The next major step in my "pilgrimage" came after reading the book titled "Weeds: Control Without Poisons" written by the late Charles Walters. Though the book dealt with much more than just weeds, it painted a picture of all plants in general as all having various "talents or abilities" of amending soil that is not in balance. For example, dandelion plants tend to grow in calcium-deficient, compacted soils , and their massive tap root bring calcium back up to the surface. Its seed won't even germinate unless, to some degree, these soil conditions exist.
As I pondered these new concepts I began to think about all the weeds that grow on our farm to see if they were growing in the conditions that the book described. Sure enough each major weed found on our farm followed similar criteria as the book suggested. Then it occurred to me, of all the weeds found in our area, not all of them grow on our farm. I had previously thought that weeds would grow wherever the seed landed but in spite of all kinds of seed that had to be all over the farm, not all of them manifested themselves. Knowing that our high winds and irrigation canals guarantee complete dispersal of seeds and yet we had just a limited number of weeds established.
Another of the major contributing factors mentioned in the book was excessive nitrogen. Wow, if this was true then it would explain the increasing weed pressures I experienced as I was increasing the rate of fertilizer years earlier. Then add to this frequent soil disruption which also encouraged even more weed seed germination and what I had was a perfect environ for healthy, thriving weed crops. I suppose I should have been able to figure out some of this on my own, but it was so easy to just put some chemicals on it and have a quick fix and reap the benefits.
As I reflected on those days, I noticed an increasing dependence on the chemically quick fix rather than questioning why certain things were happening. The more books I read and conferences I attended, the more a familiar theme would pop up. Nature was designed to repair itself. When this theme started to soak in, the whole "organic thing" started to seem more plausible than I had previously thought. The two roads of agriculture became very clear. One being to force nature and face an escalating antagonism of nature fighting back, thus requiring even more rescue chemistry, and the other working with and enhancing nature to accelerate the process toward balance in the soil and eventually the plant as well.
Both roads have their pluses and minuses, so what pushed me over the line? When I put nature in the context of my faith, nature being originally created exclusively for mankind, it suddenly became clear that treating nature in the way it was originally intended to work was the right way for me to go. I obviously feel that this way is a better way, but I don't judge others who choose the other road approach. I will not use my blogs to attack the other "road users" but I will advocate for what I think is a better way.
This brings me to the reasons that I write this blog: (Sorry I've been so long winded)
1 .To point back to the Creator of this miraculously complexed world we call nature
2. To encourage ALL ag. to start asking "why" before taking the easy way
3. To not just advocate for ag but for better ag
I really like your third point. I think it is important that we are constantly analyzing and improving the agriculture industry. I tried to response to your twitter message but it wouldn't let me for some silly reason. My email is crystal.cattle@gmail.com If you should be an email there I will respond.
ReplyDeletewww.cdycattle.blogspot.com
Good to see you wading into the Blogsphere. I will have to get a copy of that book. I bet there are a few things that I might pickup from it also.
ReplyDeleteI'm someone learning to farm on a farm that is very dependent on chemicals & everything I've observed in my 10 months so far (ok so I'm not what you'd call experienced!) indicates that things are not as simple as the 2 roads analogy you've used here.
ReplyDeleteWe've increased chemical use over the years on our farm BECAUSE we want to look after our soils more. We found that traditional weed control methods (sheep & cultivation) hurt the soil & soil biology far more than chemical controls. Switching to a minimum tillage farming system has for us meant much healthier soils, better crops and less soil compaction from heavy machinery. Not to mention the reductions in our per hectare diesel consumption.
Are some chemicals hazardous to health and the environment? Undoubtedly, but there are pros and cons to any farming system. I think we should l all take on onboard the 3 motivations you list here & use them to continually improve the things we do.