Healthy soil and sustainable growing

[yarrow@sfo.com]

Title: Re: [Livingontheland] changing to organic and/or no-till

At 9:27 AM -0700 5/22/07, Ken Hargesheimer wrote:

Organic, no-till works but the reason more farmers or mini-farmers or gardeners do not change to it is in their head; not in the garden.  I guess that is harsh but it is true.  I have seen it here and in every country I have taught in.  When I am told about someone who did it and failed and I learn what happened, it is the gardener who failed; not the method.

 //

Can you expand on that? Do you mean the gardener gave up too soon or resorted to chemicals or didn't have a crucial tool or piece of information?

I've heard anecdotally about a relative of an acquaintance who tried going no-till (not organic, and no soil building) but stopped after 5 years because yields of bell peppers went way down. I'd guess that's common -- to do it partway, expect yields to go up before committing to the whole thing, then quit when yields go down (for predictable reasons).