Search


	Podcast:		Business Beat
	Episode:		Farmers Look to Chickens and Bugs as Natural Pesticides
	Category:		Government & Organizations
	Duration:		00:04:44
	Publish Date:		2016-09-28 14:15:33
	Description:		In an effort to turn away from chemical pesticides, which have the potential to damage the environment, some farmers are looking in a new direction in the age-old, quiet struggle on farm fields of farmers versus pests. They’re warding off intruding insects and noxious weeds with bugs and chickens. Gary Wenig and his wife bought 40 acres in central Missouri to grow organic vegetables. The land was full of weeds and insects, he says, and going organic meant the Wenigs couldn’t use conventional pesticides like the ubiquitous Round-Up or Atrazine. Organic farmers can use natural pesticides, but they’re expensive and still can be dangerous. Wenig decided to experiment. He planted what are known as “trap crops ,” sacrificial plants not raised for harvest but that are extra tasty for pesky insects like squash bugs. Trap crops like Blue Hubbard squash attract the harmful bugs, leaving his zucchinis largely untouched. “The bugs will move in and they’ll stop at that point and eat those plants,”
	Total Play:		0