Fred, You do not need to till, plow, etc. I have seen a video in which the Agriculture Extension service agent said, "the worst thing that can happen to soil is the use of a roto-tiller."
200,000,000 acres worldwide is in no-till. Over 50% of the small farms in Argentina are no-till. It works. Mechanized: 1985-2000, Dr. Morrison, TX research station, proved that permanent beds, with permanent tracks, increase yields 15%. In 2002, A D Hughes [806-866-5667] decided to go no-till and purchased a no-till planter. He planted the cotton, harvested the cotton, planted wheat, knocked down the wheat and he was ready to plant again. His cost went to the basement. Buster Adair [806-755-2532] has been no-till [cotton] for twenty years. Steve Groff [cedarmeadowfarm.com] has been no-till [vegetables, corn] for 30 years [I have seen this operation]. A farmer can not be no-till without a no-till planter and/or no-till drill. !It works! Mini-farms: Fukaoka Farm, Japan, has been no-till [rice, small grains, vegetables] for 70 years. Dripping Springs Gardens, AR, has been no-till [vegetables, flowers] for 8 years. An Indian farmer has been no-till [vegetables] for 5 years. A Malawi farmer has been no-till [vegetables] on permanent beds for 25 years [I visited his farm]. A Honduras farmer has been no-till [vegetables & fruit] on permanent beds on the contour (730 slope] for 11 years [I visited this farm]. Ruth Stout [USA] had a no-till garden for 30 years and 7,000 people visited her garden. !It works! Ken Hargesheimer ______________________________________________________ The American Community Gardening Association listserve is only one of ACGA's services to community gardeners. To learn more about the ACGA and to find out how to join, please go to http://www.communitygarden.org To post an e-mail to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your subscription: https://secure.mallorn.com/mailman/listinfo/community_garden
