Colin Austin © 15 November 2023 This document it published under the creative commons system which means it can be freely copied and distributed without further permissions. The only restriction is that the source Colin Austin at gbiota.com should be acknowledged.
Welcome to Gbiota
Welcome to gbiota.com the technical web for the Gbiota movement which is focused on improving gut health by growing plants in biologically active, nutrient rich soils.
We have tried to make the actual growing of the plants as simple and inexpensive as possible so virtually everyone has ready access which you can do by following the practical guide lines on this web.
Some people want to know more about the technology before they start using the process.
But our gut brain is complex and the development of the technology takes a lot of time, energy and money so we have had to make it a subscription site.
The technology is based on work done over thirty years ago and the good news is I have been making videos for all that time and when YouTube became available I started to load for free on YouTube.
You can access these by clicking on my icon left or going to You Tube, search for colin austin playlist then play all.
Thirty year ago the world was a very different place, the population was just half of the current population, many countries which are now highly industrialised and operating at the leading edge of technology were little more than agrarian peasant placing very little load on the environment.
The big issue of the day was water shortages so that is what I worked on. I made a series of videos Solving the Water Crisis Episodes 1 to 5 which are really the birth place of the Gbiota system.
One video in particular is a bench mark video Diet, Health and Wicking beds (nb the specific Wicking Bed technology is now obsolete – what matters are the principles)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77WqDWszdnI&list=PLZTl8QH0bk5_BtZuPuchoiFsuV5nLgKdC&index=103
The world has changed and we now face the threats of climate change, the destruction of our soils, the wide spread use of toxic chemicals, the lack of nutrients in our food and the explosion of chronic diseases like diabetes but the core technology of how we manage water is crucial to our food supply and indeed the survival or our species.
When these video were made we were in the midst of the Monty Python era and society was pretty relaxed about what they watched. Now what is considered respectable has narrowed so be prepared to be amused and possibly offended.
Happy watching and I hope to welcome you to becoming a member of the Gbiota club.
I am a real person and you can contact me at colin@gbiota.com
When you have done your research into the Gbiota movement and are ready to join you can sign up here
Why feed our gut brain
Why do people in the Blue zones remain fit and healthy to a ripe old age?
Why does Covid have so little effect on some people?
Why is diabetes the fastest growing disease when it was rare a few years ago?
Why, with all our medical science are we in the middle of an epidemic of chronic diseases?
The answer is just one world – our gut brain.
How do we know? Just look at Tim Spector’s latest book Food for Life. Tim’s Professor at Kings College, London is himself a world leading expert on food but his books contains hundreds of references from leading researchers across the globe.
This is the most comprehensive review of the science of food I know, it is really amazing telling us what sort of food we should be eating and why.
But it misses one thing, how to get that food – that is where Gbiota comes in – we rely on food scientist to tell us what sort of food we should be eating – we study how to grow that food, not just in sophisticated lab farms but in a way that virtually everyone can grow food that will keep them healthy.
We need to feed our gut brain which controls our bodies (homeostasis)
Food is not simply about calories and energy food, we have that in abundance. We have an intelligent control system which regulates our bodies, it is called homeostasis and if our control system is not working it is like having a drunk at the wheel of a car.
Our control system is a combination of our head and gut brains and if we don’t feed them they just don’t work as they should.
So what can we do about it? A common response it to eat more plants, but that only works if the plants are grown in living soil full of beneficial nutrients which will end up forming our gut brain and eaten shortly after picking.
Food depends on the soil in which it is grown
And where do we get these plants grown in living soil?
The reality is that right now there is only one way – grow them yourself.
But you may say I can’t do that. I live in a flat, I know nothing about growing plants and anyway I just don’t have the time.
Well you can, that is what Gbiota is all about. Gbiota is not just about sophisticated technology, it is about making technology work for the benefit of the people, any one can use it.
We all have to eat and we should all have access to healthy food and it is based on recycling waste food and other organics so growing yourself not only provides fresh and healthy food, full of the beneficial microbes and essential minerals it actually costs less than buying.
Our siste web gbiota.com shows how you can grow gut brain food – plants which act as pre and pro biotics – by recycling organic waste. It actually costs less than buying food from a supermarket, is sustainable and reduces green house gases.
This site shows how you can grow gut brain food – plants which act as pre and pro biotics – by recycling organic waste. They actually costs less than buying food from a supermarket, is sustainable and reduces green house gases.
When you have done your research into the Gbiota movement and are ready to join you can sign up here
This is how it works
Collect food and other organic waste and place in a Gbiota Biobox.
Add nutrient mix
Add inoculant
Leave for a period to allow decomposition to start (labile or fresh compost is not good for growing plants)
Add soil and seeds
Use partial flood and drain – flood the base of the bed using inlet pipes with swivel pipe in the up position. As you flood the stale air will be expelled.
Place swivel pipe in drain position – as fluid drains out it suck fresh air into the soil so it breaths. This breathing is an important part of the Gbiota process
Catch the fluid as it drain out – this is full of microscopic creatures and nutrients
Use this fluid (we call soil blood as it does the same job as our blood) for the next flood cycle. This floods the root zone with the living nutrient rich soil blood.
Harvest by just cutting the tips off the plants – this is full of nutrients and beneficial microbes
When this baby green phase is finished restart the cycle with a new box.
Typically several boxes are used to ensure a continuous supply of pre and pro biotics.
When you have done your research into the Gbiota movement and are ready to join you can sign up here
This is how it works
Collect food and other organic waste and place in a Gbiota Biobox.
Add nutrient mix
Add inoculant
Leave for a period to allow decomposition to start (labile or fresh compost is not good for growing plants)
Add soil and seeds
Use partial flood and drain – flood the base of the bed using inlet pipes with swivel pipe in the up position. As you flood the stale air will be expelled.
Place swivel pipe in drain position – as fluid drains out it suck fresh air into the soil so it breaths. This breathing is an important part of the Gbiota process
Catch the fluid as it drain out – this is full of microscopic creatures and nutrients
Use this fluid (we call soil blood as it does the same job as our blood) for the next flood cycle. This floods the root zone with the living nutrient rich soil blood.
Harvest by just cutting the tips off the plants – this is full of nutrients and beneficial microbes
When this baby green phase is finished restart the cycle with a new box.
Typically several boxes are used to ensure a continuous supply of pre and pro biotics.
When you have done your research into the Gbiota movement and are ready to join you can sign up here
Gbiota is about correcting deficiencies in our modern diet
Gbiota is not about self sufficiency it is about filling in holes left by our modern food system which is dominated by shelf life. We get food from all over the world by a highly complex distribution system which may be effective but takes time from harvest to table by which time all the essenatial microbes which make up our gut brain – which controls our bodies – will have died. We don’t feel satisfied so we overeat and get fat and sick.
It is based on breeding the essential beneficial microbes in organic waste together with a mixture of inoculant, minerals and worms. It is simple, inexpensive and above all anybody can do it.
Recycling waste back into food that will keep you healthy may save money, but money is not the point.
Waste which would otherwise go into green house gases is used sustainably.
It is about having a having a healthy and sustainable planet based on recycling rather then exploitation for our grand kids and their grand kids.
Further information
See What to Grow and eat, Gut food project, Food for Gut Health, Food for Health, Food and the gut biome
nb this is a subsciption site but for now you can log in for free using user name guest@gbiota.com and password Goodbugs10!
You can then access the entire library food, growing, and Gbiota news
We are screwing up our planet. It is not just climate change – its twin sister is the destruction of our soils by toxic chemicals which is leading to nutrient and gut biota deficiencies .
This is the root cause of the epidemic of modern food related diseases which stem from failure to feed our gut brain – our intelligent control system, which regulates our bodies, making us feel unsatisfied so we overeat and get fat and sick.
We need a social change from one based on profits and exploitation of our natural resources to one based on recycling and cooperation.
By recycling your waste back into food that will keep you healthy will save you money, but money is not the point – it is about having a having a healthy planet for our grand kids and their grand kids.
This needs a social change, it wont come from big business or Governments who are focused on profits and power.
Change will come from ordinary people who recycle their waste into food that will keep you healthy, proving that you can do it and showing this to your friends and contacts so you become leaders of your group for social change.
Big business and Governments will follow by the power of the wallet and the power of the vote.
Come on folks – it is time to change the world from one of greed, profit and exploitation to one of recycling, cooperation and mutual benefit.
Read Why we need to change and Our choice and keep on eye on New posts and join the Gbiota movement.
When you have done your research into the Gbiota movement and are ready to join you can sign up here
The Gbiota Ecobox enables virtually everyone, even if living in a flat with no gardening experience, to grow plants as pre and pro biotics.
This is important because they feed our gut brain, a combination of our gut and head brains, which act as our intelligent control system which automatically regulates our bodies.
It regulates behaviour from heart and breathing rates, temperature, and particularly appetites, how much we want to eat and how much and where we store fat in our bodies.
Fifty years ago people would be eating some plants grown in natural soil which would feed their gut brain. Our modern food system is highly productive providing large quantities of energy food and competitive prices but relies heavily on chemicals which destroy the natural microbes that live in the soil and enter our bodies via plants.
The Gbiota Ecobox is very simple. The middle box is filled with organic waste, typically food waste but any organic waste can be used. Minerals and inoculants are added and the box sealed so there is no unpleasant smells.
After about eight weeks this will have decomposed to from a nutrient rich soil teaming with beneficial microbes. This soil is then used to grow the plants in the top box in the normal way.
Flushings are take from the bottom box and used to flush the root system in the top box. This flushing is a dark brown liquid full of nutrients and microbes.
Read about the Ecobox here
Flushing is done on a regular basis so it is kept aerated and is never allowed to become stagnant.
We supply support to help you set up and maintain the Ecoboxes, you simply sign up to become a home grower which costs just $5Au per month. In Australia we can also supply the inoculant and mineral mix and seed packs.
This web contains many articles on food and health, so many it can be a bit confusing but below is a list of the key articles. You can access these for free using the user name guest@gbiota.com and the password Goodbugs10! But we expect you to sign up when you become a grower.
Read about the Ecobox here
When you have done your research into the Gbiota movement and are ready to join you can sign up here
Quick links
https://gbiota.com/2023/06/05/food-waste/
https://gbiota.com/2023/04/04/upgraded-beds/
https://gbiota.com/2023/04/02/food-for-gut-health/
https://gbiota.com/2022/10/05/how-gbiota-beds-work/
https://gbiota.com/2023/03/02/our-gut/
https://gbiota.com/2023/02/27/our-gut-brain-2/
https://gbiota.com/2023/02/13/what-is-the-gbiota-project/
https://gbiota.com/2023/02/13/what-is-it-all-about/
https://gbiota.com/2023/01/10/better-gut-health/
https://gbiota.com/2023/01/05/health-starts-in-the-soil-3/
https://gbiota.com/2022/12/15/gbiota-bed-update-4-dec-2022/
https://gbiota.com/2022/12/11/overview-2/
https://gbiota.com/2022/10/10/food-for-health-3/
https://gbiota.com/2022/10/04/water/
https://gbiota.com/2022/10/03/food-and-the-gut-biome/
https://gbiota.com/2022/10/03/prologue/
https://gbiota.com/2022/08/22/health-starts-in-the-soil-2/
https://gbiota.com/2022/06/30/lettuce/