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Science/Tech See other Science/Tech Articles Title: Weeds Control Without Poisons Charles Walters, founder and long-time editor of ACRES USA, the monthly journal of eco-agriculture, has revised and expanded his now classic text on the secrets that weeds reveal to us about our soil. For a thorough undersanding of the conditions that produce certain weeds, you simply can't find a better source than this one -- certainly not one as entertaining, as full of anecdotes and home-spun common sense. The book is a treasury of knowledge, exploring the workings of soil eco-systems through the findings of such giants as William A. Albrecht, C.J. Fenzau and Philip S. Callahan. It contains a lifetime of collected wisdom that teaches us how to udnerstand and thereby control the growth of countless weed species, as well as why there is an absolute necessity for a more holistic, eco-centered perspective in agricultrue today. In Weeds, Control Without Poisons, Walters explains what fifty years of deadly chemicals have done to our soils and our bodies, demonstrating once and for all that the stuff simply doen't workl in any long-term, coomon-sense agricultural system. He goes on to tell us what will work, and he tells it with precision and clarity in a book as full of human warmth as sound soil science. Charles Walters is the author of dozens of books and thousands of articles on the technologies of eco-agriculture. In this book learn; What do weeds tell us about the soil? What can you do about row-crop weeds? Is there any role for herbicides in agriculture? We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children. Native American Proverb FOR THE RECORD The so-called conventional agricultural system of the United States is falling apart at the seams. Its intellectual advisers in the univesity hardly know what is going on in the countryside. Their advice has created extensive soil erosion, universal environmental contamination, and a degeneration of the health of almost every living species on this planet. Public outcry is growing in proportion to its awareness. Politicians are mocking their shared concern in order to sway votes. Legislation to curb or banish the current agricultrual system of toxic warfare on man and nature is becoming more plentiful. Caught in the middle of this political football is the farmer. One by one, his toxic crutches are being eliminated from the market. He is told that he must farm without these ''magic bullets'' which he has become so accustomed to using. This use has been sanctified by constant insistence of the USDA, land grant universities, and Extension personnel. Now, however, he is being told by the politicians that he cannot use these materials anymore, but is not being told by the lords of agriculture what to do or what to use in their place. The farmer feels lost and frustrated. And he is lost and frustrated until he realizes that the solution to his dilemma rests with his own intuition and common sense. Farming is not a desk job nor the work of a laboratory technician. It is a natural experience. It is an understanding and appreciation for all life on this planet. It is an attitude of living, of peaceful coexistence, not an atitude of kill or be killed or of constant conflict. The first step in builkding a system without toxic chemical war games with nature is to change your attitude. Become a farmer rather than a miner of the soil. Decide to leave the farm in a better condition when you depart than it was last year or when you started farming. Decide to accept responsibility for the health of this county, yourself, and your family. Weeds, Control Without Poisons is an original, even though it leans on the scholarship of many in the identification of weeds. It does not pretend to have all the answers, yet it has furnished a beginning in asking the right questions. Many minor weeds still have still to be evaluated, and there can be no doubt tat answers will be forthcoming. As far as the major crop weeds are concerned, this book hints, then sledgehammers the answers into place. Weed manuals since WWII have simply identified weeds, the implication or actual direction being that use of this or that poison is the only rational advice. Charles Walters questions this, and he has used most of his jounalistic career to gather in support for dealing with weeds without poisons. Hopefully, this little book will be a turning point away from our rush toward perdition. Arden Andersen, author of The Anatomy of Life and Energy in Agriculture and Science in Agriculture PREFACE Some few years ago, I tripped to Houston, Texas and environs for the purpose of visiting a rice producer who, once upon a time, knew my old mentor, William A. Albrecht, then emeritus professor, Department of Soils, University of Missouri. This rice grower had a small plane on his farm for the purpose of monitoring his crop -- and, not least, the weeds. He had a small laboratory on his farm because he had been trained to compound things like DDT, and -- also once upoin a time -- he chest-thumped this fact to the good professor Albrecht, adding that ''this stuff works.'' Albrecht responded, 'Yes, it works today and it will probably work ten years from now.' And with that Albrecht shot a finger into the rice grower's chest. 'But ten years from now you won't know where it is!' Much of the toxic genetic chemistry spilled into agriculture over the past several decades is still out there. I know where some of it is. Richard L. Penny is an Iowa scientist who spent several years at the U.S. South Pole station. He took the biopsy specimens that revealed DDT in the fatty tissue of all the examined penguins. Appartently this toxin has established itself in the migratory food chain that travels to the South Pole and back. ..... This is an excellent book, and I recommend it for everyone that has any interest in understanding food, and how it affects our lives. There can be no doubt, after you read it, that America has been on a very dangerous path for a long time, and, it is time to correct that path, RIGHT NOW! As an example of what this book shows; Redroot pigweed ... best possible laboratory analysis for phosphate availablility on a daily meal basis. ... quackgrass ... have herbal properties useful in treating urinary disorders. Decay systems are at fault when this weed appears. Excess aluminum also is a problem for the crop, albeit nor for quackgrass which can live with it. And on and on through countless different weeds, using them as a teaching tool to learn what the soil is lacking, or, has to much of. Amazing the knowledge that we should be using can be this simple..... And this book is much more than that as well. It is a look at farm life, and at OUR responsibilities, as we furnish the power behind those who grow things for us through the decisions that we make on a daily basis.
Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 49.
#2. To: richard9151 (#0)
Thanks. We took the "easy way out" with big chem, and now we're reaping the deadly harvest.
You would be very hungry were it not for Big Chem...or the world population...mainly third world....would be one quarter what it is. Take your pick and provide a solution other than Malthusian.
I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Dr. Wambugu. She was very upset with European enviro groups coming down to Africa and telling them they should be growing organically. Her point was that Africa has been using organic agriculture since man first walked upright and they are starving.
ORGANIC is NOT to blame for soil fertility depletion. There are MANY reasons. A tree may have a taproot which goes many many feet into the ground, yet it gets 95% of it's nutrition from the top 1 foot of soil. I do 100% organic, and have excellent soil fertility. There are ways to do things, and ways NOT to. Plowing under the stalks left from harvest is NOT a good way to build soil fertility. Simply laying them ON TOP of the soil and allowing them to decay there IS. Why did this country have rich fertile soil from the time it was founded up until modern agriculture practices became more commonly in use? Another mistake is one which is common for man in ALL areas - we think the Creator was a dummy who had archaic laws and rules which we need to fix! He gave us "laws" concerning farming practices - and we simply refuse to obey them (well, most folks do anyhow). Things like the Land Sabbaths - most folks would say "What the hell is the "land sabbath?"...
Can you amplify that information for me?
A full mulch garden is one of the best things to do. But getting that amount of mulch to cover much more than several hundred square feet could be a problem. Spoiled hay is the best source.
Other economic sources include grass clippings (a bagging mower makes this easy) and chopped corn stalks.
Leaves in the fall also if you are near trees.
Here in this area of TX we don't have many trees, but have a wood chipper and use it to chip wood and corn stalks. Also I use a bagging lawnmower. The grass clippings placed on top of burlap are an excellent barrier against weeds. What I do is place where I want my rows in the garden, mulch heavily between the rows with any organic material I can get my hands on, and then only dig where the plants actually grow each ensuing year. Any organic material can make great mulch, and for the sake of renewing soil using a wide variety is best, that way you will renew the largest array of nutrients back into the soil. Most people think that mulching is expensive. It can be if you purchase your mulch, yet most people have several sources of mulches available that they throw away. Even if you do not have enough mulch for it to be thick enough to double as a weed deterant, ANY amount of ANY kind of mulch will help in renewing your soil.
#51. To: ladybug (#49)
Neither does the Sahel where they are calling for "more topsoil". Most people could use a good solid cource in Environmental science; systems and math based.
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