Strawberries have an interesting lineage that many people may be unaware of. The story goes that the humble garden strawberry (fragaria x ananassa) originated from a spontaneous cross between two wild alpine strawberries, fragaria virginiana and fragaria chiloensis in 17th century France. Below we have grown them out in tissue culture to see what they were like. Originally alpines like vesca were just an appetizing snack on a forest trail walk, but look at where their genes are today, it could almost be as if you are eating an apple. Strawberries are an octoploid species, and are well known for…
Author: Janet Colston
We all experience stress at some point in our lives. It’s not inevitable though, and our mood could be altered by the foods we eat. How we handle stress is very much down to the individual, but we can learn tricks and techniques to help us cope better, in the same way some of us use yoga or fishing to de-stress. Of course, there are many ways to combat stress, but in this article we are only concerned about how foods can impact how you feel. CEA itself is stress busting – don’t you think it’s like looking at art…
Ice cream would not be ice cream without Vanilla. I am fortunate to have the most famous Scottish ice cream parlor on my doorstep. Nardini’s in Largs, is an institution and draws people from across the world, even Chris Higgins has eaten here! They sell the best Vanilla and Scottish tablet ice cream. The active ingredient of Vanilla, Vanillin, is the most commonly used flavoring in the world, but did you know it is normally produced by a synthetic reaction that involves petrochemicals? Don’t worry, it’s perfectly safe and should not stop you from eating your favorite ice cream. The…
Many of us drink coffee because it makes us feel good and gives us a boost in the morning. Caffeine, the active ingredient in coffee has a number of positive effects, including increased alertness, which it does by blocking a chemical messenger in the brain that makes us sleepy. Some cultures swear by this ‘pick me up’. I recall ‘shots’ during a working trip to Barcelona, grabbing a double espresso hit in the morning rush hour with the locals. I remember how jittery I felt. Ironically, I was there to study artery health. So what was happening? The caffeine was…
Do you yearn for great, fresh food that doesn’t damage your gut? Well, here we have it for you, gluten-free ravioli with fresh CEA grown spinach filling. Gluten intolerance is more common than we may think. This is because many people are experiencing adverse reactions to proteins found in wheat, barley and rye. Bread is the usual culprit, but with most of the western world consumers of pasta, this popular meal is not far behind. Among other poor dietary choices, subsequent disease may well be associated with inflammation linked to a leaky gut. This is where small tears occur in…
Flower season comes once a year for Wasabi Japonica, but…. What if we control that process? Why people love wasabi Wasabi has enormous health benefits. It’s good for your heart, and for your liver, it even helps regenerate your hair. Of course, taste and uniqueness come into play as the food service industry’s poster boy for Sushi and Sashimi. Back in the EDO period, Shoguns were scrapping over this beloved Japanese herb. Why? They discovered it prevented food poisoning after they ate raw fish. Can it grow outside of Japan? Yes that’s right, it can grow outside its homeland of…
“The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.” Robert Swan, OBE, Historian and Explorer. We need farming, but what kind of farming do we need? Everywhere you look, farmers, environmentalists, activists, businesses, celebrities, and politicians are talking about climate change, polarizing the subject and postulating what will happen if we don’t take action now. We know the way we are currently farming is harming the planet and our health, but we also know as farmers we have the skills to change the outcome. Some of the problems in agriculture are compounded by long…
Lion’s Mane Hericium erinaceus Can you believe this white ‘pom pom’ like fungus has properties that regrow nerves? This has been proven in several peer reviewed studies. Remarkably, this mushroom can grow larger than a baseball in under two months given the right controlled environment. Substrates for Lion’s mane are commonly straw or sawdust based, but could just as easily be ground spent coffee beans. Setting up a container sized space, the main controls to be aware of for optimal growth are temperature and humidity. Lion’s Mane mushrooms are rich in protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. They are particularly prized…
Did your grandfather inspire you to become a farmer? Mine did, but it took me another forty odd years to recognize it! People often have a link to their passion for CEA from a generational farming background. My forefathers were crofters living off the land in whatever way they could in the Hebridean islands off the north-west coast of Scotland. In the Western Isles the land mass is harsh, with rocky terrain, few trees for cover and battered by Atlantic swells. Crofters like my grandfather reared sheep, and the land was cultivated for hard crops like potatoes and turnips. My…
I’ve recently been eating Driscoll’s new highbush blueberries from Morocco. Guess what, they have only gone and supersized them! It’s like eating a cross between the original berry and a small kiwi but without the fuzz. I like mine on cereal, but smoothies and muffins also do the trick. Whatever way you eat them, the anthocyanins in the dark skins play a vital role in reducing many lifestyle diseases, and consuming just one cup of blueberries a day will cut your chance of a heart attack or stroke. Supersized blueberries could be good for CEA growers Breeding is a big…
One dominant variety of ginger, Zingiber officinale, is often used to flavor our home cooked stir-fry’s, but did you know there are more than 1200 species in the Zingiberaceae family? Myoga ginger or Japanese ginger (Zingiber mioga) has become a popular greenhouse grown CEA crop. This beautiful and unusual plant is native to Japan, China and South Korea and produces flowering buds at its base that are used in oriental cooking. In Japan, this plant is revered because it is connected to spiritual events related to a good rice harvest. Myoga translates as ‘divine protection’. Myoga contains the terpene alpha-pinene, known…
With phytonutrients trending, we want to delve into what we mean by ‘bioactives’ and how they could impact Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA). Put simply, bioactives are physiologically-active compounds located in plant organelles with the potential to positively impact human health. Studies indicate that consumption of a diet rich in bioactive compounds with antioxidant activity, including vitamins, phytochemicals and phenolics such as flavonoids and carotenoids, can diminish the risks associated with diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and other age-related degenerative conditions. No one disputes that tomatoes are good for heart health, especially if you follow the Mediterranean diet. This…
Photo: Somewhere mysteriously in California Grapes are an economically important commodity, supplying fresh, dried, and processed markets worldwide. Although grapes are not a crop you immediately consider a beneficiary of CEA technology, it may be possible to adapt field agriculture, putting in measures to circumvent climate change and disease. The last few years I’ve been attempting to grow my own grapevine indoors, so when Chris Higgins shared the main photo I felt excited to learn how they were using LED lights to help fruit mature on vines in California. Could CEA also work for my grapevines? Scotland is not known…
The role of light and spectrum on plant growth and metabolite production in CEA We know light exerts a powerful influence on plant growth. These effects can range anywhere from seed germination to leaf expansion and from flowering to fruiting. But, did you know it’s not only plants that benefit from changes caused by light? Human health can also be boosted by light induced changes in the fruits and vegetables we eat. These systems are interconnected. Read on to find out how CEA farmers could hold the key to both higher crop yields and better human health through the smart…