R850.00 left for free shipping
Optimal Plant Health and Plant Nutrition (EcoBuz Range)

Optimal Plant Health and Plant Nutrition (EcoBuz Range)

by | Jul 15, 2019 | Gardening, Gardening Trends & Inspiration

Did you know?

A maize plant sets its maximum yield potential within the first seven days of planting. Likewise, in gardening the first seven days of an annual’s growth are regarded as critical growth periods.

Across the globe, increased attention and interest is being placed on overall health and wellness. Trends have shifted from simply ‘looking’ good to ‘feeling’ good. Being fit, strong and active, both physically and emotionally, is a growing priority for us all. With the rampant spread of diseases such as cancer, the value of health cannot (and is no longer) underestimated. Plant health echoes this conversation.

Diagram Plant Health

Healthy strong plants will always be prized over weak, struggling ones. As with human health, continued research and significant developments are continuously being made in plant science. As knowledge of the many growth processes increases, so too does the research and development on tailoring products to maximise each step. So what have we learned and what do we as gardeners need to know about plant health? In nature, plants predominantly need water and sunlight to survive. They are reliant on nutrients within the soil, air and water for nutrition, and grow as best they can within their environment. As such, nutrient-rich soils support enhanced growth when compared to sandy poor soils – hence earlier discussions and emphasis on the importance of soil health. Mankind has been supplementing plant nutrition since the beginning of time. Early Egyptian, Roman and Babylonian records suggest minerals and manure have enhanced farm productivity since ancient times. Gardeners are well aware of the benefits of supplementing nutrition. Some of us are more knowledgeable than others and, as with most things in gardening, everyone experiences success and failure at some stage. As responsible gardeners, it’s important to embrace an integrated, holistic approach to plant health, supplementing nutrition with products that are sustainable and effective, with no negative effects on your soil, your plants and your family.

Macroelements and microelements

Plant nutrition centres around the elements needed by plants to survive. Macroelements are those needed in large amounts and include nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P) and potassium (K), which form the basis of all synthetic granular fertilisers. Microelements are as important as macroelements, but they are only needed by plants in small amounts. They may also be referred to as trace elements. In order for plants to grow to their best potential, they need both macroelements and microelements. It’s important to review your garden’s nutritional recipe, ensuring it provides a balance of both in order to get the best out of your plants. The ‘barrel analogy’ (Liebig’s Law of The Minimum) is a principle developed in agricultural science that visually explains the concept. Liebig’s Law states that, ‘Growth is dictated not by the total resources available, but by its limiting factor or scarcest resource.’ So even if every required nutrient is available to your plants, they won’t be able to grow if they don’t have water (or any single element that is necessary for growth). Ensuring your plants have access to the full nutritional complement will ensure growth is maximised.

The Science behind plant growth

Gardeners who simply feed their plants N, P and K shortcut the natural ‘BioChemical sequence of plant nutrition’. See graphic. In summary, the boron (B), silica (Si) and calcium (Ca) ‘complex’ kickstarts plant growth, allowing N, P, K and the other essential plant nutrients to be absorbed and utilised as needed. What does this mean for us, as gardeners? That plant growth is triggered by the availability of key micronutrients. To maximise growth in your garden, ensure your fertiliser program includes trace elements and B, Si and Ca in particular.

EcoBuz nutrition

EcoBuz Plant Health

The EcoBuz nutrition range has been developed with this science in mind, offering a simple three-step approach to improving plant growth in your garden.

Step 1; HumiGro (the focus of previous features): highlights the importance of soil health and offers a solution to feed your soil.

Step 2 and 3 are liquid fertilisers, StartGro and MultiGro.

StartGro, a blend of organic and inorganic nutrition, targets the early growth stages of plants and is based largely on this biochemical sequence. Its most significant point of differentiation is that it contains no N and P, with only small traces of K. This makes StartGro ideally suited to triggering the growth process. As such, StartGro is recommended for use at planting, be it from seed, seedlings or transplants, and is suitable for shrubs, trees and more.

MultiGro offers an all-in-one vitality solution. This A – Z biostimulant enhances and maximises plant growth, promoting fruiting, flowering and overall plant wellness. MultiGro incorporates an optimal blend of organic and inorganic nutrition, which includes N, P, K plus a full range of micronutrients, added vitamins, kelp, fulvic acid and natural amino acids. MultiGro is ideal for use as a recovery tonic to revitalise stressed and deficient plants. Sustainable gardening is at the core of EcoBuz. We offer superior products tailored to achieve the best possible results with little to no impact on the environment and on our soils.

The Carbon Effect in Building Soil and Plant Health

The Carbon Effect in Building Soil and Plant Health

by | May 28, 2019 | Gardening

The link between soil health, carbon and healthy plants

We’ve always stressed how important soil health is to plant health, but our friends at Madumbi are the experts so we asked them to give us a more in-depth understanding of carbon.

Fact: The nutrient content of a plant’s tissues is directly related to the nutrient content of the soil, and its ability to exchange nutrients and water with plant roots. (FAO – Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations fao.org/ soils-2015)

In simpler terms, plant health and soil health go hand-in-hand. South African gardens are made up of a wide range of different soil types, each with their own properties, benefits and challenges. Soil is the foundation of a good garden and as our understanding of soil health grows so too does the priority of building soil.

What do we mean by building soil?

To build a house you need bricks, cement and a team of builders. We all understand that – but how do we as gardeners go about building soil?

At Madumbi, our reference point starts with nature, where soil is formed primarily in two ways:

  • Physical and chemical: The weathering of rocks, into smaller and smaller fragments that ultimately lead to soil formation.
  • Biological: The decay of dead plant and animal material to form organic matter.

These processes have been taking place for millions of years, and will continue to do so. However, as the global population grows, so does the pressure for healthy food production and healthy soils. The natural soil-forming processes simply cannot sustain our growing planet – we need to do our bit by protecting our soils and building soil in our individual capacities, whether in the garden, on the farm or in nature.

carbon cycle

The importance of carbon in soil

The carbon cycle is a fundamental part of life on earth. See above.

CO2 is probably the form of carbon we are most familiar with, but this only makes up a small portion of the gases in our atmosphere (0.04%). Significantly more carbon is stored in soils as ‘soil organic carbon’ (SOC), which is more commonly understood by gardeners as soil organic matter (plant and animal matter in various stages of decay).

Soil carbon is the backbone of soil fertility. The more carbon in the soil, the healthier the soil, and as a result the healthier the plant growth will be.

What are humates and humic substances?

EcoBuz HumiGro is a carbon-based soil conditioner made from humate granules. Humic substances make up the major organic component of the Earth’s soils and sediments, created from decayed biomatter. After plants die, their organic biomatter is degraded by microorganisms in soil to eventually produce humus. Humus-rich soils form the basis of healthy plant growth. Humates are the active ingredient in humic substances.

Adding humates to the soil adds carbon to the soil. In nature, nothing happens in isolation, and the additional carbon promotes existing microbes, enhancing microbial population growth, which results in improved microbial activity and decay (supporting the biological processes needed to build soil).

EcoBuz HumiGro Carbon

Humates have the following key benefits:

  • Feed beneficial micro-organisms (provides energy and nutrition).
  • Increase root respiration and formation.
  • Enhance nutrient absorption.
  • Improve soil aeration and water retention.
  • Decrease water loss and reduce leaching.
  • Enhance the performance of fertilisers.
  • Act as a buffer to harmful substances in the soil.

Think of humates as a concentrated version of compost that forms part of a holistic approach to soil health management.

Humates and compost contribute to the building of soil but because HumiGro is a more concentrated version it has a significant impact on the rate that soil and organic matter is improved.

Soils need to be viewed as a living, symbiotic ecosystem. While this article focuses on the importance of carbon, the basis of soil fertility, it is important to remember that carbon is just one cog in a highly complex system.