ASHBURTON RECEIVES MICROBIOLOGY RESULTS FOR CANNABIS STUDY, CONFIRMS INITIAL SUCCESS IN DECREASING BACTERIA IN MARIJUANA PLANTS
Ashburton Ventures Inc. has released data obtained from laboratory analysis at MB Labs in Sidney, B.C., of the microbiology of liquid runoff captured from cannabis plants involved in a study of zeolite and carbon in marijuana cultivation.
The data indicated significantly lower concentrations of bacteria, fungi and yeast found in liquid runoff from plants enriched with zeolite and a zeolite-carbon blend, as compared to control samples. The clinoptilolite zeolite used in the study is from the Z1 Mine near Cache Creek, BC, operated jointly by Ashburton Ventures and ZMM Canada Minerals Corp. ZMM Canada supplied the carbon.
"This is a wonderful data set," said biologist and project manager Albert Krasprowicz. "It illustrates how zeolite allows much cleaner cultivation. As growers, we typically use moist substrates and grow a dense canopy, but this invites bacteria that can lead to outbreaks and decreased production. With zeolite or a zeolite-carbon blend, bacteria levels fall dramatically. We anticipate healthier harvests from plants with a reduced bacterial burden."
"Data from control samples were in a completely different range," Krasprowicz noted. "With zeolite and carbon, we see 85% and 90% less of total staph and coliforms. We'll take a larger set of samples next week and if we can replicate these findings, it'll be a game-changer. Everybody's happy with a cleaner substrate and vigorous, resilient plants."
While trends did emerge from the data, Krasprowicz also noted some anomalies. "Dealing with composted coconut fibre, you would expect some data outliers. It's imperative that we collect more data to confirm the overall trend."
Laboratory analysis was performed by MB Labs in Sidney, BC. MB Labs also performed a detailed chemical analysis. Results are due next week.
