Thursday, October 23, 2014

An Amish community that goes beyond organic farming

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"In the second world war, my ancestors were conscientious objectors because they don't believe in fighting," says Samuel Zook, an Amish farmer. "If you really think about it, when we spray our crops with agro-tóxicos is that really what we're doing [the fight]. Is chemical warfare ".

Samuel Zook is part of an Amish community in the u.s. State of Pennsylvania. The Amish are an Anabaptist Christian religious group that is distributed by the United States and Canada. Are known to live in communities and by their conservative mores, as the restricted use of electronic equipment or the clothes they use.

Eight years ago, Zook was about to lose the battle for fungi and pathogens that ate their crops and pesticides appeared to have little or no effect. Disillusioned with the conventional farming methods, Zook searched feverishly for a way to save their crops. Was in a farmer's Amish articles of 18 years from Ohio, called John Kempf, that Zook found the solution you've been looking for.

Kempf is the unlikely founder of Advancing Eco Agriculture, an agricultural consultant established in 2006 to promote intensive organic farming with a scientific basis. The story of Kempf is similar to Zook. A series of crops destroyed took the young, with only the eighth year of schooling, the focus on the sciences. For two years the young studied biology, chemistry and Agronomy in order to save their crops. The solution came from the study of the immune system of the plants, which in the case of healthy specimens, produces a wide range of compounds that are toxic to the invading agents.

"The plant immune response depends on a balanced nutrition, as our own immune system", measuring Kempf to Atlantic. Modern agriculture relies on fertilizers to make plants more resistant but with scant knowledge of the nutritional needs of other bodily functions. Through analysis of the SAP from plants, Kempf has managed to find out shortcomings of certain minerals which can then enter into the soil. Once the plants are able to defend themselves and their immune system is fully functioning, pesticides can be avoided.

The Advancing Eco Agriculture produces then nutritional supplements for the plants in order to increase the health and income without the use of harmful agricultural chemicals. Among the ingredients of supplements are algae, humic substances, minerals, including calcium, phosphorus, potassium and magnesium â€" which aim to stimulate plant growth and improve soil quality.

It is with these supplements that Zook spent working on plantations, which already do not receive any type of pesticides. "You can do nothing to plantations and receive a certificate of organic farming. By contrast, we focus on restoring the balance found in natural systems, "says Zook. Although it plants of this Amish farmer are not completely free of diseases, crops have been quality and Zook likes the way practice their agriculture.

Foto: Mike O’C / Creative Commons

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