Andy Kirschenman Archives | Alberta Farmer Express

Employing the natural ability of crops to defend themselves is the logical next step in the movement that has brought no-till and soil health to the fore, says Alberta producer Andy Kirschenman.

Plants’ secret chemistry could change the way you farm

Science is discovering plants produce their own pesticides and warn each other of threats — but tillage, spraying, and even breeding can disrupt these defences

By Jennifer Blair December 28, 2016

Reading Time: 5 minutes A war is being waged in your fields. Every day, your crops are fighting for their lives against insects, diseases, weeds, and weather. And their best line of defence isn’t the chemicals we spray or the traits we breed into them. It’s their sense of smell. “Anything that anybody has ever done to any plant […] Read more