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Originally Posted by PureHarvest
As far as quasi-organic being impossible, I think that is close minded.
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Never did I say "impossible". If I were to put a single word to it, I would choose counterproductive.
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Originally Posted by PureHarvest
I want you to go tell that to the farmer that i met with that has been no-tilling for 22 years, doing intense cover-cropping, and has raised his organic matter from 4 to 11 percent, all the while using commercial fertilizer and occasional herbicide. As I'm sure you know, that is a small jump mathematically, but a HUGE jump as far as what that means agriculturally.
His yields are way up, inputs are way down, and his drainage and compaction problems are 100% gone. His worm population is unreal.
This is just one farmer in one state.
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And every benefit he has seen has been the result of incorporating organic farming principles into his practices. Imagine how much better it could continue to be if he was to go all the way. His increase in organic matter contributes to a higher humate content, high microbial populations, increased CEC, higher nutrient retention, and therefore a need for less conventional input. It's cause and effect and only makes logical sense.
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Originally Posted by PureHarvest
To say that it is all or nothing smacks of zealotry towards an emotional attachment to an idealistic way of doing something. I understand your perspective, I am not a fan of chemicals.
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I disagree. It is the result of education and preference, not emotion or ideology. After many years of hands on practice, many trials, many failures, and hundreds of soil samples. After many years, I now know how to make it work....so I do. If my personal goal is to produce a 100% fully organic product and I need to use a chemical to correct something in the plant, then my soil is not complete nor correct. It is a failure on my part to properly maintain the soil.
I'm not offended by someone who chooses to grow chemically fed plants. IN FACT - I love such people. It only makes it that much easier for me to sell my 100% organic produce when people taste the difference. I actually NEED chem farmers to help establish my full market potential. Some people get offended by such a statement, but that is my reality, and I'm perfectly okay with it.
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Originally Posted by PureHarvest
However, I want you to think about your daily life. Do you drive a car? Think about all the fluids in that car. Gas, brake fluid, motor oil, gear oil, trans fluid. What did it take to make the battery?
Your home. All the materials in it. Your appliances, what are they made from. Your bedding?
How much plastic is in all of the goods you buy?
The point is, in and of themselves those things are 'bad' for the planet and us. But, we do the best we can to limit our exposure. We do our best to acquire the raw ingredients in a way that is good for all. Can we do better? Yes.
But if I take the blanket approach and say all industry that is no good all the time because we are killing the air, soil, and water by supporting these processes, and that nobody is gonna correctly use them so lets do away with them, I am left living in a cave with no electricity. So then my burning of wood for heat and light will be a problem because I am cutting down trees and putting carbon into the air.
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This is the part that always amuses me the most. Just because you are a 100% organic farmer people put you into some box and tell you what you think; treat you as if are some nut job trying to save the world. You are projecting and attributing an ideology that I never claimed or even addressed. It is nothing more than assumption on your part, which is perfectly okay. I encounter such on a regular basis and often find myself explaining the difference between a quack and someone who utilizes empirical data and science.
I grow organically because, in my opinion, it produces a superior tasting product that has a longer shelf life. Not because I'm delusional. It really is that plain and simple.
Do realize, it is not my desire to convert anyone to any practice. I came to this site as a means of documenting my garden for reference purposes. My posts merely reflect how and why I garden the way I do. If people are in pursuit of a fully organic approach, regardless their reasoning for such, then the information I share will be extremely useful and beneficial.
If having a fully organic garden is not your goal, that is perfectly fine with me. Continue doing what you do and make it to the finish line in a way that suits you. No sweat off my back.