Agricultural Knowledge being lost?

I live in the country and have my own farm, was born and raised in the agricultural lifestyle. I have thought about this a long time, and I feel that less and less of us actually know how to plant gardens, grow crops, raise livestock, and survive on their own.

If you look at the Russians when they killed off all the farmers and made farm "communes" the efficiency and ability to raise crops was effectively lowered, thus lowering the ability to feed their nation.

I remain imbedded in the old ways, using draft horses to farm, I have done every thinkable task using draft horses (we still use tractors most of the time) but i think this is important when the oil runs out or too expensive to run the tractors across the field.

At least I will be able to feed my family and make money selling surplus crop to others.

reply to post by lostshepherd


Don't worry, i'm sure people will have a use for individuals such as yourself when we start colonizing different planets.

great, now i have to figure out how to plow moon rock

reply to post by lostshepherd


Well, sure!

Why not get some practice in now while you can?

I suggest that next time you go out to plow, you wear something like a fire-fighter's suit, with body-armour over the top.

After that you can move on to plowing through harder substances!

Im sure the horses would like that!

But seriously though I think its dangerous for society to forget our agricultural roots.

reply to post by lostshepherd


First and foremost my hat off to you! I have to agree that this country was founded in large part by the farmers who fed us (our ancestors). Once upon a time farmers were plentiful and even some of the most highly regarded, and often richest, members of their communities. Now there are so few farmers, thanks to industrialized agriculture, that "farmer" is no loner even a occupation on can check on the US census.

I also whole heartedly agree that the knowledge that farmers had, not only of the ways and means of growing food, but of the land itself is being lost. I am being called away from the computer so I will have to post the rest of my thoughts later. Thanks for bringing up the topic.

reply to post by Animal


Yes also I think there is a correlation between health issues and not working hard anymore, too many of us sit around and watch tv or whatever instead of being outside doing something.

Once we lose our knowledge, its a long time getting it back, how long did it take to learn how to plant crops properly, and to conserve the land.

reply to post by lostshepherd


.........................

Good post

And highly relevant topic.

Nothing wrong with sex-education for children of relevant age.

Basic home-budgeting would stand many in good stead if they were to learn the basics at school also.

Of similar value would be ... as you've said so well ... experience on the land, crop-growing, seed collection, animal-husbandry, contour plowing, organic farming, etc.

If I won a few million in a lottery ? I'd like to think I'd make available to as many as possible, the book 'Secrets of the Soil' by Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird (of Secret Life of Plants fame).

Brief synopsis from online, seeing as I don't have my own copy to hand:

Tells the fascinating story of the innovative, nontraditional, often surprising things that certain scientists, farmers, and mystics are doing to save our planet from self-destruction-such as using the techniques of Rudolph Steiner's biodynamic agriculture with its reliance on ethereal forces from the planets, Dan Carlson's growth-stimulating Sonic Bloom, and rock dust as fertilizer to revitalize depleted soils; or gardening with the help of devas and nature spirits, and applying psychic skills to reverse serious agricultural problems.

I'm sure many are familiar with this book and it's surprising, uplifting and pwer-giving revelations, but for those who haven't heard of it, hope I can whet your appetite for more by just adding that packing cow-horns with cow-dung sounds weird .. right ? But when those dung-filled horns are buried in the earth, at certain phases of the moon and at certain seasons, the dung becomes transformed into a powerful, chemical-free fertilizer which, when mixed with ordinary water (and even the 'mixing' is intriguing .. 'it's all in the way you stir') becomes a literal elixir of life for your crops or small home-vegetable patch.

Then there's the rock-dust phenomenon. In the United States, little-known, are enlightened souls who're restoring life and vitality to virtually dead ground and forests using no more than rock-dust (obtained for free quite often from quarries, etc.). Who knows how and why it works ? But it does. It was used to restore areas of the devastated Black Forest region in Europe .. until skullduggery on the part of the Big Business- chemical-fertilizer industry.

SO much information that could transform your family's life and health at the same time it works with Nature and the Universal Soul to restore the planet ! All in one book !

And while we're on the subject, why not take a few minutes to peruse Psionics to learn how to rid entire fields of insect and other pests from the comfort of your own living room ... and all done using chemical free , non-invasive methods ... quite often requires only a photo or diagram ! (and Psionics is so much more ! You can heal yourself and others, protect that which you love, rid yourself of troublesome neighbours, silence barking dogs and neighbour's kids' rock-bands, etc. etc. ... all without lifting more than your little finger .. and causing harm to no-one. )

Even if you don't believe any of the doom and gloom Doomsday and Sh*t Hitting Fan scenarios .. this stuff is not only worth knowing and passing along to others ... it will give you back your lost sense of independence and strength ... hope .. wonder ... belief that there's more out there/in here than plastic, Britney, debt, threat and worry.

YOU have the power ... all is NOT lost. They're fooling you into giving up and surrendering to hopelessness. But the truth is .. you have more information .. valuable information .. at your fingertips and disposal right now than at any previous time in history, if you care to access it. You have it within your grasp to change your world for the better .. virtually cost and violence free !

And digging the earth, getting in touch with it, working with it .. as the OP suggests ... is your birthright and possibly your duty .. even if that earth is contained in a simple box on your apartment balcony.

I know when I am working the land, I get a feeling of peace and belonging. Its cool being connected to mother earth

In the past couple of years I have become more and more interested in horticulture. I consider it sort of like "being called back to the land." There is just something innate in people that is starting to wake up and go back to basics. Maybe it's all the materialism and stress in our current society, I don't know.

At first it was boring growing plants... they don't do anything fast enough to keep my generation interested. But then something just clicks, and you realize what a miracle is taking place in front of you. Especially once you have grown a plant from seed to vegetable. It's hard to look at a seed the same again... now I don't even like to waste seeds in vegetables and fruit I eat. It seems like such a waste of potential life.

I've been wanting to get a chicken, but my parents don't seem to like the idea. The legality of having them in the city seems kind of sketchy too... in some places not at all, in some places hens only, in some places you can have roosters.

I'm glad to see the recent surge in agriculture-related topics in this forum though.