Lots of folks don't think anything about crop spraying. They've been whipped into believing these killer chemicals are the best and only option to protect our crops. But that's not true. There are other options for healthy wholesome food. Consider this: chemicals are being sprayed at nearly every stage of a plant's development. It gets into the roots, up through the stalks into the vegetables and fruit. This level of pesticide doesn't wash off, so that juicy peach has more than juice trickling down your throat and into your bloodstream to who knows where. Stomach. Heart. Kidneys. Pancreas. Breast. Prostate. Brain.
Like I said, not a fan.
So on Tuesday last, it felt like a gross overreach for a rep from a local chemical company two towns over to find his way to our door. We've got a little 1 acre parcel with a 114 year old farmhouse on it, that can't even get AT&T broadband internet. Last time I checked, we own the land too, and can plant anything we want on it.
The Guy was from Pioneer DuPont (from the Dow Chemicals Mothership who is in competition with the Monsanto Mothership to control all the food crops by owning the patents on the seeds). He was inquiring about the sunflower we had growing in the yard. The Hubs walked out with The Guy and darned if there wasn't a little sunflower growing out near the street.
This sunflower has pollen and bees will pollinate it. Right. The Guy said our bee could travel 10 miles with pollen on its paws and infiltrate the fields and intermix the pollen with non pollen varieties. The Hubs didn't like where this was headed.
The Guy offered him a deal. He could have a hybrid seed in exchange for the plant: you know, a trade. OR The Guy would be happy to cover our plant in plastic so no pollen could escape and return later to remove it.
Now had The Guy said,, hey your farmer neighbor right next door has planted hybrid sunflowers because they produce a better yield for his family, and it would be neighborly if you would consider supporting him by taking out this little unexpected plant, we would be happy to oblige. The Guy could have shaken hands and been on his way. But he didn't say that. The Guy made our little sunflower and two or three bees to be perched on the edge of taking down an entire industry.
The Hubs explained we're a natural spot. The plant likely came from a bird flying around after having eaten from the feeder, and he didn't see any reason to remove it. We like our bees. We like our flowers. We choose heirlooms, not hybrids, not GMOs. And we certainly don't spray RoundUp or any other kind of chemical on anything we ingest.
The Guy was clearly disappointed, handed him a strongly worded letter and left.
I was un-nerved. It made me imagine a chemical-run food industry where THEY can come onto private land and say, oh we see you grow figs, and olives, and pomegranates, so sorry but our testing lab with the razor wire fence that is 10 miles away can't have you actually producing fruit. Our hybrid fruit doesn't require bees and so we can't allow competition. We'd be happy to Round Up them for ya: no charge.
I couldn't imagine why anyone would WANT pollen-free sunflowers so I Googled it. Do you know what they are for? Flower arrangements. I kid you not. Pollen free sunflowers keep the bouquet clean.
I hear the Hubs got off a couple of zingers about chemical companies owning other towns but sure as hell not ours. If I had been home, I'd probably have thrown him off the porch.
