Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Tillage is tillage

market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Market Farming

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: "Tradingpost" <tradingpost AT lobo.net>
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Tillage is tillage
  • Date: Tue, 06 Feb 2007 14:32:38 -0700


For me, the important issue is the market farmer's bottom line, because
growers need to be able to make a good living at it to stay on the land,
and to encourage many more to do it. No amount of green philosophy is going
to make people work 40 hours a week on an outside job to pay bills, and
then work another 40 in the garden just because they believe in it. I want
to know all the ways people cut inputs and costs and raise production on a
yearly basis - and get a good return on investment. I want to hear from
people who produce more on less land, at less cost, and improve their soil
doing it. What I don't want to hear is it can't be done, because there are
people doing it.

paul tradingpost AT lobo.net

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR ***********

On 2/6/2007 at 1:58 PM David Inglis wrote:

>This has been, at times, an interesting thread to follow.
>My own point of view is that the choice of tillage or degree of non
tillage
>is less significant than the thinking behind the choice.
> I have found that there are two basic approaches to soil preparation: The
>[far less common, even amongst Organic Farmers ]approach that sees farm
>practices as primarily providing enhanced conditions for soil life, the
>activities of which create the necessary tilth and productivity and the
>approach that attempts to create tilth and productivity directly. My
>opinion
>is that only the first of these has a future.
>Within this first choice there are a whole range of possibilities some of
>which include tillage not only because it suits our needs but because it
>suits the needs of the life of the soil. I find this is objected to most
>strongly by those of a philosophical bent that the best we can hope for is
>to approximate 'nature'. Ironically this is often the most strident
>'environmentalists'. It is my contention that despite our historically
>negative relationship to land stewardship it is in fact possible, as well
>as
>necessary, for Humans to greatly enhance what nature can do on 'her' own.
>David Inglis
>Mahaiwe Harvst C.S.A.
>Massachusetts
>
>Ps hi Steve G.
>
>
>
>_______________________________________________
>Market-farming mailing list
>Market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
>http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/market-farming








Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page