Yilan young farmer creates low-nitrate cultivation method that can trigger plant immunity

General News Jan 1, 1970By Emily Carter 0 views

Many people love to drink alcohol, but did you know that tomatoes can drink too? Yilan farmer Yang Wenzhi returned home to farm nine years ago and created his own low-nitrate cultivation method, using whiskey distillers' grains (the nutrients left after the brewing ingredients are converted into alcohol) as fertilizer, plus his own self-invented water-retention technique. Not only does this reduce the nitrate content of vegetables and fruit, he also uses a proprietary formula to trigger the plants' own pheromones and fight off late blight, known as tomato cancer. The harvest period lasts as long as half a year, and the tomatoes taste both tart and sweet, bursting with juice at the first bite, cultivating many loyal fans.

Yang Wenzhi's self-created distillers' grain tomatoes can still self-repair even after suffering bird damage and pest and disease damage

Yang Wenzhi grows more than 30 kinds of vegetables and fruits, all with homemade fertilizer

Sun exposure reduces nitrate

To reduce nitrate, harvest timing cannot be sloppy either. Because plants absorb nitrate at night and convert it into protein through photosynthesis during the day, Yang Wenzhi harvests 2 to 3 hours after the sun comes out, adjusting according to the day's weather. For example, in spring and summer when there is more sunlight, he harvests from about 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.; in autumn and winter he delays by one hour; and on rainy days he harvests after 10 a.m., letting the plants get more sun and fully break down nitrate.

Yang Wenzhi suggests that if consumers worry about excessive nitrate, they should eat vegetables and fruit while fresh. He once tested this himself: a fresh green garlic shoot originally had only just over 100 ppm of nitrate, but after being left for 8 days it soared to 2,600 ppm.

He believes Taiwan should face up to the problem of excessive nitrate. The European Union stipulates that a 60 kg adult can eat only just over 200 ppm of nitrate per day. If the nitrate content of vegetables and fruit reaches 5,000 ppm, an adult weighing 60 kg would exceed the basic daily intake by eating just 44 grams (1 to 2 bites of vegetables).

In addition, consumers should also make sure to cook vegetables until fully done, which can reduce nitrate by about 70 to 80 percent; if not fully cooked, it can be reduced by only 30 to 40 percent.

(This article was funded by the Jianzhen Environmental Education Foundation for personnel expenses, but it does not interfere at all with news topic selection or interview writing, ensuring news independence.)

Yilan young farmer creates low-nitrate cultivation method that can trigger plant immunity

Sun exposure reduces nitrate

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