Allan Balliett wrote:
. . . . Pfeiffer, in practice, however, was open to the use of chemical fertilizers to get the soil productive enough to produce cover crops that could have benefit if once turned into the soil. (A person starting a bd project on an abused piece of ground - - as almost every square foot of american ground is EVEN much of what is covered by forest today - - may need to go to extremes to create those first few crops that the well established german farmers steiner was speaking to during the lectures did not have to)
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"I have serious doubts about the The Plan," the Consultant commented. "There are too many variables and complications. For instance, there is a likelihood for difficulties to arise during the several billion years it will take to get the planet into the right position and prepare it for introduction of the trial species.
"More importantly there is the obtuse energy / nutrition system. Soils, plants including trees, mammals, insects, birds, microbial life, bacteria and so on will all have adapted to each other and to prevailing planetary, cosmic and weather influences. Projections show that the good health of all the above will rely on complex groupings of minerals, proteins, vitamins, enzymes, acid and alkaline fluids. As will the introduced species. For example, to clear wastes from organs and tissues will require sodium working with potassium, and balanced digestion will need calcium in conjunction with sodium and phosphorus. All in precise quantities and natural states, of course. Potable water, nitrogen, oxygen and trace elements complete the picture.
"Previous experiments with this species have demonstrated their ego intolerance, lack of control, greed and inability to let well alone. The potential for them to stuff the whole thing up arouses in me grave fears for them, the planet and the universe."
His boss smiled enigmatically. "Well, it is the best my advisers can come up with so we will have to wait and see, won't we? Press the button!"
A muffled "WHOOMPH" signalled the start of The Plan; despite his misgivings, the Consultant watched in awe as stars, planets, comets and other universal elements began receding from the centre of the cosmos, accelerating as their distance from it and each other increased.
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Several billions of years later, and 200,000 after our ancestors first raised their heads, we have indeed 'stuffed it up'. So much so that in the majority of cases, the conventional agriculture farmyard storehouse (and, most regrettably, that of many organic and even some biodynamic farms) contains a 'weapon of mass destruction' which makes the nuclear bomb, anthrax, bubonic plague and their biological/chemical companions pale into insignificance. A weapon which comes in a common or garden UV protected white polyethylene bag. A weapon which, during the last hundred years and in particular the last forty, has almost wholly destroyed the natural abilities of soils to grow nutritious crops. Globally.
'The nation that destroys its soil destroys itself.' (Franklin D. Roosevelt)
You may not believe that I cringe when I read of people advocating the use of chemical fertilisers in the face of overwhelming evidence of their destructive qualities. Identities whose reputations are such that less knowledgeable people follow blindly in their footsteps. Well, I do cringe - and so should you. For those who do not, or who believe otherwise, I suggest you read 'Silent Spring' by Rachel Carson and 'The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight' (Thom Hartmann), just two books of a growing number castigating the actions of so-called 'developed' nations and elements of the human race. With cause.
I contend there is no justification for any use of chemical fertilisers, for the subjugation of 'Quality' to 'Quantity', for the abandonment or rejection of holisticism in farming.
Treat the soil, as the living organism that it is, with care and compassion, maintain its chemical, mineral and organic balance naturally, and it will see you right. In ANY circumstances.
roger
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Today, do not worry, do not anger
Honour your parents, teachers and elders
Earn your living honestly & Be thankful to all life
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Roger Pye
Reiki & Earth Healing, Energy & Water Dowsing
PO Box 2057 Queanbeyan NSW 2620 Australia
Ph: +61 2 6255 3824
Fax: +61 2 6255 1028
Mob: +61 410 469 541
Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
