Natural Technologies Inc. www.naturaltechinc.com
Bee Safe
Dealership Applications Manual
Dear New Dealer,
I would first like to congratulate you on taking a huge step in not only growing your business but in being a leader in a truly important environmental cause. If you’ve come this far there is no doubt you are a successful business person AND a successful steward of the environment.
Whether you are just now introducing a lawn care program to your customers, you’re transitioning your chemical customers or you’ve already worked diligently to implement organic strategies you must understand and commit to the implementation of this philosophy on a daily basis.
“Organic lawn care is the process of creating healthy turf by employing the use of natural inputs to build organic matter in the soil.”
Of course this is a very open ended definition. Naturally we all have our own thoughts on how organic lawn care should be defined and at this point there are no official standards in the industry. In the end, we all want to reduce and eliminate the use of chemical fertilizers and dangerous pesticides and the most efficient and effective way to do that is to focus on soil improvement. When the soil from which turf grows is healthy so will the plants that grow from it be healthy.
A conventional approach to lawn care relies specifically on using synthetic fertilizers to push un-natural growth and applying chemical pesticides to contend with the problems that are created by that un-natural process.
Organic lawn care relies heavily on natures own defense mechanisms to ensure that plants are not impacted negatively by invaders such as weeds, insects and disease. Once you’ve begun to maintain a healthy and natural soil environment you must depend on proper mowing and watering habits. As soil biology is improved we must commit to never going back to destroying it again. Discontinuing the use of synthetic fertilizers and dangerous pesticides is the first step in improving your soil. In order to take the organic approach to the next level it makes sense to have a basic understanding of what soil actually is. Having a firm understanding of the soil food web is of the utmost importance.
Being a successful organic turf manager is all about reducing and eliminating turf grass stresses. These stresses can be environmental; meaning heat or drought. They can be physical; such as compaction as a result of foot traffic or equipment use or they can be agronomic such as pests that may include weeds, insects or disease. The tricky part is that almost all of these issues are completely out of your control. Your greatest challenge will be about setting proper expectations and conveying a confident message of education and knowledge.
The following handbook is designed to give you a general understanding of everything that goes along with being a successful NTI dealer. We wish you the best in your pursuit and hope to be able to help you grow your business to heights you never thought possible.
Sincerely Yours,
Tom Kelly
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. WHAT MAKES OUR PROGRAM DIFFERENT P. 4
2. THE BEE SAFE FIVE PRONGED APPROACH P. 7
1. Bio-Nutrition
2. Natural Sources Of Macro And Micro Nutrients
3. Use Of Bio-Stimulants
4. Chemical Free Pest Management
5. Information And Education
3. THE BEE SAFE ORGANIC LAWN MANAGEMENT PROGRAM P. 9
4. SUPPLEMENTAL SERVICES P. 26
5. THE PRODUCTS (BEE SAFE) P. 28
6. EQUIPMENT P. 41
7. COMMERCIAL COST COMPARISON P. 45
8. PROPER BUSINESS PRACTICES AND FORECASTING P. 48
9. LETTERS TO YOUR CUSTOMERS P. 51
10. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS P. 53
1. WHAT MAKES OUR PROGRAM DIFFERENT
Over the years organic and natural horticultural products have received a bad rap. Critics have cited limited effectiveness as the primary impediment to mainstream acceptance. By and large the problem with organic and natural products to date has been they did not address soil biology. Ever since “Organic” became fashionable in the lawn care industry many companies have attempted and failed to implement a legitimate organic lawn care program. This was mainly because of the belief that one could simply substitute natural fertilizers for synthetic fertilizers and stop spraying weeds and treating for insects. The transition to a truly chemical free approach is far more than just a product substitution.
The Bee Safe program addresses soil biology thereby providing your company with a competitive advantage over “traditional organic products!” We believe that successful “organic plant management” begins and ends with soil biology! In order for plants to thrive in the face of environmental extremes the soil profile supporting that plant must contain a diverse population of beneficial soil microorganisms.
These microscopic wonders are “nature’s life support system.” They improve nutrient availability, enhance nutrient absorption, reduce the incidence of nutrient leaching, stimulate healthy plant growth, improve the soil structure and provide plants with increased resistance to environmental extremes such as drought, heat, cold and foot traffic. Attempting to implement an organic program without addressing soil biology is a recipe for disaster……….you must feed the soil!
Bee Safe is dedicated to formulating and manufacturing effective environmentally responsible products that address soil biology. You will find that our products are different than any other product on the market because of our philosophy proper and sufficient plant nutrition and resistance to weeds, insects and diseases exists when a healthy soil food web is purposely created.
Our products feed the soil through the introduction of select beneficial microbial species allowing them to facilitate the natural processes inherent to healthy plant growth. We blend a diverse array of beneficial soil microorganisms with natural plant extracts and organic nutrients to create microbial systems. These natural systems simultaneously feed the soil and the plant, which allows plants to grow to their full genetic potential.
Over the last 500 million years plants and beneficial soil microorganisms have developed a symbiotic relationship. When plants photosynthesize they release carbon exudates into the soil (rhizosphere) in response to this beneficial microbes surround the root to sequester this carbon source and utilize it as a food source. In return the microorganisms protect the roots, nourish the plant, recycle nutrients, improve the surrounding soil structure and solubilize minerals for plant availability. Unfortunately today many soils are grossly out of balance and are virtually devoid of beneficial microbial populations. This is primarily due to an over reliance on pesticides and poor cultural practices, both of which adversely affect the beneficial microbial populations found in healthy soil.
In response to this phenomenon Bee Safe has formulated a series of biologically enhanced soil conditioners and fertilizers, which work to re-establish beneficial microbial populations in the soil profile. Each product contains a select consortium of highly beneficial soil microorganisms. These biologically enhanced products simultaneously feed the soil and the plant. They create the ideal soil environment for growth allowing plants to develop to their full genetic potential.
The Bee Safe line of products is manufactured utilizing a unique, technology driven production process and are completely different than any other turf care line available today. All formulations benefit from the addition of a select consortium of highly beneficial soil microorganisms. The complex plant proteins that comprise these products are not readily available to plants they must undergo microbial decomposition before they can be readily absorbed and utilized by the plant. The microbial system incorporated into each fertilizer serves to expedite this decomposition process, which in turn begins making the nutrients plant available in as little as three to five days. This is the main reason that many other attempts at an organic lawn care program have failed. Yes, natural fertilizers are a viable source of food for the turf but because these products depend on the indigenous microbial populations of the soil to break them down and activate the growing process it can take many weeks to see results. This also means that these products must be applied at extremely heavy rates to be effective essentially making an affordable organic program virtually unattainable.
The soil matrix contains many naturally occurring substrates such as calcium phosphate, which is rich in calcium AND phosphate but these potential nutrients are not readily available to the plant. Many of the microbial species found in the Bee Safe product blends produce organic acids such as citric acid, oxcalic acid, malic acid and glycolic acid. Over time these acids solubilize a portion of the calcium phosphate dissociating them into calcium and phosphate ions. The end result is more calcium and phosphorous is made available to the plant essentially tapping a nutrient reserve not available under normal circumstances.
Bee Safe also incorporates free-living nitrogen-fixing bacteria into our product blends. These organisms have the capacity to convert di-nitrogen (N2) from the atmosphere into ammonia (NH3) a plant available form of nitrogen. This molecular conversion is mediated by nitrogenase, an enzyme produced by the bacteria. To put nitrogen fixation into perspective roughly 2/3 of the global input of fixed nitrogen arises from biological processes. Independent studies have shown that soils rich in nitrogen fixing bacteria can sequester upwards of 100 lbs. of N per acre per year from this process. This data supports the importance and benefit of incorporating nitrogen-fixing bacteria into fertilizer blends.
The addition of microorganisms also enhances a plants ability to sequester and ultimately absorb vital nutrients. A complex series of biochemical reactions, mediated by microbial metabolites, increases the permeability of the plants cellular membrane, which in turn facilitates nutrient uptake. Tissue analysis has consistently shown that plants fed biologically enhanced fertilizers contain more nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium than plants fed non-biologically enhanced fertilizers with the same N, P, K analysis.
Many of the beneficial species in the Bee Safe blends produce plant growth regulatory compounds, which have the capacity to positively impact plant growth processes. These microbial metabolites stimulate cell division in plants ultimately increasing growth and yield. This biologically induced process coupled with the high quality fertilizer component permits the Bee Safe formula’s to stimulate more growth than their competitors.
The addition of microorganisms, also serves to prolong the fertilizers ability to stimulate growth by reducing the incidence of nutrient leaching. Nitrogen is very mobile in the soil profile and it often leaches passed the roots before they have a chance to absorb it. Soil bacteria will incorporate this free nitrogen into their bodies utilizing it to satiate their metabolic functions. Much of this nitrogen would have been lost forever to the plant through the leaching process had the bacteria not incorporated it into their cell mass and temporarily stored it. This storehouse of nitrogen is then given back to the plant through a complex process known as nutrient mineralization. Nutrient mineralization occurs when protozoa consume soil bacteria in order to satiate their nitrogen & carbon requirements. Soil bacteria contain more N than the protozoa require therefore the protozoa essentially spit this excess nitrogen back into the soil where it is then absorbed by the plant roots.
In short the addition of beneficial soil microorganisms serves to satiate the short term and long term nutritional requirements of the plant. They have the capacity to expedite nutrient availability, facilitate nutrient absorption and to continue providing these nutrients to the plant over an extended period of time.
Bee Safe product blends will also improve the structure of the soil matrix over time by way of its biological component (bacteria, actinomycetes & fungi). Many soil bacteria have the capacity to produce a glue-like substance (polysaccharides), which serves to create micro-aggregates in the soil profile. These micro-aggregates are then wound together and stabilized by fungal and actinomycete hyphae to create macro-aggregates. This biologically induced process improves the soil structure over time increasing porosity and water infiltration as well as the water holding capacity of the soil matrix.
Aside from their ability to positively affect plant nutrition, soil structure and plant growth the microbial systems utilized to augment Bee Safe products afford the plant and soil a number of other quantifiable benefits. They serve to stabilize soil pH, increase humus levels, improve CEC of soil, increase the photosynthetic capacity of the plant, enhance root architecture and provide plants with increased resistance to environmental stress such as heat, cold, drought and foot traffic.
What are the primary philosophical differences between maintaining plants organically and synthetically?
BASIC ORGANIC PHILOSOPHY
ORGANIC / SYNTHETICProactive Program (addresses and corrects underlying problems) / Reactive Program (treat symptoms, does not address underlying cause of problem)
Slow Release Nutrients (spoon feed) / Fast Release Nutrients (force feed)
Soil is fed & nurtured / Soil simply holds plant upright
Soil biology is key to success / Rotation of pesticides is key to success
Problems faced are manifestations of nature / Problems faced are self inflicted wounds
Allows plants to grow to full genetic potential / Pushes plants beyond genetic capacity
Strategy is to promote controlled growth, improve soil biology & strengthen plant / Strategy is to push excessive growth and control problems with pesticides
BASIC ORGANIC STRATEGIES
Plant Nutrition / Maintain and promote healthy soil biology, slow release fertilizers, kelp, return clippings (no it does not promote thatch), maintain proper pHWeed Control / Maintain and promote healthy soil biology, corn gluten, calcium, calcium to magnesium ratio, cut lawn @ 3”, choke out weeds with healthy turf
Insect Control / Maintain and promote soil biology, slow release fertilizers, neem, soaps, oils, kelp, calcium , beneficial insects, IPM monitoring
Disease Control / Maintain and promote soil biology, slow release nutrients, kelp, calcium, potassium, humic acid, watering habits, cultural practices
Did you notice that “soil biology” is mentioned in each strategy?
2. THE BEE SAFE FIVE PRONGED APPROACH
Introducing a program with organic inputs is not enough. You must consider all aspects of natural turf care.
1. Bio-nutrition
This includes the use of biologically active components to stimulate the soil food web. The key concept in bio-nutrition is nutrient cycling. At optimum levels of soil biology as much as 2.5 lbs of Nitrogen can be made available on a monthly basis.