Organic Fertilizers, Organic Plant Growth Regulator, and Organic Plant Supplement as defined in the new Philippine National Standard for Organic Fertilizer

The new Philippine National Standard (PNS) for Organic Fertilizer was published in 2013 by the Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Product Standards (BAFPS) of the Department of Agriculture (PNS/BAFPS 40:2013).

According to this new PNS, Organic Fertilizer is “any product in solid or liquid form, of plant (except by-products from petroleum industries) or animal origin that has undergone substantial decomposition that can supply available nutrients to plants with a total Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K) of five to seven percent (5-7%). This may be enriched by microbial inoculants and naturally occurring minerals but no chemical or inorganic fertilizer material has been added to the finished product to affect the nutrient content.”

Organic Plant Growth Regulator/Promoter is “any compound of organic origin, in liquid or solid form, which in low concentration promotes or modifies physiological process in plants.”

Organic Plant Supplement is “any compound of organic origin in liquid or solid form which in low concentration promotes or modifies physiological processes in plants. Total NPK is not lower than 0.5% and not more than 2.5% (0.5-2.5%) and may contain beneficial microorganisms, micronutrients and plant growth regulators. These plant supplements include, but are not limited to: FPJ (Fermented Plant Juice), FFJ (Fermented Fruit Juice), FAA (Fish Amino Acid), FE (Fish Emulsion), Seaweed Extracts, Vermi Tea, Compost Tea and the like.”

The Technical Working Group which prepared the new/revised PNS was composed of: Dr. Leo P. Caneda, Executive Director, BAFPS (Chair) and the following members: Dr. N.B. Inciong (Professional Regulation Commission), Dr. E.P. Paningbatan Jr (Univ Philippines Los Banos), Dr. E.S. Paterno (UPLB), Dr. P.B. Sanchez (UPLB), Dr. V.C. Cuevas (UPLB), Dr. G.V. Pangga (UPLB), Dr. B.M. Calub (UPLB), Dr. N.E de la Cruz (Central Luzon State University), Dr. V.B. Asio (Visayas State University), Ms. J.B. Lansangan (Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority), Ms. P. Orpia (Bureau of Soil and Water Management), Ms. L.K. Limpin (Organic Certification Center of the Phil), Mr.  A. Aquino (Negros Island Certification Agency), and Mr. P.Belisario (Organic Producers and Traders Association).

A new book on F.A. Fallou provides details of his life and contributions to Soil Science

A new book titled "Friedrich Albert Fallou und the Begruendung der Bodenkunde" (Friedrich Albert Fallou and the Founding of Soil Science) has been published in 2013 as volume 33 (Heft 33) of the "Waldheimer Heimatblaetter", a monograph series published by Waldheim, a town in Saxony, Germany.

Friedrich Albert Fallou & the Founding of Soil Science

F.A. Fallou (1794-1877) has been considered by several authors as the Father of Soil Science. This was the subject of an article I posted earlier on this blog. Unfortunately, this distinction has been wrongly attributed to the Russian V.V. Dokuchaev. For this reason, the prominent Russian historian Jarilow wrote in 1904 that "Fallou is one of humanity's forgotten best sons".

The book  provides clear and strong evidence that Fallou founded the scientific study of soil. It was authored by two retired prominent professors, Prof. Dr. Heiner Kaden (Chemistry, Technical University Freiberg) and Prof. Dr. Hans Joachim Fiedler (Soil Science, Technical University of Dresden). Prof. Fiedler has published numerous books and articles on soil science and has in fact written articles on Fallou. He is thus highly qualified to write about Fallou's works.

This is the first publication that presents a complete picture of Fallou: his origin, childhood, education, and professional activities particularly in the field of geology and of course his pioneering contribution to soil science. Some of the interesting revelations in the book include the following: a) Fallou finished his Bachelor of Law studies from the University of Leipzig,  b) he contributed rock samples (e.g. serpentinite) to a museum of natural history, c) he won a scientific prize for a paper he authored, d) he was awarded a Knight's Cross First Class medal by Saxony in 1870 for his works in geology and soil science, and e) Fallou was an introvert who lived a solitary life.

This is a very important book and it deserves to be translated into English so it would be useful to students of soil science in different parts of the world.

I thank Prof. Dr. Kaden for sending me a copy of the book. It will be an important addition to my personal collection of soil science history.

Anthropocene: The Human Age

Anthropocene is the term coined in 2000 by Paul Crutzen, the Nobel laureate from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Mainz, Germany, to refer to the current geological epoch characterized by the global impact of human activity. The Anthropocene Working Group of the International Commission on Stratigraphy defines it as the present time interval, in which many geologically significant conditions and processes are profoundly altered by human activities (www.quaternary.stratigraphy.org). 

The conditions and processes include changes in: erosion and sediment transport associated with a variety of anthropogenic processes, including colonisation, agriculture, urbanisation and global warming; the chemical composition of the atmosphere, oceans and soils, with significant anthropogenic perturbations of the cycles of elements such as carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and various metals; environmental conditions generated by these perturbations which include global warming, ocean acidification and spreading oceanic 'dead zones'; the biosphere both on land and in the sea, as a result of habitat loss, predation, species invasions and the physical and chemical changes noted above (www.quaternary.stratigraphy.org) 

According to a recent article in Nature Vol 519 (12 March 2015) by Richard Monastersky, momentum is building to establish a new geological epoch that recognizes humanity’s impact on the planet. But there is fierce debate among scientists whether or not to revise the Geologic Time Scale which is used by millions of people around the world, to accommodate the Anthropocene on top of the Holocene epoch (see scale below).

Source: www.serc.carleton.edu

One focus of the debate is the start of the new epoch. When did it actually began? Recent suggestions include 1610 and 1964. The 1610 suggestion is based on the dip in atmospheric carbon dioxide (measured from Antarctic ice cores) due to forest regeneration of huge areas of abandoned farmlands in Europe. The 1964 proposal is based on the high proportion of radioactive isotopes from the nuclear weapons testing (R. Gonzalez at www.io9com). But the Anthropocene Working Group considers the beginning of the 'Anthropocene' as c. 1800, around the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in Europe.

Once the proposal for an Anthropocene epoch is, after a long process, accepted by the International Union of Geological Sciences, the Quaternary period in the Geologic Time Scale above would consist of three (not anymore two) epochs: Pleistocene (2.6 mya to 12,000 yrs ago), Holocene (12,000 yrs ago to c. 1800) and Anthropocene (c. 1800 to present).