Maintain Your Grain
sample and note the precise weight of
the material. Then bake the sample in
the oven at a very high heat for a few
hours. Measure the weight of the sample
again, directly out of the
oven—avoid waiting too
long after taking the plant
material out because it can
actually reabsorb moisture
and throw off your calculation. Finally, for the calculation, subtract the smaller
weight from the larger weight.
This number is then divided by
the original larger weight. The
result will give you the moisture
content of your original sample.
Keep in mind the more accurate
your measurement, the more
accurate your moisture content
calculation will be.
The main goal of
processing, regardless of
method, is to extend the
shelf life of a product while
maintaining quality. There
are other types of processing
besides dehydration—the herbal
cultivation industry also uses extraction processing, for instance. Extraction is
achieved by using one of several different
solvents at various temperatures and pressures. Other common types of processing
are freezing, freeze drying and canning.
After cooling and processing are completed you’ll have to consider storage
options. There are many variables that
can degrade plant products during storage. Oxygen and other gases influence
degradation the most, along with light,
heat, moisture and pests.Yes, we breathe
it—but oxygen is probably the most destructive molecule on the planet! Several
oxygen radicals are toxic to all living
cells in both plants and animals. One
example is ozone (O3), which we currently use in many sterilization processes.
Other examples of radical oxygen varieties are super oxide and even hydrogen
peroxide, both byproducts of metabolic
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Maximum Yield USA | March 2012
processes. Once you have reached a low
enough water content (less than 15 per
cent) you can store most products safely
in an airtight container so that oxygen
and humidity are excluded and cannot
degrade the commodity. As an added
precaution nitrogen gas can be blown
surface waxes and this can be a problem
because many secondary metabolites are
stored in the surface waxes. A solution
for light degradation can be as simple as
storing the product in opaque containers.
Once your products are in storage
there are still a few more challenges to
address. Moisture can creep
into the smallest imaginable
places and ruin a stored crop.
Simple warming and cooling
can cause condensation, which
will produce just enough
moisture to encourage mold.
Heat is also known to degrade
the structure of all proteins
and the amino acids (the
building blocks of proteins)
that make up plant tissue
are also susceptible. If you
can’t store your harvested crops
in a cold room they should be
at least be stored somewhere
cool, where temperatures never
exceed 75°F.
You should also be aware of the
possibility of pests in any storage
situation—if there is a food source,
pests are adept at finding it. The best
solution is to pay close attention and
not let creatures like rats, roaches or ants
sneak into your storage area while you
are visiting.
Precision growing for production is
very labor-intensive and those who
achieve long-term success deserve an
enormous amount of respect for their
accomplishments. The grower’s work
begins before planting and continues
long after harvest and involves meeting many difficult challenges along the
way to maintain the quality of the final
product for the consumer. Keep this
in mind the next time you select fresh
vegetables or herbs from your local
grocery store—and perhaps you’ll begin
to develop a newfound respect for the
precision grower. And if you are that
grower, pat yourself on the back—we
salute you! MY
"Have you have ever
been told not to put
apples