----- Original Message ----- From: Allan Balliett <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Wednesday, January 02, 2002 11:45 PM Subject: Re: Albrecht System and plant brix testing
Allan no argument with any of this just a couple of comments along the way > The prime directive of biological farming has always been 'feed the > soil.' For sure - we have converted from full chemical starter fertiliser on the seed to broadcast non toxic nutrition in our third season without suffering any yield penalty and got a noticeable improvement in grain quality as well. To get our Albrecht and reams test numbers up to correct balance is a long term aim but would cost us most of what our land would sell for hence the short term reliance on foliars. Field broadcasting the BD preps for the last 15 months has definitely made a difference and combined with some decent rock dust I believe that those correct numbers are attainable without the massive quantities of material input that would be advocated by some straight "Albrecht agronomists" >Foliar feeding, of course, has always appeared to be a simple > 'feed the plant' approach and although if used with reason it can > produce radiantly healthy plants, many of we BD-types have approached > it with severe ambivalence. One of the legendary BD growers I know, > Gabriel Howearth, has used foliars extensively (as well as using > music to maximize the opening of the stomata to maximize the plants > ability to take in nutrients through the leaves) and produces amazing > specimen gardens in very short periods of time. What Hugh has pointed > out is the amazing truth: feed the plant and the plant will feed the > soil, maximizing the soil foodweb (in a healthy soil), thereby > feeding the soil. (For this to really work, though, you need to > balance the soils through Albrecht, keep your BD preps energies > balanced and make sure you have the right soil biology for your crop > through the use of compost teas.) >To enter into a market garden based on foliar sprays without doing the soil steps > No way would I advocate this last bit BUT in a market garden the soil steps should be relatively affordable, on a cost per unit of production or per acre basis.
