During the morning session of October 4th, my classmates and I in the honeybees writing course had the opportunity to further learn about bees, pollination, farming, and other related topics at Abbe Hills Farm. This farm is conveniently located close to Cornell College and Laura Krause runs it. Throughout the visit to Abbe Hill we learned about the benefits of having a CSA and the role the farm plays in the community.
Laura Krause, who is in charge of Abbe Hills, explained the CSA business model. Consumers take a risk by paying farmers upfront for fruits, vegetables, and other crops. Farmers use the money given to them to buy seeds and begin and farming. Once the harvesting season comes around, consumers come back to the farm and pick up …show more content…
Laura explained that 95% or more of the farms in Iowa use pesticides because those farms are overseen by a major corporation. Unlike these other farms, Abbe Hills is not controlled by a big company so they can farm as they like. This was evident once I had the chance to go into the farm. Various insects and weeds made Abbe Hills their home, which is proof there is no intentional use of herbicides or insecticides. During the visit Laura also went into detail about organic farming by explaining the requirements it takes to be considered an organic farm. In order to be an organic farm, you must use crop rotation. The afternoon discussion helped me understand more about crop rotation. From my understanding, crop rotation is when farmers vary the crops they plant in a particular place each season. The afternoon discussion informed me that crops deplete nutrients from the soil. By switching up the planted crops, the soil is not depleted. I have never planted flowers or food, so I had no idea nutrients in the soil can be taken by whatever is growing in the soil. This visit to Abbe Hill was very informative and gave me new information I did not know coming from an urban …show more content…
Learning about the importance of biodiversity and keeping pollinators from dying was interesting and most important to me. During the trip Laura Krause explained that the majority of seeds are coated with neonicotinoids. The coating spreads throughout all parts of the plant and gets into the pollen and nectar in pollinators. The neonicotinoids contain a sublethal level of toxic chemicals that slowly causes harm to bees and other pollinators. The toxicity of the insecticides is slowly killing bees and other pollinators. Without bees, fruits, vegetables, and other crops would suffer. The combination of learning about pollutants and the harm they cause insect pollinations was important to me because I am transitioning from being a vegetarian to becoming a vegan. Once fully vegan, I will have to rely on many fruits, vegetables, and grains to complete my diet. Having enough pollinators is especially important for me because the majority of my food will be impacted by pollinators. Being informed about the work pollinators was important for me to learn so I could better respect the work the pollinators
Laura Krause, who is in charge of Abbe Hills, explained the CSA business model. Consumers take a risk by paying farmers upfront for fruits, vegetables, and other crops. Farmers use the money given to them to buy seeds and begin and farming. Once the harvesting season comes around, consumers come back to the farm and pick up …show more content…
Laura explained that 95% or more of the farms in Iowa use pesticides because those farms are overseen by a major corporation. Unlike these other farms, Abbe Hills is not controlled by a big company so they can farm as they like. This was evident once I had the chance to go into the farm. Various insects and weeds made Abbe Hills their home, which is proof there is no intentional use of herbicides or insecticides. During the visit Laura also went into detail about organic farming by explaining the requirements it takes to be considered an organic farm. In order to be an organic farm, you must use crop rotation. The afternoon discussion helped me understand more about crop rotation. From my understanding, crop rotation is when farmers vary the crops they plant in a particular place each season. The afternoon discussion informed me that crops deplete nutrients from the soil. By switching up the planted crops, the soil is not depleted. I have never planted flowers or food, so I had no idea nutrients in the soil can be taken by whatever is growing in the soil. This visit to Abbe Hill was very informative and gave me new information I did not know coming from an urban …show more content…
Learning about the importance of biodiversity and keeping pollinators from dying was interesting and most important to me. During the trip Laura Krause explained that the majority of seeds are coated with neonicotinoids. The coating spreads throughout all parts of the plant and gets into the pollen and nectar in pollinators. The neonicotinoids contain a sublethal level of toxic chemicals that slowly causes harm to bees and other pollinators. The toxicity of the insecticides is slowly killing bees and other pollinators. Without bees, fruits, vegetables, and other crops would suffer. The combination of learning about pollutants and the harm they cause insect pollinations was important to me because I am transitioning from being a vegetarian to becoming a vegan. Once fully vegan, I will have to rely on many fruits, vegetables, and grains to complete my diet. Having enough pollinators is especially important for me because the majority of my food will be impacted by pollinators. Being informed about the work pollinators was important for me to learn so I could better respect the work the pollinators