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Basically my idea of organic gardening is "don't add chemicals", so I use no poisons, lots of composted horse manure and that's about it. I'm leery of products that claim to be "natural" (like pyrethrins...*l*) so I was wondering if anyone knows of this product, or what you all might think about it. Someone recently sent me a small packet along with a trade. it kinda freaks me out. But I really don't know.
"Messenger is technology developed at Cornell University. The active ingredient is "harpin protein". Harpin proteins are proteins that are secreted by plant pathogenic bacteria. Messenger is a harpin that comes from the bacteria that causes Fireblight in apples. This protein does not cause disease! It simply is a marker and alerts the plant that a pathogen is present...or in the case of Messenger, tricks the plant into thinking a pathogen is present. This causes the plant to initiate its own natural defenses, sort of like a vaccination. It makes the plant far more disease resistant. Interestingly Messenger also causes plants to flower more. I think flowering is a natural reaction of plants to a perceived threat. It is a great biological, non-toxic, way to enhance disease resistance and encourage flowering. I think you wil like it. For more info you can go to http://www.messenger.info"
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