Lessons in how to grow superweeds which outgrow our food crops.
In the UK we have a long history of permanent agricultural weeds. This history of agriculture and our methods of agriculture mean we have, in effect, selectively bred, for persistent weeds. Man has evolved within his landscape, he has altered that natural landscape with his agricultural methods. Natural selection has favoured what have now become persistent weeds such as creeping thistle, couch grass, nettles etc.
Individual species have evolved due to our agricultural methods, so if, for example, we look at dandelion growth patterns we can see this demonstrated. Dandelions can grow flat to the ground so they can no longer be mown off. They will grow up-right, vertical and tall until they are mown a few times, then they take on the new flat form so they pass under the mower or the scythe.
Human attempts at eradication of these persistent weeds has actually led to their ‘improvement’ and made the situation worse; we have effectively selectively bred them. The difficulty is now in restoring the natural balance, so that they no longer have the competitive advantage. This is what Richard Dawkins would call an ‘arms race’. It is escalating therefore both sides need to invest in order to retain the status-quo. From a human perspective this means even greater use of herbicides and fuel energy/human labour for ploughing etc. From our point of view (humans) this is counter productive. However, it is good for these persistent agricultural weeds as it is putting them at a competitive advantage over their compatriots. Persistent weeds have increasingly quicker recovery rates, they have persistence of propagation methods. If you leave in a small section of a root such as creeping thistle or couch grass, a new plant is able to regrow from that tiny section exceptionally quickly. It quickly outgrows all my vegetable plants.
It appears from the quote below, the problem is wide spread:
‘Then in the 1990s came Roundup Ready cotton, corn and soybeans, which meant machines could go through growing fields with heavy chemical applications of Roundup®, the Monsanto patented herbicide.
But weeds have been getting smarter. The wimpy little ones like poke, ragweed or milk thistle have retired from the field, leaving hardier cousins to stand and fight. One of the hardy pigweeds, Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri), has been making a name for itself in South Georgia, because it has evolved resistance to glyphostate, Roundup’s active ingredient. Agronomists say the overuse of glyphostate herbicides is to blame for the amaranth explosion. The plant had already evolved resistances to dinitroanilines and acetolactate synthase inhibitors, and farmers that kept using Roundup year after year, regardless of the warnings, had their fields completely taken over when Roundup Ready Amaranth appeared.
Palmer amaranth can grow as tall as 15 feet, although 6 feet is more common. Climate change is its best friend. It can continue to grow an inch a day even without water all summer, even when daily temperature tops 90°F (32°C). Its flowering tops put out half a million seeds per plant. One successful amaranth plant can seed an entire field for the following season. Full grown, the new superweed eats cotton picking machinery and spits out the metal parts.
Some Georgia farmers have been forced into bankruptcy and abandoned their farms. The new strain is spreading in every direction and has farmers and extension agents worried from South Carolina to West Texas. Even Monsanto has no recommended solution. But then, Monsanto doesn’t sell hoes’
The Happiness Plant
re-published from The Permaculture Activist 70:44-46 (Winter 2008-09).
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