Gaia Herbs Farm Tour In partnership with OGS, July 2019 Regenerative Farming Practices Farming by the Numbers Top Herbs on the Gaia Farm

• Wild Oat Milky (Avena sativa) Seed • Use: Nervine, adrenal health, nutritive, cardiotonic • Planting: Direct seed in early spring • Harvest: Mid summer • Echinacea Purpurea Root & Tops • Use: Immune health, inflammatory health, antioxidant • Planting: Seedlings planted in late spring • Harvest: Roots harvested in fall of 2nd year; tops harvested in late spring and summer • Holy Basil (Ociumum sanctum) Leaf & Flower • Use: Adaptogen, adrenal health, immune health • Planting: Plant seedlings in spring • Harvest: Late summer when in flowering stage Top Herbs on the Gaia Farm

• Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) Root • Use: Adaptogen, tonic, nervine, thyroid health, fertility health • Planting: Seedlings planted in late spring • Harvest: Roots harvested in fall after 1st year • Lemon Balm (Melissa officianalis) Leaf • Use: Nervine, known as the “happy herb,” antioxidant, inflammatory health • Planting: Seedlings planted in spring • Harvest: Multiple cuts throughout the summer, beginning in late June and continuing to frost • Valerian (Valeriana officinalis) Root • Use: Sedative, nervine • Planting: • Harvest: Roots harvested in mid to late summer of 2nd year Echinacea Seasonal Variations Soil Health: Research

Plant microbial diversity is suggested as the key to future biocontrol and health trends

Gabriele Berg Martina Köberl Daria Rybakova Henry Müller Rita GroschKornelia Smalla

FEMS Microbiology Ecology, Volume 93, Issue 5, 1 May 2017, fix050,https://doi.org/10.1093/femsec/fix050 Soil Health: Soil Nutrient Recipe

Amounts are in KG for a huge batch mixed in a 1,000 liter tank, but the ratio can be adjusted. Smaller scale application can be used in any kind of Ag Sprayer and applied once a year in mid to late summer. Developed by Gaia’s Farm Operations Manager in Costa Rica, Luis Iglesias

• Organic Oat Bran: 20 kg • Organic Powdered Rice Husk: 20 kg • Organic Molasses (unsulfured): 10 kg • Organic Tapioca Starch: 20 kg • Organic 100% pure Apple Juice: (L) 10 • Organic Dexrin, maltodextrin or fructose: 10 kg • Organic Psyllium: 2 kg Rosman Hwy Island Hwy 64 Cathey’s Ford Road Creek

25

Gaia Facility Start Gate Farmhouse 24 Ginkgo Lane 0.3 mi from Start to Bridge

2 Bee Hives

23 3 1

Nettle Ramble 0.45 mi from Gate to Bridge 20

Greenhouse Bridge 19

Bathrooms 2018 Hoop FARM MAP 22 Frames

21 1 House Field 17 2 Ginkgo Trees 18 3 Hawthorne Trees 4 4 Barn Field Passionflower, Echinacea 5 angustifolia, Vegetables, Cathey’s Echinacea purpurea, Creek Parlsey, Lemon Balm & 16 Astragalus 5 East Field 6 Nettle, Feverfew, Chinese 9 Skullcap & Vervain 7 6 Middle 1 Echinacea purpurea 7 Middle 2 Chinese Skullcap, Gotu 8 Kola & California Poppy 8 Middle 3 Echinacea purpurea, Echinacea 15 Way Gotu Kola & Grindelia 11 10 9 Bamboo Field 14 Oats 10 Bamboo 2 Holy Basil 19 West 1 11 Eight Acres Valerian Ashwagandha 20 Woods 3 12 River Bottom Oats, Echinacea End Echinacea Purpurea purpurea, American & Vegetables Skullcap & Vegetables 13 21 Woods 1 13 West 5 12 Holy Basil Echinacea angustifolia 14 West 4 & Holy Basil Holy Basil 22 Woods 2 15 West 3 Valerian Echinacea Purpurea 23 Cathy’s Creek Field 16 West 2 Vervain Valerian 24 Compost Field 17 West 2 Upper French Echinacea angustifolia Broad River Ashwagandha & Feverfew 18 West 2 Annex 25 Compost Annex Valerian Echinacea angustifolia 2017 Western North Carolina Ashwagandha – Small Scale Production Results

WNC Medicinal Herb Growers Club Report written by Gwen Casebeer and Margaret Bloomquist Department of Horticultural Science, North Carolina State University January 2018

On June 27th, 2017 2,000 Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) seedlings were donated by Gaia Herbs Inc. to the WNC Medicinal Herb Grower’s Club as part of their farmer outreach initiative. Nineteen local growers each received between 10 to 200 plants to grow as an annual on their farms or in their gardens in the mountains of western North Carolina. A survey was administered in December 2017 to those who received the Ashwagandha plants. Raw data are presented from thirteen respondents and results are observational.

Ashwagandha were transplanted on July 1-31, 2017. Most growers used 12 inch spacing between plants, while 40% of growers planted more densely (< 12 inches between plants). Soil types ranged from clay to loam to sandy loam.

Soil Types

8%

Clay 33% 25% Loam Sandy Loam High Organic Matter Other 17% 17%

Figure 1. Soil types. 2017 Ashwagandha Small Grower Survey. Raw data averages. Seventy-five percent of the growers planted the Ashwagandha in full sun, while 17% grew it in partial shade. Furthermore, 83% of the growers applied compost to their plots. Additional fertilizers were used by 33% of growers.

Figure 2. Asheville Grower Kelly Lockamy with Ashwagandha, Cedar Springs Farm, Candler, NC. Source: Kelly Lockamy. To control weeds, all growers used mechanical removal. In addition to mechanical suppression, 67% of growers applied mulch. Irrigation was used sparingly, and most growers watered Ashwagandha lightly throughout the summer.

Irrigation

Irrigated as No irrigation or needed watering 17% 25%

Light watering 58%

Figure 3. Irrigation method. 2017 Ashwagandha Small Grower Survey. Average raw data. The growers reported having difficulty with flea beetles in the past. But in 2017, 92% of growers in this group reported no problems with any pests. Furthermore, none of the growers applied pesticides nor removed pests by hand. A portion of the growers employed companion planting, crop rotation, and/or integrated pest management to mitigate pest pressure. Crop Management Strategies Applied 25%

20%

15%

10%

5%

0% Companion Planting Crop Rotation Integrated Pest Management

Figure 4. Crop management. 2017 Ashwagandha Small Growers Survey. Average raw data.

Figure 5. 2017 Ashwagandha companion planting and IPM, at Cedar Springs Farm Source: Kelly Lockamy. Seventy-five percent of the growers harvested the Ashwagandha in mid to late October. The first frost was predicted to occur around October 15, 2017. The first hard frost actually occurred the third week in October. After first hard frost Harvest Date 11%

After first frost 22% Before frost 67%

Figure 6. Harvest dates. 2017 Ashwagandha Small Growers Survey. Raw data averages.

Figure 7. Jay Englebach of Black Trumpet Farm, Leicester, NC. September 2017. Source: G. Casebeer.

Figure 8. Raised bed grown Ashwagandha 2017. Source: Frank Dapkus. The majority of growers harvested the roots and berries. About a quarter of the growers also saved seed from the Ashwagandha plants.

Portion of Plant Harvested Stems 5%

Seed Roots 23% 36%

Berries 27% Leaves 9%

Figure 9. Harvested plant portion. 2017 Ashwagandha Small Growers Survey. Raw data averages.

Figure 10. Helper kitties monitor harvest and data collection. Source: Gwen Casebeer 2017.

Figure 11. Ashwagandha roots at harvest. October 2017. Source: Frank Dapkus Yield data did not provide any meaningful information because of differences in number of plants grown by individual growers and small sample sizes, yet all growers noted that these plants produced substantial aboveground biomass. Most mature plants reached 2.5 to 3 feet in height. Good results were achieved in deeper beds with high organic matter and 12 inch in-row spacing.

All participants washed, dried, and cut the Ashwagandha roots for processing. Approximately one-third of the growers also washed and dried stems, leaves, and berries. Furthermore, 44% of the growers created value-added products in the form of tincture from the dry Ashwagandha roots.

Eighty-three percent of the western North Carolina growers surveyed had not worked with Ashwagandha before, yet all thirteen growers reported that they would like to grow it again!