Re: [compost_tea] Tilling and tea don't mix.

From: Frank L Teuton <fteuton_at_sympatico.ca>
Date: Sat, 9 Aug 2003 16:47:54 -0400

Dear Jeff:

Laying tillage on Jethro Tull is a bit naive, old man. Plows and hoes have =
been around so long that really ancient poetry can be found expressing a di=
spute between the two of them....

see http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/history/lecture09/r_9-1.html

Plows were depicted in ancient Babylon as well, see

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/history/lecture09/fig_9-09a.html

Plows were known in ancient China, and in the New World among the Inca, as=
 well as in the Middle East.

The Wikipedia defines tillage as "the agricultural preparation of the soil =
to receive seeds".

I would also refer you to Eliot Coleman's The New Organic Grower, 2nd editi=
on, for a very up to date discussion of the need for, and better ways to pe=
rform, tillage in field scale vegetable production.

Coleman, and many other organic growers, also practice cultivation of the s=
oil to eliminate weed pressure on crops. Such surface cultivation, while no=
t as problematic as deep tillage, also plays havoc with normal foodweb inte=
ractions, but it is hard to avoid the reality that weed pressures can serio=
usly affect quality and yield of crops.

I know Elaine has met with Eliot at least a few times and I know that Eliot=
 presents as a difficult to achieve ideal a no-till approach, but as Elaine=
 has said many times, there are times when tillage is necessary. We therefo=
re should not utter simplistic absolutes, but adopt a more supple 'Canadian=
 comprise' approach---tillage if necessary, but not necessarily tillage.

Can ya dig it?

;-)

Frank Teuton---who has been Faulknered, Pfeiffered and Stouted on tillage, =
not to mention Uncle Billed (that'd be Mollison) and Wes Jacksoned, as well=
 as Gene Logsdoned....

Here's a pithy quote from a dead white guy found on a live compost guy's ho=
me page:

http://www.abe.iastate.edu/Faculty/tlr/Praxis.htm

 "The plow is one of the most ancient and most valuable of man's inventions=
;
     but long before he existed the land was in fact regularly plowed, and =
still continues to be thus
     plowed by earthworms. It may be doubted whether there are many other a=
nimals which have
     played so important a part in the history of the world, as have these =
lowly organized
     creatures."
     Darwin, C.R. 1881. The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the Action=
 of Worms, with
     Observations on their Habits (Chapter 7). Murray, London.
     Charles Robert Darwin (1809-1882).

 


  ----- Original Message -----
  From: Jeff Lowenfels
  To: compost_tea_at_yahoogroups.com
  Sent: Friday, August 08, 2003 8:45 PM
  Subject: [compost_tea] Tilling and tea don't mix.


  Let's see if we can't clear up this tilling thing for those who are not c=
lear that using tea requires a good understanding of the soil foodweb and w=
hat it needs and doesn't in addition to tea. The ICTC site (http://www.int=
lctc.org/ and Dr. Elaine's site( www.soilfoodweb.com) should be on your li=
st.

  Why do people till? Yeah, yeah, "to put organics back into the soil". The=
y have no idea the idea comes from a 17th century lawyer who thought that r=
oots ate particles of soil and so the smaller you made them, the easier it =
is for the plants to eat. Pulverize he said and for some reason everyone d=
id and most gardeners and farmers still do in the form of disc plowing or r=
ototilling.

  Back when he proposed heavy turning of the soil, this country lawyer from=
 England had no idea that breaking up the soil would work really great in a=
reas where you had virgin soils like the United States. This was back in Ge=
orge Washington and Tom Jefferson time when their was lots of movement into=
 America forests to create farm land...

  Worked great because they killed off the fungal domination in the forest =
soils they were turning into ag soils. Bacteria thrived and their crops we=
re nitrate lovers and thus bacterially dominated soil is perfect.(Corn like=
s an F:B of .8 to 1.0).

  Too bad they didn't realize they needed some of that fungi to keep soil s=
tructure, and help buffer pH and to grow even better corn. Too bad they con=
tinued to till year in and year out so that they killed worms and displaced=
 all the soil foodweb that did live there....and too bad they started the w=
hole practice of rototilling in home gardens as well. .

  Unless you want fast bacterial domination where there was once fungal, wh=
y till? Not because Jethro Tull said to.

  You may still need to break up some of the soil, but you sure don't have =
to turn it over like most do. You can go shallow and you can drill plant, s=
hallow furrow plow, etc.

  And to bring it all back to ACT: compost, mulches and ACT in the fall sho=
uld put the foodweb to work so that by spring there are plenty of good orga=
nics back in the soil.

  And ACT after you do disturb the soil will help get it some structure aga=
in etc.......

  Cheers,

  JEFF






Received on Sun Aug 10 2003 - 02:23:36 EDT

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