Friday, August 08, 2014

Potato Harvest treatment North Fife

Pre Harvest Potato treatment. burning off the foliage with sulphuric acid. Once the potatoes have flowered they can be harvested. Spraying kills off any blight and further growth, after a week or so the leaves and stems are shrivelled up and are no obstacle to efficient harvesting of the tubers by machine. Gone are the days when potatoes were picked by hand...a multitude of sore backs saved but income from employment now channelled to a few....contractors and land owners. This is acid rain big style, it can be balanced by an input of lime later. Imagine though the soil organisms having to flourish in such hostile conditions, truth is, they don't. Much farmland is now a dead growing medium requiring constant adjustment with chemical inputs. Next time you see a molehill, say, be happy because they live on worms which consume organic waste converting it into a balanced fertiliser. No chemicals needed, respect for all that lives ultimately will save us all.



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