If you happen to live north of 30 degrees latitude (or the southern hemisphere equivalent), chances are your growing season is pretty limited. Why not take it indoors? You could be enjoying fresh tomatoes year round, not to mention some skunk weed and maybe a mescaline containing cactus or two. It's a pretty simple process. First off you need a suitable location. A 6ft x 6ft storage room would be perfect. A 400W Metal Halide would fill this space perfectly, but would also work in a 4ft x 4ft room. That's pretty much all you need, but don't forget a fan for ventilation. 6ft x 6ft is about 12 square feet, so that means you could grow 12 different kinds of plants in there and maybe some fresh basil and tyme on the shelfs.
How much is it going to cost? Let's investigate further.
- 400W Metal Halide Kit (Bulb, reflector, ballast) - $220
- Xmas light timer from Canadian Tire ~$5
- Fan (the kind that sit on the table or floor) - You probably have one
- Energy to run this light 16 hours a day, 365 days a year.
0.4 kwh x 16 = 6.4 kwh/day
6.4 x $0.08 (price of electricity in alberta) = $0.512/day
$0.512 x 365 days = $186.88
$186.88 a year. Not to bad, but call it $200 because your going to be running a fan as well.
Don't waste your money on that certified organic stamp, grow it yourself and you'll know what went into it.
29.9.05
25.9.05
Equinox Continued
I just found some good pictures to explain the phenomenon. Here's one showing the way the sun sets at different times of the year. 
And here's another that shows how the light hits the earth. This picture is not quite the equinox, but shows how the amount of day and night is equal in both hemispheres.
And here's another that shows how the light hits the earth. This picture is not quite the equinox, but shows how the amount of day and night is equal in both hemispheres.
21.9.05
Equinox
The fall or autumnal equinox is approaching. At this point the length of the day equals the night for every location in the world. After this point the night will become longer than the day in the northern hemisphere and the opposite will occur in the southern hemisphere. Many cultures who are/were more in touch with the planet than we are regard this event as one of four important celebrations that mark the passage of the year. The others include the vernal equinox and the summer and winter solstices (the longests and shortest days of the year respectively, in the northern hemisphere).
Another important aspect of this time of year is that the sun rises exactly in the east and sets exactly in the west. Just in case you're lost in the woods right now.
The mayans created one of their temples in such a way that at the exact time of the equinox the shadow looks like a snake crawling down the steps. When it reaches the bottom the shawdow connects to a large serpent head.
So, the actually date of the equinox is Sept. 22, 2005, 6:23 P.M. EDT, but the conditions can be observed already and should last until Sept.25th. So get out there and celebrate.
Some Links:
Mayan Calendar Information (it's more exact than ours!)
Another important aspect of this time of year is that the sun rises exactly in the east and sets exactly in the west. Just in case you're lost in the woods right now.
The mayans created one of their temples in such a way that at the exact time of the equinox the shadow looks like a snake crawling down the steps. When it reaches the bottom the shawdow connects to a large serpent head.
So, the actually date of the equinox is Sept. 22, 2005, 6:23 P.M. EDT, but the conditions can be observed already and should last until Sept.25th. So get out there and celebrate.
Some Links:
Mayan Calendar Information (it's more exact than ours!)
Plants vs. Pills
Both plants and pills contain chemicals capable of altering human consciousness. Since the beginning of time foreign substances have been taken by humans to stimulate the mind and body, to reduce pain and to gain a higher spiritual consciousness.
It is my objective to prove to you the superiority of plants over manufactured pills. Let's look at 3 categories (Stimulants, Pain Killers and Psychodelics). The clearest advantage to plants is safety. The second clear advantage is their potency and effects. The amount of human research put into plants far succeeds that of manufactured drugs. Let's compare some dates.
MDMA (Extascy) was invented in 1898, now compare that to the peyote cactus (Lophophora williamsii) who's use dates back to 1000 BCE. That means Peyote has been cultivated and manipulated by humans for over 3000 years. To me a plant which outdates the bible not only confirms its superiority but also encourages its use. Which would you trust more a substance humans have know about for 107 years or a plant humans have used for 3000 years?
In the field of pain killers we can compare opium against codeine (a derivative of opium that is commonly synthesized). Codeine was first isolated from the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) in 1832, where as the use of opium dates back to 1300 BCE. We can only assume that throughout the 3300 years of opium use that the plant was altered to heighten and maximize its effects. The has been few modifications to codeine in the last hundred years, only the combination of it with other drugs (ie. Tylenol w/ codeine).
Lastly, the isolation of caffeine into pill form is a relatively recent phenomenon. Where as scientists believe the use of caffeine containing plants dates back to 600,000 BCE. In addition to this we know for sure that yerba mate was used in South America since at least 1500, as well as the coca leaf (non caffeine containing) which dates back to 3000BCE.
The superiority of coca leaves and yerba mate is that they contain copious amounts of vitamins, amino acids, fiber and minerals. The nutrition content of these plants is so great that they are superior to foods which we deem as nutrient rich. It would be entirely feasible and healthy to survive on coca tea or yerba mate alone.
In the case of peyote we see a bouquet of alkaloids. The cactus contains over 50 active alkaloids. Some of these alkaloids are inactive alone but when taken in combination produce effects which are literally “mind blowing” to modern scientists. Most of the alkaloids show similar chemical structures with slight variations. Some of these alkaloids are mescaline, tyramine, mordenine, dopamine and N-methyldopamine. A great analogy for this bouquet of alkaloids would be a set of analogous colours as seen below. Each alkaloid is different but fits together in a analogous set.
It is my objective to prove to you the superiority of plants over manufactured pills. Let's look at 3 categories (Stimulants, Pain Killers and Psychodelics). The clearest advantage to plants is safety. The second clear advantage is their potency and effects. The amount of human research put into plants far succeeds that of manufactured drugs. Let's compare some dates.
MDMA (Extascy) was invented in 1898, now compare that to the peyote cactus (Lophophora williamsii) who's use dates back to 1000 BCE. That means Peyote has been cultivated and manipulated by humans for over 3000 years. To me a plant which outdates the bible not only confirms its superiority but also encourages its use. Which would you trust more a substance humans have know about for 107 years or a plant humans have used for 3000 years?
In the field of pain killers we can compare opium against codeine (a derivative of opium that is commonly synthesized). Codeine was first isolated from the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) in 1832, where as the use of opium dates back to 1300 BCE. We can only assume that throughout the 3300 years of opium use that the plant was altered to heighten and maximize its effects. The has been few modifications to codeine in the last hundred years, only the combination of it with other drugs (ie. Tylenol w/ codeine).
Lastly, the isolation of caffeine into pill form is a relatively recent phenomenon. Where as scientists believe the use of caffeine containing plants dates back to 600,000 BCE. In addition to this we know for sure that yerba mate was used in South America since at least 1500, as well as the coca leaf (non caffeine containing) which dates back to 3000BCE.
The superiority of coca leaves and yerba mate is that they contain copious amounts of vitamins, amino acids, fiber and minerals. The nutrition content of these plants is so great that they are superior to foods which we deem as nutrient rich. It would be entirely feasible and healthy to survive on coca tea or yerba mate alone.
In the case of peyote we see a bouquet of alkaloids. The cactus contains over 50 active alkaloids. Some of these alkaloids are inactive alone but when taken in combination produce effects which are literally “mind blowing” to modern scientists. Most of the alkaloids show similar chemical structures with slight variations. Some of these alkaloids are mescaline, tyramine, mordenine, dopamine and N-methyldopamine. A great analogy for this bouquet of alkaloids would be a set of analogous colours as seen below. Each alkaloid is different but fits together in a analogous set.
Where as a synthetic chemical such as MDMA would comprise of only active chemical constitute and therefore could be seen as just one colour.
We can also compare this concept to a musical note. A computer can synthesize the musical note of A at 440hertz with precision, but this computer generated note instills little emotion. Where as an acoustic guitar or any other musical instrument for that matter will produce several frequencies which by themselves do not sound like A, although in combination produce a A note of 440hertz. The richness of this particular note induces a far greater feeling of emotion than that of the computer synthesized version.
This same concept applies to opium which contains more than 6 active alkaloids including morphine, codeine, thebaine, papaverine, narcotine and narceine. In combination these alkaloiods produce a pain killing effect far stronger and reliable than manufactured versions.
As a last note we can see plants as gifts from god, the creator, the sun or whatever you believe in. Considering a peyote cactus produces an active dose every 5 years, the sheer rarity and biological chance of such an event outweighs anything you even imagine of manufacturing. If you happen to have to have an encounter with a peyote cactus consider yourself extremely lucky.
Assinar:
Comentários (Atom)