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facts
hydroponic news, tips and trivia
Non-Target Insects Affected More by Insecticides than by Bt Crops
A new study by Agricultural Research Service scientists has found that non-target insects are affected by insecticides
more so than they are by Bt crops, or crops containing genes from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis. Bt
crops such as maize and cotton are genetically engineered to produce insect-specific toxins, targeting
specific insect pests.
Using data collected from a modified version of a public database, university researchers from
across the country formed a collaborative study, which compared the abundant non-target
insects in Bt crops and non-Bt crops without any. They also compared the insect populations
in both types of crops treated with insecticides and the non-target insect populations in Bt crops
without insecticides versus the populations in non-Bt crops treated with insecticides. They observed
considerable variability within the groups with the most influential factor being the insecticide applied.
Collectively, some insecticides had larger negative impacts on non-target insects than did the Bt crops.
Researchers concluded that no treatment at all has the least impact when it comes to killing nontarget insects. Bt crops have considerably less impact on non-target insects than do conventional insecticides and
insecticides affect insect populations uniformly, regardless of whether they're in Bt or non-Bt crop fields.
(Source: http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2008/081124.htm)
Growstone LLC. Joins Forces With the City of Albuquerque to Recycle Glass
Santa Fe based company Growstone LLC has partnered with the
city of Albuquerque to recycle glass that will then be used as an
addition to potting soil. The glass by-product generated in Albuquerque will be purchased
by Growstone who will grind it into a fine powder, then processed into pebbles and used to
retain water in soil.
The agreement will give the city the capacity to consume 15,000 tons of glass per year, to
be sold around the country for use in soil. Growstone pebbles have high water-retention
capabilities, which is a welcome bonus in Albuquerque where the desert environment
has officials struggling to find ways to conserve water for future generations. Growstone
horticulture products reduce environmental impact on both ends of the production chain.
By replacing strip-mined materials like pumice, perlite and stonewool, they reduce
environmental degradation. Also, because the product largely consists of recycled
bottles, a large amount of waste material is given new life, keeping it from the landfill.
For more information on Growstone products visit www.growstone.com
Urban Growers Go High-Tech to Feed City Dwellers
A program run by the California State Polytechnic University is utilizing hydroponic
technology as part of a larger growing effort to bring farming into cities, feeding a larger
percentage of people in a sustainable manner.
Students are growing leafy greens at a campus greenhouse, with a goal of growing food in
small spaces. Hydroponic growing has long existed in the shadow of conventional growing
methods and is now getting a second look from universities and public health advocates.
Researchers see hydroponics as a way to cut the environmental cost of transporting
produce from farms to cities, protect wilderness and farmland and feed a growing world
population. This technology has benefitted from nearly th ree decades of NASA research
aimed at sustaining astronauts in places with even less green space than a typical U.S. city.
The program in California will aim to prepare students to operate the urban hydroponic
businesses and they will sell their healthy produce in an on-campus grocery store and in
farmer’s markets.
(Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081121/ap_on_bi_ge/farm_scene_urban_hydroponics;_ylt=AvRaTIq0oO.
uEvnfO3jEEyus0NUE)
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MAXIMUM YIELD USA - March 2009