GreenWatch

B. McPherson Superweeds are a new reality for N. American farmers. Weeds capable of resisting the herbicide glyphosate are sprouting in all the wrong places after years of inadvertent selection by farmers depending on chemicals to keep weeds down. Since the ‘70s when Roundup was introduced, farmers and homeowners alike have used the liquid to kill plants that they didn’t like. Mother Nature has surprises for the unwary. What seemed like a quick, cost effective solution to elimination of weeds in soy and corn fields has turned out superweeds instead. Iowa is finding more and more Palmer amaranth(pig weed)  infestations. This weed is capable of putting out half a million seeds for each plant. And it’s only one of a plethora of superweeds washing back over croplands that have been sprayed with glyphosate . Glyphosate(Roundup Ready) resistant crops are genetically modified(GM) to not die when sprayed with the chemical. Palmer pigweeds can produce up to half a million se...

B. McPherson BigAgro Silences Naysayers A farmer in eastern Washington State has had his alfalfa crop rejected by a broker because of pollution by RoundUp Ready plants. The RoundUp Ready alfalfa was found when the crop was tested. Many countries refuse the importation of genetically modified seeds and food. The GM alfalfa is resistant to the herbicide glyphosate which kills most broadleaf plants. Costs are reduced because weeding becomes unnecessary when herbicide can be sprayed onto the fields. It is legal to grow GM alfalfa in the US. People who are opposed to the growing of GM plants have long pointed out that once in the field, the pollen(male gametes) is not under control and can be spread by wind and by animals. This has led to disputes about whether a farmer has made unauthorized use of the genetically altered seeds owned by the biotech company. If a farmer chooses to grow GM alfalfa, then a neighbouring farmer who grows organic alfalfa will soon have his fields...