Water Temperature and Oxygen: Water can hold 5 parts per million of oxygen at 25 degrees. At 20 degrees water can hold 8 parts per million of oxygen. The colder the water gets the more oxygen it can retain. The warmer water gets the less oxygen it can retain. However, if water is too hot the plant will stop taking up food.
Ideally a plant wants a minimum of 5 parts per million of oxygen. An ideal water temperature is between 22-23 degrees C. Keeping the water/nutrient within this temperature range ensures that there is enough oxygen available to the plant while not compromising uptake.
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(Figure Presented). An energy-input analysis of the life-cycle of microalgal cultivation systems was performed to study the oil-rich biomass production from fast-growing microalgae, for biodiesel production purposes. We estimated and compared the energy demands for the algal biomass cultivation in open-ponds (OP) with that required in closed-system photobioreactors (PBR) based on the new technologies. We also present the best microalgal candidates that show the highest biomass productivity and lipid yield indoors (laboratory scale), and discuss their potential to be used for full-scale biodiesel production. The results show that the energy requirements are highly dependent on the final mass concentration and/or using industrial wastes, with PBR cultivation being the largest energy consumer. Our offered scenario to minimize energy inputs and to increase algal-oil yields considers the most ideal cases, which could be the most promising model for energy-efficient biofuel production. Although biodiesel production by any of these systems is still not economically competitive with fossil fuel, recent suggestions on how to increase the efficiency of both systems are discussed, based on our energy-input assessment, with a critical evaluation of all stages for large-scale production of oil-rich microalgal biomass.
Bibliographical notePublisher Copyright:
© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
- Microalgae biotechnology
- Oil-rich biomass


At the Pirates Republic we do not believe in putting all your food requirements in one basket so to speak. When I was in Bosnia there was a question that was more like a mantra the locals had it was “what if the first crop fails?” Coming from the land of plenty it didn’t really set in until I was in the Yugoslavian territory and the same question/Mantra was bandied about by the locals like it wasn’t anything to them.
So what happens if your first crop fails? We have a saying around the Harbor that goes like this “you can’t plant a seed today and eat a tomato tomorrow!” We have spoken to a lot of people that has as their only intent is to produce a garden and put up what they don’t consume. That’s great but what happens if your first crop fails? then do you have enough to get you thru that failure and then thru the second grow period? So we always recommend tiered food reserves. 1. Garden 2. Bulk items 3. Freeze Dried long term storage food Products 4. Quick fix type products for example MRE, Thrive Express packets.
A garden can be spectacular when all is great. However, depending on where you live Drought, Fire, Frost, too much rain, Hail, decease, pests, thieves and Murphy’s Law can and will happen and then what? Anyway the survival diva has an article that addresses having a garden as your only source of food. Enjoy
It’s Survival Diva with a word of caution: if you plan to eat exclusively from a survival garden, it may not be enough. Before you throw your hands up in the air in frustration, bear with me. There are always workarounds. But before jumping into them, it’s wise to see if your living situation will support a large enough garden to provide at least a portion of your food needs.
The first question is do you have enough land for a large garden? Many gardening experts suggest approximately an acre of land to yield enough to feed a family of four. (David’s note: There’s a WAY overused example of a family in California who grows enough to feed their family on 1/10th acre. They’re great people and I’ve emailed back and forth with the father, but most of the family works full time on their garden, so it’s not something everybody can duplicate.)
Next on the priority list after land comes the ability to water a large garden. Do you have a reliable water source to keep your plants healthy?
The next issue is security. If you live in a highly populated area, a tall fence is almost a prerequisite for an out of sight, out of mind approach. Without a fence you would need to keep a close watch over your garden. During troubled times it isn’t likely someone would be able to walk past the bounty of a garden without first stopping to help themselves. Enough uninvited visitors, and your garden yield may not be enough to keep you and your loved ones fed.
Another part of the equation is your climate zone. The longer the growing season, the more you will be able to produce, but for those who live in colder climate zones a greenhouse will help extend the growing season. You can find free building plans on the internet to make a greenhouse out of 2 X 4’s and heavy mill plastic.
If you haven’t heard of cold frames, you might want to study up on them. They are made with glass fronts and built with sturdy wood frames so seedlings that have grown into tender plants can be transferred to the cold frame in preparation for the garden once the early spring frost has passed. The glass fronts allow the cold frame to absorb sunshine, heating the interior. Cold frames should be left in full sunlight, and when placed against a heated building or foundation, plants placed in a cold frame will benefit from the extra heat. You can make them yourself from old windows installed with hinges, so on warmer days they can be opened to let out excess heat and moisture.
Note: Heirloom seed can be dried and stored for the next growing season and has a much lower second season failure rate than do commercial hybrid seeds. (David’s note: “hybrid” is not necessarily a bad thing. it is the pollen from one variety of plant pollinating another variety of the same plant. In human terms, the opposite of “hybrids” is inbreeding. In dog terms, the hybrids are mutts.)
I mentioned at the beginning of the post that eating strictly from a garden may not be enough. Here’s why: as a rule of thumb, the average person requires approximately 2,000 calories each day. When you are physically active with chores such as gathering wood and water, gardening and doing chores like hand washing laundry, your caloric needs will go up.
I realize at a time when grocers shelves are collecting dust we will be happy for what food we have, especially when it’s fresh fruits and vegetables from the garden. Our bodies, however, can’t separate good times from bad and caloric intake will be even more important in lean times when each day will be filled with plenty of physical activity.
It boils down to combining your efforts; gardening and putting enough food storage aside for the protein and fats our bodies need. The following are a few relatively inexpensive items you might consider adding as long-term food storage along with gardening. Together, it will get you through a long-term crisis.
Peanut Butter and Shelf Life
I stockpiled a few hundred 28 ounce containers of Skippy peanut butter because it’s cheap insurance against hunger, most kids love it, and its protein and fat content will help avoid excessive weight loss when food is not plentiful and your workload increases. I did not store natural peanut butter without preservatives because it is not shelf stable.
Peanut butter has 190 calories per each 2 tablespoon serving, 3 grams of fat and 7 grams of protein. A huge benefit of peanut butter, other than it is affordable and has a long shelf life, is that it doesn’t require refrigeration.
I also included medium-sized assorted jams and jellies for PB&J sandwiches. Other than with the most humid climates, you should be able to consume a small to medium jar of jam well before it begins to mold, even without refrigeration. The trick is to use clean utensils to spread either the jam or peanut butter to avoid cross-contamination.
If you’re concerned about mold, look to restaurant supply companies, Costco, Sam’s Clubs, or wholesale grocers for individual packets of jams and jellies. But a word of warning; shop around if you go online! Some internet restaurant suppliers charge just as much for shipping as they do for a box of individual packets. You might check on individual mayonnaise packets as well to go with the next item I’ve recommended below.
You may have noticed I’m stubborn when it comes to what the experts tell us about the shelf life of many foods. Peanut butter is no exception. I just opened a jar of Skippy dated April, 2008 from my food storage to test it so I could report the outcome for this post. Mind you, the peanut butter was stored in a cool, dry location without direct sunlight or severe temperature fluctuations on the shelves of my food storage shed. The April, 2008 jar tastes no different than the newly purchased one sitting in my kitchen cabinet. There was no rancid oil taste and no staleness.
Experts advise the shelf life of peanut butter to be 18 months. The jar I opened dated April 2008 was 47 months. You will want to decide for yourself what your comfort level is for the shelf life of stored peanut butter, but my group will starting with 2008 peanut butter for the protein and calories it offers.
(David’s note: Along the same lines of thought as peanut butter, a couple of my “force multipliers” are Olive Oil and Instant Breakfast powders. Both can stretch existing food supplies while also increasing the nutritional value of your meals.)
Canned Tuna Fish
Tuna fish packed in oil is another relatively inexpensive way to add fat and protein to a steady diet of fruits and vegetables. A normal-sized 178.0 gram can of white tuna packed in oil contains 331 calories, has 14.4 grams of fat, and 47.2 grams of protein, which makes it a good candidate for inexpensive protein and to help avoid weight loss.
Beans and Rice
Served together, beans and rice offer a good source of protein and they are much cheaper than stockpiling meat, ham or chicken—although if you can afford it, they are great to include with your long-term food storage.
Our bodies provide most of the amino acids we need for our muscles, blood and bones, but some amino acids must come from foods. Like meat, beans and rice combined together provide the protein and amino acids we need to keep our bodies fueled. Some of most nutritious beans are black beans, pinto beans, navy beans, kidney beans and lima beans.
Canned beans will store for years provided they are kept in a moisture-free location that does not get extreme temperature fluctuations. Dry beans and rice will store for much longer. If cooking fuel is limited, consider purchasing a pressure cooker. It will drastically cut down on cook time, therefore fuel consumption.
Note: Always soak beans overnight before cooking.
Brown rice has more nutrition than white rice, but it has a much shorter shelf life due to its natural oils and it takes longer to cook.
When you allow rice to soak for several hours before cooking, it will shorten the cook time.
Bread & Noodles: Flour, Yeast, Powdered Eggs
Bread is something few of us would want to do without. It’s a comfort food, it’s filling and will stretch a meal of fruits and vegetables, and when you need a break, sandwiches make for quick, no-fuss meals. Made from the same ingredients, noodles are fairly easy to make and are great fillers for beans dishes.
Depending upon the type of yeast you store and how you store it, yeasts shelf life may be as short as 6 months.
Dry, granulated yeast lasts longer than cake yeast and white flour has a longer shelf than does wheat flour. You will want to weigh the shelf life of white versus wheat flour with their nutrition when you decide which to store. Both white and wheat flour should be stored in airtight buckets, away from sunlight and moisture and extreme temperature fluctuations. If you chose wheat buds, stored correctly it will last up to 30 years.
Powdered eggs in number 10 cans can be purchased online or at some big-box grocers. Typically, powdered eggs will last between 3 – 5 years, depending upon the supplier and how you store the cans.
In a Perfect World
It would be ideal to keep chickens for a time when the protein from their eggs and meat will be a blessing. However, predation from wild critters means you need a rooster or two to replace the causalities in your flock.
Although many cities now allow homeowners to keep a limited number of chickens, most do not allow roosters because of their tendency to start crowing at 4:00 am. But if you live in a rural area, you might consider keeping chickens. Just the bartering potential for eggs alone would be worth the trouble!
Are you planning to garden for backup when food storage may be exhausted? Please sound off by posting below!
God bless and stay safe,
David Morris and Survival Diva


Plant Disease Detection using Ensembled CNN Framework
Agriculture exhibits the prime driving force for growth of agro-based economies globally. In the field of agriculture, detecting and preventing crops from attacks of pests is the major concern in today's world. Early detection of plant disease becomes necessary to prevent the degradation in the yield of crop production. In this paper, we propose an ensemble based Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) architecture that detects plant disease from the images of the leaves of the plant. The proposed architecture takes into account CNN architectures like VGG-19, ResNet-50, and InceptionV3 as its base models, and the prediction from these models is used as an input for our meta-model (Inception-ResNetV2). The approach helped us in building a generalized model for disease detection with an accuracy of 97.9 % under test conditions.
How to Cite
Copyright (c) 2022 Computer Science
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.


We have started growing in the garden again – a little earlier this year than last so, given good weather, we should have an even better bumper harvest. Thank you so far to Adam, Alice and Rowan for helping out and to those who are still to come. First things first though we are still looking for a few extra people to help out from the 25th April and throughout May, so if you have a week to spare and fancy the most peaceful gardening experience ever please contact Alice (firstname.lastname@example.org) We can cover travel expenses within Scotland up to approximately £30 with receipts, and your food and possibly even some home brew.
Extended news from the garden
The soil is looking good after a second winter mulch of sea weed, manure and straw by the wonderful Alice, Jonny and Kat, though some of the weeds (mint, couch grass and ground elder) are pretty persistent in spreading the roots about the place. Nothing that some diligent weeding over the spring and summer won’t stop though.
The polytunnel still stands strong and was home to an already hefty sized hops plant when we arrived. We decided to move the hops plant outside just in case it decided to take over, and it now lives at the south end of the barn where it is currently sulking but will hopefully perk up a bit. We were also very happy to find tree spinach seedlings dotted around the floor of the polytunnel – they’re now potted up and ready to be planted somewhere else in good time. Two hot days of shorts and t-shirt work in the polytunnel and it is now planted with strawberries, peas, nasturtium, morning glory, sweet peas and borage. There are four hanging selves full of seed trays, including 4 different varieties of basil. All but one of these shelves can come down when everything gets bigger to make room for the sprawl of peas. It will hopefully look ship shape and lovely come June.
We’ve mulched the hawthorn hedge which was just starting to flush again and will one day make a lovely wind break! And around the edge of the hedge we’ve planted some wild garlic lifted and divided from a large clump at the back of the garden. The comfry patch has also been extended to border the big mint patch in an experiment to see if it will do any good in slowing the mint’s onward march across the garden. Time will tell.
And the outside beds have started to be planted up with all sorts of nice things. In the beds are turnips, radishes, lots of different varieties of Japanese greens, beetroot, calendula, spinach, chard, endive, chicory, parsley, anise hyssop as an experiment, fennel, lovage and more. Plus some potatoes, leeks and cabbages for November mulching parties should that happen. We’ve also slightly changed the layout of the beds to make them slightly smaller with a bit more space for sitting and having garden parties.
So all is good :-) I’m off and away on my bike now :-) Please take pictures of the garden and send stories, I’m very curious how it will turn out. And nurture the garden and each other.


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The legacy of Rich Valley Dry Fruits was established in 2015. Since then, we’ve grown to become one of India’s most trusted brands when it comes to healthy and handpicked dry fruits. With a base of over a million loyal customers across India, our goal is to become a trusted name globally.
Our “all-natural” policy at Rich Valley guarantees a chemical free product from Farm to Home. Every Rich Valley pack contains dry fruits which are unadulterated, original and fresh in taste. The aim is to serve you the most organic of the flavours; our dry fruits do not undergo any chemical processes, polishing or added preservatives.
We serve you with only the best of the dry fruits from lush green meadows and farms of Chile, California, Afghanistan and Australia among many other countries.


We, here at Leaves and Petals, are devoted to providing the best quality mail order plants to suit your needs.
Whether you are an enthusiast, in search of unique plants for your home or just looking for that special something for yourself or gift for someone you care for, we know we will become one of your favorite online nurseries.
Offering professional gardening advice and information as well as new, unusual and hard-to-find plants during the most important prep time for your gardening projects, Leaves and Petals is the perfect place to buy plants online.
In our nursery we believe that quality and quantity are not synonymous. Although we specialize in a limited variety of plants, you can find just about any tree or shrub imaginable. That's because we network with other growers with their own specializations. These have proven to meet the standards that set our plants apart. And they are experts in the plants they grow. You are thus assured that the plants you purchase are grown only by the most knowledgeable and experienced growers in the horticultural industry. No 'second' bests pass the test at Leaves and Petals. We guarantee you the best. And we deliver only the best.
We encourage the planting of trees such as the Princeton American Elm, a tree that is restoring Americas Landscape Heritage before it is too late. And just recently we have added the newest addition to the DED resistant American Elm Collection, the 'Valley Forge' American Elm, proving that we are winning the fight - if you will only join the crusade to Save the American Elm. And we make available superior quality plants of trees such as the Thuja "Green Giant" which has become the most sought after privacy tree and an overnight sensation. Though easily found in so many websites, we encourage you to compare before you purchase. Quality isn't determined by the size of the container, but rather by the plant delivered in that container. And we stake our reputation on our quality!
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And if you're looking for a particular plant or tree that isn't part of our selection, or you have a question on your own gardening project, don't hesitate to contact us. We go the extra mile to help you find your plant, and we enjoy helping our customers find the answers they are looking for. Leaves and Petals... helping to make your gardening project a success.
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A while back I took a peek into the history of rope and I did my very best to side-step the whole messy, controversial topic of hemp. I was feeling pretty clever about that. But a few of my readers called me out (more than a few actually) so I guess I wasn’t so clever after all.
So I guess we’re doing this. Let’s have some hemp history!
You cannot delve into the history, cultivation, and use of hemp without getting all tangled up in the legalization of marijuana in the United States and the socio-economic politics of that. Plenty of the links I provide here in this post are going to take you to sites that advocate the legalization of marijuana. What is my personal opinion on that subject?
a) I don’t care very much and I wish politicians would work on issues like the stunning illiteracy rates in our children and our national debt instead of who can smoke what.
b) I wish people who got high would stop driving.
c) Every single person I know who gets high (and I know a lot) tells me they do it for medical reasons and not to get giggly, relaxed, and silly. The fact that they do get giggly, relaxed, and silly is an unavoidable side effect.
d) Nearly all of the people who are smoking pot for “medical reasons” think I should stop taking aspirin when I get a headache because they read somewhere that aspirin was dangerous.
Now that I’ve gotten that out of the way…
Hemp is a member of the cannabis family. All members of the cannabis family contain THC and useful fiber. Today the cannabis grown for industrial purpose, which is what we call hemp, contains about 35% fiber and trace amounts of THC. The cannabis that is grown for medical reasons and/or to get people high, which we call marijuana, contains about 15% fiber and LOTS of THC.
Cannabis in the Ancient World
The original, ancestral plant that modern members of the cannabis family originate from no longer seems to exist anywhere. It was bred and cross-bred and cultivated and changed into what we have today. But its safe to say that at one point humans were using the same cannabis plant to cultivate fiber and get high. According to Prehistoric Textiles: The Development of Cloth in the Neolithic and Bronze Ages with Special Reference to the Aegean, cannabis probably originated in northern Asia in the Neolithic Age. It spread all over the Eurasian continent and into Africa very rapidly sometime around 1000BC. The plant itself adapts easily to new environments and can grow almost anywhere. Its just a weed after all.
The Egyptians were cultivating cannabis at least 4000 years ago. We know they had hemp rope. Hemp seeds and hemp oil have been recovered in several tombs. At least one ancient Egyptian scroll, from 1700 BC, contains references to medical cannabis. Then then there is this little hieroglyph:
Herodotus was a Greek Historian who wrote done everything he knew and saw in the fifth century BC. His works are a treasure of knowledge and we are very lucky they survived. An ancient historian writing about history, culture, and the natural world? That’s just beyond priceless. Among the many (MANY) gems tucked away in Herodotus’ works is a description of the Scythians and how they used cannabis. The Scythians are credited with the domestication of the horse. They were the world’s first mounted archers. They were deadly, terrifying warriors who would sweep in on small fast horses, shoot everything with arrows, steal goods and livestock and sometimes people, and then ride off. Villages had very few defenses against them. With regards to hemp, Herodotus tells us:
Hemp grows in Scythia: it is very like flax; only that it is a much coarser and taller plant: some grows wild about the country, some is produced by cultivation: the Thracians make garments of it which closely resemble linen; so much so, indeed, that if a person has never seen hemp he is sure to think they are linen, and if he has, unless he is very experienced in such matters, he will not know of which material they are.
And then he explains how those Scythians were getting righteously stoned from the same plant.
The Scythians, as I said, take some of this hemp-seed, and, creeping under the felt coverings, throw it upon the red-hot stones; immediately it smokes, and gives out such a vapour as no Grecian vapour-bath can exceed; the Scyths, delighted, shout for joy.
Hemp in the Middle Ages
Things get a bit muddled here. That’s probably because most of the early, 20th century archaeologists who studied artifacts couldn’t tell flax from nettle from hemp and referred to any woven fabric as “linen”. Jadwiga Zajaczkowa speculates that since there are mentions of medieval pot-smoking Romans, Grecians, and Arabs but nothing for Northern Europe that the varieties of cannabis had begun to distinguish themselves. Vikings had hemp rope and hemp sailcloth but they don’t seem to have smoked it. So I’ll go out on a limb as say that by 500 AD, we had two distinct varieties of cannabis, the kind cultivated for fiber and the kind cultivated for medicinal/recreational uses.
Hemp production was going strong in England by 800 AD. It shows up in Scotland by 1000 AD. Russia was growing flax in the north and hemp in the south. As England developed into a naval power, and needed more and more hemp to make rope and sailcloth, hemp had to be imported from Russia. Henry the VIII began passing laws requiring farmers to grow hemp as a way to maintain his nation’s independence. By the 16th century, those requirements had spread to all British colonies.
Hemp in America
Yes, in colonial days, American farmers were required to grow hemp, in certain amounts, to keep the British Empire afloat. It was the law. The British Navy needed miles and miles and miles of hemp rope for each ship. British naval captains sailed with hemp seed and were under orders to distribute that seed and foster the cultivation of hemp whenever they could. Thus hemp reached the New World.
During and after the Revolutionary War, American farmers were still growing hemp. There was a whole country to explore and develop. The new nation needed its own navy. It needed rope and sacks and paper. You couldn’t run a government without paper and most paper was made from old, worn out hemp cloth. The first drafts of the Declaration of Independence were on hemp paper.
George Washington grew hemp. Thomas Jefferson grew hemp. It was their patriot duty and they did it to set an example for the nation. Many farmers followed that example and hemp was an important crop in America. Hemp can grow almost anywhere but it found a real home in Kentucky. American hemp cultivation may have begun in places like Virginia and Connecticut, but it boomed in Kentucky and later Missouri. In 1850 Kentucky produced 40,000 tons of hemp.
Hemp is harvested and processed much like flax and nettle. All those bast fibers are handled in much the same way. Cultivated hemp is planted close together, forcing it to grow straight and tall. Then its cut and the stalks are retted. Retting can be as simple as laying them out for several weeks to collect morning dew. It can mean tying them into bundles are submerging them in water. Retting is about giving the stalks time to soften and decay.
After retting, the hemp goes through a hemp brake to brake it open. The woody pith has to be separated from the outer fibers. Thomas Jefferson invented a new, better hemp brake and refused to patent it. (That’s significant since he is the father of our patent system.) He thought that the efficient processing of hemp was too critical to the success of the nation and choose to give away his innovation instead of profiting from it.
After braking, the hemp fibers are hackled, or combed. Then it can be spun. Sometimes it goes through more processing to remove the lignin, which is a stiff woody polymer. Lignin is why unprocessed hemp isn’t soft. Its also why it makes great rope. The hemp we buy for handspinning today has (usually) had its lignin removed
Hemp Looses its Luster
In the early 1900’s Americans started turning against hemp. After thousands of years, after humans took cannabis from one little valley in northern Asia, spread it all over the world, and cultivated the bejesus out of it, we decided it was not for us. Here are the real (in my opinion) reasons why:
1) The Philippines started making better rope. Its called Manila hemp but its not a cannabis plant at all. Its a relative of the edible banana.
2) The invention of steam powered boats meant the world didn’t need so much hemp rope anymore.
3) The US government started taxing hemp (and all cannabis) growers. Taxes always stifle economy.
4) Marijuana and hemp got caught up in Prohibition.
5) We learned how to make rope from metal and synthetic materials.
6) In the 1940’s American farmers got talked into growing hemp and many of them lost money in that venture. During World War II, the Japanese forces captured the Philippines (and did terrible things to those people that the world has mostly forgotten about) and the US lost its access to Manila hemp. So the Hemp for Victory campaign was launched by the US Department of Agriculture.
Plants for processing hemp were built and farmers started planting. Then we won the war, liberated the Philippines, and went back to Manila hemp. The demand for American hemp crashed. That was the last, most recent big push to revive the hemp industry.
Hemp Makes a Comeback… Maybe
Hemp has been on the ropes (hahahahahaha) for several decades but it hasn’t been knocked out yet. Farmers have been growing hemp under special permits ever since they needed special permits to grow it. Sometimes those hemp farmers get busted because they are growing marijuana inside the hemp fields. Sometimes they get busted for no (apparent) reason at all.
Hemp really is a good source for fiber. It really is renewable. Its easy to grow and doesn’t degrade the soil. Its definitely a better, if more expensive, source for paper pulp than trees. Now that we can remove the lignin from the fibers, it can be made into a soft, supple fiber. Hemp, industrial, fiber heavy hemp, won’t get you high.
And its looking more an more like the laws against marijuana won’t last long anyway. I don’t think marijuana laws have much affect on hemp cultivation though. Unless the world goes back to sailing the high seas and fighting wars with wooden sail boats, the demand for hemp is low and will stay low. But there should always be some around for us intrepid crafters to play with.
I have a few other posts in which I ramble on about fiber-related history. If you like that sort of thing, check out:


Is Nigeria ready for an agri-tech revolution? What are the struggles associated with it?
Agritech or Agricultural technology can be defined as the use of technology in horticulture (the art of cultivating gardens), aquaculture (cultivation of aquatic produce), ns agriculture (cultivation of crops and rearing of livestock). Agricultural Technology entails products or services which are derived from agriculture in a bid to improve the input and the output process. Historically, almost every agricultural advancement was a form of agricultural technology. We have come to associate the word technology with digital items or innovations; however, the word technology originally referred to innovations that made tasks or manual labour easier. Therefore, when farmers began using cow-drawn carriages to till the soil, it was a form of technology. In recent times, we have had more technological advancements in agriculture. Some of them are agricultural drones, biotech, soil moisture sensors, automated irrigation, weather forecasts, and hydroponics which is a form of soilless farming. Most of the agricultural technology being introduced today is centered around efficiency and sustainability. Hence the advent of hydroponics and automated irrigation. These two advancements were made to make farming easier and to make farming more sustainable. A lot of farmlands have been overharvested, which means they do not have as many nutrients as they should. Agricultural technology steps in with innovations to either solve this problem or provide alternatives till the soil recovers. In this article, we will be discussing the Agri-tech revolution, taking a look at some countries who have experienced it, analyse the benefits, and outline the struggles preventing Nigeria from experiencing an Agri-tech revolution.
There are a few issues that have spiked the need for an agricultural technology revolution around the world. Let’s take a look at four of them.
- Sustainability – Sustainability has been at the forefront of the world’s agenda for quite some time. This is because we have been given an ultimatum to reverse the damage to the ozone layer before 2050. To do this, everyone must work together. While this issue is mostly focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, there is also attention being placed on reducing methane emissions as well. Contrary to the name, greenhouse gas emissions are not released from greenhouses. They are emissions that are released when coal, oil, electricity are being refined. The combustion of fossil fuels causes Co2 to be released. They contribute 76 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. Methane, which is gotten from agriculture, contributes 16 percent. Methane is mostly gotten from livestock; however, it is also gotten from land use and the decay of organic products in landfills. In this article, we’ll be focusing on agriculture. Methane is extremely dangerous to the ozone layer; therefore, it is important that the amount of methane released is lowered significantly. Besides going vegan, the most effective way to reduce methane is to demonopolize livestock farming. Organic farmers, often smaller farmers, keep livestock for much longer, unlike factory farms. They also tend to use digesters which help cows digest foods better and release less methane when they fart.
- Land Availability – Land Availability is a huge factor pushing the Agri-tech movement. As more and more of the world becomes industrialised, we need places where people can live, which means there is not as much land available for farming as there once was. In developed countries and cities, there is even more land scarcity which has prompted farmers and scientists to look into hydroponics and vertical farming in order to tackle the issue of land availability.
- Managing Costs – Agri-tech is also interested in reducing the cost of production for agriculture. This is why there is research being done in automation and other procedures that make the agricultural processes much simpler.
- Water Shortages – Agriculture takes up a lot of water. The UN reported that 70% of the world’s water goes into agriculture. To prevent a water shortage due to the rapidly warming globe, it is important that we begin to envision how to grow crops with less water.
Countries that have experienced an agri-tech revolution.
There are agri-tech hotspots around the world. These are the countries pioneering the research in the agricultural technology revolution that is often cited as the fourth technological revolution.
- The United States of America
- United Kingdom
These are the top 5 countries pioneering the agri-tech revolution. African countries like Morocco and Ghana are also stepping up with innovative ideas. In 2019, around $63 million was invested in mostly Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria for more agricultural technology advancements. A Nigerian initiative called the Anchor Borrowers programme initiative assists agritech startups. AgroMall is one of the startups they have assisted. AgroMall optimizes agricultural output through the use of digital agricultural technology. These advances are noteworthy, and, indeed, Nigeria would greatly benefit from an agri-tech revolution. Unfortunately, there are some struggles associated with the movement.
- Electricity – Agri-tech revolutions need electricity because most of these advancements are digital in nature. In a country without a steady supply of electricity, a reliance on agri-tech innovations can prove disastrous for the average farmer. If there were steady electricity, an agri-tech revolution would work almost seamlessly. A solution would be to provide farmers with generators; however, the high cost of fuel price may be a source of frustration for small farmers.
- Funds – Without the help of foundations like SEI, most small farmers will not be able to afford these innovations. Most of these technological advancements cost quite a lot of money; therefore, it would be impractical for the average farmer to purchase them.
- Accessibility – Most of the small farmers who would benefit from these innovations are not even aware they exist. Before the agri-tech revolution can begin, it is important that the people who will benefit from the revolution are aware of it. This can be done through educational programmes. Most smaller farmers have farms located in distances often overlooked by the government.
- Lack of Infrastructure – Last but certainly not least, we have a lack of infrastructure. Agri-tech advancements as automated irrigation, vertical farming, or hydroponics are not available to the average Nigerian farmer. There is a lack of infrastructure that would provide the foundation for these advancements. For example, an automated irrigation system will only work if there is a pre-existing water providing system in place.
An agri-tech revolution would be of immense benefit to Nigeria and other African countries; however, with these struggles firmly in place, it will be nearly impossible to introduce these innovations. There are many benefits associated with an agri-tech revolution. It could provide more jobs, a more efficient form of farming, financial stability and liberation to small farmers, as well as countless other benefits. Before that can happen, we need to address the struggles listed above; however, there are still ways we can support small farmers. Initiatives like SEI directly support small farmers with products as well as education on how to optimise and make the best use of their farms.


They started the season going to GA April 16 and have been fighting the rain ever since. It has made
for some beautiful corn and soybeans but hard to get hay in without rain.
The weather is always a challenge. Seems that it is never "just right"...one year it's too wet and the next
it's too dry. By spreading our customer base over a larger area, sometimes we can adjust the schedule according
We are grateful to all of our customers. We know that you realize that you have the best quality feed possible.
You know that you can get people in to put your silage up for less initial outlay...but your milk check will soon show that
cheaper isn't always the best.
We look forward to working with people whom we consider friends.


We hope you enjoy your visit to The Farm and leave feeling inspired to make even the smallest change towards a healthier, more harmonious existence with our land, our animals and our communities.
Our motto ‘Grow, Feed, Educate’ inspires all that we do, here and for the community at large. We believe that it is first hand experience of seeing how food is grown and produced that makes the eating of it so much more pleasurable. From this simple pleasure sprouts a curiosity and desire to learn more.
Here at The Farm we encourage everyone to enjoy the surroundings of a real working farm and be inspired to talk and experience where food comes from. Children can meet up close our heritage black pigs and watch them in their natural surroundings and be amongst our chickens whilst enjoying some of the best things in life, sunshine and fresh air. Kids will run around the fields of macadamia and pecan trees and generally enjoy some play time on our grounds.


Keeping your lawn green and healthy requires consistent lawn care scheduling. This ensures that your lawn will remain healthy and attractive all season long.
Watering for more extended periods less frequently helps your lawn develop deep roots. It also minimizes evaporation. Watering in the morning is also ideal, as it lets your lawn take in water during its peak photosynthesis time.
Mowing is one of the most basic yet significant lawn maintenance efforts. It keeps the grass at its ideal height for photosynthesis and nutrient absorption. It also helps prevent overgrowth and weeds.
Mow regularly, ideally once a week, during the growing season. Grass clippings are natural fertilizers and return nutrients to the soil. Avoid over-mowing, as it is stressful for the plant. Aim to remove no more than one-third of the blade’s length at a time.
Watering correctly is another crucial lawn maintenance practice. A deep soaking once a week is better for the grass than frequent shallow watering. Doing so helps the roots extend deeper into the soil, which helps to prevent chinchbugs and other common lawn pests. It also reduces the amount of thatch. Avoid watering in the evening, as it can cause the soil to dry out too quickly. Keeping on top of weeds by pulling or spot-treating them as they emerge is also very important.
Many people don’t fertilize their lawns because they think it makes their grass grow and requires more mowing. While fertilizing does make your grass grow faster and thicker, it also helps the grass resist diseases, pests, weeds, drought, and other environmental stressors.
The nutrient content in your soil is essential for healthy grass, but that can vary from property to property. A soil test can provide a more detailed analysis of your specific soil and what it needs to thrive.
A well-maintained lawn by a lawn care company Arlington, VA, can improve the value of your home, reduce erosion, filter pollutants, and provide natural cooling and air cleaning. It can also help control weeds and prevent insect infestations, especially if you stay on top of mowing and other care. If you need help keeping your yard looking its best, contact a professional lawn care expert. They can offer advice and tips to keep your lawn beautiful throughout the summer.
Lawn maintenance includes regular mowing, watering, fertilization, and aeration. This ensures your grass is healthy, vibrant, and resistant to drought, disease, and pests.
Watering is essential when the weather turns hot and dry. The best time to water is in the morning, which allows the moisture to soak in before the sun bakes it into the soil. It’s also best to avoid watering late at night, as this can promote fungus growth and other lawn diseases.
Generally, watering your yard once a week is enough to keep it properly hydrated. You can use a sprinkler system or hose-end sprinkler to distribute the water evenly throughout your lawn. If you notice bare patches or spots where the grass has weakened, patch them with new sod or grass seed as needed. To prevent weeds, mulch the area with an organic or inorganic material like compost or wood chips. This also improves the nutrient content of your soil.
A well-maintained lawn is better equipped to fight off nuisances such as inclement weather and pest infestations. A healthy yard will recover faster than an unhealthy one from these and other lawn damage-causing factors.
A healthy lawn can better resist and control weeds that compete for sunlight, water, and nutrients. Regular weed treatments (preferably early morning) will help keep your lawn weed-free.
Using a dandelion fork or fishtail weeder will help you remove small patches of weeds before they grow larger. This helps prevent the weeds from producing rhizomes or tubers that will return to haunt you later in the season.
A healthy lawn looks better, feels softer and healthier underfoot, adds value to your home, and provides an inviting place for families and pets to play. So take the time to follow these lawn care tips, and you will be rewarded with a lush, green, and weed-free landscape that your neighbors will envy.


FRB’s Land Rights and Food Security program, in Sengerema, Tanzania, aims to protect farmers from outside land acquisition by training them on securing titles to their land, and educating them on improved agricultural practices to increase their productivity.
One program participant, Samwel, farms seven acres to support his large family. He grows vegetables and other food crops on four acres, and on the other three acres he has planted 2500 pine trees he plans to sell for timber, projected to be worth $65 each when they mature in eight years.
Samwel and his father have been farming these seven acres for decades but, like most other farmers in Sengerema, they had no formal title to prove to the government, micro-finance institutions, or other farmers or investors that the land is theirs. This meant that Samwel could not use his land as collateral for loans, could not demand compensation if someone tried to take his land, and could not be confident in the security of his investment in the trees.
In 2011, recognizing the value of obtaining land title, Samwel was the first farmer in the village to put his name on the list of farms to be surveyed by the District government. Samwel learned steps he needed to take to get his land surveyed, and then how to apply for a title deed for a 99-year lease of his land. It was a long process but, in October 2013, Samwel received his official land title certificate and could not have been more proud to show it off to everyone in the community. He finally has proof that the land is his, and he can now use it as collateral for larger loans to improve and expand his farm.
Mr. Paulo, village chairman, said, “Samwel is the first farmer in the village to get the title for his land and we all worked hard to help him get it. Now all the farmers are very proud of him and see his success as proof that it is possible for them to get title for their land, too.”
Samwel further explained, “The government land officers told me that they want to see many more farmers pursue their land titles so that we can improve agriculture in the area. I expect others to follow me.” Samwel’s goal now is to expand his farm and increase his crop yields, using the additional revenue for his children’s school fees. Meanwhile, he is watching his trees mature and his investment grow.
Tanzania Sengerema encompasses 16 communities, 1760 households and 8800 individuals.


Use LocalHarvest to find farmers’ markets, family farms, and other sources of sustainably grown food in your area, where you can buy produce, grass-fed meats, and many other goodies.
Did you know the average fresh food item travels 1,500 miles to get to your grill? That’s a lot of fuel used for transportation, processing, packaging and refrigeration! Getting your grillin’ groceries at a farmer’s market, summer roadside stand or store with local food tastes fresher, supports the local economy and uses far less energy.
Click here to find our more about other tips on how to “green the grill” this weekend for Father’s Day (and every weekend)!


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2023-04-28 at 22:03 #402026Nat QuinnKeymaster
The widespread use of antibiotics in livestock farming has led to the emergence of bacteria that are more resistant to the human immune system.
A study conducted by scientists at the University of Oxford has found that the antimicrobial colistin, previously used as a growth promoter on pig and chicken farms in China, resulted in the emergence of Escherichia coli strains that are more likely to evade the body’s initial defense mechanism.
“This is potentially much more dangerous than resistance to antibiotics,” warned study lead author Craig MacLean, a professor of Evolution and Microbiology at Oxford. “It highlights the danger of indiscriminate use of antimicrobials in agriculture. We’ve accidentally compromised our own immune system in pursuit of producing fatter chickens.”
The use of antibiotics has long been a contentious issue, with many experts warning that the widespread use of these drugs in livestock contributes to the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. In recent years, there has been a growing movement to reduce the use of antibiotics in farming, with many countries introducing regulations to limit their use.
Despite these efforts, however, the new study suggests that antibiotic resistance continues to rise, posing a major threat to human health and global food security.
Development of antibiotics similar to colistin may endanger innate immunity
The significance of this research extends beyond current practices in livestock farming. The study suggests that the development of new antibiotics in the same class as colistin, known as antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), may carry a particular risk of compromising innate immunity. (Related: Agricultural waste could be contributing to the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.)
AMPs are naturally occurring compounds produced by most living organisms as part of their innate immune response, which serves as the first line of defense against infection. Colistin, derived from a bacterial AMP, is chemically similar to certain AMPs produced in the human immune system. The excessive use of colistin in livestock farming during the 1980s contributed to the emergence and spread of E. coli bacteria carrying colistin resistance genes, leading to subsequent restrictions on the drug’s agricultural use.
In the study, E. coli strains carrying a resistance gene called MCR-1 were exposed to AMPs known to play significant roles in innate immunity across chickens, pigs and humans. The bacteria were also tested for their susceptibility to human blood serum.
The researchers discovered that E. coli strains with the MCR-1 gene were at least twice as resistant to human serum compared to those lacking the gene. On average, the gene increased resistance to human and animal AMPs by 62 percent. Furthermore, the resistant E. coli strains were twice as likely to cause infections and kill moth larvae when compared to the control strain.
The findings of the study are likely to add fuel to the ongoing debate about the use of antibiotics in livestock farming. While the consequences of increased resistance are challenging to estimate, the study sheds light on a fundamental risk that has yet to be fully explored. MacLean noted that the danger lies in the potential evolution of bacterial resistance to AMP-based drugs.
Antimicrobial resistance poses a dire global threat, with the United Nations warning that superbugs could cause up to 10 million deaths annually by 2050. The pressing need for new antibiotics has sparked a growing interest in AMPs as potential solutions, including drugs based on human AMPs.
As the world grapples with the challenge of antibiotic resistance, it is clear that urgent action is needed to address this growing problem. Whether this will involve the reduction in the use of antibiotics in livestock farming, increased investment in research and development, or a combination of both remains to be seen.
Visit Superbugs.news to learn more about antibiotic-resistant pathogens.
Watch this video to learn more about superbugs.
This video is from the Compassion with Kim channel on Brighteon.com
More related stories:
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– Odysseas Elytis
The olive tree is the landmark of Greeceand one of the oldest known cultivated trees by mankind. Along with the vineyards which dot the landscape throughout the country. Olive trees have been planted in and around vineyards for thousands of years. Climate is one reason that grapes and olives make good companion plants.
Autumn in Greece, specifically October, marks the harvest season for grapes and olives. Harvesting activities are century-old traditions evolving the transaction between humankind and mother earth, requiring elbow grease in exchange for authenticity.
Olive Tree: a symbol of peace & friendship
The olive tree has been considered sacred for thousands of years, dating back to Ancient Greek tradition and mythology. The most symbolic connotation for the olive branch is peace. It is associated with several customs and myths. According to the legend, Athens, the capital city of Greece, was named after the Greek goddess Athena. The foundation myth states that Zeus offered a contest between Athena and Poseidon for the possession of Athens. They met on the sacred hill of the Acropolis. Poseidon struck the rock with his trident which cracked beneath it.
A spring of water emerged from the ground and that was his gift to the people of Athens. Unfortunately, the seawater had limited use for ancient Athens. Athena planted and brought forth an olive tree from the ground. This was Athena’s gift, an olive tree, and she was proclaimed the victor. Cecrops, the first king who ruled Athens, and the people of the city determined the winner and the goddess of wisdom gave her name to the city.
Interesting Fact: The oldest known olive tree it’s claimed to be between 3000–4000 years old, based on tree ring analysis.
(Greek name: ‘Elia Vouvon’, the monumental olive tree)
The liquid gold
Greek olive oil, or “Liquid Gold,” as Homer called it, has been part of Greece’s history since antiquity. Olive trees are of high nutritional importance.
Its fruit is used to make olive oil which has multiple applications. Rich in antioxidants and healthy monounsatured fats (MUFAs), it is considered an irreplaceable component of the Mediterranean diet.
Ancient Greeks believed that the ideal way of picking olives was by hand to ensure that they will not injure the tree or damage the fruit. Traditional methods for the olive harvesting are two: the “milking” method and the pole beating method. The “milking” method is when workers handpick olives from the tree branches while the pole beating is when nets are placed on the ground around the olive tree trunks. However, the modern picking tools and the mechanized methods have replaced the manual ones.
Olive oil was used as part of Ancient Greeks’ efforts to enjoy a healthy and balanced life and to promote longevity. It was also used as a cosmetic for skin and hair. Today, Greek olive oil is considered as the most nutritional source of health in the world.
Grapes: a symbol of abundance & inner transformation
Grapevines have long possessed connotations of abundance and prosperity, devoted to the God Dionysus. Several social events had toasts to him and even the wine cups were decorated with grapes as a tribute to the god. Wine has been often considered as an elixir of life and immortality. Grapes are as old as civilization itself. They are also mentioned in the Bible in numerous instances and they appear in literature as emblems due to their symbolic meaning. Many religions believed that grapevine is a spiritual symbol of inner transformation: from fruit to wine. As the nectar of the Gods, it undergoes the various stages of transformation imposed by man: harvesting, compacting, rotting & ageing.
The nectar of the Gods
The relationship between Greeks and grapes is mythical, since the early Bronze Age. Dionysus, was the god of grape harvesting, wine, fertility and festivity. Grape harvesting in Greece is considered to be an autumn custom with ritual importance. Combining agriculture, tradition and cultural rituals, wine making is one of the oldest and most beloved ‘family matters’ where friends, neighbors and family gather together for a purpose: grape harvesting.
Ancient Greece was the beginning of the modern wine culture which has been passed down from one generation to the other. The philosophers of the Golden Age, Plato and Socrates, have both praised the crops of the vine. Symposium (‘συμπόσιον’) was one of the most important social gatherings in Ancient Greece and translates into “drinking together”.
This ritualized event was part of a banquet where wine consumption for pleasure was accompanied by philosophy, politics, poetry, music, jokes and games.
Along with their wine, Greeks had exported their way of life to several ports in the Mediterranean Basin, including vineyard cultivation, social gatherings accompanied by wine drinking and wine harvesting.
Visiting F Zeen in October will give you the opportunity to experience the production stages of olive oil and wine making while visiting olive groves and vineyards.


Like the head chef in a top restaurant, a bando（台语：办桌）chef is responsible for the entire meal, from purchasing ingredients, designing the menu, and cooking the food all the way to controlling the timing of the banquet. Geographical and environmental factors have contributed to the reputation of the Neimen district as the home of Taiwan's bando chefs.
Compared to neighboring districts such as Meinong, which has flat and fertile land suitable for rice, and Chishan, known for its banana exports to Japan, Neimen lacks such resources. The area is not suited to farming because of its chalky, highly alkaline soil, and when the rains come, the soil is often washed away, leaving only muddy rocks. Therefore, the locals have traditionally harvested bamboo to make baskets and containers and sold their products to the banana farmers in Chishan.
From the 1960s, however, Chishan's farmers replaced their bamboo baskets with cheaper packing materials like cardboard and plastic, so Neimen's economy was hit hard. At the same time, the bando business was growing, and it soon became a major career path for local residents.
Over the past 40 years, as people in Neimen tried out different ways of making a living, the bando business has taken root and become a way of life for many locals. Chef Xue Qing-ji, who can boast four decades of experience in the bando business, says that in the early years, bando didn't have the same division of labor that it has today. Chefs weren't really qualified, and they were in fact often the host's relatives and friends who happened to be good at cooking. They would come to help, cooking simple dishes like fried noodles.
然而，从 1960 年代起，旗山的蕉农改以较便宜的材料，象是卡纸和塑胶来取代竹篓，因此内门的经济大受冲击。在此同时，办桌行业兴起了，而且很快便成为当地居民的主要就业管道。


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The Benefits of Organic Foods
April 18, 2017
It seems like everytime you turn around someone is touting the benefits of eating an organic diet. The organic food movement has gained a lot of steam in recent years, as people are looking for ways to be healthier, happier, and better stewards of the environment. But it can sometimes be difficult to tell what is fact from fiction. Check out this handy guide to the benefits of organic food so you can choose if an organic diet is right for you.
What is Organic Food?
Organic food, by definition, is food that is grown without the use of chemical herbicides or pesticides and do not contain genetically modified organisms (GMOs). In the case of organic meats and animal products, the animals are raised “organically” when they are not given any additional antibiotics or growth hormones, and are given access to the outdoors.
What are the Health Benefits?
There are many different health benefits to switching to an organic diet, including:
- Pesticide Reduction: Because pesticides aren’t used to grow organic produce, there won’t be any harmful residue left on your food when it gets to you.
- Healthier Meats and Dairy: Animals raised organically aren’t subjected to antibiotics or growth hormones. Also, animals that are raised cage-free and free-range have more room to exercise, and are healthier.
- Antioxidants: Consuming organic produce can increase your overall antioxidant intake by 20 percent.
What are the Environmental Benefits?
When you make a choice to eat organic foods, you support farmers who choose organic practices. This, in turn, helps the environment. Organic farming reduces pesticide and growth hormone use, which also reduces the amount of excess chemicals in the soil and the water. Organic farming is also better for wildlife around farms, like birds and deer, who might eat from the farm.
Should Restaurants Use Organic Foods?
Organic food is catching on in homes and supermarkets, and it is beginning to take hold in restaurants too. Restaurants can make a large impact in their communities by serving organic food, and pass along the benefits with every plate. When a restaurant chooses organic, they are choosing to provide their customers with healthy, environmentally beneficial food choices. We are a restaurant that is taking organic foods very seriously in Raleigh, NC. Click here to learn more about our organic efforts.


Exploring the benefits of using weldmesh in agriculture
Weldmesh, also known as welded wire mesh, has numerous applications in agriculture, offering various benefits:
- Crop Protection: Weldmesh can be used to create protective barriers around crops, protecting them from pests, animals, and birds. It forms a physical barrier that prevents intrusion, reducing the need for chemical pesticides.
- Support Structures: In vineyards, orchards, and other crop settings, weldmesh can serve as support structures for climbing plants such as tomatoes, peas, and beans. This helps in better utilization of space and prevents damage to delicate plants.
- Livestock Management: Weldmesh is commonly used to construct enclosures, fencing, and shelters for livestock. It helps in containing animals within designated areas, preventing them from straying into unwanted areas or from being preyed upon by predators.
- Erosion Control: In areas prone to erosion, weldmesh can be used to create erosion control structures such as retaining walls and gabions. These structures help in stabilizing soil, preventing soil erosion, and promoting better water retention, which is crucial for crop growth.
- Aquaculture: Weldmesh is also employed in aquaculture for constructing cages and enclosures for fish farming. It provides a sturdy and secure environment for raising fish, ensuring they are protected while allowing water circulation for optimal growth.
- Infrastructure Support: In addition to agricultural applications, weldmesh is utilized in various infrastructure projects within farms, such as constructing trellises, arbors, and pergolas for supporting climbing plants, providing shade, and creating aesthetically pleasing landscapes.
- Durability and Longevity: Weldmesh is typically made from galvanized steel, which offers high durability and resistance to corrosion. This ensures that structures built using weldmesh have a long lifespan, reducing the need for frequent replacements and maintenance.
- Versatility: Weldmesh comes in various sizes, gauges, and configurations, offering versatility in its applications. It can be easily customized to suit specific agricultural needs, whether it's creating small enclosures for poultry or large fences for securing vast farmlands.
- Cost-Effective: Despite its durability and versatility, weldmesh is often cost-effective compared to alternative materials such as wood or concrete. Its low maintenance requirements further contribute to its cost-effectiveness over the long term.
- Ease of Installation: Weldmesh is relatively easy to install, requiring minimal specialized tools and labor. This makes it an attractive option for farmers looking to implement cost-effective solutions without extensive construction expertise.
- Erosion Control: It can be used to construct erosion control structures such as retaining walls and gabions, preventing soil erosion and promoting better water retention.
- Reduced Dependency on Chemicals: By providing physical protection to crops, weldmesh reduces the need for chemical pesticides, promoting sustainable farming practices.
- Improved Plant Health: By supporting proper plant growth and protection, weldmesh contributes to improved plant health and higher yields.
- Efficient Land Utilization: Weldmesh helps in efficient land use by providing support structures for vertical gardening and intensive cropping systems.
- Weather Resistance: It withstands harsh weather conditions, including wind and rain, ensuring continued protection for crops and livestock.
- Flexibility: Weldmesh can be easily shaped and adapted to different terrain and farming requirements.
- Safety: It enhances farm safety by preventing accidents such as livestock escaping or unwanted entry by trespassers.
- Long Lifespan: Structures built using weldmesh have a long lifespan, reducing the need for frequent replacements and maintenance.
- Aesthetic Appeal: Weldmesh structures can enhance the visual appeal of agricultural landscapes, contributing to eco-tourism and agritourism activities.
- Adaptability to Modern Farming Practices: Weldmesh aligns with modern farming practices such as precision agriculture and sustainable farming, offering solutions for diverse agricultural challenges.
In conclusion, weldmesh offers a range of benefits in agriculture, including crop protection, livestock management, erosion control, and infrastructure support. Its durability, versatility, and cost-effectiveness make it a valuable asset for modern farming practices.


ABOUT US :
The British government in India, shaken by several famines in India, set up a commission to improve the state of agriculture to reduce the impact of famines. This led to the Famine Commission of 1880 and in 1889 a commission was set up with Voelcker to examine agriculture in India. The report led the rulers of Mysore kingdom (The Wodeyars) to establish research units in the field of agriculture and donated about 30 acres (120,000 m2) of land to set up an Experimental Agricultural Station at Hebbal, and appointed German-Canadian chemist Adolf Lehmann in 1900 who began research on soil fertility at a laboratory that now houses the Directorate of Agriculture. About 30 acres of land was then acquired at Hebbal for experimental fields. Later in 1906, Leslie Coleman, a Canadian Entomologist and Mycologist succeeded Lehmann and served for 25 years.
What began on a 30-acre (120,000 m2) land was soon extended to about 1,300 acres (5.3 km2). The increasing reputation of this experimental station as a training center led to the foundation of the Mysore Agricultural College at Hebbal in 1946 affiliated to the Mysore University. This was soon followed by the Agricultural College at Dharwad in 1947 which was then affiliated to Karnataka University. In 1958, veterinary science as a discipline was started with the establishment of the Veterinary College at Hebbal also affiliated to Mysore University.
In 1948 a University Education Commission had been started under S. Radhakrishnan with members that included Zakir Hussain and the American educationist J.J. Tigert, and Arthur Ernest Morgan. They examined the Land-Grant colleges of the United States as a potential model for rural and agricultural education. This recommendation was taken up in 1961 with the formation of an Indo-American team to develop the universities and their curriculum. This resulted in a first Joint Indo-American team in 1954 that studied American universities leading to US-AID supported collaboration between American and Indian universities. A second team was established in 1959 that made recommendations to make agricultural universities autonomous and to have veterinary, home science, and agricultural education on a single campus with integrated teaching, extension and research. This was followed by a committee headed by Ralph W. Cummings of the Rockefeller Foundation, along with Ephraim Hixon of the USAID, L. Sahai (Animal Husbandry Commissioner) and K.C. Naik as convener. The then Mysore State Government through its Act No. 22 passed in 1963 provided for the creation of the University of Agricultural Sciences. The university came into existence on 21 August 1964 and was meant to serve the agricultural education needs of the state of Karnataka with a campus that included the old experimental stations at Hebbal established by Lehmann and Coleman with an additional campus at GKVK added in 1969. K.C. Naik served as the first Vice Chancellor. The UAS was inaugurated on 21 August 1964 by Vice President of India Zakir Hussain in the presence of Chester Bowles, United States Ambassador to India and S. Nijalingappa, Chief Minister of Karnataka. On 12 July 1969, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi inaugurated GKVK campus with its buildings designed by the architect Achyut Kanvinde who was influenced by Walter Gropius. The Ford Foundation made a grant of $331000 in 1966 to develop graduate research in entomology at the university.
The University initially included the agricultural colleges at Hebbal and Dharwad, the Veterinary College at Hebbal, the fisheries college at Mangalore, and 35 research stations located in different parts of the state following agroclimatic zonation and focus on specific crops along with 45 ICAR projects which were with the State Department of Agriculture, Horticulture, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries.
COURSES OFFERED :
B.Tech. in Agricultural Engineering
B.Sc. (Hons.) in Agriculture
B.Sc. (Hons.) in Agri Business Management
B.Tech. in Agricultural Engineering


My friend, John Karges, and I were talking yesterday about the amazing spring that we’re having. He laughed and said “Add water and the desert will stir itself.”
We’ve had an extraordinarily wet winter and spring this year. Deep, soaking rains and frequent snow (and ice) storms encouraged a wildflower display that few can remember ever seeing in the Chihuahuan Desert region. Big Bend bluebonnets create a blue haze on the hillsides; the delicate, white petals of prairie evening primrose look like a tissue-box explosion in pastures; and mustard plants emit a perfume so sweet it’s cloying at times.
Even the stems of the cacti are so swollen with water they look like they’re going to burst. Instead, they’ve burst with flowers, dozens of blossoms covering a single plant.
The desert is in bloom. It’s a marvelous sight to behold.
But where do all these flowers come from?
Most of the time, the Chihuahuan Desert is a pretty harsh environment. It’s dry (especially in the winter) and the rain that we do receive tends to come in the summer during highly localized thunderstorms that may drench one spot but leave a broad area dry as a bone.
To cope with the heat and the unpredictable precipitation patterns, desert plants have an amazing array of adaptations aimed at holding on to moisture: small leaves, fine hairs that protect the leaf surface, and a splendidly specialized photosynthetic process.
But during years like this one, we’re reminded of the most amazing adaptation of all: being an humble annual.
Annual plants are those that go from seed to seed in a very short time. When conditions aren’t favorable, the seed just doesn’t sprout. It sits in the soil, waiting for the perfect combination of moisture and warmth that will increase its chances of survival.
This life cycle isn’t unusual—in fact, approximately 13% of the world’s flora consists of annuals. But if you look at the flora of a typical desert, you’ll find something very different. In the aridlands of the world, annuals can make up 40% or more of the desert flora. Think about it. Nearly half of the plants growing in a desert won’t even make an appearance until there’s some hope of surviving long enough to be pollinated and set seed.
The seed of many desert annuals can survive for years—decades even—before the conditions are perfect for growth. On occasion, they get fooled, though. A good soaking rain followed by heat, wind, and dry conditions may spell doom for an overeager annual. Long-term survival depends on mechanisms that discourage a portion of seed from growing even when conditions are just right.
But sometimes, spring conditions are just too favorable for any plant to remain snug in its seed jacket. This is one of those years. Good rains and warm day-time temperatures have encouraged the growth of hundreds of thousands of annuals. Early in the spring, clay flats in the Big Bend region were covered with turtleback—its gray-green leaves and cream-colored flowers forming a soft carpet across the landscape. Stands of lyreleaf twistflower (you’ve just got to love the name) sent their spikes of purple, urn-shaped flowers above the grasses, and curvepod scrambled eggs had even the plant enthusiasts scratching their heads. Where did they all come from?
The desert is truly spectacular this year and every week it changes. We’re still getting rain, so the show will go on. If you’ve been putting off your annual pilgrimage to the Chihuahuan Desert, it’s time to quit procrastinating, pack your camping gear, and come on out. This truly may be a once in a lifetime experience.


17 August 2017
At Scientific Services we want to improve our environmental performance in all areas, including the performance of our landholdings.
In early June we cleared an area of mown grass around our Howdon laboratory site and sowed a wildflower seed mix. Our goal is to increase the diversity of flora in our local environment, and thereby to support the population of bees, butterflies and other insects. The flowers are just starting to come into bloom now, eleven weeks after they were sown on 1st June. We plan to expand our wildflower garden areas by planting additional sites next year. In the meantime please enjoy the before and after pictures below (click to enlarge):
The area cleared in June, ready for seeds to be sowed
The wildflower garden as of 15th August
Closeup of the wildflower garden


If you own a garden, the best way to keep it in its best shape is to ensure you care for the plants in the right way to keep them healthy. Healthy plant maintenance includes undertaking all the necessary plant care processes. For anyone with plants in their yard, trimming and pruning are the most common plant care processes undertaken.
Most gardeners ask about the difference between pruning and trimming and when either is needed. These two words are often used interchangeably or sometimes used to mean cutting back. While both are necessary for plant care, they have a few notable differences. Here is a trimming vs. pruning comparison to help you better understand the difference between the two and whether one is better than the other.
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What is trimming?
Trimming is the process of cutting overgrown branches of a plant. You can trim it into the desired shape or simply maintain its original size and shape. Trimming is done for plant health reasons or purely for cosmetic ones. The most important distinction in trimming is that it is done on overgrown plants that need to be cut back into their original size and shape.
Trimming for plant health includes reducing the likelihood of pest and disease invasion. It also helps to minimize hanging and falling branches that can cause severe property damage if not handled well. Trimming is also done to encourage healthy plant growth as it rids the plant of old, unwanted branches and leaves, giving way to the growth of healthier branches and leaves.
What plants need trimming?
The most common plants that need trimming include palm trees, evergreen shrubs like bay laurel, boxwoods, and ficus plants. Trimming is mostly done to maintain the aesthetic and size of the plant than it is done to control disease and is a relatively simple process to undertake.
When trimming plants, it is essential to remember that the leaves of a plant are its power center and that shrubs and trees require foliage for sunlight absorption and to photosynthesize the soil nutrients. Therefore, it is important to avoid trimming too much foliage on the trees and shrubs and too many healthy leaves from other plants.
What is pruning?
Pruning is the process of removing some parts of a plant to keep them healthy, give them shape, increase product yield and prepare them for transplanting. This is the selective removal of parts such as flowers, buds, branches, and roots for different factors.
Pruning is done as a selective and targeted process to rid a plant of dead, diseased, or unwanted parts. It involves having the ability to tell which part of a plant is unhealthy and requires removal. The main difference between pruning and trimming is that pruning is done mostly for plant health benefits while trimming is done mostly for cosmetic reasons.
Some fruit plants require pruning to remain healthy and increase yield. On the other hand, trees require pruning to get rid of dead plants, diseases, and for safety reasons.
Trimming vs. pruning results
Pruning and trimming differ in the results you want to achieve. Determining what you want to get from the process can help choose the best plant care option of the two.
Desired results from pruning can include:
Pruning can help prevent the spread of disease among the plants in your garden or throughout an affected plant. This requires pruning single stems or multiples to arrest the problem and prevent it from spreading further.
Encouraging new growth
A good example is pruning a shrub with healthy growth on the outside but a dead center. Pruning can help eliminate dead parts of the plant without affecting healthy areas. This way, light, and air will be able to reach the center and encourage the regrowth of new, healthy stems.
Encourage a specific growth form
Pruning can also be done to encourage a plant to grow in a specific form. For instance, cutting back a small part of a plant can encourage the production of side shoots and make a plant’s foliage denser. Also, pruning stems with flowering buds diverts plant energy to the buds left on the pant, resulting in fewer, bigger flowers.
Ensuring optional growth
Pruning can also be done to encourage a shrub to continue producing fruit. For instance, a blackberry plant grows the best yield on two-year-old stems. This means that pruning back older growth can stimulate new stems at the base, extending the plant’s fruit-bearing life.
The results you can achieve from trimming are much less compared to pruning. The main thing gardeners plan to accomplish from trimming is maintaining a plant’s appearance.
The only other time trimming is done is when you want to change a plant’s form by removing many stems at once. A good example is maintaining the shape of a hedge with regular trimming. Trimming can also be used to achieve minor changes to a plant’s appearance.
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Trimming vs. pruning techniques
The techniques used for trimming and pruning are also differentiating factors between the two.
The main difference is that pruning is done to a stem at a time, requires precision to prevent causing damage to the plant, and must be carefully planned to get the desired results.
On the other hand, trimming is undertaken on the entire plant without trimming individual stems. Care is advised to ensure you achieve the results you want.
In pruning, you can either do heading cuts o thinning cuts.
Heading cuts are used when you want to stimulate plant growth. When done correctly, the bud left below the cut should continue to grow. The direction pointed by the bud determines the direction of the stem growth. Therefore, if you need a plant to grow facing your house, you can prune it above the bud facing your home.
Thinning cuts in pruning are ideal if you want to remove stems or branches without stimulating further growth. These cuts are made where branches meet the rest of the plant. (Source)
The technique used for trimming depends on the plant species and the form the plant has been trained to grow.
For instance, cutting a formal box hedge requires you to mark out the shape at the bottom using stakes. You will then tie a string to the stakes to outline your desired size, ensuring the top part is not wider than the bottom.
The string acts as your guide as you turn the trimmer over the plant’s outer layer, ensuring you do not sink it too deep into the plant. Trimming cuts are usually light, gentle sweeping motions moving from the bottom up. Moving the trimmer top to bottom may result in unwanted branch tearing or cutting.
Trimming vs. pruning equipment
Pruning is a process that uses small, sharp tools that are easy to manipulate for precision cutting. You can also use your fingers to prune, especially when pinching out unwanted parts of small plants.
Depending on the stem size and thickness, you can decide to use a lopper, pruner, or pruning saw. These tools can make precision cuts one step at a time.
For trimming, you can make use of a power trimmer or large hand shears. These allow you to cut through multiple stems at a time.
Which method should I choose?
Both trimming and pruning are important aspects of any plant’s health and care and cannot be used in place of one another. Ultimately, all plants require trimming and pruning to achieve different results throughout their lifespan. Through this trimming vs. pruning comparison, you now understand the differences between the two processes and when to undertake each.


Matcha Magic is of the highest quality and is grown in selected regions of Asia in compliance with the strictest quality specifications and regulations and further processed in Germany on the basis of EU BIO Regulations.
Matcha Magic has the advantage of exporting “Green Tea Grown in Asia” direct from the most important green tea region.
Matcha is planted only in special shadowed tea plantations. Weeks prior to the harvest the tea fields are entirely covered by nets. The plants compensate for the up to 90% reduction in levels of sunlight by an intense production of chlorophyll.
The leaf is enriched with amino acids and together with the extremely high caffeine content, produces a particularly gentle, long-acting energizing effect.
You feel fully spiritually energized and bodily fit while at the same time calm and relaxed.
The production of Matcha Magic is the most involved of all tea types on the planet. 100% of the very best leaf material, consisting of the flake-like, pure fibre parts (without the leaf ribs), is carefully dried and ground to the finest powder using granite mills.
With Matcha Magic, you consume the whole tea leaf with all its valuable ingredients. Nutritionists confirm that with green leaf or bagged tea, only about 30% of the water-soluble ingredients can be consumed. More than 70% therefore is lost. This goodness is thrown away with the leaves or the tea bags.
Tea is an ancient drink, with a history going back over 5,000 years. Records date the discovery of tea at around 2500 BC, originating from the prefecture of Yunnan in southwest China.
Tea was popular throughout China in the 7th century. Buddhist monks helped the drink to make its breakthrough.
Matcha Magic was also used by Buddhist monks in the very early days. Since time immemorial, tea has been viewed as a medicine and in order to consume the natural and healthy ingredients of tea, there was no other alternative than to grind the high-quality tea leaves to a fine powered, as was the case with most medicinal plants. Matcha Magic was born.
In 1191, the Zen master Eisai brought this new revolutionary way of drinking tea from China to further Asian countries. Eisai travelled throughout the country and planted tea wherever he went. In his book “Kissa Yojoki”, Eisai wrote about tea: “Tea is a wonderful medicine to maintain a state of good health. Tea has an exceptional strength to help prolong life. Wherever people grow tea, a long life will follow.”
From this time on, Matcha Magic was the “secret medicine” of the Emperor and the clergy.
In the 16th century, another Zen master influenced the history of Matcha.
Senno-Rikyu established the tea ceremony. This high art of tea drinking has strongly influenced the western world’s view. The tea that is prepared at this ceremony is Matcha.
Through the tea ceremony, Matcha Magic made the breakthrough with the Samurai.
For 750 years, Matcha remained the secret tea of Asia’s elite classes, until it was rediscovered by Matcha Magic.
The harvesting of the fresh young leaves starts at the beginning of May. Traditionally, Matcha Magic Green Tea is harvested by hand. This method continues to the present day.
Then the harvested leaves are steamed as the hot steam stops fermentation and keeps the leaves fresh. The ingredients are retained.
This is followed by a drying process at temperatures of up to 180° C. The actual temperature and the length of the drying process are dependant on the prevailing weather conditions. Compared to the freshly picked tea leaves, these dried leaves only weigh about one fifth of the original leaves. The “Raw Tea” has been created.
The leaves are of different qualities. All the leaves are categorised according to quality. The evaluation is done based on colour, texture and taste.
The leaves are fed through different machines where the stalks and veins are removed, leaving just the pure, green leaf. Finally, the tea is trimmed to a uniform shape. Tencha tea has been created.
The last stage of production consists of grinding the Tencha tea with special granite millstones to make Matcha Magic.
The grinding is done in clean rooms where the temperature and humidity are constant and bacteria and germs are removed from the air with filters.
The average size of Matcha Magic powder is between 5 and 10 micrometers. The tea is ultrafine and melts on the tongue. A stone mill only grinds about 30g – 40g of tee in an hour, which is the equivalent of just one can of Matcha.
There are about 100 Matcha qualities that are determined by colour, taste and aroma. The colour should be a lively spring green. The tea should unfurl itself delicately in the mouth. The aroma should be mild and sweet.
Even in the 21st century, the granite stone mills are still an important instrument for grinding the extremely delicate Tencha leaves down to Matcha Magic. The colour, taste and aroma have to be retained throughout the grinding process.
The special granite stone mills have been produced for centuries by specially trained stonemasons.
Years of experience, the right feel for the stone and a love of detail are the most important requirement for ensuring the success of the stonemasons.
The mill is hollowed out between the two granite components of a stone mill. This concavity is called “Fukumi”. The tea fills up this Fukumi so that the upper part of the stone mill never touches the lower part. There are also a lot of indentations on the surface of the millstones.
Through the turning action of the mill, the tea leaves are pushed outwards through these grooves. Once the leaves have reached the edge, only extremely fine powder remains.
There is an oak pole, the “Shinbou”, in the middle of the stone mill that holds the two halves of the mill together. Oak has the advantage that is very long-lasting and does not have much smell. An excellent material that can be used for producing the highly sensitive Matcha Magic.