Market Farming

["Elizabeth Pike" <pike AT always-online.com>]

Holly wrote:

> If you're going to be afraid of e. coli, keeping your fruit trees
out of
> the pasture is not going to help you.  E. coli 0157 (the one that
keeps
> causing all the bad outbreaks via infected meat) is carried by dogs,
> horses, deer, birds, and a plethora of other creatures including
human
> beings.

I understand this, really I do.  I just don't like to invite trouble.
Low chance, small chance, any chance-I won't risk it for myself, my
family, or my customers.

> Also, there seems to be evidence indicating that cattle and sheep
that
> forage for their food are much less at risk than grain fed animals.
> What's more, rotational grazing practices reduce contamination and
> cross-contamination risks even further for all manner of pathogens
and
> parasites.

Then how do deer get it (or other pathogens)??

> Planting trees (for) reduced loss of moisture due to transpiration,
shade for the
> animals (resulting in less stress and lower water needs for the
animals
> as well), an over all cooling effect for the area planted this way,
and
> other benefits.

Wouldn't this take ALOT of trees to do all this??


>Even in the small orchard area I put in, I will occassionally turn
sheep and chickens in there to clean up windfall fruit.

Deer droppings cleaned up??

> Pruning - well, my views on pruning are unconventional.  So we'll
leave
> that.  But how any tree grows depends on the variety - some apples
are
> quite spreading in habit.  Some are not.

True.  But I do want to reach my fruit, reduce insect infestations &
disease, &
control the tree's growth for maximum production.

Liz
Morningstar Gardens
Pollocksville NC