Round-Up, bee’s health, earth warming, new tomato insect pest, high fructose corn syrup, fires in mulched beds, Rhodiola rosea, bee populations, pesticides and artificial fertilizers

As more and more information on the dangers posed by the herbicide Round-Up continue to come out, the country of Italy’s Ministry of Health has banned the spraying of this toxic chemical in all public places. In addition, they have banned the pre-harvest spraying of Round-Up on crops to speed up the drying of grains to make harvesting easier. Their plan is to remove all Round-Up from the shelves at stores around the country. As reported in the Health Freedom Alliance newsletter: A recent and controversial study performed by Professor Gilles-Eric Séralini has pointed out that Roundup is even more toxic than previously suggested. Published in the highly-ranked scientific journal Toxicology, the professor and his team state: 

“… all the glyphosate-based herbicides tested are more toxic than glyphosate alone, and [this study] explains why. Thus their regulatory assessments and the maximum residue levels authorized in the environment, food, and feed, are erroneous. A drink (such as tap water contaminated by Roundup residues) or a food made with a Roundup tolerant GMO (like a transgenic soya or corn) were already demonstrated as toxic in the recent rat feeding study (2) from Prof. Séralini team. … These assessments are therefore neither neutral nor independent. They should as a first step make public on the Internet all the data that underpin the commercial release and positive opinions on the use of Roundup and similar products. The industry toxicological data must be legally made public.” 

Another report stated that the Country of Hungary is in the process of destroying corn crops that were planted with GMO corn. It is illegal in Hungary to grow GMO plants. 

Many companies are involved with the cover-up of glyphosate (Round-Up) in our foods. A lawsuit filed (Moms Across America, Beyond Pesticides, and Organic Consumers Association) on Nature Valley Granola bars (General Mills) for falsely labeling the bars as 100% natural when it contains glyphosate, to trick consumers into buying their products. Studies have shown that concentrations as    

low as 0.1 ppb (parts per billion) can cause damage to the liver and kidneys. The granola bars has almost five times this amount. (Natural News, 8-31-16). 

As we continue to learn about the biome of the soil, plants, and animals a new, study by the University of California has found that flowers share their bacteria with wild bee’s species. It is believed that these bacteria help with the bee’s health. 

Scientists at NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) announced that the earth is warming at a pace not seen in the last 1,000 years. The earth has just recorded the hottest year on record. They found that over the past century temperatures have been increasing at a rate 10X faster than the historical averages. At the International Geologic Congress scientists announced that human activities (industrialization, nuclear bomb testing, increased greenhouse gasses, toxic agricultural chemicals, etc.) have so profoundly altered the planet that we have entered a new geological epoch called the Anthropocene. 

There is a new tomato insect pest, the tomato leaf miner that is wiping our crops in Africa, middle East and the Mediterranean countries. Scientists at Virginia Tech say it is only a matter of time before it reaches the USA. This is another reason we need to develop our yards and gardens into an organic diverse habitat where we have many predators, which will naturally control all pests. 

A paper in the journal Nature Plants has found that plants have the ability to regulate their leaf temperature to some degree. They found that leaf temperature can often differ significantly from the air temperature. 

A study by the Cornucopia Institute, an industry watchdog group, has found that there are over 1,300 ingredients banned by the European Union that are allowed in the USA. 

Researchers have found that high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) often contains mercury. Different studies have found that up to 1/2 the sample tested contained mercury, which causes many types of health and mental problems. A common source of HFCS is soft drinks. God gave us many good forms of sugar from raw unfiltered honey to sugarcane, we do not need this adulterated forms of sweeteners.    

In a recent issue of Soil & Mulch Producer News (July/August 2016) stating that fires in mulched landscape beds are on the rise around the country. They stated that discarded cigarettes were the most common cause, even though broken bottles (lens effect), electrical sparks, fireworks, and other things can start fires. 

Note: Several studies have shown that the most combustible mulch is the dyed mulches made from trash pallets and construction wood. To get the dyes to stick the wood must be very dry and have very high carbon content. The higher the carbon content, the faster and hotter the mulch will burn. By comparison, compost, composted (aged) native mulches have very low carbon content. 

An article in the September 2016 issue of Life Extension reported that an extract from the root of the plant Rhodiola rosea slowed down aging and increased lifespan in animal studies. The root extract contains over 140 different bioactive compounds. It has been found to enhance immune function and provide anti-viral and anti-bacterial benefits. 

We have seen drastic declines in our bee populations that are so critical for pollination of our food crops. Therefore, to fight mosquitoes the state of South Carolina started carpet bombing several counties with the toxic chemical Naled, a neurotoxic insecticide. Politicians stated that it was widely successful. What they failed to mention is that they failed to inform the public as Naled, has been linked to a 60% increase in autism for those exposed. The other item they failed to report is that beekeepers had their hives destroyed. One beekeeper lost 46 hives, which had over 2.5 million bees alone. 

Pope Francis in an address this week declared, “Destroying the Environment” is a sin. When we use toxic chemicals from pesticides to artificial fertilizers that pollute our waterways, we are destroying our environment. The modern methods of horticulture and agriculture based on soil and plant biology that we call “organic methods” are just about studying nature and see how God does things and then copying them.