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YOUR GARDEN IS NOT ORGANIC...

C

CANNATOPIA

I have tried both. Very good Organic & Very good other. Differences are very little as long as the grower is good with his methods.
 

Clackamas Coot

Active member
Veteran
And why is it the main ingredient in these supplements seems to be soluble potash from diff sources. The kelp is soluble potash primarily I think and the protekt is another form derived from silicon,...... what gives with that product? Diff sources do diff things or is it triple redundancy?

thanks
smiley
Because of the different sourcing under what is and what is not an acceptable source of 'soluble potash' and without the correct identifier (like potassium sulphate K2SO4 vs. potassium chloride KCl) it's difficult to ascertain what they're using.

CC
 
C

CANNATOPIA

We have a farm. Some times Pumpkins just grow realy big like that all on their own ;) Granted Ive never grown one quite that big but have had some that deffinatly would give it a challange.
 

grapeman

Active member
Veteran
Dignan

There are standards set by USDA and various state groups (Oregon Tilth, et al) that define precisely what is and is not organic as it relates to federal and state laws.

Why those definitions seem to be dismissed out of hand by some posters on this thread is baffling to say the least.

There's conventional. There's transitional. There's organic. There's approved for organic growing. Etc.

BUT in the area of some nursery/growing products, the laws don't apply. Like potting soils. The use of the terms 'organic' and 'natural' are often used in place of the other which only adds to the confusion.

How in the world can seabird guano be organic? Were the insects eaten by the birds dining on organically grown insects? It gets stranger and stranger as you move through the various products allowed to use the term 'organic' on the label.

And OMRI doesn't mean diddly-squat as it's nothing more than a listing service for which OMRI receives money from the registrants - the larger the company the more money they have to pay to be 'OMRI Registered' - and then there's the rather anemic board of directors as it relates to education - not exactly the 'A Team' as things turn out.

CC

Word.
 
T

treefrog

Indeed~

Thanks for the links CC.
Oregon is the measuring stick for standards in the U.S., imho.
 

Dignan

The Soapmaker!
Veteran
Thanks CC. I tried to post a reply earlier but it didn't post? My question was, do you agree with most of the language in those definitions you mentioned, or are there a lot of things you don't agree with?
 

mad librettist

Active member
Veteran
Dignan

There are standards set by USDA and various state groups (Oregon Tilth, et al) that define precisely what is and is not organic as it relates to federal and state laws.

Why those definitions seem to be dismissed out of hand by some posters on this thread is baffling to say the least.


CC

You are baffled because outlaw pot growers don't respect the law of the land as supreme?
 

uglybunny

Member
emphasis by me.

is none of this getting through? organic means "acting as an organism" (among other things). When we say food web, we are talking about interaction not mere presence.

Again the whole point is the interaction between organisms and the specific results and adjustments possible through said interaction. So not harming any particular organism (I noticed fungi were not mentioned - fyi fungi are the ones I worry about most) or even a majority or totality, says absolutely nothing.

Yes, and the study does show that chemicals do not actively kill microbes, rather they are made more available by the microbes. Fungus was mentioned in the study as they also inoculated certain groups with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.

Of course what you are saying is getting through, I don't even disagree with you. What I am saying though is that synthetics and "organics" as it is called are not mutually exclusive practices. One can feed the soil, and the plant as long as one applies chemical fertilizers judiciously.

I will say that you have a point as well, there is no need to get hysterical. But in the long run, synthetic fertilizer use will cost you. I guess you could discard your media after 3-6 months, but that is wasteful and - to me - distasteful.

Please don't misunderstand my tone, the bold was for emphasis, not to imply any sort of anger or hysteria. Why would I discard my media simply because I used some chemical fertilizer? Soil can be recycled regardless of nutrients used as long as excessive amounts were not used.

To learn about how nutrient cycling is vital to a functioning food web, re-read microbeman's posts. Or maybe read some right-wing views on the social safety net. If you put your plants on social assistance, it's not going to bother working and trading, and its trading partners will disappear. The result is perpetually sick plants that get more disease, pests, and other problems. Since I lean to the left, I like to say "save the welfare for those who really need it".

Again, nutrient cycling takes place in mineral fertilizer managed soils as well as organically managed soils. The long term study I posted before shows that both systems increase nutrient cycling over un-managed control plots. Organically managed soils are superior, but again this proves organic practices and non-organic practices are not mutually exclusive.

The "working and trading" you're speaking is the creation of phytohormones by the plant and the plant growth promoting rhizobacteria. The first study I posted proves that this process does not stop with the addition of synthetic fertilizers.

Once again the link provided did not produce the paper in full readable format. When I clicked on the PDF download I was asked to log in. Are you able to post the PDF?

The link I provided shows the entire document, with its original formatting preserved. If you don't want to read it online, just sign up.

What I did read from what you posted only supports that one can feed bacteria chemical fertilizers. As I have stated many times, this is no secret. There was no assay as to species of bacteria (mentioned). I can pour diesel on a patch of ground and the bacteria which thrive in diesel will blossum. This is not the point.

The point is that when ionic form chemical fertilizers are used the bacteria/archaea>protozoa (bacterial feeding nematode)>plant interface is bypassed. Different species of bacteria and fungi are (potentially) advanced often of a pathogenic nature. Besides this the plant can end up intaking the amount which humans believe is the correct amount of nutrient, rather than what is probably the actual correct amount for normal tissue structure.

A proper study would list species and numbers of bacteria, archaea, protozoa, nematodes and fungi before and following the application of chemical fertilizers.

If the study only looked at N fixing bacteria this is a very tiny portion of the nutrient contribution.

The study shows that contrary to what you're saying the "bacteria/archaea>protozoa (bacterial feeding nematode)>plant interface" is not bypassed. It is merely disturbed, not only that but organic management disturbs the soil food web as well. Interestingly enough it found that high levels of N in either form(organic or synthetic) resulted in lower a nematode nematode maturity index. Additionally, I don't see how you can comment on the quality of the study having not read it.

Peace,

UB
 

Clackamas Coot

Active member
Veteran
Thanks CC. I tried to post a reply earlier but it didn't post? My question was, do you agree with most of the language in those definitions you mentioned, or are there a lot of things you don't agree with?
Dignan

Here's one example how the patchwork of laws/regulations work in the real world.

Hydrated lime (Calcium hydroxide) aka slaked lime, slack lime, or pickling lime is not approved as a soil amendment but is approved as an pesticide. How exactly one could apply hydrated lime as a pesticide and not have it impact the soil is something I can't figure out.

That approval is under the USDA's National Organic Program (NOP) but under some state organic regulations (like Oregon, Washington & California) it is not approved for anything.

So if you're a certified Oregon Tilth grower (takes about 5 years to go from conventional to transitional to full organic) and you're selling your products with the Oregon Certification for your production fields you cannot use hydrated lime. But if you're selling your products under NOP regulations you can use it.

And instead of a Oregon Tilth sticker on your boxes/crates (which is required) you'll have the USDA Organic label on that box.

Things get stickier when you factor in what giant food retailers like Walmart, Safeway, Kroger, et al. are pulling with the USDA Organic label.

There are probably at least 6 or 7 different organic certification groups (at the national level) so if you want to be considered an organic grower you have options. Unfortunately.

CC
 

mad librettist

Active member
Veteran
The "working and trading" you're speaking is the creation of phytohormones by the plant and the plant growth promoting rhizobacteria. The first study I posted proves that this process does not stop with the addition of synthetic fertilizers.

there is more to the forest than a few trees. And more to The rhizosphere than phytohormones. It's simplistic reduction that has led you astray.

Also, I disagree with your conclusions, plain and simple. It's also difficult to exchange information if my partner chooses to ignore what I say in favor of a point he can refute. I did not bring up arbuscular mycorrhizae, I said fungi. As in all fungi.
 

Microbeman

The Logical Gardener
ICMag Donor
Veteran
The link I provided shows the entire document, with its original formatting preserved. If you don't want to read it online, just sign up.

It is absolutely not readable on my system. It will not scroll past the abstract. I tried repeatedly. It may because I live on a farm and have limited download capacity. It does sound as if you are confusing "plant growth promoting rhizobacteria" and free living N fixing with nutrient cycling. These are very different things.
 

Microbeman

The Logical Gardener
ICMag Donor
Veteran
I've posted this elsewhere before, but this peer-reviewed paper pretty much backs up what p4p is saying
.

UgBun Is this the article you were refering to? I finally got it to sort of cooperate so I could read it with great difficulty. It discusses PGPRs and the use of AM. PGPRs are EXTREME minor league in the context of nutrient cycling. Did I read the wrong article?

2nd try are you out there? Maybe someone will listen to your brilliant tone.
 

uglybunny

Member
there is more to the forest than a few trees. And more to The rhizosphere than phytohormones. It's simplistic reduction that has led you astray.

Also, I disagree with your conclusions, plain and simple. It's also difficult to exchange information if my partner chooses to ignore what I say in favor of a point he can refute. I did not bring up arbuscular mycorrhizae, I said fungi. As in all fungi.

These are not my conclusions, they are the conclusions of multiple PhD. holders which were reviewed by a board of their peers before publication. There have been studies of the rhizosphere as a whole and they came to the conclusion that certain strains of fungi and bacteria benefit plant growth. They also determined that the mechanism which causes the increased plant growth is increased production of phytohormones, increased production of organic acids, and increased root surface area due to symbiotic relationships with plants and fungi.

The reason the PGPR paper focuses on only one strain of fungus is because its main goal was to provide a solid link between the use of growth promoting bacteria and reduced fertilizer application rates. The researchers are simply setting up a model, showing their conclusions and asking others interested in the same thing to look at different factors. The fungal element was merely an extension of the original goal, and extends the model to show that certain fungi will help further. Others can now cite the article and say "Now that we know PGPR and AMF increase plant growth, does XXXX strain of fungus/bacteria further improve things.

The authors acknowledge that their study does leave out certain factors and they encourage interested researchers to explore those factors in more depth. I will try to look for more studies if you would like.

Microbeman
The PGPR study does not focus on nutrient cycling. The long term comparative study on turf grass systems is the one which discusses it further. I will post both articles in downloadable form in the next couple of minutes...

Here we go:
PGPR study

Effects of long-term turfgrass management practices on soil
nematode community and nutrient pools


Peace,

UB
 
Last edited:

Microbeman

The Logical Gardener
ICMag Donor
Veteran
Microbeman
The PGPR study does not focus on nutrient cycling. The long term comparative study on turf grass systems is the one which discusses it further. I will post both articles in downloadable form in the next couple of minutes...standby for edit with links.

Thank you because I went bonkers trying to read the nematode one; it kept flipping to the top of the page.
 
C

Carl Carlson

If the plant is grown indoors and you call it organic, it had better be grown using lights made out of and housed in products made out of organic materials. Same thing goes for the solar panels or totally organic bio-diesel powered generator (also made of organic materials).
 

mad librettist

Active member
Veteran
These are not my conclusions, they are the conclusions of multiple PhD

I believe I said you are misrepresenting the conclusion to mistakenly infer broader points for which you have thus far provided zero evidence. People keep trying to bring up the forest...
 

mad librettist

Active member
Veteran
If the plant is grown indoors and you call it organic, it had better be grown using lights made out of and housed in products made out of organic materials. Same thing goes for the solar panels or totally organic bio-diesel powered generator (also made of organic materials).

It's allowed in pseudo-organick though!
 

Microbeman

The Logical Gardener
ICMag Donor
Veteran
Uglybunny:

I did find this to be an interesting study but not truly reflective of the microbial nutrient cycling network as I have already outlined in how I believe a proper study should be conducted. I had problems with how they evaluated the microbial biomass. They really should have measured this microscopically including all of the player groups. Interestingly the nematodes that are players in nutrient cycling are the bacterial and fungal feeders and the authors have stated;


“Soil food webs in undisturbed natural grasslands
and forest systems are mainly fueled by high cellulosic and
lignified organic matter and usually exhibit fungal dominated
decomposition pathways which favor fungivorous nematodes
belonging to Fu2, Fu3, and Fu4 guilds (Ferris et al., 2001). Fu3 and
Fu4 are important contributors to the Structure Index, and soil
food webs in natural grasslands and forest systems are usually
highly structured and poorly to moderately enriched (Quadrat
C in the model) (de Goede and Bongers, 1998; Ferris et al., 2001).
However, in turfgrass soil, enrichment opportunistic nematodes
of low c–p values dominated, while nematodes of high c–
p values did not. Therefore, the food webs in managed
turfgrass soil indicated a disturbed food web compared to
natural grasslands and forest ecosystems.”

If anything this reflects the shortcomings the authors perceive in the general applications of their findings. They go on to exemplify that the findings related to chemical fertilizers apply ‘really’ only to lawns and to nematode populations;

“Our results also showed that organic-fertilizer management further promotes soil
microbial biomass and SOM in turfgrass systems, although
it had no significant effect on the nematode community.”

I fail to see how you have applied this study to the interactions of; plant roots releasing carbon molecules> feeding bacteria/archaea> eaten by protozoa and bacterial feeding nematodes (& fungi eaten by fungal feeding nematodes)> producing ionic form nutrients> feeding roots = microbial nutrient loop.

I was further disappointed they used ferts instead of compost.
 

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