Fukuoka’s fundamental precepts of no tillage, no weeding, no pesticides, no fertilizing, and no pruning cut to the heart of traditional farming. Not only do they require expertise and sensitivity in the observation of the local eco-system, the selection of native plant-types, and a knowledge of how best to support and encourage naturally-occurring processes in the soil, they also require a fundamental paradigm-shift in the way we view ourselves in relation to the environment. To paraphrase Larry Korn’s succinct analysis of the different effects of chemical, traditional, and natural farming on the soil in the ‘Introduction’ to the same volume, we can say that in the chemical-based paradigm of modern agriculture that emerged after WWII, the earth is seen as a passive resource to be exploited by scientific means for the highest possible yield, and therefore profit. Any intrinsic ‘deficiencies’ in the soil are corrected and pests are controlled by chemical means. In this view, the depletion of the soil and the erosion of the land, when they are acknowledged at all, are seen as necessary evils. The impact of organic farming, on the other hand, is far gentler in that human interference with natural processes is mitigated by the use of eco-friendly fertilizers and methods that are far less aggressive. In this paradigm, so-called ‘Nature’ is viewed as something like a friend needing guidance by non-harmful means. In the natural-farming paradigm, however, humanity simply relinquishes all control of the growing process and adopts ‘Nature’ as a teacher, observing its intrinsic patterns and working simply to support the growth of earth-nourishing plants and life-sustaining fruit and vegetables. Interference in the inner processes of the life-cycle of plants is eschewed altogether, as ‘Nature’ is left to get on with what it does best.
Posted on: Tue, 24 Jun 2014 04:09:46 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015