Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium Impotrance

Plants make most of their food by photosynthesis. But  they also need mineralsto be healthy. Plants cannot make minerals. They get them from the soil. Some of the minerals they need include the following:

Nitrates

Nitrates provide nitrogen. Nitrogen helps plants grow. All living cells contain nitrogen. Nitrogen is also part of chlorophyll, the pigmentthat traps sunlight. No nitrogen means no photosynthesis. You can tell if a plant does not have enough nitrogen. It will be small. Its older leaves will be yellow.

 Phosphorus

Phosphorus is important for photosynthesis, respiration, and growth. It encourages roots to grow well. You can tell if a plant does not have enough phosphorus. Its roots will be stunted. Its younger leaves will be purple.

Potassium

Potassium helps chemicals called enzymes to work. Enzymes are needed in photosynthesis and respiration. Potassium can also protect a plant from disease. You can tell if a plant does not have enough potassium. Its leaves will be yellow. They will have dead parts on them.

Fresh lettuce

Among the easiest vegetables to grow, lettuces are ideal for pots,  where they can be more easily protected from marauding slugs  and snails. The widest selection is available in seed form, and the  cut-and-come-again types are ready to pick just a few weeks after  sowing. Try a mix of lettuces for different textures and tastes.

Lettuces are not only delicious when picked fresh from the  garden, but they also make decorative features in pots. Fill  a container, large or small, with some multi-purpose compost  and sow your seed thinly on the surface. In small containers,  try to sow about three or four seeds of butter, Romaine, and  iceberg, which form a heart, or just sprinkle cut-and-come-again  varieties more densely; you will not need to thin these out.  Sow a few pots each week for a continuous supply of leaves  throughout the summer, but remember that seeds will not germinate if the temperature is above 77°F (25°C). When  heart-forming varieties reach an inch or so in height, thin them  out to appropriate spacings, which will be given on the packet of seeds, or leave them a little closer.

CARING FOR LETTUCES

Keep your lettuces well watered at all times, especially in hot  weather when you will have to water daily, and move pots to  a slightly shaded spot in the height of the summer. Lack of water  or too much heat will cause the plants to “bolt” and produce long  flowering stems—the leaves then become bitter. However, do not  allow the compost to become waterlogged or the lettuces will  rot. Most multi-purpose composts contain enough nutrients  to sustain lettuces for a few weeks, but after that, give them  a boost with a nitrogen-rich fertilizer formulated for leafy crops.  The main pests to look out for are slugs and snails. Inspect plants every few days and pick off any culprits.

Differences b/w Animal- and Wind-Pollinated Plants?

Animal-Pollinated Plants

a)             Pollen is sticky and heavy.

b)               Petals are brightly colored.

c)               Stamens are inside the flower.

Wind-Pollinated Plants

a)              Pollen is smooth and light.

b)               Petals may be dull or not present at all.

c)               Stamens hang outside the flower.

WikiLeaks: US targets EU over GM crops

The US embassy in Paris advised Washington to start a military-style trade war against any Euroxpean Union country which opposed genetically modified (GM) crops, newly released WikiLeaks cables show. In response to moves by France to ban a Monsanto GM corn variety in late 2007, the ambassador, Craig Stapleton, a friend and business partner of former US president George Bush, asked Washington to penalise the EU and particularly countries which did not support the use of GM crops. "Country team Paris recommends that we calibrate a target retaliation list that causes some pain across the EU since this is a collective responsibility, but that also focuses in part on the worst culprits. "The list should be measured rather than vicious and must be sustainable over the long term, since we should not expect an early victory. Moving to retaliation will make clear that the current path has real costs to EU interests and could help strengthen European pro-biotech voices," said Stapleton, who with Bush co-owned the Dallas/Fort Worth-based Texas Rangers baseball team in the 1990s. In other newly released cables, US diplomats around the world are found to have pushed GM crops as a strategic government and commercial imperative. Because many Catholic bishops in developing countries have been vehemently opposed to the controversial crops, the US applied particular pressure to the pope's advisers. Cables from the US embassy in the Vatican show that the US believes the pope is broadly supportive of the crops after sustained lobbying of senior Holy See advisers, but regrets that he has not yet stated his support. The US state department special adviser on biotechnology as well as government biotech advisers based in Kenya lobbied Vatican insiders to persuade the pope to declare his backing. "… met with [US monsignor] Fr Michael Osborn of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum, offering a chance to push the Vatican on biotech issues, and an opportunity for post to analyse the current state of play on biotech in the Vatican generally," says one cable in 2008. "Opportunities exist to press the issue with the Vatican, and in turn to influence a wide segment of the population in Europe and the developing world," says another. But in a setback, the US embassy found that its closest ally on GM, Cardinal Renato Martino, head of the powerful Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace and the man who mostly represents the pope at the United Nations, had withdrawn his support for the US. "A Martino deputy told us recently that the cardinal had co-operated with embassy Vatican on biotech over the past two years in part to compensate for his vocal disapproval of the Iraq war and its aftermath – to keep relations with the USG [US government] smooth. According to our source, Martino no longer feels the need to take this approach," says the cable. In addition, the cables show US diplomats working directly for GM companies such as Monsanto. "In response to recent urgent requests by [Spanish rural affairs ministry] state secretary Josep Puxeu and Monsanto, post requests renewed US government support of Spain's science-based agricultural biotechnology position through high-level US government intervention." It also emerges that Spain and the US have worked closely together to persuade the EU not to strengthen biotechnology laws. In one cable, the embassy in Madrid writes: "If Spain falls, the rest of Europe will follow." The cables show that not only did the Spanish government ask the US to keep pressure on Brussels but that the US knew in advance how Spain would vote, even before the Spanish biotech commission had reported. • This article was amended on 21 January 2011. The original sited the Texas Rangers team in St Louis. This has been corrected.

The right to know what you are eating

BY: Gary Hirshberg and Eric Schlosser

An unprecedented agricultural experiment is being conducted at America's dinner tables. While none of the processed food we ate 20 years ago contained genetically engineered ingredients, now 75 percent of it does - even though the long-term human health and environmental impacts are unknown. The Food and Drug Administration doesn't require labeling of genetically engineered foods. But as the current drive to get labeling on the ballot in California confirms, consumers want to know whether our food contains these revolutionary new things.
In 1992, the FDA ruled that genetically engineered foods didn't need independent safety tests or labeling requirements before being introduced. But one of its own scientists disagreed, warning there were "profound differences" with genetically engineered foods. Genetically engineered seed manufacturers were allowed to sell their products without telling consumers. A 2006 survey found that 74 percent of Americans had no idea that genetically engineered foods were already being sold.
Biotech companies have fought labeling, claiming genetically engineered crops are "substantially the same" and produce larger yields - both unproven claims. But genetically engineered crops have led to the increased use of pesticides, often sold by the same companies that make genetically engineered seeds.
About 94 percent of U.S. grown soybeans are genetically engineered and contain a gene that protects them against glyphosate, now the nation's most widely used pesticide. But glyphosate is becoming ineffective as "superweeds" become resistant to it, forcing farmers to use even stronger herbicides. Widespread adoption of genetically engineered corn has also led to pesticide resistance.
Almost all the research on the safety of genetically engineered foods has been conducted by the companies that sell them. The potential harm to developing fetuses is of concern. A study of pregnant women found genetically engineered corn toxins in 93 percent of the women and 80 percent of their unborn children. All of their umbilical cords had glyphosate residues. Biotech companies say genetically engineered crops aren't different - but defend their patent rights by arguing they're unique and that anybody who grows them without permission should be prosecuted. These companies want it both ways.
Genetically engineered crops are different. They often contain genetic material from different species. Some survive large doses of pesticide, others produce their own pesticide, and many do both. That's why they must be labeled. A label allows people to choose. It lets the free market, not industry lobbyists, determine the fate of genetically engineered foods. If genetically engineered foods are so great, companies that sell them should be proud to label them.
Fifty countries, including the European Union, require genetically engineered food labeling.
A recent poll found 93 percent of Americans think genetically engineered foods should be labeled. This month, 384,000 people signed a Just Label It ( www.justlabelit.org) petition urging the FDA to mandate genetically engineered food labeling nationally. The FDA justifies its refusal to label on an agency rule that requires labeling only if a food tastes or smells different or has a different nutritional value. The FDA should change that policy - or make an exception for genetically engineered foods, as it did for irradiated foods.
The FDA doesn't let pharmaceutical companies test new drugs on people without their informed consent. Consumers should have the same right to know when it comes to what they eat. But even the narrow dictates of that FDA rule shouldn't block the labeling of genetically engineered foods. Everything about how they were introduced and spread nationwide, without our knowledge or consent, leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

Gary Hirshberg is the president and CE-Yo of Stonyfield Yogurt. Eric Schlosser is the author of "Fast Food Nation" and co-producer of the documentary "Food, Inc."

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/opinion/openforum/article/The-right-to-know-what-you-are-eating-2289668.php#ixzz2GkPQyvKO

Environmental benefits of Turf grasses/ Well-maintained Lawns

Healthy well maintained lawns provide truly marvelous environmental benefits which contribute a lot to the world around it. Environmental benefits of Turf grasses/well-maintained lawns are as follows.

Cooler and quieter: when the heat is on, Turf grass helps keep you cool. Street or sidewalk temperatures may reach 100oF or higher, but turf remains at 75o. This could mean that the front lawns on a block of eight houses perform the same cooling work as 70 tons of air-conditioning-enough to cool off homes.

Turf also makes your life a bit quieter. It effectively absorbs and deflects sound. When combined with trees and other landscaping, a lawn can reduce harsh, unwanted noise to a distant murmur.

Help in breathing: A healthy lawn us an amazingly efficient production system. Turf plants remove carbon dioxide from the air and produce oxygen in return. Just 625 square feet of turfgrass supplies all the oxygen a person needs for one day. An average home lawn of 5,000 square feet produces enough oxygen for eight people each day. In comparison, it takes two 100-foot trees to provide the same amount of oxygen for eight people.

Soil saver: Turf grass controls erosion by knitting the soil together, trapping runoff water, and eliminating many of the problems caused by dust and mud. And it’s one of the more efficient water savers you will find in nature. A healthy lawn absorbs rainfall six time more effectively than does a wheat field.

Dust trap: if you have ever walked through a dry, barren area, such as a construction site, on a windy day, you have some idea of what life might be like without healthy lawns. Clouds of windblown dust make for difficult breathing, irritated eyes, and reduced visibility. Turfgrass is an effective air cleanser. It shows the air moving across its surface, so that dust particles settle out onto the blades and are eventually washed back to the ground. Every year Turfgrass traps millions of tons of dust that would otherwise blow unrestricted.

Pollution fighter: In one year’s time, the blades and roots in an acre of healthy turfgrass absorb hundreds of pounds of pollutants from the air and rainwater. Among them are sulpher dioxide, nitrogen oxide, hydrogen fluoride, nitrates, and other gases blamed for acid rain and greenhouse effect.

A common misconception is that the products put on lawns contribute to groundwater contamination and to algae blooms in nearby ponds and lakes. The truth is that few materials get past grass roots. The dense root system under a healthy lawn captures pollutants as water filters through the soil.

Safe surface: Perhaps the most important benefit is the recreational value lawns provide for young and old. Dense turf is a safer playground and playing field than nearly any other surface. It reduces the severity of many injuries and helps to cushion falls.

Fundamental of Soil Science

Soil As a Medium for Plant Growth by