And the Food as Medicine Saga continues!
We’re going to start with a quote from one of the key observers from the past
Sir Albert Howard (1873 –1947)
Look at this from his classic book, The Soil and Health
“The birthright of all living things is health. This law is true for soil, plant, animal, and man, the health of these four is one connected chain. Any weakness or defect in the health of any earlier link in the chain is carried on to the next and succeeding links, until it reaches the last, namely man. The widespread vegetable and animal pests and diseases, which are such a bane to modern agriculture, are evidence of a great failure of health in the second (plant) and third (animal) links of the chain...The general failure in the last three links is to be attributed to failure in the first link, the soil: the undernourishment of the soil is at the root of all. The failure to maintain a healthy agriculture has cancelled out all the advantages we have gained from our improvements in hygiene, in housing, and our medical discoveries.” … my note… think about all of our degenerative diseases…
Remember the end of the last newsletter? We were working through the backbone of the definition of Food as Medicine and were working towards possible solutions that included ways of seeing and testing, ways of growing and ways to make decisions…but before we look at solutions let’s take a quick step back and remind everyone about the incredible concept of epigenetics because it really is the point behind the concept of Food as Medicine:
Genetic potential (genotype) PLUS stress (of many kinds – range determined by specie)
EQUALS the potential of the individual (phenotype)
Genetic potential + Stress = the potential of the individual (you!!)
This sounds really technical – and it sure is at the level of university enquiry ☺ but it’s the biggest kick at the practical level of every-day life decisions and growing plants, animals and people. We’ve been conditioned through recent history to think that our genes – or the genes of our pets and our plants – are the final arbiter of the quality of life. “My mother had ??? so I will have ???? as well.” The interesting thing is that this is only partly true. We all know cases where the expected genetic outcome (good or bad) did NOT materialize. DNA does pass on a huge package of information for every individual but it’s the environment where the DNA is expressed that determines the final realities for that individual. This has HUGE implications for all kinds of life forms.
In the plant and animal world there are natural stressors like flooding, drought, hail and high winds. These may be impacted by human behavior, but are generally much larger than any one garden, yard or farm. The best we can do with these stressors is to condition our soil, plants and animals to limit the negative impact of such stressors – and there are knowledge and skills that will help here.
Then there is the basic human created stressor of selecting the plant/animal variety/breed. You need to pick plants/animals that are appropriate for your space – sun plants for the sun, shade tolerant plants for shade, breeds of chickens that work with your site’s restrictions – that kind of thing. This is the fun part of looking through catalogs, nurseries, botanical gardens. Do your basic research, and you’re fine with this one.
Next you look at some of these topics and match them to the species you’re working with.
For plants the list might look like this: soil compaction & aeration, microbial diversity & health, mineral availability, and soil depth (these first four are my absolute favorite topics ☺), plant spacing, plant depth, chemical use (use the absolute least amount that you can). These are the plant stressors that YOU CAN CONTROL. This does take work because I have yet to discover a way to work with soil that doesn’t include actually working with the soil – and soil is heavy!!!! Still – a little work here makes a huge change in the long-term potential for the plant. Think of the soil work as a functional training session at the gym – and you get a better yard for it!
For animals the list might look like this: space needed per animal for health, access to clean food and water, level of exercise/work needed for mental and physical health, quality of the forages and grains selected for the herbivores (basic farm animals and some house pets) and the protein varieties and sources for the carnivores (dogs and cats) and so forth.
Here’s an example that my sister and I have been dealing with for almost three months – we’re beating it but it is slow and totally connected to both the food supply and the individual goat involved…
We have a herd of Nigerian Dwarf milk goats for home use – we’ve had this particular herd for almost 20 years now and have been selecting the genetics for milk quality and quantity and also selecting the feeds for best health of the goats to bring out the best quality milk for us. Simple huh? Wellll…mostly it is. I won’t bore you with all of the details but we’ve tightened down both genetics and feeds such that we have not had to worm our herd for well over 10 years now (vet confirmed)– and that’s saying something! Goats are the “wormiest” of farm animals because they are browsers and not grazers (more on that if you’re interested but not here and not now!).
Having said all that, let me introduce you to Fern – one of our first fresheners (her first set of kids and joining the milking string). In December, we noticed a bit of chapping on her udder – happens to almost all of the milking does as the cold dry air moves in– and the same did happen to the other goat we were milking so we treated both and thought nothing more about it. The other goat promptly got better – and Fern didn’t…long story short (believe it or not!) -Fern’s blood tests came back with too much molybdenum…a toxic level…and try saying that more than once!!! She’s a bio-accumulator and that has caused a zinc and copper deficiency even though both copper and zinc are in her food supply – hence the crusted udder etc. So, we’re using food and supplements to work her out of this toxicity. We’re adding zinc and copper sulfates into applesauce and tubing her with it – have every day for the last 4 weeks and we’re FINALLY starting to see Fern come around with new skin growing in everywhere it needs to. Crazy to think that it’s a mineral imbalance that caused all of the damage…but that’s a real-life example of minerals in the food supply connected to the specificity of the genetics involved – sheesh!!! What a learning curve!!
And here’s a brief illustration from that master of soil mineral health Dr. William Albrecht:
Think about the quality of your own bones… Which rabbit would you rather be?
Ok – we’ve laid the ground work – what are the solutions??
These first three apply everywhere to everyone…
Use your money wisely -it’s always in short supply so every purchase you make is a vote for the future you want to see. I know – way tooooo philosophical but true none the less… Had a great chat in the store yesterday about buying local…
A thought - those “voting dollars” can usher in a world where the planet’s climate and biosphere are helped by agricultural pursuits – not destroyed by them. We have the knowledge right now to start reversing the “desertification process” and to sequester carbon in the soil colloid to help stabilize the climate (ask about glomulin!!). Big claims – but it’s being done on large-scale farms and smaller highly organized farms near urban and suburban areas –even on roof-tops in the cities…and this makes our region a fascinating study in possibility…
So that means use local resources as best you can afford to source foods for you and your family however you define family.
Read labels everywhere and ALWAYS look for limited ingredient lists.
Now – for those who are “do it yourselfers”, homesteaders or just plain ornery folks…☺…
Start with the soil
Move on to growing or buying healthy plants and plant products
And then on to growing or buying healthy animals and animal products
And finally – integrate all of that into a way of life that supports health
We’ll finish this newsletter with a brief analysis of the first step in any move towards healthy systems – managing the soil…as I said, my most favorite topic!
The goal is to get off to a great start with well charged up soils, microbial inoculants, and healthy starter plants. You keep an eye on the watering – and get the plants safely through the first scaffolding/building stages of June and early July (critical stage in plant development).
Then – just as harvest is looking possible…you notice that your plants aren’t the deep green, strong looking working producers that you were hoping for. They’re showing signs of early blight (tomatoes) and powdery mildew (squashes and cucumbers), anthracnose (zinnias and a lot of other plants) or other “weak looking” leaves. These are diseases (fungi or bacteria that have invaded the leaf tissue) that we’ve all learned are “normal” but they’re also completely opportunistic. In other words – if the plants are strong and healthy and have reserves of energy then they WON’T GET SICK!!!!!!! You can delay “early” blight until mid-September (not so early huh!!) and powdery mildew and anthracnose the same if you keep the plant’s energy tank full.
How do you keep that energy tank full? This is where both foliar sprays and the soil drenches come in. Use molasses (direct support for the rhizosphere/root microbes), kelp or potassium silicates (absorbable potassium to strengthen cell walls and provide for mineral movement in the plant), microbes – use yogurt if you have nothing else or add the specific microbes (like rhizobium spores for beans and peas) even after the fact to improve rhizosphere function. You get the point. Every one of you has a slightly (to very!!) different set of growing conditions and you have to develop the “recipe” that works best for you and your plants. It may need to be tweaked next year but you’ll have the basics down by then ☺ This means that you – the gardener or farmer – are the arbiter of the final results from your plants, because it’s your actions (or inactions) that will affect the final results.
Here's a quick check list for nutrient dense food (and any other plant) production
(1) Use a full or wide spectrum bacteria and fungi inoculant on your seeds when planting, as well as including some in your transplant drench when transplanting (this is what’s in the seedling drench).
(2) Use a non-sterile soil mix when starting from seed – one already inoculated with multiple healthy soil microbes in a minerally dense starter soil.
(3) When picking seeds for sowing, select the largest seeds, as well as fewest seeds per pound, thus indicating more dense seed (seed dense with energy actually weighs more).
(4) Use a soil drench that helps increase conductivity (the electrical energy that runs through a healthy soil).
(5) Minimize tilling to the maximum of 1inch depth – no going crazy with the rototiller or other soil tools. This keeps the lower soil system intact with its fungal networks functional.
(6) Use a Foliar Spray that includes a rich offering of nutrients.
(7) Keep soil covered and moist, including paths – mulches of all kinds can be used.
(8) Utilize a conductivity meter, and at planting, have a conductivity reading greater than 200. This may be a bit much but it’s a way to make sure the soil’s battery is working well at the beginning of the season.
Stop in to the store to talk to us about any of these steps and we can help with questions…
Now for some resources to help you anchor this kind of information! First up are three websites that have useful information.
https://www.remineralize.org – this is the address for Remineralize the Earth and provides an in-depth look how raw minerals can be the backbone of regenerating a garden system. We offer both a spring and fall mineral mixing day where everyone gets to learn about how raw minerals can be incorporated. This year, the spring Mineral Mixing Day is on May 4th in the afternoon.
https://www.bionutrient.org/recommended-reading This is an incredible book list – and no, I haven’t read them all but I have read quite a few!! We’re hosting a Bio-nutrient Dense Raised Bed class on April 12th in the morning.
http://www.greeneryinmotion.com/references.html and this is my old website from before the store and has some of my older (much more intense!!) newsletters on it that may be interesting (or may not!).
Two other related workshops we’re offering at the store are Managing Gardens for Health and Production on June 28th and Troubleshooting in the Garden on July 19th. Both of these speak to that well documented drop in energy that starts about 6 weeks after planting or plant emergence
And last – but not least – we’re offering a 5-week Garden Design Class – syllabus follows this newsletter. This class will be on Thursday evenings, is $100 for the five classes and must be paid for before the first class begins. The store will not be open for business in the evening and the registers will be closed for the day. The class is limited to 10 people so please call the store 978-632-0991 to reserve your spot.
Thanks for reading all the way through this newsletter!!! I know there’s a lot here but it does make life seem a bit more wonderful to know that all of these healthy soil, plant, animal and human resources are available!
Here’s the syllabus for the 5 Week Design Class
Week one: 2/27, 6:30-8:00pm
Getting Started Right – Understand Your Yard
Be ready for when spring finally gets here! Planning is essential to any successful garden and/or farm project. You’ll learn how to create a basic landscape plan and should have a working plan for at least one project and the skills to create more working plans by the end of the series.
Week two: 3/6, 6:30-8:00pm
Soil basics – or how to work with what you have
Quality soil is THE backbone of absolutely every landscape decision you’ll make. Learn what it takes to work with what your contractor left you, what will grow in it without amendment
Week three: 3/13, 6:30-8:00pm
Trees, shrubs and lawns
Trees, shrubs and lawns all share the space that we call home but they don’t share an ecosystem underneath. Learn what the differences mean and how to work with each group to keep the plants healthy and minimize pesticide use.
Week four: 3/20, 6:30-8:00pm
Structures: Working with Patios, Porches, Raised Beds and Containers, and Irrigation
These are all the “hard” pieces that people add to a landscape (above and beyond the house and driveway). It matters a lot as to where you put them, how you build them, what you frame them with and how you manage the plants that are around them. Learn what kinds of decisions precede others for best use of your hard-earned money.
Week five: 3/27 6:30-8:00pm
And – Finally!!! The Color, Vegetables, Native Plants and other Fun Topics
Ah – we finally get to the frosting on the cake of garden design! We’ll work through the basics about annuals, biennials, perennials and tighten in on some critical native plants for native insect and bird support. After that, we’ll wrap up the class by making sure that everyone has action steps they’re comfortable making in the upcoming season.
Very interesting article. How much are gonna be the classes ??