Growing Science

Inside silicon supplements: Making Sense of What’s inside the Bottle
Silicon packs a powerful punch, increasing crop quality, strength and resilience. Yet the fertilizer market is flooded with misinformation about silicon supplements, including confusing labeling and misleading marketing claims with no basis in science. This poses a challenge for growers seeking to choose the best product. With every nutrient company touting the superiority of its silicon-based product, it’s no wonder growers get confused and struggle to make an informed choice. Even the terminology—silicon, silica, silicic acid, silicate—is often used interchangeably in …
Growing Science

Heavy Metals: Time to Face the Music
In agriculture as in music, heavy metal has a bad-boy reputation. And for good reason. Lead poisoning has made headlines as a public health concern for generations, and heightened regulation and consumer demand have slowly but surely eradicated lead from the surfaces and appliances we interact with. Mercury poisoning, too, has entered the public consciousness, motivating consumers to dramatically reduce their canned tuna intake.1 Exposure to many other heavy metals still put people at risk of potentially devastating health consequences. …
Growing Science

Superior nutrients, superior plants: How the right nutrients help plants reach their genetic potential
Every seedling carries its potential within its genes. Just as a person might inherit the capacity to become an outstanding sprinter or an operatic virtuoso, a plant’s genes provide the foundation for its future performance. But the children of world-class runners and singers still have to eat well and train hard if they want to follow in their parents’ footsteps. Similarly, for plants to be the best they can be, they need to be fed and cared for properly. Growers often ask …
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