<from Michael Smith> Please FWD:
Dear Hugh, Jose, etal, I'm a little confused. In my memory, one of the Albrect saying was; "Lime, lime and no manure, make the father rich and the son poor", which is basically showing how easily lime sucks up and burns organic matter content. To open up another can of worms, Dr Carey Reams suggested that calcuim at times measures less than 40 ergs at certain times of year and more than 40 at other times. Perhaps this is related to calciums ability to absorb other elements? Whew, what a diet! Here in the SE what we seem to have a problem with is that calcium disappears so quickly from the soil complex. Based on this ag agents are quick to give advice on liming in total disreguard of the ca:mg ratio. So what are we left to do? The way I seet calcium is that it is extremely mobile in the soil complex. This leads to the larger question of how we might be able to get the calcium in a form that will have a greater life expetancy than those purchased in mineral form; dolomitic, gypsum, lime hydrate, etc.. Why one time I even got some calcite and crushed it down to a powder to stir and spray for its young form. Why? At that point I was convinced that calcium that plants could use came to us in the form of rocks. This was until I happen-chanced on an article concerning cork. Cork is produced by removing the bark of Quercus Suber L., an oak every 20 years or so somewhere around Summer Solstice. I don't know the entire process but the first step in production is boiling to remove the oak bark tannins. Well to make a long story short, the bark of this tree is highly polymorphic and forms a bond that shuts out oxygen; the primary reason for using cork stoppers in wine bottles - to keep out oxygen and prevent the wine from turning to vinegar. I brought this up due to Steiners' using the bark of the Quercus Ruber oak. If I remember correctly, ash analysis revealed a 72% calcium level. Perhaps this bark is a living, younger form of calcium. Jose, I hope you will keep this in mind since you are translating an article into Portuguese and since that quite a bit of the worlds production of cork comes from Portugul and the Azores. There may be something more in this mobility of calcium than meets the eye that can be found in current chemical formulations. The Albrect Model is just that = a model. A gauge to go by, a measuring stick. The key word though is balance. A method of balancing. I think that many of Albrects ideas were based primarily on his local experiance based there in Missouri. Sometime I got the impression that Albrect was trying to challenge people into thinking about their own local conditions. Michael. <I haven't read the Goldstein article, but I've talked with Walter on this topic on other occasions. First I'm surprised if Walter referred to Magnesium as a monovalent cation. It is in the IIa family of elements along with calcium and is Mg++. Walter surely knows this as he earned a doctorate in agriculture at Pulman University in eastern Washington state. That's a very good ag college, I might add. In Wisconsin where Walter founded the Michael Fields Institute there has long been a debate whether the Albrecht model is valid or not. Writers in such journals as Hoard's Dairyman commonly advise farmers to apply whichever lime is cheapest and disregard the Ca/Mg ratios. And Wisconsin soils commonly are what is considered high magnesium. A ratio of 2 parts CA to 1 part Mg is not too uncommon. Still farmers in that state get high corn yields regardless that by Albrect model standards they have far too much mag. The Albrecht model seems to apply less and less the more alive a soil is. Where the soil is alive the corn seems to get all the calcium it needs from the micro-organisms sifting it out for the corn plant. With a good BD program this probably works at near optimum levels, though I don't know that anyone has done meticulous research on this. The main debate, however, centers around cost. Who wouldn't follow the Albrect model, even if it is unproven, if only it was cheap? But it is not cheap to load vast quantities of calcium into 100 or 1,000 acres of corn land. It gets real spendy real fast. So if one can leave the ratios alone and just apply Steiner remedies, especially if they are applied with a field broadcaster, this has a lot of appeal. Not that Walter would ever use a field broadcaster, which he considers "Ahrimanic." But his advice in general is to go for economy in fertility inputs. It's not so hard to see where he is coming from. As for the article, well, I haven't read it and can't talk about it. (Dave, can you send me a copy?) While I respect the Albrecht model and think it should be considered when one is talking about fertility inputs, there is debate about it and it is not set in concrete as sacred agricultural writ. Best, Hugh Lovel> >I have glanced the article which was kindly sent >to me by Dave Robinson or the >Walter Goldstein's article from Sept Biodynamics >" Cation Balancing : Is it beneficial or Bogus ?" >It came to me as a surprise because I had this >magazine in high respect. To my knowledge they donĄt >have any one to review the articles otherwise they >would not allow such a bunch of crap like that to be >published . Here is why. >Page 30 First paragraph. " >The effect of calcium ( a divalent cation) in >stabilizing structure is not as strong as that of >iron ( a trivalent cation) but it is stronger than of >magnesium ( a monovalent cation)" (sic). >Is Mr Goldstein an iliterate person or is he a >misinformed person ? >How can a magazine such as Biodynamics allow low >quality material to be printed ? >Not only the article is full of bad information but >this person did not do his home work properly. >Mr Goldstein who has no knowledge on The Albrecht >Model ( I know that because his level of doubts are >the ones from a person who has not readed the 4 >volumes of The Albrecht Papers or at least the >book "Hands-on-Agronomy or any other book from Dr >Ardensen like "Science in Agriculture" or even >"The Anatomy of Life and Energy in Agriculture") >tried to write about the Albrecht Model which was the >culmination of a life time of teaching and research of >one of the best person United Stated has ever >produced. He based his article only in an interview >done with Neal Kinsey after one of his speaches at >Acres USA. >He hasnĄt got a clue. The Albrecht Model today is >recognized by all major consultants in Eco Agriculture >not only in the States but also in Australia and in >other 25 countries. I have started using 3 years ago >and I can tell you the difference in my soils are day >and night. >I am now able to harvest record breaking crops after >twenty years of hard working. >The Albrecht Model was what made that possible and is >what made the difference. >I feel sad because today I have just finished >writting an article about the Albrecht Model >in portuguese and in march I will teach an intensive >a course on Albrecht Model for 40 agronomists >in Brazil who are eagerly waiting and asking me to do >so. I was nearly forced to teach this course. I had >no choice so is the interest in his ideas today in >this country. >Eco Agriculture stands in several shoulders and one >of the shoulders is certainly William A Albrecht, PhD >shoulder. Nothing more upsetting, disgusting, biased >and certainly incorrectly than this article. > >For your information > Before I was thinking about >subscribing this magazine. Not anymore after I have >read such a bunch of crap like magnesium being a >monovalent cation. I have a recommendation to Mr >Walter Goldstein : Go back to scholl >( elementary) and then go back to college and try to >learn a little bit more chemistry.If you can do like >I did and go to a first class University and >learn a little bit more of Chemistry, Biochemistry, >Plant Physiology, Soil Science, etc.. and then and >only then try to read The Albrecht Papers. >It takes more than the knowledge that you have to try >to stain Dr AlbrechtĄs reputation. > > >Jose __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? 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