What do organic farmers do, anyway?
Organic agriculture is a way of working with natural processes to solve some of the problems that all farmers face: weed control, insect pests, soil fertility management, plant diseases, extreme weather, etc. Instead of toxic chemical herbicides (and genetically engineered herbicide tolerant plants), organic producers often rely on old-fashioned hand weeding or hoeing. The use of cover crops and mulch to suppress competing weeds is common, especially in orchards. On many organic farms mechanical cultivation (plowing) or flame-weeding techniques are used extensively. Sometimes animals such as sheep or chickens are “employed” to eat weeds and weed seeds from fields, especially before tilling and planting. Regarding insect “pests” – all bugs are not pests! A balance must be struck between beneficial insects such as bees, ladybugs, and wasps and those that are destructive to crops. Organic farming allows for these beneficial insect populations to co-exist and aid in control, keeping the ne
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