View Single Post
  #15   Report Post  
Old 02-09-2006, 09:14 PM posted to rec.gardens.edible
William L. Rose William L. Rose is offline
external usenet poster
 
First recorded activity by GardenBanter: Jul 2006
Posts: 42
Default Do plants absorb toxins from the soil?

Jon,

what, you weren't listening either? Mon Dieu.

I believe this all started with anxiety over transferring toxins from an
oleander to your edible garden. Then there was a bit of contention from
another reader of this group about whether monarch butterflies dine on
milkweed or oleander. They are both members of the milkweed family but
different genera (my bad). This is the problem with being dilettante. I
can already feel my attention and interest drifting away. But before I
dash off to my next bright and shinny preoccupation, let me make one
final observation.

Sadly, natural organic structures (including toxins) degrade into lower
energy compounds or elements. Natural inorganic toxins like arsenic,
lead, mercury, ect., do not because they are already in their lowest
energy state, and as a result they are persistent in the environment.
Don't plant on a "Superfund Site".

Ask questions. If you don't understand the answer, re-phrase the
question. (Maybe it is ignorance on your part or maybe it is just a bad
answer.) Question authority. If people didn't question authority, we
wouldn't have had Copernicus, Galileo, or Newton.

Gut Glück,

- Bill


In article ,
"Jon ChicKen$ M@ster" wrote:

William L. Rose wrote:

Jon,
I have no expertise in this area. All I know is that I'm growing a
garden next to where a pyracantha bush used to be and I am growing
tomatoes, cucumber, and parsely in amongst wild foxgloves and I'm here
to tell the tale.


All this, I think, it's a very good think, I would like to do the same.
Thanks for all your informations. I'm sorry I didn't want to criticize
you, perhaps I only asked too much questions! Really I am very
interested to know what I asked you! :-)

On the other hand, asbestos takes twenty years to
raise it's ugly head in the form of cancer. Life is inherently unsafe.
As long as I get my three score and ten, I will be a happy camper
(yikes! make that four score and ten).

Nature is a battle zone and it is full of disincentives, among them,
toxins. Fortunately, we have a liver whose function it is to protect us
from toxins in our food supply (such as lactating lettuce, and raw
mushrooms). Be prudent, but don't be paranoid.


This a very good advice, perhaps sometimes I'm a little paranoid, but
this answer was only for my uncle that is frequently really paranoid :-)))

I'm an agronomist too, but I don't know very good issues about toxins,
and frequently I ask myself something I don't know, so I decided to post
a message here.
I'm happy to verify my "collegues" are well learned also in scientific
issues, I would like sometimes to talk about them. Then, I hope here
could be a good place for it.

I'm sure that someone, somewhere has the knowledge that you look for.
Pharmaceutical companies have been analysing botanicals for a long time
and these days if they find anything interresting (something they can
make a buck on), they'll patent it. Start with the biology department at
a local college. Teachers usually go beserk when they find someone who
actually wants to learn.



Thanks; as I said befo All this is only for my uncle. He is a doctor
and as lot of them, a little paranoid. I hope what you said before could
be enough for him.

- Bill


Thanks
Jon