MAX FACTS
growing tips, news and trivia
Greens Pack Nutritional Punch
Microgreens is a marketing term used to describe edible greens that germinate from the seeds of
vegetables and herbs and are harvested without roots at the seedling stage. USDA researchers have
analyzed key nutrients in 25 different varieties of vegetable microgreens. Key nutrients measured
were ascorbic acid (vitamin C), tocopherols (vitamin E), phylloquinone (vitamin K), beta-carotene
(a vitamin A precursor) and many more that are critical for human health and function. Research
shows that different microgreens contain widely differing amounts of key nutrients. For example,
total vitamin C content ranges from 20 to 147 mg per 100 g of cotyledon fresh weight. Microgreens
contain considerably higher levels of vitamins and carotenoids—about five times greater—than their
mature plant counterparts. Among the microgreens tested, red cabbage, cilantro, garnet amaranth
and green daikon radish have the highest concentrations of key nutrients.
(Source: ars.usda.gov)
Cold Temperatures Benefit Wisconsin Agriculture
Frigid temperatures that swept across central Wisconsin last winter brought some
advantages to crops. “Cold temperatures are agronomically important to farmers
because in the northern climates we have extreme cold that reduce pests,”
says Duane Maatz, the Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers Association’s
executive director. The association found that deep frost kills harmful pathogens
and insects by the billions, including the insects themselves, the larvae and
the eggs they lay. The only way these pests arrive in Wisconsin would be from
weather patterns typically from southern climates. Insects make their way up
and try to harvest until they’re hit by those freezing temperatures, that is.
“If they’re above the snow pack, hiding in the wood piles or in the trees,
a lot of these insects will die because of the cold,” adds Dan Marzu, the
University of Wisconsin-Extension’s agriculture development educator.
(Source: wxow.com)
Projects Reduce Pesticide Risk
The US Environmental Protection Agency has announced that three universities have
received research grants for their projects on integrated pest management practices. Each
year, PestWise programs form dozens of new partnerships by awarding more than
$3.1 million in grants to growers and researchers across the country. This year,
an agricultural IPM grant has been awarded to Pennsylvania State University
for its project to protect bees and crops by reducing reliance on neonicotinoid
pesticide seed treatments. Other grant recipients include Louisiana State
University for its project to minimize impacts to bees from insecticides used
in mosquito control, and the University of Vermont for its project to reduce
pesticide use and improve pest control while increasing crop yields on
75 acres of hops in the Northeast.
(Source: epa.gov/pestwise/grants)
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Maximum Yield USA | March 2014