Subject: Re: SUPERABSORBENTS IN LANDSCAPE PLANTINGS

From: Petros Liapis <hdivp>
Date: Wed, 9 Aug 1995 19:42:25 GMT

[email-masked] (Ed Armstrong) wrote:
>In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (ABSORBU) wrote:

Mr. Armstrong,

I don't think the superabsorbents you mentioned are environmentally friendly.
When they absorb water, grow enormously in size and raise the ground around
them. That causes serious root damages to the plants, especially shrubs and
young trees. Yet, superabsorbents are good in absorbing water but they DO NOT
release it easily back to the environment, therefore plants do not benefit
greatlly from them. 
In addition, if my information are correct, superabsorbents were developed when
a cosmetics lab created a more "absorbing" tampon for women. Afterwards,
someone had the "brilliant idea" to use them as soil amendment. There is
already in the market (at least in Europe) some kind of of body cream which
claims that it contains "micro-sponges" or "nano-sponges" which hold the cream
and release it slowly to the body. 

To my opinion superabsorbents cause more harm than good to the plants, and it
will be wise to avoid using them. This planet has been polluted enought anyway.

Petros liapis,
Dip. Landscape Architect,
Graduate student in Urban Design,
Univ. of Westminster, UK

---

From: [email-masked] (ABSORBU)
Date: 7 Sep 1995 09:37:58 -0400

Sir, your remarks are unfounded.  In the business world it would be hard
to accumulate over 25 million dollars in business through 300 distributors
nationwide if the product did not work.  

Have an open mind to a material that is proven through extensive use.  I
would be glad to provide you with an 8 page bibliograph on research on
superabsorbents if you like.

I am on this newsgroup to provide the industry with good news, not
unfounded remarks.

Sincerely,

Jim Quinn