Brix refractometer

[chancethegardener]

Does anyone have any experience with Brix refractometers to measure melon/watermelon sugar content? I am searching for a good brand but cannot decide which one is better. Also I cannot decide whether I should go with handheld ones or the ones that look like a scale and sit on a platform.

[amideutch]

Here's a link that might help. Ami

http://www.tandjenterprises.com/brix_equals_quality.htm

[chancethegardener]

Thanks, Ami. That link is full of information.

[Doug9345]

Also check companies that deal in maple syrup supplies. When you sell maple sap you get paid on the volume and the Brix.

[chancethegardener]

Thanks Doug, I have been checking out these products:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER

[Dak]

Ami, that link was great, thank you.

Chance, you might check out ebay too. National Industrial Supply, looks like it has a three year warranty, too.

Edited to add: New link, explains features available: http://www.pikeagri.com/images/PDFs/...ractometer.pdf

[edweather]

I grow blueberries, and melons, and a guy who grows tons of fruit recommended a cheap brix refractometer that he said worked great. So I bought one and he was right. Very easy to use and easy to read. Nothing else needed. Buy the $20 one....I did, you'll be happy. What a great toy. You'll be measuring the sugar content of everything.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SUPER-ECONOM...item564a597015

[zeroma]

this may be a stupid question, but that's how I learn. Does this ebay Brix refractometers brand also measure sugar content in tomatoes? Is there any good reason to measure the sugar content in tomatoes?

[kath]

Originally Posted by zeroma

this may be a stupid question, but that's how I learn. Does this ebay Brix refractometers brand also measure sugar content in tomatoes? Is there any good reason to measure the sugar content in tomatoes?

No expert here, but I have an inexpensive one and it'll measure the sugar content of any liquid extracted from any fruit or veggie. Supposedly the higher the brix # the better the quality and taste. Mine came with a brix chart that correlates the brix # of each vegetable/fruit as poor, good, very good, excellent, etc. In the end, your mouth usually can tell you what you need to know about how good a melon tastes, but if you want to grow the best melon of it's type, having a refractometer can tell you if you've succeeded. Higher brix produce is supposed to be more disease resistant and to keep better as well.

kath

[zeroma]

Interesting about the higher brix produce being more disease resistant and keep longer/better - that's interesting. I'm sure if I were a seller, that would be a good thing to know. My mouth really does a good job of knowing if I like it or not. I was just curious. Now I now more than I did a few hours ago. Thank you much kath for info.

[Doug9345]

Originally Posted by zeroma

Interesting about the higher brix produce being more disease resistant and keep longer/better - that's interesting. I'm sure if I were a seller, that would be a good thing to know. My mouth really does a good job of knowing if I like it or not. I was just curious. Now I now more than I did a few hours ago. Thank you much kath for info.

I wonder if it really is the other way around. Maybe a plant that is healthier produces sweeter fruit.

[chancethegardener]

Yes, but if Brix is higher, then the fruit is sweeter, right?

[kath]

Originally Posted by Doug9345

I wonder if it really is the other way around. Maybe a plant that is healthier produces sweeter fruit.

Yes, for sure it's all about creating superior soil capable of producing strong healthy plants and top quality produce- and yes, a higher brix = sweeter fruit.

[clkeiper]

Originally Posted by Doug9345

I wonder if it really is the other way around. Maybe a plant that is healthier produces sweeter fruit.

The healthier the plant AND as long as it has the nutrition needed to support the fruit the better the fruit. We attended a growing conference not long ago for growers and the information given for growing tomatoes with a high brix was very scientific, some of it was way beyond mere gardener results. The plant needs to be fertilized with a variety of fertilizer formulas from the beginning of the plant cycle to the end of the fruiting cycle for the highest brix content possible. A solution of 12-48-8 as a starter formula, The end formula two weeks before the fruit was ripe is an 11-41-8 formula then a 4-10-40 for the last application..... The brix content remains high for two weeks after the fertilized is applied. my eyes and brain were at the end of the session.

We do use these fertilizers (obviously this cannot be used in an organic operation, so please keep that in mind here) and I don't think we have this down to a science , by any stretch of the imagination, I am just adding this for any information you can glean for yourself from what we learned that day.

Here is one of the hand outs from the day:

Balancing Soil to get a HIGH BRIX


Soil test 2-3 years before planting a new field

Always get a full test including pH, N, P, K, plus secondary and minor, organic matter, CEC(cation exchange capacity) and base saturation.

Base saturation:k2.5 to 5.0%, Mg 12-15%, Ca 60-80% and H5 to 10%.



P205 should range from 150-300+lb.,/Acre

Organic Matter.. (I think this was a heading for a topic) The higher the organic matter the better the plant grows

Ph 6.0 to 7.0 best

foliar analysis as needed. (Their recommendation was a lab with a 2 day turn around. Any longer and you have moved way beyond the plants need at the moment for a specific nutrient and have lost the window of opportunity to meet its needs)

Brix high with foliar feeding. (This is done through a spray-on fertilizer along with the drip/irrigation nutrition)

A full range of nutrients NPK secondary and minor elements should be used. Sulfur (ammonium sulfate) could be needed.

Plant extracts can be helpful. Protein, vitamins, carbohydrates.

The brix of a plant is limited by the deficient element.

This was the hand out ...I wish I could remember everything that was said that day. a lot of useful information, but so much I have already lost a few thoughts from the day. I think it took an hour to go over the topics discussed on this paper. Some of this I have totally forgotten....such as the CEC information... and the base saturation...and more. Sorry. You can ask me questions, but I may not remember what I heard that day.

[zeroma]

Thank you thank you thank you. I'll read with a clean , not sleepy Super Bowl Brain in the AM.