Propagation is a process of using natural or artificial methods such as planting seeds, transplanting, watering, weeding and planting in season. There are two different fields of farming, there are large farming corporations that uses genetic altered seeds and pesticides for their fruits and vegetables and small farmers who are much more likely to use organic methods and heirloom seeds. Small farmers are focused on supplying to direct to market such as farmer’s markets, restaurants and smaller organic grocers.
The differences between heirloom seeds and genetic engineered seeds are natural or artificial seeds. Heirloom seeds are seeds from open-pollinate cultivars that are genetic in origin of earlier origins before the 1950’s when genetic engineering became popular often these fruits and vegetables are of a very high quality, easy to grow and cultivate. Many of these seeds were reproduced from the World War II era when so-called victory gardens were very popular. Some of the varieties are even 100 to 150 years old. When you use genetically modified seeds you produce genetically Modified Organism (GMO). A GMO is an organism that is involved in genetic engineering. Genetic scientists make a form of DNA that is combined into one molecule creating it into a new set of genes for animals, plants or bacteria organisms. The combining of genes from different organisms is called recombinant DNA technology, which creates genetically modified organisms or genetically engineered and are used in medicines, food, feed, fibers, etc.
There are beneficial insects and natural compounds that do not affect humans and animals and the chemical products are made out of different combinations of chemicals to kill certain plants and insects. Big farmers usually use the maker of Roundup, which is the most popular pesticide used in the U.S and it is scientifically known as glyphosate, which has been proven to cause weeds to become immune to the pesticides and create super weeds, which are very chemical resistant. This product was founded in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1901, John Francis Queeny, a 30-year veteran of the pharmaceutical industry and it was named after his wife’s maiden name. It also can affect our wheat crop and make it inedible.
Many small farmers use beneficial insects as their pest control and it uses insect predators to go after its prey. For example, parasitic wasps are used in agricultural pest control because they go after certain caterpillars, beetles and other types of insects. This is the nature of life and it is harmless to people, plants and animals. There are also soaps and oils that are naturally occurring that can be used against many different insects that are applied topically and are harmless.
In my own family history, my great Aunt Eva was an organic farmer; she started her farm in the 1920’s or in the 1930’s, before World War II in Norrocco, Indiana and her farmlands were approximately two hundred acres. She had two girls: Dorothy and Betty, they both became farmers. Betty and her husband were pig farmers and Dorothy stayed on the farm and helped her mother, Eva. When Dorothy was married to Al, both of them grew three different types of corn on Eva’s farm. They both worked full-time growing corn and they mostly grew seed (sweet) corn to feed to the cows. They would rent lands to make their farm bigger. Some of the farms were miles apart from each other so; they kept buying different farmlands to grow more corn and did more than sixty-five years of farming.
Dorothy’s farm is now around 3,000 acres and most of her farmlands have a house, a barn and a tractor. From the year of 2005, each acre was twenty-five thousand dollars each; now in the year of 2009 is probably the double of the price. Dorothy is still living today working in Indiana along with her children and her grandchildren helping her growing corn. She now sells her corn to the Manufacture that uses corn and makes it into ethanol, which is fuel. My great aunt’s farm is uncommon nowadays because of large corporations are buying most of the small farms. Her children and her grandchildren will probably continue to farm and continue to grow corn and other vegetables.
Propagation is using natural or artificial methods in our farming. We all should support our small farmers to keep our old methods of farming our fruits and vegetables. Going to farmer’s markets and small grocers to buy organic food, which is healthy for our bodies to have. If we all can support small businesses that supplies us with good food it can create a positive impact.
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