Would you like some Round Up on that?

Last week we headed out to the farm to visit my parents.  We always have a nice time, eat way to much and talk about this and that.  I mentioned to my folks that many of the fields on the way out didn't looked worked yet even though the weather has been good.  My dad said that they are mostly seeded already as they seed right into the stubble of the previous years crop. 

Why is this odd?  Well, typically when you take a crop off in the fall, you try and work the land before winter and then give it another go with the cultivator again in the spring.  This will work the soil and pull the weeds up to the surface so they can die.  Then you are good to plant your seeds of whatever, typically barley, wheat or canola and bobs your uncle.

Well in the new modern methods of farming, that takes far too long.  The trend now is to not cultivate in the fall or spring and simply plant the new spring seed directly into the previous years stubble with an air seeder.  Now this sounds more efficient, but here is the rub.  Right along side the nice little seed is a swack of chemical that gets put into the ground to rid the field of those pesky weeds.

Then, when the crop grows and is ready to ripen, well you wouldn't want mother nature to ripen the crop so its ready to harvest.  That is pase'!   Its much better to spray it with round up so it just gets all nice and golden and ready for the combine.

My dad grew up on the farm and although we moved to the city when I was a kid, he kept his farm land and has always rented it out to family that still farm the old fashioned way.  My dad is fairly disgusted at these new practices and shakes his head.  My dad is just a regular guy but he has a whole lot of common sense and can't imagine that all these chemicals can be good for us.  They say the incidents of MS are really high in that area.  No one will ever be able to say conclusively that all of these chemicals have caused increased numbers of whatever, but I prefer to apply the science of common sense.  I wouldn't drink a bottle of round up so I don't really buy when I am told its perfectly safe and not at all harmful to our food.

I know lots of people that are starting to think a lot more about the food they put into their bodies and that's for good reason.