Mommy says “eat your vegetables and fruits every day. It is good for your health.” What if these very fruits and vegetables come laden with pesticides and chemicals that could also harm you? Due to modern agricultural practices, there has been an overdose of such chemicals being sprayed on to crops to protect them from pests, to improve the nutrient content, to ward off diseases, to prevent weeds in the field etc. While this does boost the yield of crops at the same time
these chemicals get absorbed into the tissues of the plant and thus makes its way into the human body where it does a lot of damage as well.
How then can one combat this? The principle of ORGANIC FARMING comes to the aid of the farmers now. Organic farming refers to a practice of farming where there are no synthetic chemicals including fertilisers, weedicides, pesticides etc being sprayed on to the soil or the plants. They rely exclusively on natural processes to keep the crops safe from invading pests and to boost the nutrient content of the soil.
The seeds are normally soaked in chemicals before sowing to sterilize the surface of the stored seeds in conventional farming. Weedicides, pesticides are sprayed at regular intervals to protect the crops. In addition, synthetic fertilisers are used to enhance the nutrient content in the soil. In organic farming, ideally the soil is maintained in its natural state for many years without any addition of chemicals of any kind. Natural fertilisers like
manure and compost are used in organic farming. Natural methods of de-weeding including manual plucking, or mulching etc are used to prevent an overgrowth of weeds. Pests are controlled by using either natural formulations or by using a biological approach to keep the pests at bay. One method employed in organic farming is that of crop rotation. Perioding cycling of crops grown in a piece of land ensures a balance of the nutrients since the consumption of various nutrients differs among crops. As a bonus this method also prevents pests from settling down in the field and adapting its life cycle to a single type of crop. In addition cultivating multiple crops in the same soil also has its own added advantages in terms of a kind of symbiotic support to the plants. Some organic farmers also do not resort to using piped water for fear of chlorinated water and rely mainly on rain water either during the rains or stored rain water.
Organic farming is not a easy task but is much the need of the hour and if practiced can lead to a much healthier life. Nutrient contents of fruits and vegetables grown organically have been shown to be high compared to those using conventional farming. They have also been reported to taste much better. So you need not shy away from that bowl of fruits and vegetables on your dining table anymore. Here is to a healthy and chemical free eating style.
To read more on organic farming:
http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/facts/09-077.htm
http://www.fao.org/organicag/oa-faq/oa-faq6/en/
