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1800s Farming: Labor, Not Chemicals

1800s "success" is relative. Yields were low; most Americans farmed. Weed/insect control was hand-picking, hoeing, plowing. Few pesticides: pyrethrum, arsenic, nicotine. Fungicides: copper, sulfur, lime. Salt for weeds (limited).

1945: 14 labor-hours for 100 bu corn on 2 acres. 2002: same yield on <1 acre. That's progress—mechanization, genetics, chemicals, Extension education.

About Gardening: Sowing Agapanthus Seeds: Dealing with Brittle Seed Coats; Growing Grapes from Seed: Why Hybrid Vines Won't Come True; Honey Pollen Analysis: How to Identify Nectar Sources from Your Hives; Ginkgo Stump Sprouts: Why They're Unreliable and What to Do Instead; Starting Petunias from Seed Outdoors: Timing Challenges vs. Buying Transplants; Establishing Centipede or Zoysia Lawn from Seed in Fall: Low Success; Removing Ivy From Synthetic Stucco: Oscillating Multi-Tool; Hanging a Hammock from Trees: Use a Long Eyebolt, Not a Screw Eye, to Minimize Damage; Protecting Chickens from Coyotes and Hawks: Secure Coop Design; Controlling Escaped Bamboo: Why It Jumps Pots and How to Stop It

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