gotta respectfully disagree with the laser scenario. disruption of every natural cycle is what has led to 'weeds'. coming back into balance is the solution. crop rotation, multi crops rather than mono cropping. mixing animals into the fields. what ever the heck the amish do which I am quite sure 1) works and 2) doesn't rely on teen male war on everything schemes.
Absolutely -- nancylee I actually totally agree with your respectful disagreement. What you describe is the best world (though I gotta admit I really enjoyed the teen male war video). Every farm that uses crop rotation, multi rather than mono cropping, mixing in animals, and all the things that bring true balance and soil health, are going the highest road. It's just that the vast majority of our farm land is huge farms that have been operating under the lowest road -- drenching fields in toxic herbicides every year. The laser weeders could be a big step up from that. And maybe then the next step to true regenerative farming will not seem so far off.
I had been thinking I needed to edit the piece to make it clear that this is a solution for the huge industrial farms -- your comment helped me get a better idea of how to do that, so thank you. --Eli
so wonderful to actually exchange ideas with another amiable thoughtful person. I suppose you are taking the high road in attempts to ameliorate the excesses of mega industrial . . . I cannot even use the word, farming. I only wish they would all go out of business immediately.
You implicitly raise an interesting dilemma. I'm a big fan of food sovereignty and local food production, but we need to make our peace with the fact, and it is a fact, that these operations feed a tremendous number of people and that their demise would cause widespread starvation, of which I am not a fan. Maybe the way to look at it is that their presence offers the best opportunity for small-scale production to expand and become profitable enough for there to be more of a balance than there is now.
those crops are poisoned from seed to glyphosate drying. and these poisons are spread by wind and rain across the whole area. the soybeans aren't good for us and the corn is predominately used for junk food, literally slow killing cattle in feed lots and ruining our gas engines with ethanol. so I dont see the benefit. I see nothing but the sooner this is all gone, the sooner the world can start healing.
Vermont just became the first state to outlaw paraquat, and there is pending legislation in three other states to do the same. There is movement in the direction you are hoping for!
I'm not particularly hoping for it, tho its nice to see some belated movement. I am certain that as corrupt systems self destruct nature will always replace the massive too big to be healthy with tiny grass roots local sustainable alternatives.
Excellent points. And it seems to me that the government subsidies for small scale production needs to be as robust as it is for the mega-farms,-- level the playing field so that small farmers don't always have to work an off farm job to survive.
Your comment made me wonder, if they go out of business what would we have in their place? Since many farmers are, in fact, going out of business or retiring with no children who want to take over, I looked into where the land goes. Often it is bought by a neighboring farmer, who is doing the same spraying of poisons, and so it continues. Or it is sold for solar farms, or bought by a billionaire.
Providing an off ramp for famers to veer away from the poisons seems like the best solution.
when enormous trees die, fall down in a forest there is all kinds of destruction. what happens next is tiny seedlings spring up, often on the rotting nurse trunk. there's looking at the decay and corruption (congrats vermont) and there's looking at exactly what your farm heralds.
You might also take into consideration all the toxic garbage being aerosolized all over the world in the skies, and all those chemicals like nano particles of aluminum, barium, strontium, guillarme barre, etc goes all over every single thing in the open.
The idea that carbon dioxide is the problem and causes "climate change" is totally absurd as it's the one of four building blocks of Life: Jesus, the Sun, Oxygen, and Carbon Dioxide.
Also, personally, as someone who used to weed expressways with my tractor and disc, I turned the weeds under and it gave good material to break down and build the soil up, sans the animals.
As long as that trash persists, our soil will be okay, but absolutely not the best it could be, I agree with NancyLee as to the Amish, and am all for that!!!
I am on the fence as to the benefit - risk ratio for the AI and Laser systems, that does put others out of work and is super expensive as well.
Yes, certainly the way the Amish and regenerative farmers are caring for the soil is the A+ of soil care.
About the cost -- from what I've read, the laser systems are priced and paid for (over time) in such a way that they are cost effective, i.e. they cost less than the poisons plus the labor to apply the poisons. As for reducing the number of jobs, it seems that reducing toxic chemical application jobs is a good thing, since those are the folks getting lymphoma.
I wonder how long it will be before the technology for the small and medium sized farm version will be developed? Right now the flame weeders are the closest thing I think.
gotta respectfully disagree with the laser scenario. disruption of every natural cycle is what has led to 'weeds'. coming back into balance is the solution. crop rotation, multi crops rather than mono cropping. mixing animals into the fields. what ever the heck the amish do which I am quite sure 1) works and 2) doesn't rely on teen male war on everything schemes.
Absolutely -- nancylee I actually totally agree with your respectful disagreement. What you describe is the best world (though I gotta admit I really enjoyed the teen male war video). Every farm that uses crop rotation, multi rather than mono cropping, mixing in animals, and all the things that bring true balance and soil health, are going the highest road. It's just that the vast majority of our farm land is huge farms that have been operating under the lowest road -- drenching fields in toxic herbicides every year. The laser weeders could be a big step up from that. And maybe then the next step to true regenerative farming will not seem so far off.
I had been thinking I needed to edit the piece to make it clear that this is a solution for the huge industrial farms -- your comment helped me get a better idea of how to do that, so thank you. --Eli
so wonderful to actually exchange ideas with another amiable thoughtful person. I suppose you are taking the high road in attempts to ameliorate the excesses of mega industrial . . . I cannot even use the word, farming. I only wish they would all go out of business immediately.
You implicitly raise an interesting dilemma. I'm a big fan of food sovereignty and local food production, but we need to make our peace with the fact, and it is a fact, that these operations feed a tremendous number of people and that their demise would cause widespread starvation, of which I am not a fan. Maybe the way to look at it is that their presence offers the best opportunity for small-scale production to expand and become profitable enough for there to be more of a balance than there is now.
those crops are poisoned from seed to glyphosate drying. and these poisons are spread by wind and rain across the whole area. the soybeans aren't good for us and the corn is predominately used for junk food, literally slow killing cattle in feed lots and ruining our gas engines with ethanol. so I dont see the benefit. I see nothing but the sooner this is all gone, the sooner the world can start healing.
Vermont just became the first state to outlaw paraquat, and there is pending legislation in three other states to do the same. There is movement in the direction you are hoping for!
I'm not particularly hoping for it, tho its nice to see some belated movement. I am certain that as corrupt systems self destruct nature will always replace the massive too big to be healthy with tiny grass roots local sustainable alternatives.
Excellent points. And it seems to me that the government subsidies for small scale production needs to be as robust as it is for the mega-farms,-- level the playing field so that small farmers don't always have to work an off farm job to survive.
Your comment made me wonder, if they go out of business what would we have in their place? Since many farmers are, in fact, going out of business or retiring with no children who want to take over, I looked into where the land goes. Often it is bought by a neighboring farmer, who is doing the same spraying of poisons, and so it continues. Or it is sold for solar farms, or bought by a billionaire.
Providing an off ramp for famers to veer away from the poisons seems like the best solution.
when enormous trees die, fall down in a forest there is all kinds of destruction. what happens next is tiny seedlings spring up, often on the rotting nurse trunk. there's looking at the decay and corruption (congrats vermont) and there's looking at exactly what your farm heralds.
Nice analogy. With the tiny seedlings being the small sustainable local farms? I will definitely hope for that.
yes, small, local, lifeboats of community.
You might also take into consideration all the toxic garbage being aerosolized all over the world in the skies, and all those chemicals like nano particles of aluminum, barium, strontium, guillarme barre, etc goes all over every single thing in the open.
The idea that carbon dioxide is the problem and causes "climate change" is totally absurd as it's the one of four building blocks of Life: Jesus, the Sun, Oxygen, and Carbon Dioxide.
Also, personally, as someone who used to weed expressways with my tractor and disc, I turned the weeds under and it gave good material to break down and build the soil up, sans the animals.
As long as that trash persists, our soil will be okay, but absolutely not the best it could be, I agree with NancyLee as to the Amish, and am all for that!!!
I am on the fence as to the benefit - risk ratio for the AI and Laser systems, that does put others out of work and is super expensive as well.
Yes, certainly the way the Amish and regenerative farmers are caring for the soil is the A+ of soil care.
About the cost -- from what I've read, the laser systems are priced and paid for (over time) in such a way that they are cost effective, i.e. they cost less than the poisons plus the labor to apply the poisons. As for reducing the number of jobs, it seems that reducing toxic chemical application jobs is a good thing, since those are the folks getting lymphoma.
You had me at “Science Fiction Story”!
I am amazed and pleased to hear that “Big Ag” would consider this over pesticides and close planting!
This is exciting news!! Hope it ends up catching on!!
(Ps - Have you read C.S. Lewis’s space trilogy? A fav at our house!)
Hi Rosie -- yes, I think it would be exciting, and since it is cost effective I think there is hope!
I read the space trilogy many years ago . . . still have vivid images from it.
I want one!
I wonder how long it will be before the technology for the small and medium sized farm version will be developed? Right now the flame weeders are the closest thing I think.
I think the flame weeder is probably the same thing. They work on annuals but not perennials.