This sounds more and more like "snake oil" the more I read about it. It is supposed to do many things from enhancing plant growth so the plants will produce more and better fruit to delaying ripening so the fruits appear better. I've been reading about gibberilic acid for 20 years now and have seen nothing that has convinced me that a spray has much real use in the garden.

oosul, to answer your question....when used according to the directions, this plant hormone is safe to use. There is considerable ongoing discussions and research about the reasons for using this product on tomatoes. I wouldn't dismiss it as snake oil.

I have noticed the younger generation (mostly and this is a generalization) has come up with a lot of chemicals that are "organic". I must be getting old... why can't we grow vegetables without fancy organic chemicals? I have grown tomatoes for years without fancy chemicals, and I know that for a hundred years or so no one used them... what's the need?

Shucks, even some old timers like the challenge and excitement of trying something new. And a hundred years ago, garden sheds might have been stuffed with some pretty terrible chemicals! The new organic chemicals aren't fancy, typically, but breathtakingly simple.

But, many of us have learned that the more you rely on ANY kind of chemical control, the more you will be locked into using it.

Where are you getting gibberelic [sic] acid, you mean gibberellic acid, I think?

I have been wanting to experiment with it on a house plant that is stubborn and I can't find it anymore so I wondered where you found the stuff.

Well, like I was thinking, instead of using a chemical to make tomatoes bear more fruit in the heat, which is what I am guessing oosul wanted... why doesn't that person just plant them earlier in the year? I have to grow broccoli in the winter... it'd not be happy in the summer where I live... I dunno... what with the all the arguement of what is "organic food" I just don't see using storebought "organic" chemicals to be any different... what if down the line, some years hence, gibberellic acid is found to cause birth defects or cancer or something...

I have judged the botany category in our local big time science fair for two decades now. Not very often but sometimes someone will do an experiment with GA. Virtually all of these experiments use the GA as a gas in a terrarium. The last one I judged went on to win first or second at the international science fair and was by far the best science fair project I've ever seen (in botany). The guy pretty much proved that GA gas activated a gene in the tomato plant which can fight off disease including the tobacco mosaic virus. Yes, he used DNA analysis to determine which genes were active and when. There was a lot more to this project, and taken as a whole, this kid's work was new to science.

According to one website on the subject, Giberillic acid for agricultural use is derived from fungus grown in huge culture vats.... Because itÂs organic, itÂs not dangerous like powerful acids, such as hydrochloric acid. Well, cobra venom is organic, too. I don't necessarily use everything that is organic.

heathen1, your point is a very good one. There are many 'organic' chemicals that are outright dangerous.

"Well, cobra venom is organic, too. I don't necessarily use everything that is organic. "

I use that line all the time. Uranium and rattlesnake poison- I usually say.

Nearly 100% of all commercial seedless table grapes are grown using several applications of gibberelic acid. Wine grapes benefit as well. It is used to thin the clusters, elongate and increase berry (grape) size.

I bought some "Pro Gibb 4%" Gibberellic Acid from my local Fruit Growers Supply Store (owned by Sunkist.) It was around $25 for 20 ounces. Sounds expensive, but the application rate is such that the bottle may last me a lifetime (if it doesn't go bad / expire first.

It is applied at a rate of "ounces per acre." I use half an eye-dropper full in 16 ounces of water, and that may really be too much.

From the label this example, "Thompson Seedles Grapes:" "Stretch" or "Thinning" 8 to 16 ounces per acre. "Sizing" 32 to 80 ounces per acre.

Yes, it is organic and plants produce it naturally, just not typically as much or in as high a concentration.

It also has uses in citrus, cherries and many other fruit / vegitable crops. Before you consider using it, do some research on the internet. One place to look is "Abbott Laboratories (a producer of GA.) It has different effects for various crops and timing of application is important as well.

Example: It is used to cause Lettuce to Bolt / go to Seed / produce seed. If you want to avoid that with your lettuce, be aware of this, plus a little overspray could adversely affect other adjacent crops. Another use is for non-bearing fruit trees to suppress flowering / fruit production.

If you need something like this to grow plants then you need to dig into your soil and find out what the problem is. If you havea good, healthy soil this, and any other "stuff" like it will do nothing for your plants that your soil will not already have done and these "boosters" will simply be a waste of your money.
Concentrate on the basics of organic growing and make your soil into a good, healthy soil that will grow strong, healthy plants.

Here's another old gardener's two cents on this. There seems to be two groups in OG. One enjoys primarily the traditional organic growing, ie. it's the soil. Others enjoy getting the most food out of their OG and that goes beyond "it's the soil". I lean towards the second. I think a good case can be made that although this second group uses traditional organics for it base it is not traditional organic. BUt it may be the future of organic growing. So I'm glad there are folks out there trying things like gibberellic acid. GA supplies and literature are availabale through JL Hudson, Seedsman. Tom

Time to clear up some misconceptions. Gibberelic acid (GA) is not a chemical; instead, it is one of several naturally occurring hormones found in most plants. Plants use these naturally occurring hormones to regulate growth, initiate growth, trigger flower bud formation, or facilitate rapid growth of tissue to cover wounds. Some plants manufacture more hormones than others do. These hormones include auxins, such as indole-3-acetic acid (or IAA), indolebutyric acid (IBA),or napththaleneacetic acid (NAA). Auxins promotes stem elongation, root formation, flower bud initiation. Cytokininis usually promote plant tissues to change forms when necessary (i.e. epidermal cells into root cells). Most plants that will root readily in water usually contain loads of Auxins, willows and coleus come to mind.

Many of these hormones were discovered in the late Â30Âs and have been in used ever since to help propagate plants and trigger fruit formation in trees. For instance, some fruit trees tend to bear only every other year. By using various auxins or GAs, fruit trees can be made to bear a crop every year. Naturally occurring plant hormones are allowed under the USDAÂs NOP regulations. However, it is an expensive affair to concentrate naturally occurring plant hormones. Genetic engineering solved the problem by inserting genes for these hormones into bacteria, then fermenting them in vats as dchall correctly described. What is not allowed in the organic regs is using any material that has been genetically engineered. Therefore, it is OK to use the naturally occurring hormones, but not the "synthetic" ones. Peace Valley Growers Supply might have naturally occurring hormones. One note of interest is that the notorious chemical Alar was a synthetically formulated hormone that was designed to interfere with GAs so apple would color-up quickly.