MPR News Feature; Sleepy Eye farmer advocates for organic practices

Down around Sleepy Eye in southwestern Minnesota between Man Cato and the Minnesota River Valley lies a farm for all appearances like any other farm 400 acres planted with corn soybeans and rock. The difference between this farm and others in the area is not what's planted but how it's planted and the way it's grown. Now this farm is an organic farm. No chemicals are used. Farmer Earl Cunningham won't have it any other way. Practically consistently since 1964 when we learned about the feasibility of natural farming we have aspired to promote the natural creative process in the soil to the best of our ability because we are persuaded that when the Creator made soil he had a purpose and a plan. And we believe that they. Health and well-being net profit and general good that comes from the soil is best achieved by promoting the natural creative process in the soil which was persuaded made no allowance

for some of the deed Deila tarea substances that are being applied to soil in modern agriculture. When we're talking about organic farming and dealing with the soil in a natural kind of way what do you mean. How are you running your farm. Well we we use all natural products on our farm we use nothing that is commonly known as an agricultural chemical. Now we have quite frequently tours of people from many states coming to observe what nature has done for us here on our place. And most of the time I asked the crowd if they will do me one favor. And while they're my guest. And then I ask them if they will keep close watch while they're on the tour and ask any questions and observe in any way they'd like to our soil. And of course if you're going to look at the well-being of a farm you must look at the soil. In addition to the crops the crops a lot of times are subject to heat or drouth are one thing another and they don't really tell the whole story of the

soil. And then I ask him if after the tour if they will tell me where they saw in my operations that I should have used chemicals. And out of the thousands of people that have been here we have never had one suggest anywhere where they saw that I should have used chemicals. Your farm doesn't look any different than any of the other farms around here and are you saying you don't use any chemicals at all. I don't use any. Not a single own of any kind that's commonly known as an agricultural chemical. What does it mean to be in tune with nature then what do you do as a former That's different from what some of your neighbors do. That I'm glad for that question because of course we have to do some things now though. The first one of the first things that comes to mind in my meeting with other farmers is how in the world could do you control the weeds and happily there are many good alternatives to the deal a teary as practice of using herbicides. We have developed a philosophy and a

way of controlling weeds that's most effective and cheaper and carries no side effects. For instance we we planned a lot later when you have a natural saw your saw is two to three weeks conservatively speaking faster than when it's minimised when the natural creative process has been minimized by abnormal treatment of the soil. And then that allows us to kill weeds two or three weeks longer in the spring. I'll concede that a lot of times when my neighbors are done corn planting and it looks like rain and I haven't planted I sometimes get a little bit on easy because of course a person wants to get things done on time and you don't want to get made too late and of course hating is coming on and I'm willing to concede that but we do plant later and we do that. On purpose and by that we are able to see ways that we'd see the head of the planner and then when we do plant the ground is warmer and the crop is quicker and it's acclimated for the situation that it's finds itself in one it has been planted and it comes up quickly allowing you to cull of it readily

and the first thing you know the corn is caught up with the neighbors and the weeds aren't there and you haven't had to do anything to that theory as to your sauce. Well one of the arguments that's frequently made against organic farming is that the productivity is down and the quality of the product isn't quite as uniform what have you found in that regard. Well I have found that to be highly untrue and of course I think that this is a real area where it needs a good deal of thoughtful an object of consideration because many tests are taken where they are. People make judgement on a one year or even less than a year's test in a few months they will test organic farming alongside of a chemical treatment and of course that's not a test because the nature is subtle and slow and you don't learn of nature's benefits in a few months. It takes a long time to get a farm in the condition that ours is. I think like for instance a plow pan would be impossible to find on our farm because I believe that nature abhors a plow pan as she does a

vacuum and I think people have to work hard to make a plow pan What is a plow thing. Well a plow pan is a hard layer of soil that's immediately under where the big engines have been breaking it up. And on our farm we have a millions of little hired men that are breaking up a pop and if it ever would try to develop in our soil and I'm sure that there's no way that anyone could find a plow ban on our farm. Earl let me ask you this Are you a businessman or is this way of farming this way of farming have something to do with a kind of spiritual communion I look at you and and I know that you feel very strongly about this. I'm glad you asked me that because every morning. I remember this spiritual verse that says they labor in vain that build a house except God build it. And I asked for spiritual guidance every day as to what I ought best to do and I'm sure that if all farmers would do that there'd be much less traffic in farm chemicals. Earl Cunningham an organic farmer farming 400 acres near Sleepy Eye

Minnesota. Our conversation preceded a tour of the Cunningham pharma tour during which a number of state officials and environmentalists discovered the Cunninghams method seemed to meet or beat conventional chemical farming techniques. Tomorrow in part two of this report will join the tour. This is Greg Baron.