featured
Jan 18th 2012
Herbal Treatments for Greenhouse Plants
When the weather changes, temperatures drop and things dampen, one might think to drink a cup of herbal tea to build immunity. Stone Barns Center farmers are thinking the very same way about our greenhouse crops.
During the winter, beds in the greenhouse are regularly sprayed with herbal tea. Beds are misted with natural remedies like Chamomile or Equisetum (Horsetail) tea. Both varieties of plant are steeped, separately, in their own batches of boiling water. The teas, with plant matter still soaking, sit overnight to ferment and build strong microbiology. They are then strained before spraying. With distinctive properties, each tea offers something unique to the greenhouse plants.
As the weather is becoming increasingly moist, extra water in the air can dampen crop beds and lead to destructive fungal growth, like Pythium. This is where Chamomile comes to the crop-rescue. Chamomile is naturally sulfuric. Applying it to beds activates the sulfur in the soil’s biology, which helps to combat fungal growth in on the beds.
Equisetum fights dampening beds in a different way. It contains a very high percentage of silica. When sprayed on the crops, the plants take on the quality of the silica, increasing their water retention, and their ability to absorb and reflect light. Farmers also spray Equisetum in the summer, when the silica creates a crystal like shield beneath the plants’ skin, making it harder for insects to chew through their leaves.
Neither of these applications offers a quick fix to fungus or overly damp conditions. But when applied consistently, each contributes to the soil immune system, and infuses the plants with those sulfuric and silicon qualities desired. So far this season, this technique has already saved beds that might otherwise have been killed by Pythium. Three cheers for the wonders of herbal tea.
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To learn about herbal treatments for yourself and your family, check out these upcoming Farm and Wellness programs: Getting to Know Scented Geranium, Making Herbal-Infused Vinegar, Honey and Oil, Getting to Know Raspberry Leaf, and Herbal Tonics for Women’s Health.