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What about using animals to help with weed control[1], for example ducks used in rice paddies[2] or weeder geese? Also mulching and growing cover crops alongsi

What about using animals to help with weed control[1], for example ducks used in rice paddies[2] or weeder geese? Also mulching and growing cover crops alongside and in succession with our crops [3] prevents weeds without as much labor as traditional wedding. For example planting clover around crops, which stays short and fixes nitrogen while competing with weeds. I wish we would spend more time rethinking our industrial farming practices, rather than try to prop them up with diesel burning robots. [1] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236942635_Grazing_Animals_as_Weed_Control_Agents https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236942635_Grazing_A... [2] https://web-japan.org/trends01/article/021022sci_r.html https://web-japan.org/trends01/article/021022sci_r.html [3] https://eorganic.org/node/2535 https://eorganic.org/node/2535

ashtonbaker 5y ago
The link at [1] seems to be mostly about "pasture and rangeland weed control" with limited applications to forestry and crops. The examples for those are good, but seem at a glance application-specific. The most general recommendation for crops is to use animals during the pasture rotation of a plot to reduce weed pressure during a growing rotation. [2]: Again, great, but very crop-specific. [3]: I've seen/used mulching on permaculture farms, and it seems like a fairly effective method. Also has the benefits of reducing the need for water, and regenerating topsoil via decomposition. But labor-intensive. The clover idea is very interesting and new to me. > I wish we would spend more time rethinking our industrial farming practices, rather than try to prop them up with diesel burning robots. Agree wholeheartedly! And if the answer is that more labor is required to farm sustainably, then I'm personally all for that. But I'm also pragmatic, and if we could improve the economics of sustainable farming by automating some of the manual labor, I think that would be great. I'm not sure this specific robot addresses that - it seems designed for industrial monoculture farms - but it's an interesting idea to me.

ashtonbaker 5y ago

The link at [1] seems to be mostly about "pasture and rangeland weed control" with limited applications to forestry and crops. The examples for those are good, but seem at a glance application-specific. The most general recommendation for crops is to use animals during the pasture rotation of a plot to reduce weed pressure during a growing rotation. [2]: Again, great, but very crop-specific. [3]: I've seen/used mulching on permaculture farms, and it seems like a fairly effective method. Also has the benefits of reducing the need for water, and regenerating topsoil via decomposition. But labor-intensive. The clover idea is very interesting and new to me. > I wish we would spend more time rethinking our industrial farming practices, rather than try to prop them up with diesel burning robots. Agree wholeheartedly! And if the answer is that more labor is required to farm sustainably, then I'm personally all for that. But I'm also pragmatic, and if we could improve the economics of sustainable farming by automating some of the manual labor, I think that would be great. I'm not sure this specific robot addresses that - it seems designed for industrial monoculture farms - but it's an interesting idea to me.