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By J. CAKLION COURTER III
Commissioner, VFASC
Farmers need lots of things to produce their crops — seed, machinery, water, fertilizer, soil, tools, sunshine. Common sense tells you that in order to have the best results, you need to workty seed; choose sturdy, hardworking machinery it in top condition. Clean it, with the best ingredients. Buy high quali fuel it, lubricate it, rotate it, sharpen it — whatever is necessary to keep the performance at its best, most efficient and most productive for as long as possible.
The approach does-not change much when you come to the inputs that nature provides. Water, soil and air are ours on loan. But they don’t come with warranties or guarantees. Their only extended service contract is the one with us, the users. As major users of our natural resources, farmers have even more of a stake in maintaining their long term quality. Again, it’s just plain common sense. To get the best, we need to use the best and use it in such a way that it will be around for a long time.
Farmers can’t cure all environmental ills, but with care, thoughtful planning, research, experience and yes, common sense, they are conserving and protecting our natural resources. Several areas offer the greatest op’portunities: eliminating excess consumption; making use of new technology; preserving the natural state; and finding ways to make use of agricultural waste products.
It’s always been a guiding principle: don’t use more of anything than you really need. This idea applies to pesticide, fertilizer, water, machinery and even human effort. Today Best Management Practices put that principle into practice by guiding farmers to fertilize according to the need indicated by soil tests, which take into consideration the effect of nutrient carryover from previous applications.
Minimum-till and no-till systems are another way to cut down on energy and labor costs by reducing or eliminating what used to be considered a planting basic — turning over the soil. There are definite advantages to leaving the surface of a field relatively undisturbed: reduction in the runoff plus greater infiltration of water and nutrients to the subsoil where they are needed. In addition, less effort is required by the farmer.
Computers are also providing a
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