MINERALS IN KNF

Sea Salt Crystals

MINERALS IN KNF

Korean Natural Farming (KNF) is a way to grow food that mimics Nature. We start by building the Soil Foundation. We do this by inoculating the soil with high concentrations of soil ecology using Indigenous Micro-Organism (IMO) technology. These high concentrations of a complete local ecosystem of soil biology allow plants to obtain nutrition from the soil on demand. This is the process that operates in Nature.

Once we install the Soil Foundation, we can guide the growth process using hormones, enzymes, and cofactors with formulas made with Fermented Plant Juices (FPJ) as the active ingredient. The formulas follow the Nutritive Cycle, the basic life cycle of plants.

They are applied as a highly dilute foliar spray, typically once per week in the late afternoon. I refer to this process as Biochemical Signaling Technology (BST). This is not meant as a means of fertilization. The plants do that for themselves on demand.

After installing the Soil Foundation with IMO, and understanding BST and the Nutritive Cycle, it’s time to add in the minerals.

Plants use mineral elements to function. Most growers know about NPK (Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium), the main constituents of all fertilizers.

MACRONUTRIENTS 

Needed In Relatively Large Quantities

               Primary Macronutrients

Nitrogen (N) – promotes leaf and stem growth; vital for chlorophyll and proteins.

Phosphorus (P) – supports root growth, flowering, and fruiting; essential for energy transfer (ATP).

Potassium (K) – regulates water balance, enzyme activation, and disease resistance.

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               Secondary Macronutrients

Calcium (Ca) – strengthens cell walls, aids root and shoot growth, regulates nutrient uptake.

Magnesium (Mg) – central atom in chlorophyll; key for photosynthesis.

Sulfur (S) – component of certain amino acids and vitamins; aids enzyme function.

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MICRONUTRIENTS

 Needed In Trace Amounts But Crucial For Plant Metabolism

Iron (Fe) – essential for chlorophyll synthesis and respiration.

Manganese (Mn) – enzyme activator; involved in photosynthesis and nitrogen metabolism.

Zinc (Zn) – needed for growth hormones and enzyme function.

Copper (Cu) – aids photosynthesis, respiration, and lignin synthesis.

Boron (B) – critical for cell wall formation, flowering, and seed development.

Molybdenum (Mo) – required for nitrogen fixation and nitrate reduction.

Chlorine (Cl) – important in photosynthesis and osmotic regulation.

Nickel (Ni) – aids in nitrogen metabolism (especially in legumes).

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ADDITIONAL BENEFICIAL ELEMENTS 

Not Always Essential For All Plants, But Helpful

Sodium (Na) – can substitute for potassium in some species.

Cobalt (Co) – important for nitrogen-fixing bacteria in legumes.

Silicon (Si) – strengthens cell walls, improves pest and disease resistance.

Selenium (Se) – beneficial for some plants in small amounts.

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Soil tests provide the concentration of elements in the soil sample that are in plant-available forms. However, with a proper soil foundation, plants work with soil biology to convert non-available elements into plant-available forms on demand.

Therefore, soil tests do not give much information to the Natural Farmer. We know that plants will get what they need with the help of healthy, diverse soil ecology.

Too much of one element from improper fertilization can lead to a lack of availability of other elements, resulting in imbalances that can spiral biochemistry out of control. Nutrient imbalances lead directly to increased susceptibility to pests and disease.

To avoid this, we add mineral supplements or soil amendments only if true nutrient deficiencies are present. In the case of such a deficiency, plants will display definite signs, despite high concentrations of healthy, local soil biology.

FULL SPECTRUM MINERAL APPROACH

How are minerals used in KNF if soil amendments are not a regular part of crop establishment and management? In a word, the answer is Seawater. This is not the only source of mineral elements in KNF, but it is the most important.

There was a pasture in Hawaii that was doing poorly, with a lot of weeds, but very little edible grass and forage. A livestock expert and KNF practitioner had the rancher apply seawater to the pasture. Nothing else was done, but everything changed. Grasses grew lush and thick, outgrew the inedible weeds, and the pasture looked better than it ever had.

The input was free. The only cost was the cost of a single application.

In the South Pacific islands, coastal areas have little fertile soil. When first planted, the coastal crops do really well, but the exuberant growth quickly extinguishes. It is common practice for the islanders to then pile beach “rocks” (coral rubble and shells) around plants. This revives the crops. The rocks are added whenever the plant growth lags. What is happening here?

It’s the salt, the minerals embedded in the fresh beach rocks. Sea salt grows in the cracks, crevices, and pores of these marine rocks. The rain gradually erodes salt crystals into the soil with the plants.

SALINITY

Sea salt in much more than sodium. Table salt is refined from sea salt that has been collected from the ocean or mined from ancient deposits. It will be stripped of minerals other than sodium chloride, then mixed with chemicals such as dextrose, and then iodine is typically added for health benefits.

If you add significant concentrations of sodium chloride, table salt, your plants would indeed suffer from high salinity (salt content).

While sodium chloride is the most abundant mineral salt in the ocean, it is only one of 92+. We are not using sodium chloride, table salt, but rather a full spectrum of different salts, as many as 90 or more.

All minerals found on Earth get dissolved and eventually end up in the ocean. When taken as a whole, the balance of minerals in the ocean includes all the minerals found on the planet, in proportion to their abundance on Earth.

All life on Earth is adapted to using the minerals on Earth. While plant research may only show a handful of elements that are essential—required for plant life—and another handful that are helpful, the diversity of life in, on, and around plants thrives when they have access to all the elements found on Earth.

Just because we don’t scientifically understand the processes for each mineral doesn’t mean they are not essential to the system of life on Earth. We do not need to understand everything as Natural Farmers, but we need to respect the system. After all, that is our goal: to be part of the system, rather than exploiting it.

KNF takes the Full Spectrum Mineral approach to growing food. Plants, animals, and microbes need a wide variety of minerals and elements. Since the ocean is the repository of all elements on the planet, Seawater is the ideal solution to ensuring all living organisms under our care have access to whatever they need. Furthermore, because we are offering Seawater in such small amounts, there is no risk of overfertilizing.

MINERAL USE IN KNF

For the practice of KNF, Seawater is collected from a rocky shoreline with high wave activity. In areas where it is not practical to collect seawater, artificial seawater is made, typically by dissolving salt meant for the aquarium trade in clean water. Seawater is given in dilute amounts to plants and animals (and microbes) to ensure they have the minerals they need to thrive.

While IMO technology is the most important part of KNF, applying dilute Seawater is arguably the second most important practice.

Besides the regular addition of diluted Seawater, Master Cho devised a technology that creates mineral solutions that are highly available to living organisms. It is called Bacterial Mineral Water (BMW).

It is a recirculating water system that allows water to fall from a height. This highly oxygenates the water, which then cascades onto a bag of stones. The impact causes both physical and chemical (oxygenation/oxidation) erosion of the rocks, mimicking the action of streams and waterfalls. As the rocks break down, minerals dissolve into the water. With the addition of IMO (Indigenous Microorganisms), the process also includes biological dissolution of the rocks, further enriching the water with minerals.

This triple-action effect is an amazing technology for making mineral water. It can be used with a variety of stones for a general mineral solution, or with targeted stones for a specialized solution based on stage-of-life needs or environmental lack.

Bacterial Mineral Water is a highly advanced method for delivering minerals to plants, animals, and microbes. Because it is an advanced technology, we will cover details in the advanced KNF material.

TARGETED MINERALS

While Seawater offers a valuable Full Spectrum Mineral approach, we have a couple of KNF tools to target specific mineral needs during specific stages. These include Water-Soluble Calcium (WCa), Water-Soluble Calcium Phosphate (WCaP), Water-Soluble Phosphoric Acid (WPA), and Water-Soluble Potassium (WP).

These inputs are not fermented. Rather, they are extracts, the first two in fermented Brown Rice Vinegar (BRV), and the others in water. That will be the focus of the next article in this ongoing series on How to Practice KNF for Beginners.