Plant Hormone Production

Not specifically I'm going to admit.
I'm the kind of guy that throws everything into the compost and then inoculates all my stuff in the end anyway. I'm a little more rough and tumble, smash and grab, or any other sayings that pertain to what I'm trying to say lmao.

 

lol

Assume I'm not a common person, even if I am. I'd love to hear the science, methods and more importantly specific intentions of your incomplete research.

Even if it's only pointing me in the right direction, I'd appreciate it.

 

That's some sexy ass silica. Dyna-grow needs to get their act together and get some sexier labels. Lol

 

Here's a hint

 

I concur! This was always a fun topic in my opinion. I never stop learning when it comes to plant hormones and their production.

 

Time to go through this one again. I already read most of this a few time over in the past but my interest in renewed because I now want to know how these PGRs and enzymes help us in the various soils, composts, vermicomposts, and whatever sorts of teas and extracts that we use.
 
One item that I would like to start with (and I hope to get some participation) is saponins. This is one that I think more people could really learn a bit about since this seems to be the agent that brings the much sought after "foaming" in most tea recipes that growers mistake for something really, really great happening in the form of microbial explosion...
 
I recently read some literature that states some Sap's as being useful as a natural pest deterrent. If that's the case, would an alfalfa tea foliar/soil soak be considered good for fighting pests?  
 
Sorry if this sounds like a bunch of rambling Im tired as heck right now. Be back tomorrow with hopefully some feed back waiting.

 

DDD

Good question, and I understand your thinking as well. Although they do contain saponins I wouldn't rely on it completely as your weekly IPM applications. I would use that alfalfa foliar as a normal feed/nutrient/enzymatic tea (whatever you wanna call it really) with IPM as a little bonus you get in addition to feeding your plant.

What I mean is don't ditch your weekly IPM just because you have saponins in your solution. Use them both an continue to feed and fortify the health of your garden using both!

I hope at least some of that made sense...

SD

 

Hey thanks! I'm just kind of hanging around lol

 

Thanks for the feedback blades! I did some digging around in the link that you provided Chunk. Particularly the information on the use of alfalfa for its saponin content. The studies sound pretty interesting seeing as how many were conducted with Pea Aphids as the test subjects. I realize that the experiments were probably conducted using concentrated forms of saps for their use but in keeping with SD comments, I wonder how much of it would actually have to present in in our weekly use to be effective? Im not planning to try to use it as a sole agent for fighting pests but I do wonder how much benefit we see from it in our soils as well as foliar applications. In my usual way of overthinking things, I was also wondering about its uses in our worm bins because I would love to see dwindling numbers in my fungal gnat population...no way Im going to go dumping a bunch of alfalfa on my worms though  .  
 
By the way...most or all of that was hypothetical rant so please don't feel obligated to reply   .
 
 Also...here is some info that I remembered running across before and again last night when I ventured in all the detours I took. This is something LD posted in the botanical thread that Im sure will be familiar to you all. I thought that it might have a valid spot here also since we're on the subject....
 
I tried to go to the link that I think LD got this from but it wasn't working.
 
"A washing process was studied to evaluate the efficiency of saponin on remediating heavy metal contaminated soils. Three different types of soils (Andosol: soil A, Cambisol: soil B, Regosol: soil C) were washed with saponin in batch experiments. Utilization of saponin was effective for removal of heavy metals from soils, attaining 90–100% of Cd and 85–98% of Zn extractions. The fractionations of heavy metals removed by saponin were identified using the sequential extraction. Saponin was effective in removing the exchangeable and carbonated fractions of heavy metals from soils. In recovery procedures, the pH of soil leachates was increased to about 10.7, leading to separate heavy metals as hydroxide precipitates and saponin solute.
In addition recycle of used saponin is considered to be effective for the subsequent utilization. The limits of Japanese leaching test were met for all of the soil residues after saponin treatment. As a whole, this study shows that saponin can be used as a cleaning agent for remediation of heavy metal contaminated soils."
 
...and here is something else he posted on how to get some Saps going using alfalfa seeds sprouts which I thought was really ironic since we had all just talked about using these seeds over at HaGGard's place a few weeks ago...
 
"Need Saponins cheap?
 Sprout Alfalfa seeds and when the root tails are 2 or 3" in length, cover the mess with water and let it sit for 4 or 5 days - whatever.
 Peas. Beans. Any legume really.........
 Now you've got Saponins.
 Go cheap or go to the grow store!
 LD"

 

Or aloe vera, willow shoots, yucca root powder...hell if saponins are what you're aiming for horse chestnut powder has some of the highest levels I've seen. If you go that route though you lose the benefit of the salicylic acid in aloe/willow. 
 
I just went the easy route, ordered freeze dried aloe extract for my foliars and some barley seeds for my weekly SST.....which is freaking awesome btw. Almost instant reaction to the drench, less than 2 hours after it was applied everything was praying to the sun god.
 
Since we're on the subject of hormones, wouldn't a bit of soil enzymology apply as well? I still have so much to catch up on...though I'm extremely grateful this subject matter came up, again.

 

In all honesty Gimik, my whole reason for interest here started from the use of the SST. Understanding exactly what enzymes are being harnessed from barley seeds and how they benefit our plants is my main goal here but that has spilled over into trying to figure out the difference between plant enzymes and the ones found in soil (if there is a difference). My plants have had very positive responses to my application of the SST v 2.0 also. So much in fact that I have decided to not give it this week because my plants seem to be ahead of schedule in regard to how quick my tent is becoming crowded and I worry that it will be overgrown before I have appropriate weather to move anything outside. At this point, I don't know if its the SST or the genetics since this is my first time running all the current strains. 
 
Ive been taking a more slow and novice approach by referencing various enzymes that come up in our conversations here and in other threads. That's how I got on the subject of saponins. Here in the south west, yucca is a rather common plant and many households carry aloe plants as well. I kick myself in the butt all the time because years ago, my back yard was littered with aloe plants that kept popping up all over the place. When I had rock put in, I paid landscapers to pull all the aloe out and toss it...I know, I know....  .  
 
At any rate, here I am soaking up more knowledge which is always good. My overall goal is to know (at least somewhat) what enzymes are at play in the SST v 2.0 and how different they are from the ones found in AACT. Also whether or not these enzymes are specific to soil or plants? Pretty tall order I suppose but that's why Im hoping to spark some good conversation here in this thread.
 
BTW, on the subject of soil enzymology, here is a link to a book that Chunk provided over in HaGGard's placer. Has my interest peaked even more...
http://rd.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-642-14225-3_2
 
and also another link he provided that Ive been reading as well...
http://www.plant-hormones.info/

 

Yeah, that was the book I was asking about...still havent looked at MSU's online library to see if it's there....lol

 

[SIZE=medium]Got some information here. I want put out first and foremost that this stuff is compiled and basically translated to something that I can understand rather than technical terminology. I am in no way placing this info as a solid authority. I sincerely invite anyone to make corrections (tastefully of course) where ever you see fit. As I said before in my last post this is definitely a learning process for me. I want to learn more about the enzymes that are in the SST v 2.0 and what possible roles they play once applied to our plants. I still don't know exactly how they work in the plant itself but so far, I have been able to do a search on the individual enzymes found in barley seeds. I don't want to get into any copyright trouble so I have provided links where appropriate for the illustration and any information that was taken directly.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=medium]The following graphic is from  http://www.biokemi.org/biozoom/issues/522/articles/2368[/SIZE]
[SIZE=medium] [/SIZE]
 
 
                                                                                            
[SIZE=medium]From there, I started looking at each enzyme and here is what I have found thus far. Again, please feel free to add to or take away…[/SIZE]
[SIZE=medium]Amylase – There are actually two amylase enzymes found in the barley seed (alpha and beta). I don't know yet what the individual functions are of the two but (to my understanding), alpha is found in humans and beta is found in the seeds of some plants. Amylase carries out the function of converting starch into sugars that carry out the main energy source of plants during early germination. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=medium]My question here is, does the application of the SST provide a boost of more sugar/energy by way of extra amylase to the plant once it becomes more mature? [/SIZE]
[SIZE=medium]Xylanase – Kind of stumped on this one as far as what it does for the plant but from what I was able to find, this enzyme plays a role in helping to break down the aleurone wall thereby helping to release other enzymes contained within the modified endosperm of the seed.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=medium]Protease – Again, this is just my take from what I have read and I am trying to put in my own logic. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=medium]Proteases play a key role in conducting protein catabolism. This breakdown of proteins begins the process of forming amino acids that are essential to plants.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=medium]Lypoxygenases  - Have several functions that cover plant growth regulation, antimicrobial compounds as well as response to pathogens and plant stress caused by wounds.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]Glucanase[/SIZE][SIZE=12pt] – ([/SIZE]http://www.seedbiology.de/glucanase.asp)
[SIZE=12pt]In sea urchins ß-1,3-glucanases are reported as part of the embryo hatching enzyme ([/SIZE][SIZE=11pt]Bachman andMcClay1996[/SIZE]). Although the major interest in ß-1,3-glucanases stems from their possible role in the response of plants to microbial pathogens, there is strong evidence that these enzymes are also implicated in diverse physiological and developmental processes in the uninfected plant including cell division, microsporogenesis, pollen germination and tube growth, fertilization, embryogenesis, fruit ripening, seed germination, mobilization of storage reserves in the endosperm of cereal grains, bud dormancy, and responses to wounding, cold, ozone and UV B.
[SIZE=12pt]Carboxypeptidase[/SIZE][SIZE=12pt]  - Here's another one that I couldn't really get much information that I could understand on but here goes….[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]Carboxypeptidase is an enzyme that is found in several different species from humans to plants. This enzyme has numerous functions but the main ones that I could find relevant to this discussion were both catabolism as well as maturity of proteins dependant on what particular version of the enzyme is present. [/SIZE]
 
[SIZE=12pt]This is just what I have been able to find and compile. If anyone does a search, you'll find that some of this info was also pulled from the infamous wiki site whenever I couldn't find anything elsewhere that I could understand. I hope this helps…or at least sparks a bit more conversation from those with a better knowledge base than mine.  [/SIZE]
 

 

From wiki;
 
"Like all catalysts, enzymes work by lowering the activation energy (Ea‡) for a reaction, thus dramatically increasing the rate of the reaction. As a result, products are formed faster and reactions reach their equilibrium state more rapidly. Most enzyme reaction rates are millions of times faster than those of comparable un-catalyzed reactions. As with all catalysts, enzymes are not consumed by the reactions they catalyze, nor do they alter the equilibrium of these reactions. However, enzymes do differ from most other catalysts in that they are highly specific for their substrates. Enzymes are known to catalyze about 4,000 biochemical reactions.[3] A few RNA molecules called ribozymes also catalyze reactions, with an important example being some parts of the ribosome.[4][5] Synthetic molecules called artificial enzymes also display enzyme-like catalysis.[6]"
 
From LD/Coot;
 
"Soil enzymes are constantly playing vital roles for the maintenance of soil ecology and soil health. These enzymatic activities in the soil are mainly of microbial origin, being derived from intracellular, cell-associated or free enzymes. Therefore, microorganisms are acting as the indicators of soil health, as they have active effects on nutritional cycling, also affecting the physical and chemical properties of soil. Microorganisms respond quickly even to minute changes by changing their population and activities, and thus, can be used for soil health assessment. On the other hand, soil enzymes are the direct mediators for biological catabolism of soil organic and mineral components and they are often closely related to soil organic matters, soil physical properties, and microbial activities or biomass. They are the better indicators of soil health as changes of enzymes are much sooner than other parameters, thus providing early indications of changes in soil health. In addition, their activities can be used as the measures of microbial activity, soil productivity, and inhibiting effects of pollutants. The potential enzymes playing major roles in maintaining soil health are – amylase, arylsulphatase, β-glucosidase, cellulase, chitinase, dehydrogenase, phosphatase, protease, and urease. Deterioration of soil, and thereby soil health, is of concern for human, animal, and plant health because air, groundwater, and surface water consumed by humans can be adversely affected by mismanaged and contaminated soil."

 

Good morning Gimik,
Thanks for that. I was also reading some info regarding soil enzymes last night. Ive been wondering how enzymes applied to soil (via whatever type of tea) ultimately contribute to plant development. TBH, it has crossed my mind way more times than once that Im pretty much overthinking this whole process, hahaha! Still though, I do find the subject interesting even with my inability to really understand the majority of technical info. My approach is definitely more slow than most....but Im getting there.
 
Here is some pretty cool info that I stumbled across last night...some if it repetitious of what was mentioned in your post but there are few differences that I was able to take away.
 
http://soilquality.org/indicators/soil_enzymes.html
 
"Soil enzymes increase the reaction rate at which plant residues decompose and release plant available nutrients. The substance acted upon by a soil enzyme is called the substrate. For example, glucosidase (soil enzyme) cleaves glucose from glucoside (substrate), a compound common in plants. Enzymes are specific to a substrate and have active sites that bind with the substrate to form a temporary complex. The enzymatic reaction releases a product, which can be a nutrient contained in the substrate.
Sources of soil enzymes include living and dead microbes, plant roots and residues, and soil animals. Enzymes
stabilized in the soil matrix accumulate or form complexes with organic matter (humus), clay, and humus-clay
complexes, but are no longer associated with viable cells. It is thought that 40 to 60% of enzyme activity can come from stabilized enzymes, so activity does not necessarily correlate highly with microbial biomass or respiration. Therefore, enzyme activity is the cumulative effect of long term microbial activity and activity of the viable population at sampling. However, an example of an enzyme that only reflects activity of viable cells is
dehydrogenase, which in theory can only occur in viable cells and not in stabilized soil complexes.
Why it is important: Enzymes respond to soil management changes long before other soil quality indicator changes are detectable. Soil enzymes play an important role in organic matter decomposition and nutrient cycling (see table 1). Some enzymes only facilitate the breakdown of organic matter (e.g., hydrolase, glucosidase), while others are involved in nutrient mineralization (e.g., amidase, urease, phosphatase, sulfates). With the exception of phosphatase activity, there is no strong evidence that directly relates enzyme activity to nutrient availability or crop production. The relationship may be indirect considering nutrient mineralization to plant available forms is accomplished with the contribution of enzyme activity."
 
View attachment Table 1.docx
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
I hope that this helps a bit with the subject of soil enzymology.

 

Found a little something more from LD over in Patrio's journal from back in 2010. Since Chunk pinned the higher learning thread again, I been reading up some more. I never saw this before and since we are on the subject here, its definitely got a place here IMHO. Its listed under the link "Maltose (Barley Extracts). Im wondering if we are achieving the same tea with the conventional sprouting method...and if so, has anyone used this SST as a foliar spray? Ive only used it as a soil soak so far.
 
"patriofarmer

RE: Heat Stress

Something that old time organic gardeners use for heat stress is barley tea. I'm not joking either!

You'll need to go to a health-food store and buy some whole barley grains. Take 1 cup of these berries and add them to a couple of quarts of boiling water. Let it boil for several minutes - like 20 or 30 minutes.

Strain and add to 4 or 5 gallons of water and apply as a foliar application.

Besides reducing the heat stress factor you'll be adding important enzymes that barley contains which will help to maximize the photosynthesis process much like PNSB (purple non-sulphur bacteria) accomplish.

Your garden looks good!!!!!

HTH

LD"          

 

...more from that same thread...
 
"patriotfarmer

I found this cite which might be helpful to you and others.............

What is Malt?

Beer is brewed from malted barley. More precisely, beer is made by fermenting the sugars extracted from malted barley (mostly maltose). Malt is a general term used as an abbreviation for several things associated with maltose and malted barley. Brewer's malt is not Malted Milk Balls, Malted Milk Shakes, nor is it malt extract. In those cases, malt refers to the use of maltose - the sugar. The malts that brewers talk about are the specific types of malted barley that are processed to yield a wide range of fermentable maltose sugars. These include Lager Malts, Pale Malts, Vienna Malts, Munich Malts, Toasted, Roasted and Chocolate Malts. But what is malted barley?

Malting is the process in which barley is soaked and drained to initiate the germination of the plant from the seed. When the seed germinates, it activates enzymes which start converting its starch reserves and proteins into sugars and amino acids that the growing plant can use. The purpose of malting a grain is to release these enzymes for use by the brewer. Once the seeds start to sprout, the grain is dried in a kiln to stop the enzymes until the brewer is ready to use the grain.

The brewer crushes the malted barley and soaks it in hot water to reactivate and accelerate the enzyme activity, converting the barley's starch reserves into sugars in a short period of time. The resulting sugar is boiled with hops and fermented by the yeast to make beer.

When making malt extract, the sugar solution is drawn off, pasteurized, and run into vacuum chambers for dehydration. By boiling off the water under a partial vacuum, the wort sugars are not caramelized by the heat of full boiling and a lighter tasting extract is produced. To make a hopped extract, Iso-Alpha Acid extracts of hops are added along with hop oils to give a complete hop character to the final wort extract. These hop extracts are added at the end of the process to prevent loss during dehydration. Malt extract takes a lot of the work out of brewing.

Malt extract is sold in both liquid (syrup) and powdered forms. The syrups are approximately 20 percent water, so 4 pounds of Dry Malt Extract (DME) is roughly equal to 5 pounds of Liquid Malt Extract (LME). DME is produced by heating the liquid extract and spraying it from an atomizer in a heated chamber. Strong air currents keep the droplets suspended until they dry and settle to the floor. DME is identical to LME except for the additional dehydration and lack of hopping. DME is not hopped because hop compounds would be lost during the final dehydration.

I would note that the addition of 'maltose' to indoor garden store products is very common - at much higher prices of course.

LD"