On 21/06/19 11:29, Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article ,
Jeff Layman wrote:

I find a certain irony - at least with what you have been trying to grow
- that the Greens policies are ensuring there won't be any greens for
you to eat.

That is nonsense.

In what sense? This is from the section on "Sustainable Farming" in
their policies on "Food and Farming" at
https://policy.greenparty.org.uk/fa.html

"FA638 The Green Party will ban the use of the most harmful substances
used in the treatment of soil, crops and animals and support a
progressive reduction in the use of synthetic fertilisers and pesticides
which do not meet organic standards, through the promotion of benign
forms of pest and disease management and maintenance of optimal soil,
plant and animal health. (See also CY525)"

What pesticides meet organic standards? Even pyrethrins are toxic to
many forms of life other than pests. Derris went years ago. And the
organic standards can be set so that nothing meets them.

And from the "Food Safety" section:
"FA313 Levels of pesticide and drug (including antibiotics) residues in
food will be closely monitored and programmes put in place to eventually
eliminate these residues."

I wonder what they will consider to be the level at which the residues
will be eliminated/? The level of detection? Sub-attograms per gram?

Even before the agricultural use chemicals go completely, there will be
none for amateur use.

Another solution that works is netting - I use it
because our 'oriental greens' were getting too full of shotholes to
be worth (us) eating.

I have no doubt that netting works, but what happens if some flea
beetles happen to get in? What is their reproduction rate?

But I don't use it on kohl rabi, broccoli or
kale. I do use toxic chemicals, but do my damnedest to avoid doing
so on food crops or those visited by bees.

I wouldn't argue with that, because, in general, amateurs grow food
plants "for fun". If our crops fail we go round to the greengrocer or
supermarket to replace them. But on a commercial scale it's a different
matter. Already some farmers have given up growing oilseed rape because
of flea beetle, and if other pesticides go other food crops will be at
risk. Our escape policy of going round to a shop to get food just won't
work, because they won't have the crop either. That's what you get with
an extremist policy. I am happy for pesticides to be used as little as
possible, but I want there to be a stockpile of two or three pesticides
with different modes of activity if (when?) the organic methods fail.
But that is not what the Greens want. They want them gone, and gone
forever.

Flea beetles are very rarely more than a nuisance,

Not to the OP - "it look as though within a few days the whole planting
of about 70 or so plants will have been finished off".

and I also find
it a bit puzzling - but the solution is to tackle a cause rather than
covering the plants with toxic chemicals. Which first means finding
one or more of the causes for such an infestation. It is possible
that there was a thriving population in the meadow, because they live
in Cruciferae, and they all hatched at the wrong time. If that is so,
the solution is to grow something else for a year, and then net the
brassicas, at least until they are properly established.

Sorry, but that's wishful thinking. They *will* reappear; maybe not next
year, or the year after, but they'll be back in force to decimate your
crop. Why should they be any different from other insect pests such as
locusts, which we are very lucky to not have here (but with global
warming, who knows?), and which reappear at regular intervals?

One other point. Where will your seeds come from if the seed-crop plants
that produce them have been killed off?

--

Jeff