Brix levels indicate a plant’s growing conditions by measuring dissolved sugars, proteins, amino acids, essential oils, minerals and other solids. Plants with higher brix levels produce more fragrant flowers with greater concentrations of essential oils and grow better-tasting, more nutritious fruits and vegetables. Brix Levels and Soil Health Not surprisingly, plants grown in remineralized soil…
Throughout millennia, the forces of Mother Nature have been grinding down mineral-rich rocks into small particles. The result is healthy and fertile soil filled with a natural mix of nutrients that plants (and people) need to thrive. The problem is this: Mother Nature works slowly—while humankind destroys quickly. It takes nature 500 years to replace…
As the days get shorter and drearier, it’s helpful to think about the bright and beautiful blooms of spring. It takes just a little bit of planning to ensure happy splashes of springtime color. Because spring flowering bulbs need to spend the winter outdoors, late October is an ideal time to prepare containers that can…
There are many different types of minerals in healthy soil. They vary in size and composition and provide your garden’s crops with essential nutrients. If you aren’t getting what you want out of your soil, chances are that it is missing important minerals—in which case, remineralizing with rock dust will go a long way to restoring…
Going about our daily lives, most of us don’t give much thought to the soil that sustains us. Throughout the world, urban areas are becoming more densely populated—which means that more and more of us are standing on “dirt” rather than “soil.” What’s the difference? Dirt is dead. Soil is living. Ask any organic farmer…
In a previous blog post, agronomist Rich Affeldt discussed the role that silicon plays in plant health and vitality. Adding an all-natural source of silicon, like that found in volcanic basalt, is an excellent way to grow plants that are healthy, strong and able to resist pests and disease. In this short follow-up video, Rich explains how certain plants—like zinnias and…
One of the key ingredients in Cascade Minerals’ Remineralizing Soil Booster is silicon, a plant nutrient that is often overlooked yet which plays a very important role in plant health and vitality. Listen as agronomist Rich Affeldt discusses how silicon added to soil helps make plants more resistant to pests and disease: An essential component…
Alas, our summer reading list has been light on mystery books and romance novels. Instead, we’ve had our noses buried in “heavier” topics, like the demineralization and degradation of our earth’s soils and how we have to make dramatic changes if we have any hope of saving the planet (and ourselves). Not that we’re complaining,…
We’re always conducting tests on a wide variety of plants to demonstrate the overwhelmingly positive benefits of soil remineralization on plant health and crop yields. This year, our test greenhouse in Madras, Oregon is filled with lots and lots of lovely leeks. What we’ve found is that plants that were planted in mineral-rich soil that had been…
So what’s all the fuss about rock dust? Rock dust goes by a few other names, like “rock minerals,” “rock flour,” “rock powder,” “stone dust,” “soil remineralizer” and “mineral fines.” Whatever you call it, rock dust is finely crushed rock containing essential micronutrients and trace elements that are important to the life cycle of plants…
