[compost_tea] New Invention, natives and mildew

From: Ted Peterson <ted.peterson_at_tcsn.net>
Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2004 17:03:45 -0800

Dave et al.

I usually do clip my responses but forgot to in this case. I will do nothi=
ng. I will use worm castings whenever I want and advertise them as being a=
ble to control fungi with no worry that Mr. Hahn will do anything to exerci=
se his claim.

Software is different and rights to the software are protected. A signific=
ant amount of intellectual activity goes into software development. I will =
give you an example: Software is developed, in most cases, using language c=
ompilers. This is a program that intreprets the lines of code and builds a=
n application or starts a machine or takes a reading. I have developed a w=
hole monitoring process for composting using C++ and Visual Basic. Now, th=
e compilers I use are from Microsoft although I have used an older Borland =
compiler for part of the programming. If Hahn's claim holds true, anyone w=
ho develops using the compilers will not own the rights to the software the=
y developed. In addition, what Hahn is trying to do is paramount to trying=
 to patent the "idea" of comiling languages. This is far too broad of a de=
finition to allow a patent. What he probably has is a patent pending which=
 anyone can get. I have several for aerators for my brewers. But I can't =
patent the "idea" of aeration.

Now, processes can be patented if they represent a unique way of creating s=
omething that has never been in existence before. I have a copyrighted pro=
cess called BOA (Bioactive Organic Amendment). Which is a process I licens=
e to create a product along certain lines. I sell the technology (process)=
 and people can use it however they want. But I developed the process afte=
r a lot of experimentation and work. I have tests and controls and can pro=
ve that my process makes a difference that is substantive enough to be of v=
alue. In other words, it could not possibly occur naturally. It isn't lik=
e Hahn's claim that he found another use for worm castings because worm cas=
ting occur under normal circumstances whether the worms are contained or no=
t.

Now, if he found a way to take the worm castings and process them to produc=
e an extract that showed some type of pesticide properties that would not n=
ormally be a part of nature, that would be patentable. The process could b=
e copyrighted and the end product could be patented.

What he is purporting is similar to patenting that dog poop attracts flies =
and that it can be used as an attractor in an electronic fly killer. So an=
y dog that poops is in violation of his patent.

However, on to compost tea. I have been working with the land concervancy =
here and applying tea to natives. I mentioned this before because it takes=
 a special type of compost and native California scrub has a very low toler=
ance for nitrogen. To date, we have been successful. I have also been wor=
king with a compost and tea that can be used to combat Scrub Oak root rot. =
 I am using the concept of competition to load the ground with beneficial f=
ungi so the pathogenic fungi are outcompeted. I have five test areas and t=
wo controls in different microclimates. I just sent my second set of tests=
 off but I don't think I will have anything really definitive until Spring.=
  I'll report as the experiments keep moving forward.

Someone also asked why I didn't believe them when they mentioned there were=
 different strains of mildew. I never said I didn't believe them I just st=
ated that the wine growers here use roses as in indicator. When I asked th=
em, they said that the roses get mildew before the grapes. Nobody said any=
thing about different strains that attack roses and grape vines.

No, I do not use clay in my tea. If you take a look at my web page at www.=
earth-wise.com you will see basic recipes I use. I do, however, use granit=
e in my tea and I have a powerded form that I use. I still think that simp=
licity is the best and my goal is to create an environment in my brewer tha=
t favors aerobic bacteria and fungi found in my compost so that I get good =
multiples and the diversity I create in my compost. I have tested all kind=
s of things: Aloe, yucca, agave, plum, peach, grape pumice and about a hund=
red different additives and have found that the simpler I keep the recipe, =
the greater success I have wrangling the critters.

I think that using all kinds of additives and non-local material doesn't do=
 much for sustainability in your local area. I have come to believe, throu=
gh experimentation, that the more I can accentuate my local bugs, the bette=
r for the plants. The one exception seems to be VAMs. It appears they wor=
k regardless and are a great addition to tea.

Ted Peterson
EW/SOE







Received on Sat Nov 06 2004 - 21:18:42 EST

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