27 results for tag: research


RTE’s Coordinator Jorge Villaseñor Garibi Researches and Promotes The Use of Rock Dust Throughout Mexico

“The biggest challenge in teaching about the use of rock dust is breaking the paradigm of a sixty year-long tradition of using chemical fertilizers,” said Jorge Villaseñor Garibi in a recent interview for Remineralize the Earth (RTE) that explored his experiences with training Mexican farmers in the use of rock dust. (more…)

Transforming Barren Land Into Fertile Ground

If you were to choose a place to plant your dream vegetable garden, it would probably not be in the foothills of the Grampian Mountains in Strathardle, Perthshire, Scotland. The upland site is infertile, acidic and exposed to severe weather. Around 85 percent of Scotland is classified by the European Union as a “less-favoured area” for farming, and this region, plagued by lifeless, silty soil and boulders, falls right into that category. Yet it was exactly here that Cameron and Moira Thomson settled and decided to become self-sufficient by creating their own garden, growing their very own fruits and vegetables. “Our dream was to grow and use ...

Remineralizing the Landscape: Creating Fecundity in the Garden

Landscape professionals each year put countless amounts of plants in the ground. Their success and their client’s happiness requires that these plants establish themselves quickly and then grow with vigor. Consequently, any experienced landscape professional attends to each plant’s requirements, working hard to make sure each plant gets exactly what it needs. This usually means focusing on fertilization and pH requirements while locating each plant in a spot where it will get the necessary amounts of moisture and light for it to feel at home. All these considerations are essential for establishing healthy plants. (more…)

Ocean Arks Carbon Sequestering Project: A Forest in Costa Rica

Agroforestry Project in Costa Rica: Food, Fuels & Income to Sustain Local Communities By John Todd Project manager William Turley showing one year old Jatropha fruit Almost a year ago we embarked upon a long hoped for dream. Our Costa Rica based colleagues and partners, long term New Alchemist William Turley and his green- thumbed wife Angie Sanchez are planting trees on their land on the deforested lower slopes of the Volcano Miravalles in Guanacaste. Our plan is to replace formerly forested, overgrazed grasslands there with a working landscape of trees. The land is currently leased from William and Angie. Within the year we would like to buy ...

Ocean Arks Carbon Sequestering Project: A Forest in Costa Rica

Almost a year ago we embarked upon a long hoped for dream. Our Costa Rica based colleagues and partners, long term New Alchemist William Turley and his green-thumbed wife Angie Sanchez are planting trees on their land on the deforested lower slopes of the Volcano Miravalles in Guanacaste. (more…)

Success in Brazil with Citrus and Ornamentals

In 1992, as a young citrus consultant and agronomist, I observed in an orchard that was doing very poorly in Dourado (SP), Brazil that on a particular parcel the orange trees developed more quickly and had more fruit than the other trees on the property. In the area where the citrus trees were thriving, the ground was very flat with splintery "rusted" rocks that had a dark, almost black color. On researching further I did mineral analyses and began to do practical experiments in the field. I began to research various rock deposits in the region and studied variations in their mineral constituents. (more…)

Volcanic rock dust therapy for soil

  Volcanic rock dust therapy for soil 400% increase in rice yields in Malaysia with rock dust plus soil micro-organisms "Volcanic rock dust therapy for soil", an article in the business section of The Star Online, reports that volcanic rock dust combined with a bacterial based soil conditioner may soon become indispensable in the Malaysian agricultural sector. Robert W. Taylor, chairman of MRD Inc. (M) Sdn Bhd, is doing trials with the Agriculture Department and they have tried it out with rice fields, pineapple farms, and banana orchards with good results. (more…)