous Juma responded, “The EU is not a homogenous body. You have the commission

with its scientific advice that conducted these studies. You have the legislative body that is influenced very much

by the consumer organizations that has not changed its position.”

BY CALLIE COE

“Europe officially ushered

in a future favouring

biotech giants”

Flashback... Summer 2014, Washington D.C.


G.M.O. I GARDEN CULTURE

Divide & ConquerIf you suspect some déjà vu looms on the horizon, you

might very well be right. Turning the protected farmland of

a continent into a scattered patchwork of GMO producing

regions raises the odds of spreading pollen to traditional

and organic crops like we’ve already

seen happen in Canada, the US,

Mexico, Paraguay, and Brazil. The

breeze, and insects don’t stop at

lines drawn by man.

Groups like Greenpeace are well-

founded in their concerns over the possible environmental

damages this could cause. Roundup use will increase

phenomenally on every hectare planted with GM seed,

which does not disappear, but lingers in the soil, filters into

waterways, and clouds collect it with other agrichemicals

to release it elsewhere in a phenomenon known as acid

rain.

But It’s Safe to EatAt least, these 8 crops are in the eyes of the EFSA. The

new ruling allows individual EU countries to opt out of

growing approved GMOs deemed safe to consume by the

European Food Safety Authority. Feel like this is just the

beginning, that more will follow? That is how it has played

out elsewhere with this GMO thing.

Who are the current major EFSA players? Make a list.

Then make a list of all the top people at Monsanto’s UK

and European offices. Don’t overlook legal counsel. Going

forward, you will no doubt see movers and shakers from the

agri-giant’s team travel in and out of various positions within

the EFSA, and the appropriate legislative offices in each EU

member state. Better tally the same at Syngenta, Bayer, BASF,

Dow, and DuPont offices too, so you know who’s who as the

players begin moving around.

That’s how they’ve played the GMO/

pesticide approval game to date in the

US. It would be nice if this is not what

happens, but here’s that déjà vu stuff.

Grease a little palm, fund a study, train

the perfect expert for desirable governmental positions... buy

your way in. Like any trip, if you can pay the fare, you will get

where you want to go. Both science and political assignations

are for sale. The first group calls it funding, and the latter,

campaign or lobbying monies.

Damage Control UnderwayWith the ink barely dry on the new food law, the PR aimed

at unseating current consumer opinion and belief hit UK

mainstream media. On 22 January BBC published news

that ‘safer GMOs’ are being created by scientists in the US.

Synthetic biology aimed at controlling these crops from

spreading into the wild by adding synthetic food for it to live

on. The goal is that these alien bacteria will starve to death if

they leave the host plant, removing possible contamination.

Should we feel relieved, or see reason for heightened concern?

Firstly, there is no way they can remove all risk, and secondly

what will this stuff do to us and the Earth? More details on

this new development: bit.ly/safer-gmos. 3

“It’s two steps forward for GMO crops”

gmoGMO

GMOs feed wealth, not the hungry

Controversy Increases

16

THE FIRST THING TO THINK OF WHEN MAKING A SOIL MIX

IS MICROBES

S O I L C R E AT E S A N D S U S TA I N S A L L O F L I F E

Soil is like water. Both sustain life as we know it,

yet they are so omnipresent that we take them for

granted. And due to both their importance and

complexity, the limitations of language cannot do

them justice.

The soil is under our feet at all times, and can also

be purchased in a bag at the hardware store. Soil is

the primary basis by which we grow food, and the

same field can also be subjected to the littering of our

poisons. But beyond it all, soil may very well be the

most important substance on Earth.

BY EVAN FOLDS

makingyour own

soilmix


MAKING YOUR OWN SOIL MIX I GARDEN CULTURE

THE FIRST THING TO THINK OF WHEN MAKING A SOIL MIX

IS MICROBES

Soil creates and sustains all

of life. Soil allows farming,

the act of rebellion that

catalyzed human specialization

from hunting and gathering

to society at large, and that

started the human experiment

more than 10,000 years ago.

We’ve come a long way since

then, and with good reason, as

there are many more mouths to feed with human

population growing exponentially in modern times.

But we are using more topsoil than we are creating,

and we are collectively utilizing soil for all the

wrong reasons.

We must respect the soil, not use it as a sponge; even

certified organic practices can result in tremendous

damage, and pollution to the land. Modern farming

has become more a creature of synthetic profit,

than a source of nourishment for people. USDA

data shows food losing nutrient density, and we are

experiencing a global degenerative and autoimmune

epidemic. But the good news is that we can do

something about it.

The growing Food Movement is about creating

personal agriculture. This means eating with our

ideals, and growing at least one thing that we eat.

Modern property development obliterates the

landscape leaving very poor soil behind, so many

home gardeners turn to containers or raised beds.

Estimates say that it takes 1000 years to create

an inch of topsoil, but fortunately for modern

gardeners we don’t have to wait nearly that long.

The easy route is to buy potting soil. There is merit

to letting the experts do it for you, but it can get

expensive when your gardening habit gets serious.

Just a little under thirteen gallons of good organic

potting soil can cost £16.

Many who are looking to invest in serious quantities

of soil are making their own soil mixes. Not only

is it possible to calibrate a

custom soil mix to the crop

that you are growing, but given

sufficient scale buying the raw

ingredients, and formulating

the soil yourself costs much

less than buying the ready-

made version.

It’s actually not as hard as you

think, with some intention

and practice you can create, and even reuse, your

own soil capable of sustainably supporting thriving

gardens, and producing increasingly substantial

yields.

The first thing to think of when making a soil mix is

microbes. Microbes manufacture soil, no different

from construction workers on a job site. It is the

grower’s responsibility to bring the correct building

materials to the garden.

Any attempt at making or reusing soil without

prioritizing biological inoculation and diversity is

like trying to brew beer without adding the yeast,

or making kombucha or vinegar without a mother.

The microbes define the process.

So it is in the soil. Source a farm-based biological

inoculant, and consider brewing compost tea to

concentrate the process. Microbes from a natural

environment will always be stronger, and have

more life experience than lab-based, and you will

automatically get a greater diversity of microbes in

your mix. Any biological product that can name the

microbes in the product is a limitation, because we

are only aware of a small percentage of microbes

found in natural living systems.

In the end, diversity is king. Use compost from your

friend’s back yard, worm castings, scrape topsoil

from the forest, and buy some premium compost

from the garden store. Remember, microbes self-

organize, so you cannot mess it up.

Once you have your microbes lined up, it is time to

soilmix

HM Digital nutrient meters and pH testers will help your plants grow bigger and faster than you ever imagined.

Proper pH levels are critical for optimum plant health.

Use the PH-80 for quick, easy and accurate pH testing.

Available at your local hydro store and distributed by:

the pH hydrotestermodel PH-80

fast and accurate

simple to use

auto digital calibration

water resistant

durable

large display

low cost

www.hmdigital.comwww.hmdigital.com

consider the soil mix itself. Popular base materials

are peat moss and coir fiber, but it is often possible

to source local bulk mixes out of varying materials.

The popular bulk soil base in our area is pine bark

and turkey manure. Not the best, but it provides

cheap volume for the base of the mix that we are

going to value-add.

It’s not that making a soil mix is inherently difficult,

but that if you don’t do it right it simply may not

work the first time. Meaning, it is possible to

put together a soil mix that lacks total fertility,

like trying to use a budget Big Box fertilizer in

hydroponics, the plant cannot grow without at least

minimum essential nutrition.

This is generally accomplished through ensuring

the ingredients used are as diverse as possible.

This means don’t make a soil mix composed of peat

moss, rice hulls, and fish meal - and expect your

garden to produce.

Instead, make a soil mix of peat moss, rice hulls,

worm castings, bat guano, rock dust, farm-based

compost, fish meal, alfalfa meal, whey, yucca, kelp

meal, and as many other meals as you can muster

given the crop that you are cultivating. Use a little

bit of a lot of things, the more the merrier. There is

strength in diversity.

By providing diverse food sources for the microbes

you will inoculate into your mix will create a highly

fertile environment for roots to form and feed, but

take some time to consider the nutrient balance

of the ingredients you are using. For example, you

wouldn’t want to have a phosphorous-heavy mix

(bone meal, CalPhos, guano) for a crop of basil that

you are growing vegetatively, or use too much high

NPK ingredient (guano, fish) for light feeders like

lettuce. It will take some practice to calibrate your

fertility properly in your soil mix, but plants don’t

lie, they will give you constant feedback.

You will also want to investigate the relative

concentration of the mix you are creating. For

instance, if you evaluate the differing nutritional

requirements of lettuce versus tomatoes, you will

see that lettuce wants a fertilizer concentration

of around 600-800 ppm, while tomatoes desire

anywhere between 1700-3500 ppm. This is quite a

SOIL MAY VERY WELL BE THE MOST IMPORTANT SUBSTANCE ON EARTH

MAKING YOUR OWN SOIL MIX I GARDEN CULTURE

19

substantial difference.

A “ppm”, or “parts of ions per million of water”,

is the measurement for fertilizer concentration.

Imagine a granule of table salt being dissolved in

water into a Na+ and a Cl- ion. Each ion would be

a “part” in a ppm, and plants eat these ions created

either through solubility, or through biological

decomposition.

Osmosis is the phenomenon that sees water

travel from the lower concentration to the

higher concentration through a water permeable

membrane in order to equalize concentrations. The

root is an osmotic gradient, so this force is at play

in roots when it comes to fertilizer concentrations.

If a plant has more ions inside than it does outside

of its roots then healthy transpiration can occur.

But if there are too many ions outside relative to

inside the root water is then sucked out of the plant

resulting in the plant prioritizing, and the edges

“burning” and becoming necrotic.

Considering this, it becomes clear that all purchased

potting soils have to be calibrated to the lower

end of this fertilizer spectrum. In other words,

if a potting soil formulator created a recipe that

resulted in a fertilizer concentration of 2000 ppm

tomatoes would love it, but the lettuce would be

severely over fertilized resulting in dead plants if

not amended.

When taking this into account for your soil mix you

may want to keep the higher NPK items out of the

mix, and feed with them over time in the soil as

a fertilizer. Think of the organic fertilizers as the

building materials for your microbial construction

workers, and as a crutch for results and plant

nourishment until your soil food web is ready, and

can take over the fertilization responsibility.

The lack of focus on microbes is one of the major

problems with gardening techniques like square

foot gardening or lasagna gardening. They are

great templates for beginning gardeners, but they

do not focus on microbes, and people end up with

beautifully spaced gardens that cannot sustain

themselves over time, or immature soil where they

can read the copy on the front page of the newspaper

when they turn their soil over. Organic matter does

not just melt, it is biologically digested by a team

of micro-organisms that move micrometers in their

lifetime. If we don’t bring them to the party they

simply are not there!

In the forest, consider that microbes don’t eat the

leaves, they eat what the microbes make of them.

And trees grow to enormous size and strength

in the forest with zero fertilizer. The power of

microbes cannot be understated.

You will find that by focusing on biological strength

and diversity, the more the natural processes take

over, and the more mature your soil becomes, the

less responsible you will feel to feed the garden

with fertilizer.

This is particularly intriguing when it comes to

reusing soil. Next issue we will discuss the merits

and techniques of re-using your potting soil, so you

can take your personal agriculture to an entirely

new level. 3


THE LACK OF FOCUS ON MICROBES IS ONE OF THE MAJOR PROBLEMS WITH

GARDENING TECHNIQUES

FORMULATING THE SOIL YOURSELF COSTS MUCH LESS THAN BUYING

THE READY-MADE VERSION

LIGHTING I GARDEN CULTURE

The Genuine Quality and Genuine Power MarksMagnetic HID ballasts labelled with

the Genuine Quality mark have been

manufactured to strict EC specifications

and quality standards to ensure safety,

good quality, and correct power to

the lamp to within +/-3% (indicated by a Genuine Power

mark). A Genuine Quality ballast will have a nominal rated

life span of ten years, will be efficient, and will be safe to

use. The list of EC specifications met by Genuine Quality

ballasts are available to view on the genuinequality.

co.uk website.

About UsOur team of UK plant lighting experts has unparalleled

experience in lighting technology and indoor growing.

With almost 20 years working at the forefront of lighting

design and production, we formed Genuine Quality

Horticultural Lighting in 2012 out of a shared passion

for grow lighting, and a desire to keep

the technology moving forward. Over

recent years the quality standards of

HID lighting has fallen significantly due

to some manufacturers using cheaper

components and build methods to save

on production costs. The result has been

ballasts on the market that under-power lamps, overpower

lamps, and even cause fires. What many buyers don’t know

is that a poor quality 600W HID ballast providing a mere

512W will give up to 40% less light from their lamp.

Our aim is to raise the safety and quality standards of the

indoor growing market by not only testing ballasts on the

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so you can buy your grow lighting with confidence. Sharing

our knowledge is key to our mission – we want you to be

able to go out there and test your ballast yourself. To find

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Horticultural Lighting

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THE QUALITY STANDARDS OF HID LIGHTING HAS FALLEN

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22

When it comes to growing, the UK is about 5 years behind growers in the Netherlands and the USA. Tell an

American grower that you’re using magnetic plastic ballasts, and they’ll look at you as if you’ve landed from

another planet before slowly shuffling away. Don’t even mention shades.

need a thermometer/hygrometer in their room, but then

again, we can’t have everything in life right.

So out of the two types, a typical set-up might look like this

for a ‘grower’…

Any size tent from 1m2 to 3m2 (the stronger, the better

because they can invite all their friends to hang upside down

in it), or even a room (hopefully walls fitted with something

we can regard as reflective), as these ‘growers’ think they

can grow as many plants as they want, the more the better.

Then you’ll often find some trays, a few pots (the bigger, the

better - 80 litre pots with a 4 week veg has been known),

some coco (any old coco, because it doesn’t really matter if it’s

been washed and buffered, they always use cheap coco, and

they get “great” results), some feed (it doesn’t really matter

which one, they won’t have any measuring equipment, so any

will do), and don’t expect to find a pH or EC meter (unless a

friend let them borrow it, they stick it in the water, and they

look good).

Now we get to the good part, the extraction! Some ‘growers’

have been known to bring filters back, and ask where they

attach the plug, some just place it in the corner of their room,

and think the ‘magic’ carbon will attract bad smells, occasionally

you may find a fan blowing into a filter… I kid you not. If these

growers wish to upgrade their extraction, they may increase

the size of the filter (10” 1000 m3/h to a 10” 2000 m3/h), but

not spare a thought for their small 10” 820 m3/h fan that they

think will be able to handle the job. They’ve been doing this for

3 years, so don’t expect to teach them much.

Lastly, there’s their lighting. Now lighting is often up for debate,

but these growers would rather spend £200 on an additive that

T O G R O W O R C U L T I V AT E ?

If I wrapped tin foil around cardboard, and put in two hanging

hooks, as long as the customer saved money they would be

happy. Then we have the bulb, the light source that stimulates

photosynthesis - one, if not THE most essential pieces of

equipment in the grow room. Cheap £20 bulbs dominate the

market, though a few higher range bulbs do sell to the more

discerning customer.

We, as grow shop owners, try to show the customer the

SON-T bulbs, and the Philips Green power bulbs as examples

of premium bulbs with longer life and a steadier output, but it

seems a lot of British love to spend little while thinking they

can gain a lot. Now this isn’t all growers in the UK, some are

absolutely world-class growers and breeders that use the

latest technology, and embrace change if it gets them better

results in yield or quality. So what does this mean for the UK

grower?

There are probably two categories of grower in the UK…

Those that grow plants, and those that cultivate plants. The

first group will put a plant in some media, add water, light, and

food, and then wait a set amount of weeks for it to produce

its fruit. They get a result they are happy with, and after a few

months’ time believe that they are omnipotent with nothing

to learn. These are the worst types of growers, and we should

all make a hasty retreat for the nearest exit.

Then there is the cultivator, the person who doesn’t just grow

a plant. They manipulate their environment to suit the plant

for its stage of growth, how they would like it to grow, how

fast, for how long, and whether they want quality or quantity,

or a mix of both. Fortunately, I deal mostly with the latter, and

only meet the ‘grower’ once in a while. It does start to get

infuriating when you have to explain why a grower really does

The Grow SceneUKV


will give them “better” results than forking out the extra £75 to

upgrade to digital dimmable ballasts. This is where some ‘growers’

are light years behind America, and other countries, who adopted

the digital dimmable ballasts many years ago. So there we have the

‘grower’ in the UK - the person who cannot be taught anything,

but expects an hour of your time to help them figure out why

their leaves have yellowed even though they water their coco

once, sometimes twice, every day… For some, there is no saving.

A typical room for a ‘cultivator’ might look like this…

The cultivator’s grow room or tent will never be the same

as last time, because they changed it slightly as they learnt

something from a previous grow, and adapted to improve.

They will also change it to accommodate for a slightly different

season, because as you know, in the UK we have 4 seasons -

cold, very cold, very bloody cold. and bloody roasting.

They choose their tent, if they use one, to suit their particular

needs. Maybe they need a completely light-proof tent, or

perhaps they need it durable to handle repeated opening

and closing - whatever their particular needs, they chose

it specifically for that job. Some cultivators prefer a grow

room, they choose a reflective sheeting that works for them,

perhaps a simple black and white on a budget, or a better silver

reflective sheeting for those wanting to spend a little more.

The really serious cultivator may want to use some silver

diamond Mylar, or even Orca sheeting.

The ‘cultivator’s’ lighting set-up of choice? Dimmable digital

ballasts are a must, with a good bulb and reflector to suit their

individual circumstances. It may be that heat is a real issue, and

they choose an air-cooled reflector, or they prefer a big (even)

spread of light, and you’ll find them running a Hortiline North

star reflector, or other similar product. Whatever the choice,

it is there for a specific reason to help the ‘cultivator’ maintain

absolute control over their environment.

When it comes to extraction, the cultivator will know the

amount of lights that will be in the tent or room, and make sure

the fan and filter combo can handle this. Whatever equation

they use to work out how often they wish to exchange the air

The Grow Scenein the room, it works for them, but they are always willing to

listen, and learn from others, so that they can improve their

grow. (They are also not duped into buying equipment based

on shiny red mammals that look really cool).

As for nutrients, you may find a unique mix of nutrients and

additives that over many years the ‘cultivator’ has come to

like, understand, and work well with. The cultivator knows

there is no ‘good’ or ‘bad’ nutrient, just a feeding schedule and

regime that works well for them personally.

In a ‘cultivators’ room or tent you will also find equipment

such as heaters (no cultivator wants a 10C difference in day

and night-time temperatures), fans, CO2 generators (natural

or synthetic), water chillers (in our hot summers), pH and EC

meters, and the all-important thermometer/hygrometer to

have more knowledge of their environment.

Lastly, what the ‘cultivator’ has, which the ‘grower’ will never

use or understand until they themselves become a ‘cultivator’,

is plant intuition. The knowledge that no plant will act or

behave the same as the last one, or the one before that. They

will know to monitor their plants for signs of distress, and how

to remedy it effectively. These people also LOVE growing.

Perhaps I have been a little harsh on the UK growers, but

that’s how I see it, and how they come across. It’s also not just

my opinion, but that of a lot of the people I speak to up and

down the country. Thankfully, these are few and far between,

and I have the absolute pleasure of being surrounded by

many experienced and knowledgeable ‘cultivators’ at NPK

Technology in Liverpool.

Thank you for reading, and I look forward to writing for

you again, I would like to tell you all about the trials and

tribulations of the UK grow scene, the changing times and

technology, the unscrupulous marketing companies and grow

shops, advancements in plant science, industrial plant growing

for the kitchen gardener, and our growing communities that

are embracing new technology and ideas to get the next

generation of growers involved.3

A L O T O F B R I T I S H L O V E T O S P E N D L I T T L E W H I L E

T H I N K I N G T H E Y C A N G A I N A L O T

THE U.K. GROW SCENE I GARDEN CULTURE

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GYO S E E D S AV E R SSerious about your seed

saving efforts? Maybe it’s time

to get a bit more organized than

recycling odd bits from the post

where you may just forget to record

important info about your seed.

They’re perfect for sharing seed too

with a space devoted to keeping

track of seed type and name, date

of harvest, person who grew it, and

the seed saver too. Made by Burgon

& Ball. Available @ bit.ly/seed-savers.

cool finds

H O M E G R O W N T R U F F L E SA harvest that requires a boatload of

patience, but a delicacy worth waiting

for. It is possible to grow Hazel truffle trees in

containers or as hedges, and get two different

crops. Get the right tree for your region’s climate,

it matters! We found The Natural Gardener the

only source concerned with such an important

growing point. Certified inoculated trees

@ bit.ly/truffle-trees. 3

C O L L A P S I B L E B U C K E TFrom being short on storage space

to trekking through the wilds, there’s a lot of

reasons a person would find a ‘Bucket ina Bag’

handy. Water the dog while

traveling, an impromptu

beer/champagne cooler at

the beach, slogging water

from the source to your

plot... It’s the perfect auto

boot stowaway too. A

Burgon & Ball original that

is available in 2 sizes, and 4

colors

@ bit.ly/onya-buckets.

R E C YC L E D T O T E B A G SRugged and waterproof, they come in

two distinct styles, and a huge array of colors. Made

in Cornwall from recycled lorrie tarps, and seat

belt webbing. Town Totes are perfect shopping and

farmers market bags. Festival Bags are bigger and

sturdier for heavier loads, just what you need for

a day at the beach, camping, and gear. No two bags

are exactly the same. From bit.ly/tarp-totes.

1

2

3

4

5


F I R E H O S E B E LT SThey may not hold water anymore,

but are awesome repurposed into

belts and more. Available in a range of colors

and styles from distressed to sleek. Made

by Elvis & Kreese from recycled fire engine

hoses. Shown here is the unisex West Ender

with silver or distressed brass buckle and

grommets. Best selection? Shop direct from

the E&K website @ bit.ly/fire-hose-belts.

GREEN PRODUCTS I GARDEN CULTURE

MUSIC I GARDEN CULTURE

The setup looks pretty simple from the outside. She places

pads on a few different types of plants, connects those

pads to wires, and the wires to a computer. The pads read

bio-electric energy put off by the plants when something

touches them. These signals get sent to an amplifier, which

converts these analog signals into digital code. This code

is then sent to her computer where a program, which she

wrote, reads the signals, and turns them into electronic

music. It’s a tale of plant and machine in a symbiotic

relationship, where they collide into a sonic landscape.

Naturally, this garnered some attention. Mileece recently

had a residency at Maker City LA. She performed, in 2013

at the Museum of Modern Art. Mileece also created a first

of its kind interactive classroom at the Lycee International

Francais in Los Angeles where she converted a school bus

into an interactive forest, and made a zero-emission Tre-

We-vrTM Pod for environmental education.

During her performances, she combines live music with

the sounds of her Tre-Wevr interface. She couples these

with sounds from her field recordings, like icebergs and

sounds from the Costa Rican jungle, to paint a beautiful

sonic picture. There is something real, and elegant to

the whole thing. The colorful plant leaves, the graceful

movements from the artist, and the sounds and visuals

coming together to showcase how nature is a living,

breathing, all-encompassing thing.

You can tell she is doing this for the plants, and for the people.

Mileece says the landscapes and designs that she makes are

there because she wants habitats to exist; for herself and

others. Also, she does not feel like a composer of the music,

more like a facilitator of the plants natural harmonies. That

is a true love for nature.

Nature is a beautiful thing, and so is music. Can we live in a

world without both? Plants are alive, they live and die, and they

do communicate. Mileece, has found a way to connect the

world to the actual voice of nature in a unique and harmonious

way. With a bit of time, and a respect for music and nature, she

has found a way to make the forest into a symphony. Maybe

we should try to listen to the plants in our garden, and in the

woods, meadows, and parks around us a bit more closely.

There’s a lot more going on there than green space. 3

Mileece Petre is 35, British, and makes

beautiful music with plants. That sounds

strange, but most brilliant ideas sound a bit

crazy at f irst.

BY BRIAN BURK


OrganicMusicC

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“IT’S A TALE OF PLANT AND MACHINE

IN A SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP

• Good for • What Ails You

SOIL I GARDEN CULTURE

• More Info:• bit.ly/dirt-new-prozac

• bit.ly/soil-neuroscience

• bit.ly/urban-stress

Society’s current dissociation

with soil negatively affects us

mentally and physically. The

microbial life in good soil is

actually healing. At least the

microorganisms not voided by

farm and garden chemicals or

synthetic fertilizers are. It’s not

just the flowers, greens, or fruit

we need from plants, but also

assistance from things in the soil

food web around plants’ roots.

As I read about this, it reminded me

of my son as a toddler constantly eating

dirt. Perhaps it wasn’t just that kids at this

stage put everything in their mouth, maybe it was instinct

telling him he needed something from the soil. He does

have mild allergies, and these scientists have connected

rising allergy problems and recurring illnesses to daily

life that disconnects most people from the soil. They are

proving that people who live in sterile environments have

more such health problems than those that spend their

lives covered with dirt and pollen.

Is it really just the beauty that bring so many to become

so addicted to flower gardening, or does getting dirty have

some sway? Sure, the lovely colors and bloom shapes are

attractive, and do have an effect on a person’s mental health

and mood, but a backyard gardener for any outcome will

also get dirty. By the same token, people who live beyond

urban areas will likely have a flower garden, or a vegetable

garden, or both. Studies have shown that this portion of

the population also has a lot less mental health issues.

All Natural Mood Elevator

Depressed? Dealing with mood swings? Having a bad day?

Spend more time outdoors in the garden. Dance barefoot in

the dirt. Pull some weeds. Grow in real soil on the balcony

THE MICROBIAL LIFE IN GOOD

SOIL IS ACTUALLY HEALING…

MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY

with Smart Pots or GeoPots.

Feed your soil, because the

microbial life in organic

soil has healing properties

for humans on contact. It

will also give you better

vegetables, fruits, or flowers.

You came from the soil. You

are also sustained by the soil.

Human beings are microbial

too. Over 90% of the human

body is made of microbes, such

as ‘gut flora’. Each of us is our own

ecosystem that gets out of balance

from a lack of soil contact. Your microbes

need soil microbes for mental and physical health benefits.

Got no dirt because you’re an urbanite? At the very least, buy

a bag of organic topsoil, and indulge in a little mud pie fun. 3

Bee & Bug Bite EraserMud, or the wet soil we call mud, has the natural power

to cure bee stings. It’s amazing, like never being stung at

all. The mud actually draws out the toxins and absorbs

them. Just apply a thin layer, and let it dry. In just 10-15

minutes, wash it off, and you’re cured. They say it works

on insect bites as well. Gotta remember to try this

instead of scratching mosquito and fly bites for days,

because it’s like magic on a bee sting. No special kind of

soil needed, but sand might not work as well.

I always thought it was the lack of green space, and a relationship with nature that made

anger and crime so common in cities. All that noise, congestion, and asphalt can’t be good

for a person, especially when it’s your total environment. Science has discovered that it goes

deeper than that. Human psyche and health requires a relationship with dir t.

BY AMBER FIELDS

• bit.ly/nature-aids-immunity

• bit.ly/urban-rural-psych-disorders


30

There is a compelling difference between

hunger and appetite. By definition, hunger

is the painful sensation or compelling weakness caused by

the overpowering need for food. Appetite has a much more

palatable and polite definition, as a desire for food and drink.

Many of us who live in more developed countries are less likely

to encounter true hunger in our own lives, but not all of us, and

the problem may be getting worse right under our noses.

a growing need

Social programs are struggling to feed people in need


You need to get involved

BY JUDD STONE

HUNGER I GARDEN CULTURE

plant a row in your own garden for your local

food bank

Demand at food banks in most communities in the

United States is at staggering levels. Since the decline of

the economy, there has been a sharp rise in people and

families that can no longer afford to feed themselves, not

even the basics, or keep a roof over their heads. Social

programs that supposedly are in place to help people

in their down times have had their resources taxed by

increased enrollment, and decreased political support,

reducing their ability to have a noticeable effect, causing

further system decline. The need for you, the reader,

to get involved as an individual has never been more

important statistically in our lives.

Many of you already take part in

food-raiser type events where you

bring a non-perishable item into

a public event for a discounted

admission. This is a great way

for the entire community to get

involved, because food banks are

at a disadvantage today. They lack

funds to create a diverse offering

as they always have, and lets face it,

people can’t live off of spaghetti-o’s

and corn flakes. Food banks need

helping hands. I’ve never been to a

food bank that doesn’t need help

with, well, everything.

They need people to sort goods,

and help get them on the shelf.

They need people to help hand out

the food when they are open, and extras during limited

very busy hours. They need you to donate baby food.

They never have enough. For those of you with children,

I hope that speaks to you. But most of all, and why I

wanted to write this article, they need you, yes you, the

conscious, food savvy gardener, and maybe some of your

wares. Many food banks throughout the country are now

growing food.

In years past, food banks didn’t have sustained customers

like they do today, people got back on their feet quicker.

Offering fresh produce didn’t make sense… now it does.

I grew 60 heads of lettuce for a food bank, and I asked

them if they wanted me to offset the harvest, my heart

sank when they told me they could easily get rid of all

60 to families that needed it same day. My efforts could

never keep up alone. Again, this is my call to you.

Your local food bank may not have a garden; quite possibly

you could help them build one in your spare time. If they

already have one, I’m sure they would love for you to

take a day in the watering rotation. A little goes a long

way when it comes to a helping

hand. You will find a lot of warm

hearts at the food bank. But, at

the very least, if you’re left with

no additional time to do this, I ask

you to plant a row in your own

garden for your local food bank,

or rescue mission.

For many years, most food banks

could not, and would not accept

fresh produce for the simple

potential of getting people sick

from pesticide contamination, or

even if it was store-bought, the

very idea of it being perishable. The

lawmakers knew something had

to be done to allow food banks to

work with perishable food items.

It was the only way to get the best, most healthy selection

of food out to the people who desperately need it.

In 1996 Bill Clinton signed into law the Bill Emerson

Good Samaritan Food Donation Act. The law protects

donors, whether they be individual or corporate, and also

protects the food bank from any civil or criminal liability

stemming from any donation made in good faith. The law

does not protect from gross negligence. But if you grow

some healthy food, or help grow some food with your

food bank, I’m pretty confident that’s an effort in good

faith.

The passage of the act unified the nation in legalities when

it came to donating. Now corporations readily participate

in nationwide donation and volunteer programs that many

individual and community food banks benefit from. 3

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GOING TO MARS I GARDEN CULTURE

THE FIRST MANNED

MISSION TO MARS WILL TAKE PLACE IN 2035

BY WENDY DENNEY

• Good for • What Ails You

Is Going toGRODAN MARS

light, and compact growth medium

which produces maximum results

with the use of minimal resources.

GRODAN stone wool substrates

meet these requirements, and are

perfectly suitable for use in closed

cultivation systems where water is

recirculated and reused. These characteristics make

the substrates ideal for use on Mars and during the

journey there.

They have used GRODAN stone wool in multiple

space research related projects since 1985, and this

brand of substrates has already ventured into outer

space! For more information about Grodan, visit

www.grodan101.com 3

How do you grow food during space missions to places like Mars? That is the key question

in an exciting study into biological life support systems for space missions conducted in a

research center at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada.

The GRODAN Group, a specialized

member of the Rockwool Group,

played a significant role in this high-

tech research project. The company

develops sustainable stone wool

based substrate solutions for the

horticultural industry. The plants

being studied in Canada are grown on these highly

advanced GRODAN substrates.

If everything goes according to plan, the first

manned mission to Mars will take place in 2035.

The journey will take the ‘martianauts’ about two

and a half years. Taking along food supplies for the

entire journey is impossible – that would amount

to over 3300 lbs. per person. The solution lies in

growing their own food. What that requires is a

THE JOURNEY WILL TAKE ABOUT TWO AND A HALF YEARS


BY TAMMY CLAYTON

SageM A N H A S J U ST A LWAYS K N O W N T H AT S A G E W A S S A V V Y

Wisdom of the Ages

36

Grow Your Own Series SAGE I GARDEN CULTURE

with good drainage, sage is very easy

to grow

H I S TO R Y & F O L K LO R EA word with two meanings, sage the noun refers to a

herb with culinary and medicinal uses, and sage the

adjective describes a wise and experienced person.

Since one benefit of the Salvia plant has long been

said to sharpen one’s mental prowess, sage being a

synonym of wisdom cannot be a coincidence.

The word salvia comes from ancient Greek that liter-

ally means ‘to save’, or the Latin counterpart for ‘well

being’. Compared to other herbs, sage is a bit bland,

not in flavor or benefits, but it lacks wild myth, and

folklore. Man has just always known that sage was

savvy. All cultures believed it safe, beneficial, a source

of improved intelligence, and the key to a long life.

Don’t confuse it with the wide variety of ornamental

Salvia cultivars, herbal sage has been used for healing

since the days of ancient China. In Rome of old, it was

also used to infuse food and drink with flavor, and

assisting meal digestion. The Arabs believed that one

could not die if sage was prospering under your care.

Charlemagne wanted it grown everywhere. In Middle

Age England, it was said to only grow well where the

wife was in charge, but was as must-have as salt and

pepper in Colonial America.

ANTI-INFLAMMATORY, ANTI-ALLERGIC, ANTI-FUNGAL,

AND ANTI-HEMORRHAGIC

N O M E N C L AT U R E There are over 900 Salvia species on Earth, but only 80 are

in cultivation, and very few have culinary or healing uses.

Store-bought dried or rubbed sage is stronger than garden

sage, both because it’s dehydrated, and because of the

cultivar, which is Greek Sage or Dalmatian Sage (S. triloba

syn. S. fruticosa).

Retailed dried sage’s intensity, and the common over-

seasoning of holiday stuffing gives a lot of people the idea

that this isn’t a herb for regular cooking. Learn how to use

it, and discover what you’ve been missing. The colorful

flowers are edible too.

Common Garden Sage (Salvia officinalis) - Much milder,

and more palatable than other culinary sages. Note that

all variants of S. officinalis are hardy to zone 5, and similar

tasting, though variegated selections are a bit milder. This

is the form most commonly used for healing throughout

Europe and Asia.

Golden Garden Sage (S. o. icterina) - Low growing with

green and gold variegated leaves.

Purple Garden Sage (S. o. purpurea) - Deep purple new

growth matures to soft green.

Tricolor Garden Sage (S. o. tricolor) - Marbled pink,

cream, and green variegation.

Berggarten Sage (S. o. Berggarten) - Large leaves perfect

for garnishing. It rarely blooms.

Dwarf Garden Sage (S. o. minum) - The best one for

container growing.

Pineapple Sage (Salvia elegans) - Sweeter than the

rest. Best used in desserts, meat glazes and marinades,

with fruit, and in drinks. Larger red flowers that are

H E A LT H B E N E F I T SWhile of Mediterranean origin, traditional Chinese

medicine has used sage tea to soothe sore throats and

indigestion since 835 A.D. It is still used for digestive and

cough home remedies worldwide. Sage tincture can be

used to soothe gum pain and treat gingivitis.

The many powerful active constituents in sage give us

essential oils, minerals, along with disease preventing,

and health promoting vitamins. A natural antioxidant,

disinfectant, and deodorizer that is anti-inflammatory,

anti-allergic, anti-fungal, and anti-hemorrhagic.

It’s also been used for hundreds of years to lighten

menstrual flow, slow wound bleeding, treat menopausal

hot flashes, increase fertility, and dry up breast milk. This

isn’t folklore, they’ve discovered that sage contains natural

estrogens. Pregnant women should avoid sage tea and

essential oils, though it’s perfectly safe to eat as a seasoning.

Two recent UK studies found that a 50 mL dosage of

essential oil significantly increased short-term memory in

young adults, proving its value for increasing mental acuity

is factual. Aside from preventing ‘senior moments’, sage

is also part of natural anti-aging beauty regimens. The

Gypsies swore by it for darkening graying hair - just one

more cosmetic benefit.


38

G E R M I N AT I O NIt’s easily grown from seed, but stored seed offers only 50%

germination at best. Cuttings root reliably, and starting

new plants from cuttings is extremely common. Make

sure the mother plant is pest and disease-free. Quarantine

cuttings before moving into a grow room.

Start seeds with both the room and propagation mat at

21°C. Expect seed germination in 7-10 days. You can use

rockwool cubes, or coarse seed starting mix.

Transplant seedlings at 5 cm tall to your finishing system

or containers after 4-5 weeks in winter, and 1-2 weeks

in summer. Humidity isn’t critical for this plant, though

excellent drainage is. Space them 15 cm apart in your

hydro system.

I N D O O R E N V I R O N M E N TFor rooting and vegetative growth you want day temps of

24-29°C, and nights ranging from 16-26°C. You can grow

it in all types of hydro systems, in aquaponics, with drip

irrigation, and traditional hand-watered container culture.

When grown in potting mix, let the top inch of soil dry out

before watering.

G R O W T H M E D I AThe plants are natives of light, sandy soils, so wherever

you grow it be sure to give its roots a similar home. Use

a coarse potting soil with extra perlite. It does well in just

about any hydroponic medium.

L I G H T I N GIn the outdoor garden, this plant needs about 8 hours of

full sun. A sunny window is not enough light on its own.

You need supplemental lighting. Use a compact fluorescent

grow light. Keep in mind that an hour of direct outdoor sun

requires 2 hours of grow light exposure as an equivalent.

Inside a grow room, or in situations where there is little to

no sun at all, you need a minimum of 12 hours under lights.

Less light than that, and you’ll wonder if it’s growing at all.

For optimum growth and harvesting times provide 700

footcandles with 14 hour days. Less light equals slower

growth, and a less efficient crop. Don’t count on sage

flowers when growing indoors, unless you’re running

intense HIDs.

also edible. Native of Mexico. Hardy to zone 8. (syn.

S. rutilans)

Chia (Salvia hispanica) - Yes, of Chia Pet fame. Native

Americans, both Aztec and Apache, ate this while hunting

and traveling. Seed from this plant retails for £6 - £40 a

pound, because it’s very high in Omega-3 fatty acids, and

the richest vegetable source of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA).

Native of Mexico and Guatemala. Hardy to zone 9.

Grape-Scented Sage (Salvia melissodora) - The leaves

and seeds have been used for healing for thousands of

years. Native to Mexico, hardy to zone 9.

GROW NOTESWith good drainage, it’s very easy to grow this herb

outdoors, providing you have a spot in full sun. It’s also

easy to grow indoors, making winter fresh sage possible,

given ample light. While these types of salvia can reach

.6-1.8 meters tall, depending on the species grown, you

can keep plants at 30-45 cm high with regular harvesting.

Most sage plants produce well for three years, and are

evergreen in the right climate. Growing indoors will allow

you to enjoy not just fresh winter herbs, but also the more

tender sages from South America.

Common insect problems are mites and whitefly, and like

many plants that prefer sharp drainage, sage can be prone

to fungal infections. While the infection can harm and

dwarf the plant, most of the time it does not kill sage. Give

it the conditions it thrives in for a more efficient harvest,

and trouble-free crop.

Tradit ional Chinese medic ine has used sage

tea sinc e 835 A.D.

A NATURAL ANTIOXIDANT, DISINFECTANT, AND DEODORIZER


SAGE I GARDEN CULTURE

N U T R I E N T SStandard vegetative nutrients or organic fertilizer is fine.

There are no special nutritional needs.

H A R V E S TGiven the conditions described above, expect the first

summer harvest after transplanting in 4-5 weeks, and 5-7

weeks in winter. You get multiple harvests if your plants

are robust, since sages are perennials and subshrubs.

Greenhouse yields in an NFT system are: 1.8 kg per 3

meters of trough in summer, and .45 kg per 4.5 meters of

trough in winter. Under good grow lighting indoors you’ll

get a little heavier harvest in winter, and less in summer than

the full sun conditions in a greenhouse would produce.

By the way, this is a rather uncommon fresh-cut herb in

retail selections, at least in the United States, and may

present small growers with a great market crop, especially

during the winter holiday season.

C U L I N A R Y U S E SThere are a surprising number of ways to use fresh sage, so if

you thought this was all about poultry stuffing and sausages,

it’s time to expand your cuisine horizons. While the flavor of

just-cut sage leaves are milder than dried or frozen, the blue

flowers are subtler still. They make a lovely edible garnish

and salad ingredient, seasoned butter, simple syrup, and are

great with dried beans, corn, and mushrooms.

How much milder? A lot - substitute 5 ml of fresh for every

1 ml of dry sage any recipe calls for. It combines well with

bay, caraway, cutting celery, dried ginger, lovage, marjoram,

paprika, parsley, savory, and thyme.

Use your sage harvest for flavoring winter squash and

meats: veal, turkey, chicken, pork, and fish. It is good in

stews, stuffings, chowders and soups, marinades, casseroles,

sauces, and gravies. It can at times be a star ingredient, like

in Saltimbocca, where the fried leaves are both garnish and

seasoning. Once you’ve tried fried sage leaves, you might

find that they have uses that include snacking.

It pairs well with dairy, as in England’s traditional Sage

Derby cheese, where it’s also enjoyed with sautéed

onions. Germans use it to flavor beer, as well as sausages.

Italy uses it in lots of things besides Saltimbocca. Do some

culinary research online where you’ll find it combined with

a wide array of foods. You’ll soon be awash in new ways to

work sage into meals.3

A NATURAL ANTIOXIDANT, DISINFECTANT, AND DEODORIZER Lemon - Sage Butter Chicken Scallopine The trick to getting the coating to stick to your meat for these

kinds of dishes is not messing with the breading steps.

Ingredients

• 4 chicken breast halves, pounded thin

• 50 ml flour

• 2 eggs, beaten

• 125 ml fresh bread crumbs

• Salt and pepper

• 50 ml canola oil

• 1 stick butter

• 20 fresh sage leaves

• 1 lemon, juiced

Directions

Put a large skillet on medium-high heat,

and heat the oil.

Dip your chicken into the flour, then the egg. Now dip into bread

crumbs - pressing them slightly so they stick.

Gently lay the breaded meat into the hot oil. Cook until golden,

about 4 minutes per side. Remove and set aside.

Melt the butter to the skillet. Now add the sage and lemon juice.

Cook for about 1 minute until the sage leaves are slightly crispy.

Pour the butter sauce into a heatproof measuring cup. Set the

fried leaves aside.

Put one chicken scallopini on each plate, drizzle with the butter

sauce, scatter some of the crispy sage leaves on top.

Serve with potatoes or creamy pasta, and a crisp salad. A lovely

dinner in a jiffy using garden-fresh sage.

Serves 4. Recipe adopted from FramedCooks.com

1

2

3

4

5

6

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PLANT POWER I GARDEN CULTURE

generating power from a natural process that happens all around us

they’re harvesting photosynthetic waste

Biophotovoltaic Energy

POWER

sleek-looking table cannot power the lamp. It was only

designed as a prototype to showcase this emerging

technology, but it will run a clock. Further design

engineering is needed to make a moss-powered table

lamp work, but it grabbed the attention of Fabienne

Felder, a designer with a passion for biophilic design.

Felder approached the team about the opportunity

it presented her - to create something that showed

how the process worked. And so, Moss FM was

born, a radio powered by plants in a process that is

totally exposed. The radio made its public début at

the Edinburgh International Science Festival in April,

2014.

Biochemist Paolo Bombelli, and plant scientist Ross

Dennis, have a goal to perfect this plant powered

technology. In the future we might find it very possible

to enjoy a lush green wall in every room that doubles

as your personal power plant too. The benefits of the

natural world are nothing short of amazing. 3

We’ve long generated electricity with plants, but only dead ones - as in fossil fuels and

biomass. Some forward-thinking scientists at Bath and Cambridge Universities are creating

electricity using live moss, that lowly stuff beneath your feet. A plant that many wage futile

war on eradicating from lawns and gardens.

Tough stuff, moss, it can grow where nothing else will. It seems to get water out of a rock,

and thrives where the sun cannot reach, making it the perfect candidate to even consider

generating plant power indoors.

They call it ‘biophotovoltaics’.

Basically they’re harvesting

photosynthetic waste. Not all the

energy plants absorb from the

sun gets used, and they exude the

surplus into the soil in the form of

organic compounds that symbiotic

bacteria in healthy soil need to live.

After the bacteria break down the

leftovers, the by-products contain electrons that

the team captured to produce an electric current.

All plants generate electric ions, and the bigger they

are, the more power they create. However, other

plants need a great deal more sunlight and soil to

live, requiring the use of electricity to keep them

indoors. But moss is perfectly suited to thriving

inside without grow lights, and in very little soil.

It’s also attractive, filters the air, and adds humidity

while requiring little water.

Generating power from a natural process that

happens all around us is an exciting discovery. The

research work is a joint effort of the Chemical

Engineering and Biotechnology, Biochemistry and

Plant Sciences, and Chemistry departments. They

didn’t set out to accomplish what they have though,

the project began as using plants in solar panels, and

along the way they discovered this BVP thing.

The electric current produced by the moss in this


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#1 in commercial reverse osmosis

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Extra-High Capacity De-ChlorinatorAnd Sediment Filter

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42

1) Oxford

Mobile Farm MarketThey call it People-Powered Food, the organic fruits of

the labor of community. Its a growing effort founded,

funded, managed, and marketed by a crew of 400 -

the team and an army of volunteers. Cultivate Oxford

is a 10-acre market farm that is part of the Farm-Step

programme at Earth Trust, a charity organized to provide

young people with the land they need to become farmers.

Situated near Abingdon, gives the growers a commute,

but provides urban dwellers with fresh, locally grown,

organic food in an abundance not possible within the city.

They bring the food to the people, in a green grocer

VegVan. The mobile market makes scheduled appearances

in different neighborhoods, and farmers markets every

week. Proof positive that a community can change the

food system for the better, support local food, and do

it well.

Improving the quality of city living can take place from the

outside in. Learn more @ CultivateOxford.org.

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2) Waterford

Budding GrowersTeaching 100,000 youngster how to grow it yourself in

three school years is a lofty goal, but that’s exactly what GIY

Ireland and Innocent are aiming to accomplish. Launched in

2013, it has enjoyed two highly successful years, attracting

hundreds of 1st-6th class teachers in Ireland. The first year

they reached over 25,000 kids, and distributed some 850

grow packs. In 2014 there were over 20,000 involved in a

new round of Sow & Grow classroom gardening, and they’re

already campaigning for 2015.

That’s a lot of free seed and young grow-it-yourselfers. It’s

not just about learning to grow, but about having fun doing

it. It’s also somewhat competitive with annual awards for

the top 3 classes based on how individual teachers put their

classroom experience together, the top requirement of which

is injecting the fun, and taking the startup package and running

wild with the project.

Teach the young how to grow, the future will follow suit.

Learn more on the GIY site @ bit.ly/sow-grow.

Phot

o C

redi

t: G

IY

GrowingWho’s

What Where

Winners of the 2014 innocent GIY Sow & Grow campaign, Cloghans Hill National School from Tuam, Co Galway celebrate with campaign patron, Donal Skehan.

Growing


WHAT’S GROWING ON I GARDEN CULTURE

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4) Chingford, North East London Training Beekeepers Organiclea understands that there are more problems

than pesticides for bees in the modern world. Realizing

that it’s all well and good that more and more people are

developing a keen interest in taking up the apiarist role

in keeping the UK pollinated, they’ve set out to guide

new beekeepers in going about things right. We need a

sustainable, natural approach, because they aren’t cattle,

though commercial apiaries treat them as such.

Several times a year, Organiclea holds beekeeping classes

on their garden grounds at Hawkswood Plant Nursery.

The two-day course segments must follow in succession.

No skipping Day 1 allowed. First you must learn about

the bees before it is possible to practice holistic apiary

methods. Just one more great contribution from a long-

standing workers cooperative that grows, and sells local

food in London.

If you’re going to do something naturally - understand

your creature. Learn more @ bit.ly/organic-lea-bees.3

3) Hackney, East London

Growing FarmersLiterally. That’s what Growing Communities is doing through

their Start-Up Programme. Successful growers for 20 years,

their social enterprise has always been about creating a

sustainable, resilient food system locally. Their CSA box

scheme and farmers’ market presence has long been well-

established, the success of which brought budding farmers

and growers to them for knowledge.

The list of existing community-led local fresh food sources

they have nurtured into existence is amazing, but they’re not

done guiding newcomers. There are spots available every

year to learn the path to successful urban farming, because

it’s not just about growing the food, but also creating your

market, and changing your neighborhood from the inside out.

They’ve got all kinds of great stuff happening here. Learn more

@ GrowingCommunities.org.

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uniti

esGrowing

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Growing

it is our job to lead youths toward health and preservation

44

BY KYLE L. LADENBURGER

TEACH I NG YOUTH T O GARDE N I NSPI RE S

H EALTH Y F O OD CHOIC E S LATER ON

T E A C H ‘ E M YO U N G


GARDEN EDUCATION I GARDEN CULTURE

These days it would seem

that the easiest thing for us

to do would be to blame our

parents for providing such

innutritious products to their

children. But I’m not sure if

that is actually the best, and

most noble course of action.

When my generation was

young there was little to no

evidence that processed food

was a hazard to our health.

Mix that with fast food and

processed foods being so

cheap and easy to prepare

- that hasn’t changed much.

And then compound that

with the fast food dollar menu

being born, which completely

solidified fast, cheap, and easy meals.

This all begs the inevitable question: what was a busy,

overworked parent to do? However, that was a long time

ago, and things have changed indeed. We are now truly

seeing the effects such a poor diet can have on one’s health,

especially when it comes to children. By now most of us likely

understand the fact that processed foods are unnatural, and

that our bodies need real whole food nutrition to stay strong

and healthy. So, I think it is time to realize that we have reached

an age where ignorance for the sake of saving time and money

should no longer be considered acceptable, especially when it

comes to the health and development of a growing child.

Now, as my generation enters into our 30’s, and many of

us begin to have children of our own, the negative health

consequences of a diet high in processed foods are becoming

even more evident. We live in a world fueled by information,

and every day we see new statistics that help drive us try to make

healthier choices for our own bodies. We can read the fact

that in 2012, 29.1 million Americans or 9.3% of the population

had full on diabetes (a disease

that is becoming prevalent

in developed countries), and

that this number consistently

rises on average 1% every two

years, and that nearly 25,000

children are newly diagnosed

each year, not including

those who go undiagnosed

(Source: National Diabetes

Statistics Report, 2014).

These numbers help keep

diabetes comfortably within

the top 10 causes of death in

our country each year.

After learning that, we

may stumble upon another

website such as the one

for the Center for Disease

Control (CDC) who reports that “childhood obesity has

more than doubled in children, and quadrupled in adolescents

over the past 30 years.” In 1980, 7% of children 6-11 years of

age were obese, and that number jumped to 18% in 2012, and

a similar increase in adolescents (12-19 years old) where the

number jumped from 5% in 1980 to 21% in 2012. Now they

consider more than one-third of children and adolescents as

overweight or obese. There is also much published data on

childhood obesity being a leading cause of a whole list of health

problems as these children grow older.

It’s clearly evident that something needs to change. So, as a

generation, we read these numbers, and many of us get an

unsettled, almost sickening feeling as we think to ourselves -

how could anyone let this happen? Not only that, but what can

we do to change this trend?

The bottom line is that children who are obese are likely to

still be obese as adults, and will be more at risk to develop

health problems such as heart disease, diabetes, and many

types of cancer. A contributing factor to childhood obesity,

littleny / Shutterstock.com

I was born in the summer of 1985, and the generation that I so emphatically belong to is one that in many respects

was the guinea pig test generation for modern food science. As children we had a first hand, participatory role

in the rise of the processed food market. For many of us, real nutritious foods, like fresh fruits and vegetables,

represented a small portion of our overall diet. The other part? Filled with fast food, low-grade microwave din-

ners, and countless other products designed in a lab by scientists blending food-like substances with chemicals to

create a “safe” to eat packaged meal that has a ridiculously long shelf life.

THE GUINEA PIG TEST GENERATION

FOR MODERN FOOD SCIENCE


GARDEN EDUCATION I GARDEN CULTURE

every day we see new statistics that help drive us try to make healthier choices

along with lack of physical exercise, is the heavy consumption

of processed foods. If ignorance is the villain that got us into

this mess, then information and knowledge shall be our first

weapons to fight against it.

It’s of utmost importance to teach children that making

health conscious nutritional and dietary choices will help to

keep them healthy and fit their entire lives. And I believe that

my generation will be the one that can truly make an impact

towards positive change. With my generation we have seen a

strong push towards locally sourced foods, organics, farmers

markets, less chemical additives, and the slow food movement

in general. If we stay true to these movements, and as we begin

to have our own children, we can have a positive influence on

the next generation, so they will hopefully grow up emulating

the same types of food choices that we make.

Naturally, as we begin to create more healthy diets for

ourselves, this in turn will impact the types of foods marketed

to us and sold in stores. Being consumers, our dollars help

shape the products we see in the market place. If we start

moving our money away from the processed foods over to

the more nutritious healthy foods the suppliers will notice and

they, in turn, will provide more products of a similar fashion to

satisfy demand.

One of the most encouraging aspects that I see when looking

at my generation is that we have created such an awesome

popularity surge in home gardening. If a certain food is not

available locally, or if we don’t completely trust the provider,

we know we have the best solution: to grow our own.

Gardening is a foolproof way for us to supply ourselves and

our families with healthy, nutritious food for the rest of

our lives, or at least until we can garden no more. With a

big enough garden, and a plentiful reserve of jars, we can

even preserve much of our harvest, and enjoy the bounty

year round.

A word that instantly comes to mind is self-sustainability.

Our love of gardening is also a perfect way to show

children, even at an early age, what real healthy foods

are, and how they grow. This, in turn, can help them to

develop a passion for not only eating fruits and vegetable,

but growing them as well.

When gardening with a child it is important to remember

to keep it simple, but also to have fun. Children easily lose

focus if an activity is too challenging, or just not any fun.

Some garden activities that are suitable for participation

by children include: planting seeds, watering plants,

harvesting fruits/veggies, and even some minor garden

maintenance like light weeding, and pruning of dead or

unwanted foliage. Letting them help in different aspects

in the garden will not only teach them how plants grow,

and the healthy hard work involved in growing them, it will

also make them feel a rightfully deserved sense of pride in

what they have done. As adults (parents or otherwise) it is

important that we show excitement and pride with these

gardening activities to encourage the child to continue

down the this path as both a gardener, and as an individual

that makes healthy food decisions more often than not.

I will be honest. I don’t always make the wisest decision

with every meal I eat, and I have those cravings for junk

food just like anyone else. But the important thing is that

I am more conscious of these choices, and I try to make

better ones in the future. If we continue to try and not

just give up, we can really get the momentum going in a

positive direction for the future. We may even help shift

the tides just a bit - away from the fast and easy processed

world, back to the natural, locally grown, real food side.

Back to how people ate for thousands of years, straight

from the earth.

This all starts with people supporting local farmers,

local farmers markets, and encouraging the growth of

more small farms in their area. We need to create an

environment in which eating and living healthy is not

only promoted, but where it is the norm. And as adults,

especially parents of young children, it is our job to work

at leading the youth in the direction toward health and

preservation so that, when they grow up, the choice to

eat healthy will be one of little thought, only action. 3

Plants need nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), and other nutrients for healthy growth. These

are elements, and as such, there is no difference between the nitrogen (N) from an organic nutrient, or a

synthetic nutrient. Elemental nitrogen is the same exact thing, regardless of the source.

The most important (and most interesting) of these is

nitrogen (N). Unfortunately, plants can’t absorb pure

elemental nitrogen (N) directly. There isn’t a way to

feed plants a pile of single nitrogen (N) atoms. There

is plenty of nitrogen gas (N2) in air, but plants can’t

split the two nitrogen atoms apart, they are bound too

tightly together, and so nitrogen gas (N2) isn’t a good

nitrogen source for plants.

What garden plants most often use to allow them to take

up nitrogen (N) is a form known as nitrate (NO3), which

is a nitrogen (N) atom connected with three oxygen (O)

atoms. Nitrate (NO3) is easy for the plants to separate

the nitrogen (N) from the oxygen (O), and therefore

makes for a good source of nitrogen (N) (woody plants

like trees can also use ammonium (NH4)).

Plant material that has fallen to the ground, and animals

leaving waste material behind are two sources of nitrogen

(N) that are naturally occurring in untended wilderness.

To emulate this, we get organic nutrients from naturally

occurring materials with minimal processing. One

advantage to this is that the materials can often be

collected cheaply (i.e. leaves, lawn clippings, livestock

manure, etc.), and require little processing before use,

often just maturing or composting. Compost (3-1-2) is

very similar to what happens in nature when leaves, and

other plant material fall to the ground, and nobody is

around to rake it up. Blood meal (12-0-0) and alfalfa

meal (2-1-2) are two other organic fertilizers that are

based on things found to supply plants in a natural

setting with nutrition. It is as these things decompose

(or compost) that bacteria and fungi convert them into

ammonia (NH3), and ammonium (NH4), which break

down further into nitrites, and finally nitrates.

Another organic source of ammonia is the waste

products of animals, which contain nitrogen in the form

of urea (NH2)2(CO). The urea is converted to ammonia

(NH3) by bacteria using the enzyme ureasec. This

process takes time with spread out availability, because

the bacteria generate the ammonia as they get to it.

I like to compare organic nutrients to eating oatmeal for

breakfast, they’re bulky, and release their nutrients over

time. Some forms of organic fertilizers can continue to

release nutrients for more than one season, improving

the general long-term health of the soil. Because the

percentage of nutrient to total mass is usually lower,

the NPK values for organic nutrients are also generally

ORGAN IC

C O M P A R E O R G A N I C N U T R I E N T S T O

E A T I N G O A T M E A L F O R B R E A K F A S T

BY GRUBBYCUP

48

VS.

lower than with chemical-based solutions. Because they

are closer to a natural state, the NPK values for organic

products will also be less exact than chemical based

fertilizers, which allow you to make to exact recipes. This

is why organic nutrients are less prone to overfeeding,

the exception being high ammonia ‘hot’ manures. You

can use compost, worm casting, and fish excrement in

almost unlimited quantities without causing ‘nute burn’.

Since organic nutrients are less processed, they are also

more prone to clogging hydroponic systems that rely on

sprayers and pumps.

However, there is more than one way to make ammonia

(NH3) it can also be a manufactured chemical made

from nitrogen gas (N2) by applying heat, pressure, and

an iron catalyst. Ammonium sulfate ((NH4)2SO4), and

ammonium nitrate (NH4)(NO3) are other manufactured

forms of nitrogen that allow for later parts of the process

to be skipped over. Any of these allow for a short cut

in the process, and makes the nitrogen available a lot

faster, but does not last as long before giving up the

nitrogen it contains.

Chemical nutrients are more like having an energy drink

for breakfast, they release their nutrients quickly, and

then you need more to avoid a ‘crash’. Since chemical

nutrients are shortcuts to the natural process, they can

allow for a greater level of control of how much, and

when the nitrogen becomes available to the plants. This

can allow for a higher nutrient level, and resulting increase

in performance than is possible with organic nutrients.

With this level of control comes responsibility however,

as introducing an overabundance becomes a much more

likely temptation, which can result in ‘nute burn’, or

overloading and damaging natural systems with the

runoff. Adding a chemical nitrate (NO3) for example,

allows for skipping the entire nitrate (NO3) creation

process, and immediately supplies nitrogen (N) to the

plants, but it is also very water-soluble, and what isn’t

taken up by the plant will quickly wash downstream

(unless recirculated).

Overdosing plants with chemicals can imbalance a

natural system to the point that it becomes inhospitable

to the beneficial bacteria and fungi normally responsible

for the process. The ability to better fine tune the

available nutrients also allows for ease in imbalance

creation, and smaller margin for error. Because chemical

fertilizers are shortcuts to the process, using them to

treat nutrient deficiencies will tend to give faster results

than an organic solution, which is better suited for long-

term release. Depending on the exact chemical used,

there may also be “leftover” residue after plants take

up the ammonia or nitrate they need, which can build

up in the system over time. This is where the practice of

watering heavily without nutrients for a time (flushing)

comes from, to help wash away any leftover chemical

residue buildup.

Regardless of the source, in acidic conditions (pH less

than 7) the ammonia (NH3) picks up another hydrogen

(H) atom, and converts to ammonium (NH4). This is

CHEMICAL NUTRIENTS ARE MORE LIKE HAVING AN

ENERGY DRINK FOR BREAKFAST

ORGAN IC


ORGANIC VS. SYNTHETIC I GARDEN CULTURE

VS. SYNTHETICNUTRIENTS

The differences between chemical and organic nutrition

are not as absolute as they are often portrayed. They

both use the same process to supply the same elements

to the plants. The primary differences are in how many

shortcuts they offer, and what remains afterwards.

They are both tools you can use successfully when

done correctly. Although purists on both sides may

strongly disagree, I believe there is little reason not

to make use of the benefits of both in moderation.

Plants awaiting organic nutrients to become available

may benefit from a little chemical boost to tide them

over, and long-lasting organic materials can help create

a buffer for fast acting chemical nutrient gardens.

Sometimes a big hearty high fiber breakfast is what a

person needs to start the day, and sometimes you just

need a good strong cup of coffee to get your eyes to

open. As always, understanding why you are adding

something to your garden, and how it works, goes a

long way toward picking the one that’s right for you. 3

part of why pH can have an effect on plant growth, if

the pH is too high, this inhibits conversion. Beneficial

bacteria then convert the ammonium (NH4) to nitrate

(NO3) which can then be used by the garden plants.

Nitrogen from organic sources follows a path of several

steps to become the nitrate (NO3) that plants need.

Chemical nutrients allow skipping some (or all) of these

conversion steps, which starts the nitrogen (N) further

along the path, and closer to the finished nitrate (NO3).

Phosphorus is available naturally from organic composts,

rock phosphate, or bone meal - or it can come from

chemicals such as ammoniated superphosphate (5-

50-0), or ammonium phosphate (18-46-0). Overuse

of phosphorus is one of the sources of environmental

pollution.

Potassium is also obtainable from organic sources like

compost (3-1-2), kelp (1-0-4), or greensand (0-0-3),

or from a chemical such as potassium nitrate (13-0-

44).

ORGANIC NUTRIENTS

ARE LESS PRONE TOOVERFEEDING


ORGANIC VS. SYNTHETIC I GARDEN CULTURE

ORGANIC PRODUCTS WILL ALSO BE LESS EXACT

THAN CHEMICAL BASED FERTILIZERS

ORGAN IC

VS.SYNTHETIC

GLY

NN

IS J

ON

ES

/ SH

UT

TE

RST

OC

K.C

OM

You should have the wherewithal to see that their plan does

not support sustainability, it detracts from it. Even if you’re

not a farmer, surely you can understand the implications

behind owning the global food supply, of having control over

who can plant what crops.

Some Perspective

A single small tomato easily contains enough seed to

create 30-100 tomato plants. Those 30-100 plants will each

produce at least 30 tomatoes each. Those 30 new plants

each bearing 30 tomatoes apiece

gives a harvest of 900 tomatoes.

Everyone of those 900 tomatoes

contains a minimum of 30 seeds

that will successfully germinate,

leading to 2,700 new tomato

plants which equals 81,000

tomatoes with just 30 fruits apiece. Pretty incredible, and

we’re using super conservative numbers.

All that food grown at no added cost from the “scraps” of

just one tomato, which most people casually throw away! They

don’t understand that they’re tossing so much into the garbage.

BUT this only works with open-pollinated, and heirloom

seeds, NOT with hybrid and GM seeds - which are possibly

sterile. Besides, it’s illegal to sow saved patented seeds

anyways, because it violates biotech patent rights. You must

always buy new seed, always pay for their permission.

The problem with

Before the GMO

Using the tomato example, being an heirloom instead of

a hybrid, local communities could take one tomato, and

propagate it into hundreds, even thousands of plants. All

without a monopolistic controlling coalition of biotech

companies profiting as they violate the age-old laws of nature,

farming, and food.

That’s what genetically modified crop supporters and

proponents just don’t understand. By design, GMOs with the

associated synthetic and chemical inputs are the complete

opposite of sustainability, the reverse of a solution to world

hunger. This actively funnels control of our global food

supply into the hands of a few, leaving the population

at their mercy. It goes against history lessons, science,

and morals to actually support GM crops, and say it’s

advanced agriculture, and increases sustainability.

Imagine the massive cash flow realized when every

mammal and fowl in captivity or domestication, along with

every man, woman, and child alive on Earth gets their daily

bread from a handful of big companies. Food isn’t a luxury.

You need it just to survive, along with water, and shelter.

Now add the seed you sell that goes into biofuels.

Seed patents made possible by genetic modifications is all

about the profits, it’s about ensuring continual coffer wealth

through domination. 3

When a chemical company announces: “We’re going to

solve the global food problem by patenting the food supply,

and force farmers to pay higher prices for seed that cannot

be saved. Sure, we realize humans have saved seed to grow

next year’s food since the beginning of agriculture. However,

you aren’t allowed to save seed according to your contract

with The Chemical Company. Instead, farmers must now

spend more money per seed, must buy new seed each year,

and use only our brands of inputs.”

their plan does not support sustainability, it detracts from it

Food Patents

BY AGENT GREEN

it goes against history lessons,

science, and morals

52

Nutriculture Grow Systems provide roots with exceptional access to oxygen and nutrient solution.

The result is huge root zones with greater nutrient uptake and up to 3x bigger yields. That’s why growers have trusted Nutriculture Grow Systems since 1976.

Find a Nutriculture Grow Systems stockist: www.nutsystems.co.uk

PROUD OF OUR ROOTS

nutriculture grow systems

54

BY TAMMY CLAYTON, PHOTOGRAPHY: COURTESY OF VERMONT SAIL FREIGHT PROJECT

Just because regional farm to table food travels long

distance doesn’t necessarily mean its transport relies

on carbon energy. A few forward thinking people

are finding more environmentally friendly solutions

of moving farm products to market.

It’s a logistics mode in its second infancy, but will likely grow

and become more widespread, moving farm goods across a

state, a region, a country, a continent, and over open sea. There

was a time when sail freight was the fastest, and easiest mode

of transport available. The concept creates feasible access for

farms of all sizes to cities and towns established on shores

around the world.

There are already several ocean-crossing sail transport vessels in

various stages of implementation. Fairtransport’s Tres Hombres

schooner recently made its fifth trip from the Netherlands to

the Caribbean for rum, and delivered European goods to Brazil.

A tall ship mission that takes many weeks to complete, so it is

too long for perishables transit, but perfect for packaged or dry

exports.

Regional fresh food might take a day’s worth of carbon miles

to reach your local farm market bouncing down the highway

at 88-128 km/h. Sail freight vastly reduces, or erases fossil

fuel needs completely. There are certain spots or stretches

of water where motor is necessary, such as going through

locks to change elevation, or traveling canals where poling

isn’t possible. It is totally dependent on the route the boat

must travel.

Currently, the most successful venture on the North

American continent is the Vermont Sail Freight Project.

Though the Farm Boat in Seattle had a few years head start,

it appears that politics put an end to the floating market

for Puget Sound farmers. After three years under siege over

fictional charges, it’s doubtful they will sail into the Seattle

Harbor laden with farm harvests again. But the Farm Boat isn’t

reduced carbon transit, though it cured a logistics dilemma for

regional farms. It’s a 1922 steamship, not a sailing vessel, and

burns 113- 189 liters of diesel fuel an hour.

WIND&WATERSUSTAINABLE FOOD TRANSPORT

A LOGISTICS MODE IN ITS SECOND INFANCY


SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT I GARDEN CULTURE

Vermont Sail Freight dockings. They aren’t competitors, but

like-minded members of the sustainable food movement.

A partnership that greatly enriches market selection while

building the strength of community.

Some labeled Andrus’ test voyage a publicity stunt, but

isn’t that how people find out about new things? His idea is

very business savvy - 9 million urbanites live within walking

distance of his final port of call. It’s an eager market hungry

for a source for good food sensations like wild birch syrup,

fingerling potatoes, freshly pressed cider, and so much more

that cannot be supplied from most urban farms.

In 2014, the Ceres began making this trip several times a

year, welcome everywhere they set anchor, and set up a

market table. They don’t return home with an empty hold

either. Brooklyn’s harbor is an excellent place to secure

goods that rural producers need. It’s a venture that will no

doubt sail into the future for years to come.

Vermont Sail Freight Project’s blog is a great read. It

chronicles the trip through posts written by members of the

crew. Their stories take you through the entire experience

from Lake Champlain down the Champlain and Hudson

Falls Canals, and on down the Hudson River.3

When Ferrisburgh, Vermont farmer, Erik Andrus, latched

onto the idea of sail cargo to take fresh goods and farm

products from farms in the Lake Champlain area to market

in New York City it was October of 2012. His vision was

zero-emissions food trading that restored community access

to a now corporate-ruled marketplace. He wanted to build

a flat bottom barge similar to the ones used over a hundred

years ago powered by wind, tide, and muscle.

They naturally improved the original design of boat and sail

rigging, for borrowing from the past to go into the future is

best done using knowledge gained between then and now.

While Andrus equipped his sail freighter with a motor, this is

only fired when all other options prove impossible.

And so, the Ceres came to life, named for the Roman

goddess of agriculture. Andrus had help from the Willowell

Foundation in nearby Monkton, and funding from a

Kickstarter campaign. Erik worked hard at introducing his

concept to the region, and the world.

October 2013 brought the Vermont Sail Freight maiden

voyage, a test run through the entire trek. Loaded with goods

from 30 farms, Ceres docked at chosen market harbors on

the trading route, making their plans known to the locals.

They made connections to pick up more regional goods on

the next run to NYC the following season, and caused quite

a stir. Press coverage of the event was widespread, with

publications like The New York Times headline, “15 Tons of

Groceries Sailing Down The Hudson.”

The Ceres has no cooling in the hold beyond the water

enveloping the hull. The trip takes at least 10 days one way,

making it impossible to deliver perishables like strawberries

and lettuces by sail, but this is really a good thing. It paves the

way for urban farms like Brooklyn Grange to team up with

SAIL FREIGHT

VASTLY REDUCES,

OR ERASES FOSSIL FUEL

NEEDS COMPLETELY

WIND&WATER

• learn more:• bit.ly/vermont-sail-freight

• bit.ly/VSFP-blog

• bit.ly/sail-network

• bit.ly/farm-boat

BY THEO TEKSTRA – MARKETING MANAGER GAVITA HOLLAND BV

56

There is sometimes so much legend, and so little science in this industry. It is time for some myth busting, to allow

a fresh breeze to move through the growing realm.

Did you see this Family Guy episode, “You Know What Grinds My Gears?” It’s one of my favorites, where

Peter goes medieval on television over issues bothering him. I’ll use a bit more science, and a little less gut

feeling, but these are issues that really get to me.

PPF versus PPFDLet’s look at the output

specifications first, forgetting

lumens, because we’re using grow

light. Lumens are for humans - not

plants. So, what defines the total

output of a fixture is the total

output of photons in the PAR

region (400-700 nm), measured in

micromoles per second (photons

per second). This is also called

the photosynthetic photon flux,

or PPF.

Light intensity on a surface in PAR spectrum is called

PPFD. Now there is only one “D” difference from

PPF, but that makes a big difference. PPFD is intensity,

measured in micromoles per second, per square meter

(μmol s-1 m-2)! So, remember: PPF is total output.

PPFD is intensity at a certain spot, and depends where

you measure it under the fixture.

If you have a lamp with a PPF of 1000 μmol s-1, and you

spread this light over two square meters, you would get

an average of 500 μmol s-1 m-2 intensity on that surface

(total light divided by surface). It’s like Lumen and lux,

but for PAR spectrum and measured in photons. Lumen

You know what

S O M E M A N U F A C T U R E R S

B O M B A R D U S W I T H R E A L L Y R I D I C U L O U S

C L A I M S

GRINDS my GEARS?

I sometimes feel like I am on

a crusade against ignorance.

It’s not that I’m the brightest

scientist (or a scientist at all for

that matter), but the claims that

some manufacturers bombard

us with are really ridiculous, and

sometimes even harm their own

industry. Let’s take a look at LED

fixture manufacturers.

Before we do though, here is my

personal opinion about LEDs. I

love LED lighting. Really! Yes, I

work for a horticultural lighting

company and yes, we do research in LED systems.

The reason why we don’t sell LED systems for HPS

replacement in horticulture yet is that we think they

are still too expensive. Another reason is that many

of our customers actually require the heat from HPS

systems.

So back to the LED fixture manufacturers. There are

two major things that grind my gears: The output

specification, and hollow phrases, such as “replaces

a 1000W HID lamp,” and “reduce 60% of the power

used.” Both are actually connected.


is the total output of a lamp, lux is the intensity at a

certain distance from that lamp, with the light spread

over a certain surface (lux is lumens per square meter).

Measuring total output of a lampTo measure the total output of a lamp or fixture, we

use an integrating sphere or a photogoniometer. These

(calibrated!) instruments integrate all the light, and give

you an accurate measurement of the total output of a

lamp or fixture. Measuring light under the fixture on

a grid, and integrating

the values is very

inaccurate, specifically

with a low number of

measurements on a

small surface.

Now let’s take a HPS

lamp as an example.

The double ended HPS lamp does let’s say 2000 μmol

out of the reflector in total. So spread over a 2 square

meter surface I would get about 1000 μmol per second,

per square meter intensity. Easy, right? But now I hold

a light meter about 40 cm from the lamp, and I measure

more than 4000 μmol s-1 m-2. How is that possible?

That’s twice the PPF of the lamp?

No, it isn’t. 2000 μmol

s-1 concentrated over

just half a square meter

gives you that intensity

(ppf/surface). So a

measurement under

a lamp at a certain

distance, specifically if

it is a deep lamp with a concentrated beam (as in lensed

LEDs) says nothing (at all!) about that light or fixture.

SPECIFICATIONSPPFD at 30 cmNow look at the (Chinese) LED specifications. Some

actually say PPFD of x at y cm from the fixture (which

you know now is absolutely rubbish information), but

some even go as far as to call this PPF (in a footnote

they say @ 30 cm from fixture).

So, with my 270W plasma light I measure 3000 μmol

s-1 m-2 close to the glass, so it replaces 1,5 1000W

HPS fixture, right? Wrong. You fell for the hype again.

How do I compare?You need about as much LED light as you

need HPS light to get the same yields.

As LED is not twice as efficient as HPS

(equal to, or at most a little better in a

limited spectrum) these fixtures do not

replace a 1000W HPS lamp at just 40%

of the power. When you want to replace

1000W HPS for LED fixtures, you need 1000W LED.

Then look at the difference in price.

LED fixture manufacturers that specify the output by

PPFD at a distance don’t know anything about lighting,

or do know, but want to fool you. Either way, you

shouldn’t trust them. A 400W LED fixture uses 60%

less energy than a 1000W HID lamp. So does a

400W CFL or a 400W incandescent lamp. 60% less

energy? Yes. 400W is only 40% of 1000W, but I

also promise you 60% less yield in a high intensity

lighting production room.

Don’t just go for the hype, keep thinking! 3

LED SPECIFICATIONS I GARDEN CULTURE

GRINDS my GEARS?

Y O U N E E D A B O U T A S M U C H L E D L I G H T A S

Y O U N E E D H P S L I G H T T O G E T T H E S A M E

Y I E L D S

4 0 0 W I S O N L Y 4 0 % O F 1 0 0 0 W ,

B U T I A L S O P R O M I S E Y O U

6 0 % L E S S Y I E L D

& Food Sovereignty

BY AMBER FIELDS

58

are only 500, because that old stuff won’t turn big annual

profits. After being acquired by Monsanto, Seminis actually

removed some 2,000 heirloom plants from the market, all

quietly stored away in corporate seed banks where they

will turn to dust.

That’s a huge loss of seed diversity. They can’t patent and

control them. Your ability to save seed, and enjoy the same

crop year after year isn’t good for business. There’s no

money in that - not from the seed itself, or the special

plant pesticides the Big 6 makes to help you bring in a

harvest successfully.

Big Ag wants to monopolize home

garden plants?

Do the math - it’s an ever-growing market of some $36

billion dollars today, and expected to surpass $50 billion

by 2018. Since life itself depends on seeds, this foolproof

market spells big profit every year perpetually. Every

living thing on Earth needs to eat,

and food starts with a seed, or is

sustained by things that come from

seed. They’re after everything on

your plate that you grew too.

These corporations can destroy

you financially for ignoring their

patent rights. They hire people to track down anyone

growing their plants without permission. Propagating

patented plants from seeds or cuttings is theft. You have

to pay for the right to grow them.

This is a global problem.

Monsanto and Syngenta already own more than 50%

of seed varieties of tomato, paprika, and cauliflower

registered in the EU. In this arena Enza Zaden, and Bayer-

owned Nunhems are active on the scene of patenting

food plants, which abruptly quadrupled in recent years.

While many believe that patenting plants requires genetic

YOU’RE BEING RELIEVED OF

GREATER FOOD FREEDOMS

Concerned about pesticides, chemicals, and GMOs on your plate? Time to broaden your awareness

of what’s happening in the world of seed that produces food. While everyone focuses on genetically

modified crops and ingredients - food sovereignty and seed diversity is disappearing.

What does that mean?

You’re being relieved of greater food freedoms. Your right

to grow food without purchasing or seeking permission,

to save seeds from your garden, is in jeopardy. A dilemma

that stems from the patenting of ornamental plants and

steady profits.

“Few gardeners comprehend the true scope of their garden

heritage, or how much is in immediate danger of being lost

forever.”

~-- Kent Whealey, Seed Savers Exchange

Now it is one thing for the breeder of bushes and posies

to license his years of labor in arriving at new coloration

or growing trait that cannot be reproduced from the seed

said plant generates. But it’s totally different when the

patent office hands legal ownership of food propagation

over to a global corporation. But said ornamental plant

breeder wouldn’t likely hunt down, and sue, the average

gardener for dividing up a clump

that’s lost vigor, or outgrown its

space. If you propagate patented

ornamental plants, and start selling

them though, the plant police just

might arrive.

However, most plant patents,

whether edible or ornamental, are owned by the Big 6

- you know, that handful of transnational corporations:

Monsanto, Dow, Syngenta, DuPont, Mitsui, and Aventis.

These companies control 98% of the seeds worldwide,

not just farm seeds, but home garden seeds too - fruits,

vegetables, flowers, shrubs, etc. These entities go out of

their way to find anyone infringing on their rights and their

profits.

Non-patentable plants evicted.

In the early 1980s there were 5,000 different cultivars of

fruits and vegetable listed in seed catalogs. Today there


SEED DIVERSITY I GARDEN CULTURE


SEED DIVERSITY I GARDEN CULTURE

modification, late 2013 - early 2014 saw the EPO granting

patents on conventional hybrids, which is possible in the

US and Canada too. Monsanto tried to get an EU patent on

a regular garden cultivar in 2014 too, but they tossed out

the application for presenting fraudulent evidence.

It’s not just mega companies either.

Burpee Seeds’ owner, George Ball, is upset over his century-

old company being labeled as unsafe to purchase from, yet

he refuses to sign the Safe Seed Pledge. Not because he has

lost control to Monsanto’s subsidiary Seminis (the world’s

largest developer of all fruit and vegetable plants), but

because he doesn’t ‘know’ the people behind the pledge.

A typical Ball point of view, the Center for Responsible

Genetics didn’t spring from his plantsmen realm.

But you really have to take the

Safe Seed List with a grain of salt,

because it includes Seeds of Change

- a company owned by candy giant,

Mars, Inc. Surprised? Don’t be, it’s

a subsidiary acquired for mapping the cacao tree genome.

They say it’s to make the crop sustainable, but some entity

will modify that genome, patent their improved version,

and control the cacao bean industry. It’s the obvious

outcome in today’s world.

Smaller whales join the club.

Buying seed from Gurneys, Henry Fields, or Thompson

Morgan US? Ordering organic inputs from Gardens Alive?

These are all owned by catalog monopoly king, Niles Kinek

under the Scarlet Tanager and IGP Acquisitions umbrellas.

Amassing a dozen well-established plant businesses gives

you incredible knowledge and breeding talent, so it’s no

surprise that this conglomerate dove into the patented

food plant pool with a 2014 application to the U.S. Patent

Office for a new variety of grapes crossed with muscadines.

Seed industry consolidation has many layers and purposes.

You cannot be overly selective when choosing where to

buy seeds. Monsanto’s purchase of Seminis in 2005 made

ensuring your seed order doesn’t support their interests

harder to track. The Safe

Seed list includes companies

who do sell seed from

Seminis, but as J.W. Jung

states on their website, the

named varieties procured

through Seminis they offer are not GMOs, but well-known

old varieties in big demand. Seminis has been around a long

time, and is responsible for many beloved garden fruits

and vegetables, some since the 1950s when it was known

as Petoseeds.

Sticking strictly to heirlooms?

This isn’t the answer to preserving seed diversity. Thanks to

trademarks, we have plants known by several names. One

seed company with a trademark on

a certain heirloom plant name can

market the plant as such, while the

rest of the garden catalogs must

list it under a different name. Talk

about confusion. How would anyone know the real identity

of the plants we’re growing? You think they’ve preserved

several similar things, when they are really all the same, so

we actually have less diversity than it seems.

It isn’t totally hopeless.

Some concerned plant breeders recognize the dangers.

They’re working to preserve your food sovereignty and

seed diversity. Their plan launched in April 2014 with the

Save The Seed campaign held at the Wisconsin College of

Agriculture introducing the Open Source Seed Initiative.

Getting seed here requires signing a pledge that you will

only grow food with it,

and that no portion of said

plants, or their seed, will

be modified - genetically,

or otherwise. You also have

the right to save the seeds

from your garden. 3

Learn more:• bit.ly/seed-house-tangle

• bit.ly/grape-patent

• bit.ly/seminis-home-seeds

• bit.ly/seeds-of-change-indeed

• bit.ly/open-source-seed

THEY CONTROL 98% OF THE SEEDS

WORLDWIDE

YOU REALLY HAVE TO TAKE THE SAFE SEED

LIST WITH A GRAIN OF SALT

It wasn’t until I was about 13 or 14 that I actually started

gardening. I asked my mother if I could tend her garden, and

dig another plot in our lawn where I could grow more stuff,

in a sunnier spot. I tended that garden for almost a decade,

throughout all my high school and my college years. When I

finally moved out with my girlfriend, now wife and partner,

we lived in the city, and never had room for a real garden.

It wasn’t long before I discovered that you couldn’t grow

food in windows. Well, not in Montreal anyway. I was really

stuck - no space, no sun, and no more garden.

In 1994 indoor gardening was completely unknown to me,

as it is to most people today. So, I played around with a

bunch of inexpensive grow lights to aid my plants through

the bleak winter months. It was about that time I visited my

first hydroponics store too. My initial results were poor,

but the potential was obvious.

In 2002 I was self-employed, my wife was pregnant, and

a customer and friend of mine Dave H. from Brite-Lite

(Canada’s oldest hydroponics company) in Quebec made

me an offer to join the team. He wanted me as their

sales guy. I loved it, and spent four years working all over

Canada and the US selling indoor gardening fertilizers

and equipment. My old love for growing was evident as

I blossomed in this industry. I didn’t want to sell things I

have never used so I built a grow room, or grow tent in

every apartment and house we rented. I grew, using every

hydroponic method I could think of, I even invented a few.

I spent the next 10 years as a hydro rep, working for 3

companies, selling countless different products in countries

all around the world. In the process I learned everything I

could about hydroponics, and organic gardening techniques.

I was totally hooked, and knew that indoor gardening was

going to become a big part of my future.

I have always loved plants. Some of my earliest memories are of my grandmother’s small urban Montreal

apartment on Clark Blvd. Where a plant could grow, she would have one there, and they always looked great.

She told us her secret was foliar spraying whole unpasteurized milk. A trick I have never tried myself. It was

definitely her who passed on to me the love of plants.

BY ERIC COULOMBE

Give a man a salad, and he will be hungry in an hour.Teach him to garden, and he can feed the world.

62

I Grow Lettuce

Eight years ago when I decided to build my own home,

an indoor garden was optional. Because we designed the

home ourselves I could get creative. So I built a small garden

in the back corner of the basement over a protruding cap

rock, basically the only space my wife would let me use.

It has been a work in progress ever since. I used it more

to test products when I was sales rep, constantly changing

systems or products. But since starting with the magazine

it has become something I spend more thought, time, and

effort on. I reflected on all the ways I have grown things

over the years, the projects I have consulted on, and tried

to come up with not only the best garden for me, but a

great garden, and easy for anyone.

During the past 3 years I’ve had some amazing gardens.

My homemade aquaponics, the wall mounted

NFT, and the Ecogrow Wall (vertical garden)

have been my favorites. They have been

the easiest to manage, and gave me

the largest harvests.

Recently I decided to give my room a makeover. This time I was

going to do it right. First, I needed to clean the place up. Bugs had

always been a problem, I knew that the cleaner the room, the less

chance bugs could survive. So, I redid my floor in white high gloss

ceramic tiles. I also tiled the entrance room.

I also had to choose how I was going to garden, what systems

I would use. I choose my favorites, but with the family in mind.

We are very busy people with 2 kids (aged 5 and 11), a dog,

two cats, and we both work 40+ hour weeks. I also travel a

lot, and this garden had to run itself when I was gone. With

this is mind I designed our indoor family micro farm.


ERIC’S GARDEN I GARDEN CULTURE

I Grow Lettuce

I discovered that you couldn’t

grow food in windows

LightsI like all lights really, or my plants do. Some seem a little

better or brighter, but this is not a commercial crop, and

everything seems to do great regardless of what lights I

have. With that said, there are a couple of notable products:

Gavita Plasma

I have used this light for a little over a year. It has visited

a couple of gardens, both as primary and supplemental

lighting. My tester had a very positive report, when used as

supplemental. I recently moved it into my garden, and the

Kale in the NFT are going crazy. Crazy good, I have never

seen Kale grow so fast. Love it.

Sunlight Supply’s LEC 315

Sent to me less than a year ago, this product hangs over the

DWC system, and the plants are doing great. Maybe too

good - the tomato is huge! I’m afraid it might takeover if I

don’t give it a haircut.

1000 HPS (Adjust-a-Wing)

Because I have 40 square feet of vertical growing space

I need light on the walls. This type of reflector is great

for the vertical garden. My bulb and ballast is not worth

mentioning, but I am planning to change it soon. It is a

digital ballast, I like dimming feature when it gets hot.

MiniMax 150

My newest edition is the Minimax 150W, this small but

powerful light packs a huge punch. I was looking for a low

wattage system to install over my vertical walls. Down to

Earth Kent kindly sent two across the pond for me to try.

I absolutely love them. You wouldn’t believe it was only

150W



The Systems I Chose

NFT, 100 x 185 cm,

made by Nutriculture in the UK.

There was never a question about NFT, but what

configuration remained undetermined. I have built several

homemade NFT gardens, and installed a commercial

system in the Korn garden. Nutriculture designed this one

for the hobby gardener, they come in several sizes, and

literally take 5 minutes to set up.

Vertical Wall, made by EcoGrowWall in Quebec

with 122 x 304 cm rock wool slabs.

I have grown with this system for the past 8 years. I love

vertical gardening. It is an amazing use of space, allowing my

not-so-big room almost 3.71 square meters of extra space.

My largest basil plant ever was grown in this system.

Deep Water Culture (DWC), 6-bucket system

from Current Culture.

DWC is great for growing BIG plants; I have tomato,

cucumber, sweet pepper, sweet pea, coriander, lettuce,

basil and a strawberry. The new lids allow me to have 1, 2

or 4 plants per container. Most things are doing amazing,

but not the sweet pea and coriander. Not sure why, maybe

they don’t enjoy the constant supply of water. I trimmed

the roots above the waterline, they are starting to look

better. The sweet pea didn’t make it, my first casualty. I

don’t blame myself, peas don’t like DWC apparently,

neither do the cucumbers.

Autopots

My first experience with this type of water system was

about 8 years ago. I loved it then, and I think I can appreciate

it more now. For simplicity of use and set-up the Autopot

system is hard to beat. It is a perfect system for a new

gardener.



PlantsNFT 6 Kale, 1 Basil, 1 Cucumber,

1 Tomato, 2 Lettuce

Vertical Garden 3 Kale, 1 Basil, 1 Rosemary,

2 Parsley, 1 Sweet Pepper

DWC 1 Kale, 1 Basil, 1 Cilantro,

1 Strawberry, 4 Lettuce,

1 Sweet Pepper, 1 Tomato

Autopots 2 Cucumber, 8 Carrots,

3 Sweet Pea, and lots

more Strawberries.

I am writing this in a plane on my way to Santa Rosa,

knowing that everything is growing and happy. My kids

will sneak in to eat my lettuce and basil when I’m gone,

and that gives me the biggest smile. I honestly love my

garden, and can’t imagine life without it. If you think

this is weird, it’s because you have never had a farm in

your spare room, or harvested supper in your basement

when it is -20C outside. Gardening is the best therapy,

and eating fresh food that I grew is priceless. The word

is spreading about food issues and our collective health,

be part of the growing revolution, and grow your own

too. 3

I honestly love my garden, and can’t imagine

life without it

art of gardening is discovering how to employ humanity as an

integral part of the growing process, and at the same time get

us out-of-the-way. This is the art of making soil.

The soil has physical, mineral, biological, and energetic

capacities that need balance. Physical balance tends to come

with attention to the other three, but is generally addressed in

potting soils by using amendments like perlite or rice hulls for

drainage, and peat moss or coir fiber for water retention. You

may need to add these materials

back to soil mixes over time due to

loss.

The merits of inoculating as much

microbial diversity as you can

muster accounts for biological balance. In other words, as long

as you are introducing proper diversity, microbes self-organize.

Seek out a mother of as many natural or farm-based sources as

possible for your mix and deliver them consistently to your soil

over time. Like workers on a construction site, they need fresh

materials to continue building. The consistency is much more

important than the concentration.

Energy defines life. May sound hokey, but it is 100% true. The

more intention we pay towards this reality, the greater the

result. The living system’s capacity to produce and thrive off

While there are good arguments for using fresh soil, the

purpose of this article is to communicate some ideas and

methods for reusing your potting soil. Growers do it all the

time, and with great success.

Look at it this way…Mother Nature doesn’t start over, why

should you?

What it takes to properly reuse potting soil is good physical

structure, proper biological diversity, mineral balance through

soil testing, and consistent methods.

We have been helping people reuse

their potting soil for years, and while

it is not as simple as removing the

roots and replanting, it is well worth

the time, and money saved. You also get the satisfaction gained

from using your resources more sustainably.

There is a sweet spot in the soil where life thrives. The

forest grows trees with no fertilizer, because the soil in the

forest is naturally balanced, mature, and organized. I’m not

suggesting that we expect to grow trees in our gardens, but

I am suggesting we consider how to perceive the metrics, and

harness the abilities of the life forms that allow this to happen.

Much of what we experience as failure in the garden is due to

human influence, not bad luck. I would argue that much of the

If you are a serious grower, you have easily invested thousands of dollars in potting soils over the years. Even

worse, you have probably thrown thousands of dollars of potting soil in the garbage.

On its face, throwing soil away after one use doesn’t make much sense. But to a grower focused on expediency, and

not wanting to put determined effort into a garden only to end up with hidden issues, or potential contamination

from a previous grow, using new soil is a powerful convenience.

BY EVAN FOLDS

T H E R E A R E G O O D A R G U M E N T S F O R

U S I N G F R E S H S O I L

REUSINGYOUR

POTTING SOIL

68


POTTING SOIL I GARDEN CULTURE

M O T H E R N A T U R E D O E S N ’ T S T A R T

O V E R , W H Y S H O U L D YO U ? ”

of subtle energies is innate in the life force itself, but can also

be encouraged through concepts such as potentization and

resonance using techniques like vortexing, paramagnetism,

frequency farming, implosion, and others.

We can expand upon energetic balance in future articles,

but mineral balance takes center stage when a grower is

considering reusing their potting soil.

First, I use the term mineral loosely,

as a way of capturing all the possible

forms of elemental nutrition.

Materials such as seawater, clay,

rock dust, etc. have value beyond

recognition of essential nutrition,

because they contain broad spectrum minerals, and they are

also balanced.

Life can simply receive the elements it needs in order to thrive

when all elements are present in the first place, and when

they are in balance. Even when elements are not identified as

essential for plants to grow, they could be vital for microbial

process, or in order to make the elements required by plants

more available.

Why would Mother Nature create an element not needed in

the garden?

So the strength of the system, and your success in re-using

your potting soil, is reliant on the diversity and balance of

microbes and minerals. For the sake of agriculture it is not

possible to measure all Earth-bound elements, any more than

T H R O W I N G S O I L A W AY A F T E R O N E

U S E D O E S N ’ T M A K E M U C H S E N S E

SATISFACTION GAINED FROM USING YOUR RESOURCES

MORE SUSTAINABLY

it is feasible to measure all soil microbes, so soil testing as a lab-

based process is typically limited to essential elements.

My company performs custom soil testing for growers, farmers,

and landscapers all over the US. We have developed a system

of soil testing that not only generates complete raw data for

all essential agricultural elements, but that provides custom

instructions on what materials and products to add in order to

account for deficiencies.

We’ve done testing on many

premium bagged organic potting

soils, and most stack up nicely in

regards to proper mineral balance.

What we also know is that if we

try to grow in this soil over and over without using diverse

microbes and refortifying mineral balance things fall apart.

No matter who you end up working with for your soil testing,

it is essential that you seek out a private lab, or some outlet

other than what you find at most State Extension services.

Here’s why.

The pioneer of mineral balance and the sweet spot of soil

was Dr. William Albrecht. He believed that animals, including

humans, provide biochemical photographs of the soils in which

their foods are grown.

Dr. Albrecht geared his research towards documenting the

connection between empty soils and empty people, and he

investigated and defined a specific range of positively charged

elements, or cations, that soil can hold that has become known

POTTING SOIL I GARDEN CULTURE

There is a sweet spot in

the soil where life thrives

T H E C E C N U M B E R R E P R E S E N T S T H E

P OT E N T I A L R E S E R V O I R O F T H E S O I L TO R E TA I N C AT I O N

N U T R I T I O N

as the cation exchange capacity, or CEC.

Overall, soil is negatively charged, the more complex and

biologically active the soil, the greater number of negative

binding sites are available to hold positively charged

elements. And opposites attract.

The CEC number

represents the potential

reservoir of the soil to

retain cation nutrition for

growing plants. A low CEC

is the basis for fertilizing

and irrigating, because if

it was high enough the

soil would be able to hold

everything that it needs

to eat and drink within

natural conditions.

Most soil tests we take in

residential landscapes will

have 1-2% organic matter

with a CEC of 5-15. This

is a sign of extremely

immature soil. Bagged

organic potting soil

typically shows an organic

matter content of 15-20% with a CEC of 15-20. The CEC is

lower even in bagged potting soils due to a lack of biological

activity and diversity, which you can increase using compost

and compost tea, along with humic material such as worm

castings or concentrated humic acids.

The following data comes from Dr. Albrecht’s work, and

our observations over the last decade of testing soil and

documenting results. This is not a complete list of essential

elements, it represents the cations that are held within the

soil’s CEC. The information presented here is what we

consider as ideal:

• Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) = 25-30

• pH = 6.1 – 6.5

• Organic Matter = < 4%

• Calcium (Ca+) = 60-70%

• Magnesium (Mg+) = 10-20%

• Potassium (K+) = 2-5%

• Sodium (Na+) = 0.5-3%

• Hydrogen (H+) = 10-15%

• Other Bases = Variable

This data is presented in ranges, because it is never a

matter of hitting a mark when testing soil. Soil is a dynamic

substance that will never be the same. All we can do is use

the data while observing local conditions, and the results of

plants to establish where within this acceptable range

is better. Growing plants can always get

better.

The State Extension service is going to

look for some of this data, but not all of

it. They’re approach is very pH driven,

as conventional agriculture is not

motivated by mineral balance. They put

too much focus on the amount of lime

needed to raise the pH on paper, for

instance, as opposed to investigating

the deficiencies of elements, and

accounting for them through observing

crop growth.

Positively charged hydrogen ions (H+)

being present defines the pH of a

substance. The reason soil becomes

acidic is because it is demineralized and

all the other positive elements are no

longer present, not because someone

poured acid on it. We tend to think of

pH in terms of some concrete thing, instead of a metric of

the energetic representation of available elements.

For example, lime is calcium. Calcium is a cation, so when

used in the soil it replaces hydrogen in the CEC, which

makes the pH go up. What happens if you have a potassium

deficiency?

As Dr. Albrecht identified, “plants are not sensitive to, or

limited by, a particular pH value of the soil.” In other words,

it is possible to have a perfect pH, and have your minerals

entirely out of balance and, therefore, not be addressing

your deficiencies.

The pH should really be an afterthought to the soil health

conversation, a value that communicates the success

of balancing the minerals in your soil, not the other way

around. The takeaway is that if you have all of your minerals

balanced properly the pH is always within range.

The name of the game when reusing your potting soil is

to trust in the microbes’ ability to construct a dynamic

neighborhood for growing plants, but verify that you are

bringing the right building materials to the job site through

soil testing. Then listening to your plants to get it right. 3

70

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Key Features:

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72

BY THEO TEKSTRA – MARKETING MANAGER GAVITA HOLLAND BV

HPS: THE MOST EFFICIENT HIGH OUTPUT SOURCE OF PHOTONS AVAILABLE

SUPPLEMENTAL LIGHTING:

SUPPLEMENTAL LIGHTING:

WHAT EVERY GROWER SHOULD KNOW

Urban legends don’t grow a good crop. It is the skills of the cultivator, using the best

possible technology. Now, I cannot teach you growing skills in a short article, but I

can surely bring you up to speed about the latest in lighting technology.

SUPPLEMENTAL LIGHTING I GARDEN CULTURE


A greenhouse with supplemental lighting

In a greenhouse the primary source of light is the sun. It

provides the right light quality for a healthy crop. When

the light levels drop, we supplement the light. This takes

a lot of energy, so greenhouse growers use the most

efficient lighting available to add this. As the sun provides

already more than enough quality light, the question is:

what light spectrum should we add?

This is where High Pressure Sodium lamps come in.

It is the most efficient high output source of photons

available. It is not the same spectrum as sunlight though,

but there is more than enough of that in a greenhouse

to not negatively influence the plant quality. In the near

future we will see other technologies, such as LED,

become more popular in the greenhouses, but for now

this technology is mostly used on vegetative greens like

lettuce or microgreens, or by combining them with HPS.

LED is still 6-8 times more expensive for the same light

levels as HPS.

HPS spectrum

PhotosynthesisFor the sake of a short article I will keep this very simple:

Plants need light for photosynthesis.

Photosynthesis is what makes plants grow. Plants have

developed under sunlight for millions of years, and are

optimally equipped to use every aspect of that light to

their advantage. That is part of the natural evolution

process. So, obviously plants do well under sunlight.

Photosynthesis is driven by photons, and specifically

all the photons that are in the spectrum between

deep blue and far red. This is what we call PAR light

(Photosynthetic Active Radiation). It is all the colors

between 400 and 700 nm in the light spectrum (and a bit

beyond that even). But there are many more processes

in a plant that require different colors of light: Many also

influence the shape of the plant and the efficiency of the

plant so all colors are in some way important to grow a

healthy plant.

The solar spectrum. PAR light between 400 and 700 nm

Quality and QuantityNature is often really hard on plants: storms, rain,

insects, fungi, and diseases are always threats for plants.

So bringing plants into a safe environment, such as a

greenhouse, can optimize the growing circumstances

for a plant as in climate, light, and external influences.

Even when the sun is blocked by the clouds, or when

the temperature is low and the sun is weak in the winter,

we can make sure that plants get everything they need

for healthy development. This is how we can produce all

year round.

YOU CANNOT GROW EVERY PLANT SUCCESSFULLY JUST UNDER HPS

74

the HPS. For a quality plant though you will need to add a

better spectrum. This is where supplemental light sources

come in. Adding more blue (and other colors) to the HPS

can really enhance the shape and quality of your plants.

Even adding 5-10% of blue to the reddish spectrum of HPS

makes your plant much more efficient, and enhances its

health and quality.

Supplemental Light Sources

There are many sources of blue light, for example blue

LED, Metal Halide lamps, and Plasma lights. Now we have

seen that there is more than just blue and red light needed

for a healthy plant, so we also need to look at the spectrum

added by different light sources.

These are the pros and cons of the different supplemental

light sources:

Metal HalidePros:

• Lots of blue light in many types.

• Better spectrum for plant growth than HPS, a far

broader spectrum.

Cons:

• Not as efficient producing photons as HPS (40-60%

less efficient).

• Very fast depreciation, so you will need to change

them very often (more than 25-30% depreciation per

year, against only 4% for HPS).

• Bad color stability (the spectrum changes over time).

• 99% is only suitable for closed, protected reflectors

with a glass shield (MH lamps that break emit very

high, and very dangerous amounts of UVC).

Metal Halide spectrum (source: Philips)

So for quality, greenhouse growers use the sun. For extra

quantity (yield) they use HPS light (and in some cases LED

light but that is worthy of an entire new article). This is to

produce more photons to maintain photosynthesis.

In a climate room things are different: we have no sunlight, and have to produce all the light ourselves.

HPS is in many ways a great solution:

• Horticultural HPS lamps are the most efficient light

source for their spectrum.

• They are available in very high wattage, so you need

few of them.

• They are a very concentrated light source, so you can

spread it evenly using reflectors and bring it deep into

the crop.

• HPS is at the peak of its development cycle, so

extremely efficient and relatively cheap.

But there are also disadvantages to HPS:

• The spectrum is limited. There are very high levels

of yellow, orange and red, but it lacks specifically the

blue and the green. Yes, green is also an important

color!

• They produce a lot of infrared radiation

As for the spectrum... You cannot grow every plant

successfully just under HPS, but some plants actually do

very well under HPS. It is not ideal, but over the last decade

you have seen that growers are very successful using HPS

in production rooms. Now, heat is a different discussion.

The sun also produces about 50% of infrared, and in plants

it causes transpiration, and keeps the “juices” flowing

from the roots to the leaves, which enables a healthy sap

stream in the plant. Plants do need that heat as well, so in

some way it is a blessing. Even the UVA and UVB in sunlight

have a great effect on plants. It promotes flavonoids,

terpenes, and trichomes in many crops.

Now let’s look at an indoor facility. You lack the quality light

of the sun completely, having only the limited spectrum of

FOR A QUALITY PLANT THOUGH YOU WILL NEED TO ADD A BETTER SPECTRUM

Plasma spectrum (full spectrum version)

The ideal supplemental light should add all the colors that

HPS lacks in sufficient quantity, including UVA and UVB.

I should note though that adding quality light at lower

intensities than HPS creates dramatic quality improvement.

It should not add any more heat to the crop, HPS already

takes care of that. It should have a long life, and need no,

or very few expensive lamp changes.

Plasma lamp with supplemental spectrum for HPS (all the

colors that HPS lacks)

So if you look at all the pros and cons, and if you want to add

quality light to HPS in indoor facilities, you automatically

come to LED and plasma lights as the best choices. The only

question you now need to answer is: which one will give

you the best quality, and the best return on investment?

LED is cheaper than plasma, and has a better efficiency.

However, LED lacks UVA and UVB in its spectrum, and it

is hard to create an efficient, full continuous supplemental

spectrum. Producing green light with LED is not efficient.

LEDS ONLY EMIT LIGHT IN A VERY NARROW BANDWIDTH

LEDPros:

• Blue LEDs are relatively efficient compared to MH

and have a good light maintenance

• LEDs do not emit a lot of heat to the plant (but in

total they do add the same amount of heat to a room).

• Very long life.

Cons:

• LEDS only emit light in a very narrow bandwidth.

To create a good spectrum you need many different

colors, or white LEDs which are not as efficient.

Green LEDs are the worst in efficiency, but you do

need green light too.

• LEDs are expensive compared to HPS and MH (up to

10 times the price).

• LEDs are not good in generating UV. UV LEDs exist,

but are very expensive, and/or have a short life.

Many manufacturers refer to 380 nm LEDs as UV,

specifically in aquatics applications, but that is just

limited long wave UVA and visible light.

Typical LED red/blue spectrum for supplemental greenhouse

lighting (Source: Illumitex)

Plasma LightPros:

• Very high quality spectrum, including UVA and UVB

• Good color stability over time.

• Available as a full supplemental spectrum to HPS (so

mostly all the colors that HPS lacks).

• Very long life (30,000 – 50,000 hours, depending on

used spectrum 6-10 years flowering!)

• Very low infrared heat emitted to the plants, though

the electronics and emitter add heat to the room.

Cons:

• Relatively inefficient (about the same as Metal Halide).

• Higher investment cost (though relatively cheap over time

compared to MH as you never have to change the lamp).

• More expensive than LED.



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Commercial Plasma light fixture (Gavita Pro 270e LEP)

Plasma light is more expensive than LED and is less efficient

in producing light. However, the spectrum is far superior

over LED, it is much more intense than LED, providing

extremely good penetration into the crop. It is also much

easier to spread over the crop.

Many growers have reported that the action spectrum of

medical plants grown with supplemental plasma light is

far better than when only grown under HPS. The plant

quality and health is a lot better, which makes it less prone

to diseases and fungi, such as powdery mildew. The full

spectrum of the light in a vegetative stage influences the

shape of the plant, creating more branches, bringing it into

a much better shape for faster, improved flowering, as well

as reducing the vegetative period. Even the rooting under

plasma light is much faster.

Now when you grow tomatoes at 50 cents per kilo it

will take a long time to get return on investment for less

efficient light that improves the crop quality. But when you

grow a high value medical crop the lamp pays for itself

in less than two 9 week crop cycles - even only based

on the yield of the less efficient light, not taking quality

enhancements into account.

So there you have it in a nutshell. Using the most efficient

horticultural HPS technology combined with the best

supplemental lighting will give you the best quality, and a lot

fewer headaches over diseases and fungal infestations. LED

and Plasma lights are not cheap, but they are an investment

in quality. Combining of the relatively inexpensive HPS

technology for quantity, combined with a more expensive

supplemental light, will give you the best of both worlds.3

BY JIM OATES

Indoor gardening is a joy when you get great

results, but it can quickly turn into a real head-

scratcher when things start to go wrong. Even

when your indoor garden has been meticulously

set up, and you’ve applied years of knowledge and

experience, your final crop can suddenly become

a meagre mix of shoddy leaves and small blooms

- right when you are ready to reap the rewards!

78

YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR

UNDERPOWERED LAMPS GIVE OUT UP TO 33% LESS LIGHT

You try replacing your grow lamps, changing your brand

of nutrients, re-balancing the water pH, refreshing the

soil mix… and you still get the same poor crop. Does

this sound familiar? If so, read on. You might find it isn’t

something you are doing wrong, but more what your HID

ballast is doing wrong.

As the saying goes, you get what you pay for. When

buying a product you always have choices. Do you do your

homework, and scour the web for product reviews, and

legitimate technical data to help find the best product? Or

is lowest price the main factor in your decision? Maybe

you are somewhere in the middle. But HID ballasts are

not all made equal, and with so many cheap Chinese

products on the market it pays to be informed.

There are a lot of ballasts advertised as ‘600W’ that are

far from it. Manufacturers have begun to cut corners in

design, build, and components to shave off even more

production costs. The problem is they are using cheap,

unreliable components, and building the ballast in a way

that cuts out essential safety features. All this corner

cutting isn’t visible to the buyer. Once they’ve sealed

ballast in its casing, you would be none the wiser, and this

is how a serious quality issue has arisen in the market.

They brand and market these sub-standard ballasts as

‘great price’ performance products in order to appear a

better value.

BY JIM OATES

M A G N E T I C B A L L A S T S C H E A P


MAGNETIC BALLAST I GARDEN CULTURE

‘So what if my HID ballast is slightly underperforming’

you ask? Well, this is where it gets interesting. The latest

industry research done by Genuine Quality into HID

ballasts has revealed that underpowered lamps give out up

to 33% less PAR light than a lamp running at its proper rated

wattage. What is interesting is that it only takes a few less

watts to create a huge loss in light output. Running a 600W

lamp at 512W, can result in up to one-third drop in light.

All results were verified and endorsed by Venture Lighting

International.

You can do a simple

ballast test at home,

which is a good way

to see through the sales pitch to the true product. When

you buy a ballast make sure it does what it says on the

tin. Get an energy meter, available in most electrical

stores, and a light meter (preferably a PAR meter though

other light meters will still show you a comparative

difference in light), and follow simple ballast test video on

genuinequality.co.uk/test-yourballast.

What you are looking for is a relative difference between

the two ballasts. Whichever test equipment you use, it’s

still easy to see that one ballast is supplying less power to

the lamp than the other ballast.

If you’ve recently purchased a ballast, tested it at home,

and found that it is definitely one of the low power ‘duds’,

don’t be tempted to look on the bright side, and think

that you are saving enough money in energy costs to

counteract any loss in yield. This is not the case. In reality

a ballast that consumes 556W will use 15% less electricity

than a ballast that consumes 655W, and will cost you

slightly less to buy, but the loss of up to 33% in growth,

yield, and quality is not making it an economical choice at

all. For the sake of a small £10.00, or even £50.00 saving

on a ballast, and a small amount of energy as well, the

effect on your final yield and quality far outweighs those

initial savings.

HID ballasts can vary greatly

in their components, yet it

is the component quality,

and the end finishing

process that can mean

the difference between a

ballast that runs reliably for ten years with no

trouble at all, and one that underperforms,

breaks down - or in the worst case scenario,

causes a fire.

The wire windings inside the ballast can either be

coated once or twice in resin for thermal insulation, and

electrical durability. Cheap manufacturing uses one coat,

which means the durability reduces by half. Then we have

the wires themselves, which are either precision wound,

or scramble wound. Precision winding nearly eliminates

possible breakdowns between wires, but because it

takes longer to do it this way the ‘corner cutters’ prefer

scramble wound.

The igniter should be matched to the ballast, and ideally should

be timed to protect the ballast in the event of a lamp failure. If

the igniter is not timed, in the event of a lamp failure the igniter

will continually try and ignite the lamp until you discover the

problem, and switch off the ballast. This puts the ballast under

a lot of strain due to the high igniter pulse voltage that can

DO A SIMPLE BALLAST TEST AT

HOME

THE EFFECT ON YOUR FINAL YIELD

AND QUALITY FAR OUTWEIGHS

THOSE INITIAL SAVINGS

S M A L L S A V I N G S ,

B I G L O S S E S

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quickly degrade a ballast. These are just a few

specifications that are not met by many ballasts.

There is some way to go before the market

pulls out of the dark ages of false advertising.

As Mark Needham, one of the European

Directors for Venture Lighting International

explains: “The UK Grow Lighting market

is still a relatively new marketplace when

compared to the more established Outdoor, Industrial

& Commercial markets where competition has ensured

high quality products and performance. By contrast, the

arrival of an increasing number of unknown brands into

the Indoor Grow Lighting marketplace is

seeing a focus on cheaper materials and

lower cost production. This is resulting in

the ever-increasing number of low quality

and poor performing products which will

be unsustainable, inevitably resulting in

end-user products of unacceptable quality

and performance.”

The good news is that consumers are becoming more

discerning. As more growers begin to pinpoint the

underperforming ballasts, the manufacturers in question

may not get away with the same approach next time. 3


MAGNETIC BALLAST I GARDEN CULTURE

Food Politics Is Ancient Purple carrots aren’t an oddity - that’s the original color. Until

the 17th century, all carrots were purple, though an occasional

mutant root came out white or yellow.

In the late 1500s the Dutch bred a carrot that pro-

duced orange roots, which was such a novelty that

the familiar purple carrot was soon left in the dust.

Given the universal human trait of resisting change,

one might wonder why they would try to create a

weird vegetable, and what caused so much excitement

over it in the first place.

Orange carrots were a political thing. Eating them was showed

your support of the House of Orange, and from there they

spread all over Europe, and the rest of the world.

We think that touch screen technology is quite an

accomplishment. It’s really pretty small potatoes -

the natural world is far more savvy.

Plants increase their

disease resistance

when they sense

being touched.

More Info:

www.bit.ly/

touch-wellness

Life Without Onions?Certain to be a diet so boring it would make you cry. It’s

been that way forever too. Tired of foraging for them in

the wild, serious cultivation of onions dates back more

than 5,000 years.

Immunity at a Touch

A FOCUS ON CHEAPER

MATERIALS AND LOWER

COST PRODUCTION

82

As long as you have the right tools and supplies...

On A Budget

BY KYLE L. LADENBURGER


BUDGET GARDENING I GARDEN CULTURE

FOOD WE GROW FOR OURSELVES IS FRESHER

As gardeners, we grow our own food at home for multiple reasons. It gives us a certain piece of

mind knowing exactly what inputs go into cultivating your food crops, and the bottom line is that

the food we grow for ourselves is fresher, and likely more delicious than the grocery store equi-

valent. But, there are often other reasons that one decides to venture into the realm of at home

cultivation. A large source of encouragement for the modern gardener is the increasingly high price

of fresh foods, and the strain it can have on the normal family budget.

Starting

When executed properly, the act

of gardening lets us take personal

nutrition into our own hands in a

budget-friendly way, and one of the

things we can do to save even more money is to start our

own garden plants from seed before the season begins.

This is a relatively easy thing to accomplish, as long as you

have the right tools and supplies. The trick, however, is

doing so in a budget-friendly way.

Let’s start with the seed starting containers. The first thing

you will need is a starter or propagation tray with a plastic

dome lid. The standard tray is 37 cm long by 24 cm wide,

and is capable of housing over 100 seedlings.

You can start seeds by simply filling the tray with growing

medium and planting the seeds but this may require

transplanting some of the seedlings into individual

containers in order for the seedlings to

grow big enough to eventually be

planted in an outdoor garden.

You can use plastic cups

with holes punched in

the bottom to allow for

adequate water drainage,

or individual plastic seed

starting cells that fit comfortably

into the propagation tray. These

allow the grower to have one plant

in each cell, and to grow it until they

reach the desired size. The tray, individual planting cells,

and the humidity dome can usually all be purchased for

about £7.

Adequate lighting is a must for raising healthy seedling

indoors. A two foot, four bulb T5 fluorescent light fixture

is easy to mount, low in energy usage, and

provides excellent light coverage for

one standard propagation tray. It

will also help supply the heat that

seeds need to germinate. Proper

lighting is important for seedlings

as they begin the process of

photosynthesis, and developing

both vegetative and root growth.

Raising seedlings in a sunny window

will result in plants that are “leggy”

from stretching to receive light, and have

only modest root growth. The light fixture

and bulbs will be the most cost intensive part of this

project, but it is an invaluable asset when starting seeds

Adequate lighting is a must for raising healthy seedling indoors


BUDGET GARDENING I GARDEN CULTURE

SEEDS WILL OFTEN LAST MORE THAN

ONE SEASON

indoors. Depending of the

brand, a decent light will

cost around £66 - £99.

Remember to look in the

clearance section at your

local indoor grow shop first

for the best deals.

Next you need a seed

starting medium. There are

many mediums to choose from for

germinating seeds, but the most cost-

effective and reliable is likely an organic soil-less

growing mix. There are many kinds of mixes intended

for seed starting on the market today, and the prices will

vary, but generally a 50 liter bag will cost less than £14.

Of course, you will also need some

seeds. Most growers receive several

seed catalogs every year, and most

of us have a favorite. When ordering

seeds it’s a good idea to purchase them

all from the same company with the

hopes of receiving free shipping on the order. Seeds are

also widely available at garden centers or grow shops,

and you can purchase them in

bulk or in smaller packages.

Depending on the variety,

seeds are usually very

reasonably priced,

and the amount per

packet will often

last more than

one season - when

properly stored.

On average, purchasing

these much-needed tools

for success will typically set

you back about £132 - but that is

an initial investment, and you should look at the cost with

some perspective. Buying enough plants from a nursery

or greenhouse to fill a large garden can easily cost a

grower upwards of a hundred dollars, and the quality of

plant seedlings is not assured to be the highest,

and the larger the garden, the higher the price.

Another important point to keep in mind is that this really

is an initial investment. Most of these things are reusable

in the following years. The planting tray, any leftover

growing medium, and properly

stored seeds will still be good to

use. This is especially true of the

light, which should last several

years before it even needs to have

any bulbs replaced.

So the initial investment of around £132 can actually

become an avenue for a grower to save even more money

in consecutive years. It can also give you the peace of

mind that comes with knowing exactly where your food

came from, all the way back to the seed. 3

GARDENING LETS US TAKE PERSONAL

NUTRITION INTO OUR OWN

HANDS

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Contact us for your preferred reseller

J.P. Poelstraat 1, 1483 G.C. De Rijp, The Netherlands

Tel:+31 299 675711 Fax:+31 299 671393

E-mail: [email protected]: www.kj-products.com

mammothtents.nl

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The all new Mammoth EliteHC 900L9.0m x 4.5m x 2.4m / 40.5 square meters

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9m

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Documents

Garden Culture Magazine: UK 7