USING THE NUTRITIVE CYCLE

BANANA FLOWER BUD

USING THE NUTRITIVE CYCLE

Biochemical Signaling Technology (BST) follows the Nutritive Cycle using Fermented Plant Juices (FPJ) as an active ingredient in formulas designed for each phase. Specific FPJs are made to signal plants to develop growth in the specific phase of growth because of the hormones, enzymes, and cofactors found in each specific FPJ.

In the last article, we went over what each phase of the Nutritive Cycle is and how to recognize each phase. Here is a shortened summary:

                                                NUTRITIVE CYCLE

                                             SEEDLING

                                             VEGETATIVE GROWTH

                                             CROSS-OVER

                                             FRUIT SET

                                             GREEN FRUIT

                                             FRUIT RIPENING

Now we discuss how to choose the correct FPJ for each stage of growth and how to put this knowledge to use for better crops and yields.

SEEDLING

The seedling still has the seed leaf (cotyledon) and needs to utilize that embryonic nutrition to trigger the genetics that will grow a healthy, resilient plant. Therefore, we give seedlings nothing more than water while the seed leaf is still present.

VEGETATIVE GROWTH

The vegetative state is when the plant focuses on green, leafy growth.

• Occurs after germination and before flowering.

• Plants focus on growing leaves, stems, and roots, structural growth for future reproduction.

• Photosynthesis increases, fueling rapid growth.

• Plants require ample light, water, and nutrients, especially nitrogen for leaf development.

• Growth is mainly vertical and outward, forming a larger canopy.

• Plants remain in the vegetative stage until environmental cues (like day length) or internal signals trigger flowering.

The plant’s focus at this stage is growth. Leaves are required to grow because they act as solar panels, collecting energy from the sun, which is converted to sugars that fuel more growth.

Following this pattern, we use leaf growth as our active ingredient. These biochemical signals are concentrated in the very tip of a growing leaf bud, called the meristem. Therefore, the plant material we harvest for this purpose is the fresh, green growing tips of fast-growing plants. These are fermented using Wild Aerobic Fermentation to produce an input called Fermented Plant Juice (FPJ).

Correct Plant

The pattern to follow for choosing plant material for vegetative growth is mugwort, Artemisia vulgaris, and dropwort, Filipendula vulgaris. These are plants you should grow and let naturalize on your land. One is more productive in the spring and the other in the fall, giving you easy access to abundant plant material all year.

For more details on which plants to use, see the series on Choosing Plant Material for FPJ.

Proper Plant Part

We take not only the tip with the meristem, but also the rest of the tender young growth. We do this not only to increase our yield, but because many support chemicals will be found in the young, growing tissue. Only take the part of the tip that is tender and snaps off easily.

Time Of Day

For the vegetative phase alone, the time of day the plant material is collected is critical. During the day, the process of collecting sunlight and converting the energy to sugars is called photosynthesis. After the sun starts to set, plants respire.

• Respiration is the process of breaking down sugars (produced during photosynthesis) to release energy for growth, maintenance, and other cellular activities.

• Unlike photosynthesis, which consumes CO₂ and releases O₂, respiration consumes O₂ and releases CO₂.

Essentially, plants collect energy during the day and use that energy to grow during the night. Since we want to collect the biochemistry of growth, we want to collect when the plant is respiring, not photosynthesizing. Therefore, we need to collect the plant when it is actively respiring. This peaks in the morning before sun hits the leaves.

If we collect during the evening, the plant will not be photosynthesizing, but the respiration chemistry, the growth chemistry will be low. As soon as sunlight touches the leaves, the chemistry switches, and photosynthesis begins. Just before that moment, the growth biochemistry is at its peak.

Collect plant material for this stage in the morning before sunlight hits the leaves. Ideally, there should still be dew, which will carry trace amounts of plant exudates and microbial secretions.

Process this plant material immediately and do not let it be exposed to direct sunlight. After picking, the leaf buds are still alive and capable of photosynthesis.

A formula containing the FPJ from fast-growing tips is misted onto plants weekly. While plants at this stage need adequate nutrition, particularly nitrogen, they should be getting that from their environment, the soil, and the air. A weekly light mist of highly diluted compounds will contain some nutrients, but the concentration is too low to be adequate. The purpose is not fertilization.

Keep in mind that air is 78% nitrogen. While plants cannot use atmospheric nitrogen directly, the microbes in the soil can. This is why we build a Soil Foundation using IMO, Indigenous Micro-Organisms first.

Modern methods emphasize fertilization, resulting in plants receiving excessive amounts of nitrogen. This excess is the leading cause of pests and disease. Master Cho calls plants in this condition “fat.” We have been taught to believe (by fertilizer companies) that plants need to be a bright, dark green, but leaves come in all shades of green.

Resist the temptation to feed your plants nitrogen. Let them work with the soil biology you have installed, and direct them with the Nutritive Cycle. In the modern world, this takes a leap of faith. You will never see the power of this system if you use other methods simultaneously.

Apply the misting formulas.  Watch what happens. Only add nitrogen if your plants show a true nitrogen deficiency.

You will likely find that not only will you get bigger and better growth using Biochemical Signaling Technology (BST), but you will also have little to no pests and disease.

CROSS-OVER

Unless you are growing leafy green crops, this is the most important phase to pay attention to. What does Master Cho teach? He goes into great detail about reproductive stages of plants. He categorizes plants as Type 1-4 and has complicated charts.

I think this is where many people get lost and decide to use Jadam or another organic method, fertilizing plants rather than working with Nature. As we have stated before, when we artificially force nutrition into plants, we upset the nutritional balance, and this leads directly to pests and disease.

To help you avoid this trap, and since this is a series for beginners, I will make Natural Farming, the Nutritive Cycle, and BST very simple to understand.

We give a plant what we want it to do. When we want leafy green growth, we focus on giving plants an FPJ from a fast-growing leaf tip, as described above. The Cross-Over is the largely invisible stage from vegetative to reproductive growth. The hormones in these stages get tricky, just like raising pre-teens and teenagers.

Following the principle of “give a plant what we want it to do,” we should start with a flower bud just before we see reproductive structures. However, using plant material from these stages can give unexpected and undesirable effects (the pre-teen effect). We will use the simplest explanation given by Master Cho, as confirmed by my experimentation.

If you are in a warm climate, there is one fail-safe flower bud to use, the flower bud from stalks of bananas. They are often referred to as the banana flower, but when you cut open the red bulb at the end of a banana stalk, you will see that the actual immature flowers are inside.

Banana flowers are large and juicy, with high yields of FPJ. They can be used universally on all types of plants with no ill effects. There are varieties that can be grown in colder climates, and the ones from ornamental bananas are just as good.

Using any other type of flower bud will require experimentation. I urge you not to experiment as a beginner. Each type of plant will respond differently and may give you unintended effects for a season, or even the life of the plant. If you are a beginner, it is best to stick to the simple plan.

If you don’t have banana flower buds, the FPJ you use will be a mixture of half vegetative FPJ and half green fruit FPJ. Use this in your misting formula until the flowers are pollinated.

FRUIT SET

Once flowers are pollinated, the fruits will start to form. This is called fruit set. Once you see pollination, you can switch to a straight green-fruit formula and drop the vegetative FPJ.

GREEN FRUIT

While the fruit is developing, you can continue to mist with a green fruit formula.

FRUIT RIPENING

Once fruits are full-size and ready to ripen, start using a formula with a ripe fruit FPJ, often referred to as an FFJ, Fermented Fruit Juice. At this stage, we are developing sweetness and color. In formulas for this stage, so we can concentrate on the sweetness, we drop the sour. We omit the vinegar in the formula. This is the only time in KNF that we do not use vinegar, an ionic buffer, in the formula.

For more details on selecting the right plant for each phase of growth, refer to my series of articles on Choosing Plants for FPJ.

TYPES OF FPJ FOR THE BEGINNER

As a beginner, you only need 3-4 types of FPJ for all your needs:

• Vegetative

• (Banana Flower)

• Green Fruit

• Ripe Fruit

Keep your FPJs separate and only mix them into a formula when ready to use.

APPLICATION

A formula appropriate for the stage of growth is misted onto plants no more than once a week. Application time is about an hour before sunset. This puts the biochemistry on the plants during the night while they are respiring and growing. We spray after the sunlight is weak so that plants are no longer photosynthesizing, and early enough that it has a chance to dry out before dark.

A WORD ABOUT MINERALS

Yes, plants need minerals, and they are included in the formulations. However, you will still see spectacular results if you omit them. I suggest that you focus on learning how to follow the Nutritive Cycle and use BST to direct plant growth. Once you understand, then add in the minerals. You can’t enter a BMX race with jumps and hills until you learn how to ride a bike.

DESIGNING FORMULAS

We will discuss making and using formulas in a future article.