Old Rotation experiment continues on today..

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Rotation

For much of the latter part of the 19th century, cotton yields in the Southern United States suffered declines caused by planting the same crop on the same land year after year, a process which caused significant soil nutrient loss. In 1896, Professor J. F. Duggar of the Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical College set up the Old Rotation experiment on a one-acre (1,600 m²) plot of land one mile (1.6 km) south of the campus to test whether soil nutrient levels could be maintained by growing a crop of legumes on the same land as cotton, but in the winter months when cotton doesn't grow. This rotation of cotton and soybeans has continued uninterrupted since. In addition to the cotton/legume rotation, additional rotations have been added in adjacent plots consisting of a cotton/corn, cotton/corn/legume and cotton/corn/legume/soybean rotation. It became evident within a few years that adding the winter legume crop as a rotation was sufficient to restore adequate nutrients to the soil to maintain a yearly cotton crop indefinitely.[2]


I read this and think how much fertilizer could be saved in growing of cotton....

Using a cover crop if done right......

Back in the 1970's the sowing of cover crops was heavily subsidized by the government, and almost every farmer was doing so. It was probably one of the greatest subsidized programs they ever created as it reduced the cost of so much fertilizer, and helped with soil erosion. It really was a shame that they stopped such a program. I believe it was not just an approved practice for farmers, but an actually Act of Congress for farmers.

I am glad to see that cover crops are returning to mainstream farming in America today though. It is done differently, and actually better now with mush less wasted seed, with the cover crops sown just where they are needed. It is also nice to see the attitudes of American Farmer's once again seeing its merit, and not just adopting the practice of using them, but really advocates for using them. And farm equipment manufactures are really making specialized equipment to work with the dual crops in the fields now too. So it is not just a practice, but a total farming commitment to using cover crops that I am excited to see.

And there are some subsidies available. It is not like it was granted, but I am seeing more and more use of cover crops being included in the requirements for some subsidized conservation practices. Now that I think about it, I got a grant three years ago that included pay for sowing a cover crop.

It is really nice to see that cover crops are no longer a conservation practice, but something most farmers do.

back in the days when soybeans were not gmo contaminated.

watching neil young perform seed saver/monsanto song at farm aide woke me up again

I am happy about this sort of development. More power to the farmer who has to shell out less for fertility, and the environment as a whole benefits from less spraying. And I am sure there's a direct correlation with any number of non-cotton fibre crops, from nettle to flax to hemp, and food crops besides, where there isn't overlap (as with all three aforementioned crops).

I just found this source for non-GMO edamame seed.

Now all we need is a group of interested individuals with crops sheltered from the pollen of GMO soy to breed them up, and to create a source, and develop a market for, high-quality, fair-trade non-GMO soy beans.

Remind me again, why do we need so much soy anyways? Or palm oil?

-CK