Brix levels are what you need to know about if your plants are looking a little wilted. It's the measure of how much sugar is in the plant sap and it can be raised by adding nitrogen rich fertilizer, watering more often, pruning out dead branches or leaves, and removing any weeds that could be taking up water. You'll also want to make sure there is enough potassium in the soil for strong root growth - this will help with drought tolerance.
So what does BRIX stand for? BRIX (symbol °Bx) stands for Balling Relative Intensity Index which is the sugar content of an aqueous solution. This means that if your plants have low BRIX levels then they're not getting enough nutrition from their roots.
Increasing Brix Levels in Plants
The best organic farmers often boast about growing nutrient-dense, high brix plants. But this isn't just a foreign concept to many indoor growers - it's also the key to being healthy in your garden! Brix is an indicator of how much sugar content there is in sap and generally speaking anything over 12% will keep most insects from recognizing any plant as food even if they are full strength beings who can eat whatever they want at anytime without getting sick or tired before tomorrow morning when their next meal arrives again (I'm looking out for you).
Brix Refractometer for Plants
The refractometer is a tool used to measure degrees of Brix. Juice from plants like apples or strawberries can be extracted using garlic presses, and then measured by this device in order for you to know how much sugar content there is on your fruits/veggies! The higher the Brix level (sugars, vitamins, minerals, proteins and other solids), the higher the nutritional value of the fruit or vegetable - and, because of the increased presence of simple and complex sugars, the better the flavor!
Brix and Plant Resistance to Insects
When plants ascend the leaf Brix ladder and reach between 8-11, insects metaphorically “fall off”. This is because at this point in their life cycle they've developed a shield to protect themselves from insect predators; however as a general rule you will find that sucking or chewing insects won't tolerate higher than 10 brix (or 11 if it's an oak). Some examples of these types would be caterpillars who eat leaves directly with enzymes on them while others like grasshoppers feed only when their roots have been ingested causing more damage over time due being high sugar content making things less appetizing/palatable until finally disappearing altogether once reaching 12 brix.
Brix Levels and Plant Health
When brix levels are high, plants are stronger and more resistant to frost. The brix readings give us useful information about the plant's ability to fight off disease or future pest infestation. Brix is a term used in horticulture to measure the amount of solids suspended in liquid. Any given liquid contains dissolved sugars, salts, amino acids and proteins. Because brix reading remains quite stable throughout plant growth stages (flowering, fruiting or vegetation), brix is an excellent marker for the fertilization needs of plants during flowering (fruiting).
The brix scale ranges from 0-32% with fruits/vegetables generally ranging between 12-18%. A brix level of 4 or 5 would indicate that the plant is suffering from boron deficiency. A brix level of 18 would indicate a very healthy and well fed plant.
The brix levels of leaves and stems must be matched by an adequate brix reading in the sap (juice). If brix levels are high in leaves and stems, but not to par in sap, we can assume that there's stress on either nitrogen or calcium/magnesium. Brix readings will also remain high throughout flowering as long as the plant was initially fed well during vegetation. Nutrient ratios should be monitored to prevent brix readings from dropping too low during flowering.
Larger brix levels allow plants to fight off diseases and pests more easily than those with smaller brix levels. It is easier for plant defenses to absorb small amounts of brix than large amounts.
It is not uncommon for brix levels in leaves and stems to be smaller than brix readings in sap. Healthy plants will produce more brix when they are stressed because the plant has adapted to stress conditions during vegetation by storing extra sugars in sap, but not in leaves or stems, thus preventing photosynthesis from being inhibited by high brix levels.
This can be taken as a sign that there might have been too much nitrogen applied during flowering, so check your nutrient ratios again to see if you need to lower them.
Brix Levels and Dextrose
Brix is a unit of measurement that refers to the percentage of sugar dissolved in water. The brix scale ranges from 0% brix on the low end to over 100% brix at the high end. In brix, 100% brix means there are no impurities or solids in the solution at all. There are many factors that affect plant brix. These include fertilization & irrigation management, plant spacing, berry size, berry color, pruning, plant health & vitality and more. Unfortunately brix levels are difficult to measure on a consistent basis due to seasonal changes in plant brix from week to week or from day to night (night brix levels are typically about 2 brix lower than daytime brix).
My brix chart is calibrated for dextrose (glucose) which happens to be the "active ingredient" in most multivitamins. You can use this brix chart when making your own homemade multi-vitamin out of pure 100% dextrose powder - just mix with water. The best dextrose I've found comes in 1lb. containers at Covington.
Don’t Go Yet!
The plant brix scale is a measure of the amount and quality of sugars in plants. The higher the number, the better your crop will be! As you can see from this article, there are many different scales to use when measuring sugar content in produce--so don't worry if it's been awhile since you took chemistry class. Plant Brix, on the other hand, measures how much carbohydrates (sugars) are stored within a given fruit or vegetable based on its weight. It’s important for farmers to know which product has more carbs because that means they have a longer shelf life and less chance of spoiling before being sold at market. This measurement also helps consumers make smarter decisions about what food products to purchase.
