Research, including studies presented at the conference in Istanbul, is showing that organic agriculture can deliver reliably high yields ”and that organic fields thrive in the face of disaster and duress, where chemical-reliant crops falter. Organic fields, for example, fare significantly better than chemically managed ones in the face of extreme weather, such as droughts or floods.
Anna Lappe, for takepart, 4 November 2014, Yes, Organic Farming Can Feed the World, Continue reading
With GM crops come herbicides, which breed resistant weeds.
This has happened in about a decade for the worse mutants.
We can reverse the problem by reversing the spraying,
using plowing, cultivation, and crop rotation instead.
Mark Jeschke wrote for Pioneer Dupont, Crop Insights: Weed Management in the Era of Glyphosate Resistance, Continue reading
Diane Howard will moderate a farmer panel, Growers Tell All: A Conversation with Experienced South Georgia Growers about God-Given Talents and 150+ Years of Growing, at South Georgia Growing Local 2014:
With a combined 150+ years of experience as growers, these veggie veterans will interact with members of the audience sharing their stories which include the following: planting, harvesting, and preserving by the moon; rotating crop sites; fertilizing; controlling weeds and insects; saving seed for 50+ years; growing in containers; and using their talents and techniques of growing to help friends and 3 generations of family. Serving as a moderator for this discussion will be Diane Howard who works closely with individuals in South Georgia to promote growing their own food and oversees a large garden on her 5th generation family farm in Grady County.
Innis Davis and three of the children in his family who help with his very large backyard garden on Cherry Street, Valdosta.
Here are the panelists’ speaker bios: Continue reading
Mutant pigweed here, mutant rootworm there, pretty soon no Monsanto pest protection anywhere.
Carey Gillam wrote for Reuters 28 August 2013, GMO corn failing to protect fields from pest damage: report
(Reuters)—Researchers in the key corn-growing state of Illinois are finding significant damage from rootworms in farm fields planted in a rotation with a genetically modified corn that is supposed to protect the crop from the pests, according to a new report.
Evidence gathered from fields in two Illinois counties suggests that pest problems are mounting as the rootworms grow ever more resistant to efforts to fight them, including crop rotation combined with use of the biotech corn, according to the report issued by Michael Gray, a professor of crop sciences at the University of Illinois.
Here’s the report, by Michael Gray in U. Illinois Bulletin, 27 August 2012, Severe Corn Rootworm Injury to Bt Hybrids in First-Year Corn Confirmed, Continue reading