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Saturday, April 29, 2017

Can Regenerative Farming Save Our Food Supply?

Your own Panama land is a great place to practice sustainable regenerative farming!

At Finca Cazador, we only practice regenerative farming. The reasons we opted to not use chemicals on our land are many, and the following story illustrates the importance of using organic regenerative farming methods, such as the methods we use here, to grow food crops in a sustainable manner.

Farming has sustained mankind for millennia. Industrial farming, on the other hand, has managed to create a series of unsustainable situations in less than 70 years, and evidence suggests we will not make it until the end of the century if we continue along the path of degenerative food and farming.



If you’d walked up to a farmer 100 years ago and told him farming would one day threaten life on Earth, he probably would have laughed in your face, saying such a thing simply isn’t possible.

Agriculture is necessary for food production, and therefore for life, the farmer would have said with firm conviction — and farming the land or raising cattle is not going to unduly harm anything or anyone.

Today, however, such an impossible scenario is precisely what we’re facing. Virtually every growing environmental and health problem can be traced back to modern food production. This includes but is not limited to:
  • Food insecurity and malnutrition amid mounting food waste
  • Rising obesity and chronic disease rates despite growing health care outlays
  • Diminishing fresh water supplies
  • Toxic agricultural chemicals polluting air, soil and waterways, thereby threatening the entire food chain from top to bottom
  • Disruption of normal climate and rainfall patterns
The good news is there are viable answers to all of these problems that do not merely scratch at the surface, and the answers hinge on the widespread implementation of regenerative agriculture and decentralized food distribution.

It’s easy to forget that at one point, not so long ago, all food was organically grown in a way that supported the ecosystem and environment as a whole. This all changed in the 1940s when the Green Revolution took hold and industrial, chemical-dependent farming techniques quickly spread to become the norm.


Industrial Farming Has Proven Itself a Failed Experiment

Farming has sustained mankind for millennia. Industrial farming, on the other hand, has managed to create a series of unsustainable situations in less than 70 years, and evidence suggests we will not make it until the end of the century if we continue along the path of degenerative food and farming.

Topsoil destruction, erosion and desertification are exacerbated by tilling, monocropping and not using cover crops. Maria-Helena Semedo of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has warned that at the current rate of topsoil degradation, all the world’s topsoil will be gone in less than 60 years.1

At that point, it’ll be “game over” because without topsoil you cannot grow food no matter how many chemicals you add to it. Closely related problems are the loss of soil fertility and biodiversity, which is directly related to the loss of natural carbon in the soil.

An estimated 80 percent of soil carbon in heavily farmed areas has already been lost,2 due to destructive plowing, overgrazing and the use of soil-destructive, carbon-depleting chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

Industrial monocropping has also led to the loss of diversity. Seventy-five percent of the world’s crop varieties have gone the way of the dinosaurs in the last 100 years, and another 20 percent of all plants worldwide are threatened with extinction.3

Toxic contamination adds to the problem. According to studies by the Chinese government, 20 percent of arable land in China is now unusable due to pesticide contamination,4 and important crop pollinators such as butterfly and bee populations have collapsed, thanks to widespread pesticide application.5

Modern agriculture also promotes water waste through use of flood irrigation, destruction of soil quality and poor crop choices.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, about 80 percent of U.S. consumptive water (and more than 90 percent in many Western states) is used for agricultural purposes6 and, worldwide, groundwater is being used up at a faster rate than it can be replenished.

According to James Famiglietti, a senior water scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the majority of our global groundwaters “are past sustainability tipping points,”7 which means it’s only a matter of time until we run out of fresh water.

Without food or drinkable water, the end of civilization as we know it is pretty well-assured. The question is will enough people have the foresight to change course?

Read more>>>

A Safe Harbor for Uncertain Times

 

Why you should consider building a retreat or bug out location on your own Panama land.


Like the Bob Dylan song from the 60's, the times they are a changing!

It seems with the advent of the personal computer, time has begun to exponentially speed up. Change happens so rapidly now, that before one tech product becomes popular, another one rises to take it's place, rendering the original product useless, often before the original investment is returned to the people who funded it's development. Even the term "state of the art" has become outdated.

Technology surely has had the widest impact on society as a whole, but it's certainly not the only field in which vast changes have taken place in just the last few years.

There is one place change is not coming fast enough, for economists and statisticians, especially. Our consumption based economy, which has fueled our GDP growth over the past 60 or more years, seems to have come to a screeching halt.

Eight years into a recession and we're still trillions of dollars in debt and nobody seems to be able to find a solution to the problem that we are not spending enough. Not driving the kind of growth needed to continually enrich stockholders and the others at the top of the food chain, without pumping in federal tax dollars in alarming amounts. We're spending tax dollars like there's no tomorrow, and it's not helping the economy much.

And monumental events like this are becoming commonplace all over the "free" world. What will happen if France or Italy leave the EU?

There's even been talk about completely doing away with cash, of all things, and replacing it with "digital" money. And now, several countries are requiring banks to charge their customers for the privilege of keeping their money on deposit. Forget earning interest on your checking or savings account. You'll have to pay the bank if you want to keep your money in their "virtual" vaults. And if there's no cash being used, how will you be able to prevent it from being hacked into oblivion?

What about cars that drive themselves? Huh? Seriously? I get it that we're too lazy to look at a map, but do we need that level of simplicity in our lives? Are we that incompetent? Have you made your travel plans for Mars?

The bottom line is change is coming, for better or for worse.

For the sake of the American people, who one could almost say are "innocent bystanders" in the future plans for the world, I can only hope the nightmare scenarios that any number of analysts are predicting don't unfold all at once.

Not to mention what would happen if the electrical grid went down because of a solar storm, like it did in the mid 1800's.

I can only hope that my loved ones and friends all are able and willing to take the necessary steps to prepare a place for them and their loved ones to go if (or when) the stuff hits the fan, figuratively speaking.


That was pretty much the thought process we went through when our own personal situation forced us to decide how to market the organic property here.

We certainly could have taken the "gated community" route, and divided this amazingly revitalized land up into really small pieces (lots) and had what quite a few westerners seem to have been looking for in the past. A place to go where you didn't have to learn the language, and you could live an isolated life with other westerners, without having to really alter your lifestyle that much.

There are a lot of those gated communities out there, and for a price you can live that way. But most of those places have serious drawbacks that become obvious once you think about what could happen in a crisis. Most of them are close to major metropolitan areas, or are known expat establishments which have already become targets for theft and other criminal behavior. Many are in the lower elevations, and would be unbearable without air conditioning.

Or, we could have chosen to just split up the land without going to the expense (twelve years and countless dollars spent) of reversing multiple decades of nutrient-killing pesticide and chemical fertilizer use, and sold it to anyone willing to buy it. We could have sold the land without improving it with a 140 foot well, and a 12,000 gallon holding tank, gravity fed, and electricity from the neighboring town.

But, we wanted to create something special here.

Something not available anywhere in Central America. A community of like minded people living in harmony with the land, so it will continue to provide a rich growing environment, without the use of petroleum based or other dangerous chemical additives, for generations to come.

Something sustainable and lasting.

If you are looking for a unique special place to call home full or part time, "pre-crisis" or no-crisis, where you can easily grow delicious fruits and vegetables without using any chemicals, you have found the place and we welcome you.

Give us a call or email us for more information, pricing and farm configuration details.


Sunday, April 23, 2017

The Many Ways Organic Farming Techniques Improve Bio-Diversity



There is little doubt that organic farming methods improve bio-diversity and long term sustainability.

The benefits to farmers include:

Lower costs
Improved soil conditions
More species of plants
More species of animals
More species of helpful insects

From Wikipedia:

Organic farming and biodiversity

The effect of organic farming has been a subject of interest for researchers. Theory suggests that organic farming practices, which exclude the use of most synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, may be beneficial for biodiversity.

This is generally shown to be true for soils scaled to the area of cultivated land, where species abundance is, on average, 30% richer than that of conventional farms. However, for crop yield-scaled land the effect of organic farming on biodiversity is highly debated due to the significantly lower yields compared to conventional farms.

In ancient farming practices, farmers did not possess the technology or manpower to have a significant impact on the destruction of biodiversity even as mass-production agriculture was rising.

Nowadays, common farming methods generally rely on pesticides to maintain high yields. With such, most agricultural landscapes favor mono-culture crops with very little flora or fauna co-existence (van Elsen 2000). Modern organic farm practices such as the removal of pesticides and the inclusion of animal manure, crop rotation, and multi-cultural crops provides the chance for biodiversity to thrive.

Benefits to biodiversity

Nearly all non-crop, naturally occurring species observed in comparative farm land practice studies show a preference in organic farming both by population and richness.

Spanning all associated species, there is an average of 30% more on organic farms versus conventional farming methods, however this does not account for possible loss of biodiversity due to decreased yields.

Birds, butterflies, soil microbes, beetles, earthworms, spiders, vegetation, and mammals are particularly affected. Some organic farms may use less pesticides and thus biodiversity fitness and population density may benefit.

Larger farms however tend to use pesticides more liberally and in some cases to larger extent than conventional farms. Many weed species attract beneficial insects that improve soil qualities and forage on weed pests.

Soil-bound organisms often benefit because of increased bacteria populations due to natural fertilizer spread such as manure, while experiencing reduced intake of herbicides and pesticides commonly associated with conventional farming methods.

Increased biodiversity, especially from soil microbes such as mycorhizzae, have been proposed as an explanation for the high yields experienced by some organic plots, especially in light of the differences seen in a 21-year comparison of organic and control fields.

Impact of increased biodiversity

The level of biodiversity that can be yielded from organic farming provides a natural capital to humans. Species found in most organic farms provides a means of agricultural sustainability by reducing amount of human input (e.g. fertilizers, pesticides).

Farmers that produce with organic methods reduce risk of poor yields by promoting biodiversity. Common game birds such as the ring-necked pheasant and the northern bobwhite often reside in agriculture landscapes, and are a natural capital yielded from high demands of recreational hunting.

Because bird species richness and population are typically higher on organic farm systems, promoting biodiversity can be seen as logical and economical.

Highly impacted animal species

Earthworms

Earthworm population and diversity appears to have the most significant data out of all studies. Out of six studies comparing earthworm biodiversity to organic and conventional farming methods, all six suggested a preference for organic practices including a study at the pioneering Haughley farm in 1980/1981 that compared earthworm populations and soil properties after 40 years. Hole et al. (2005) summarized a study conducted by Brown (1999) and found nearly double the population and diversity when comparing farming methods.

Birds

Organic farms are said to be beneficial to birds while remaining economical. Bird species are one of the most prominent animal groups that benefit from organic farming methods. Many species rely on farmland for foraging, feeding, and migration phases. With such, bird populations often relate directly to the natural quality of farmland.

The more natural diversity of organic farms provides better habitats to bird species, and is especially beneficial when the farmland is located within a migration zone. In 5 recent studies almost all bird species including locally declining species, both population and variation increased on organic farmland,.

Making a switch from conventional farming methods to organic practices also seems to directly improve bird species in the area.

While organic farming improves bird populations and diversity, species populations receive the largest boost when organic groups are varied within a landscape. Bird populations are increased further with optimal habitat for biodiversity, rather than organic alone, with systems such as Conservation Grade.

Butterflies

A specific study done in the UK in 2006 found substantially more butterflies on organic farms versus standard farming methods except for two pest species. The study also observed higher populations in uncropped field margins compared with cropland edges regardless of farm practice. Conversely, Weibull et al. (2000) found no significant differences in species diversity or population.

Spiders

Ten studies have been conducted involving spider species and abundance on farm systems. All but three of the studies indicated that there was a higher diversity of spider species on organic farms, in addition to populations of species. Two of the studies indicated higher species diversity, but statistically insignificant populations between organic and standard farming methods.

Soil Microbes

Out of 13 studies comparing bacteria and fungus communities between organic and standard farming, 8 of the studies showed heightened level of growth on organic farm systems. One study concluded that the use of “green” fertilizers and manures was the primary cause of higher bacterial levels on organic farms.

On the other hand, nematode population/diversity depended on what their primary food intake was. Bacteria-feeding nematodes showed preference towards organic systems whereas fungus-feeding nematodes showed preference for standard farm systems.

The heightened level of bacteria-feeding nematodes makes sense due to higher levels of bacteria in organic soils, but the fungus-feeding populations being higher on standard farms seems to contradict the data since more fungi are generally found on organic farms.

Beetles

According to Hole et al. (2005), beetle species are among the most commonly studied animal species on farming systems. Twelve studies have found a higher population and species richness of carabids on organic systems.

The overall conclusion of significantly higher carabid population species and diversity is that organic farms have a higher level of weed species where they can thrive.

Staphylinid populations and diversity have seemed to show no specific preference with some studies showing higher population and diversity, some with lower population and diversity, and one study showed no statistical significance between the organic and conventional farming systems.

Mammals

Two comparative studies have been conducted involving mammal populations and diversity among farm practices. A study done by Brown (1999) found that small mammal population density and diversity did not depend on farming practices, however overall activity was higher on organic farms.

It was concluded that more food resources were available to small mammals on organic farms because of the reduction or lack of herbicides and pesticides.

Another study conducted by Wickramasinghe et al. (2003) compared bat species and activity. Species activity and foraging were both more than double on organic farms compared to conventional farms. Species richness was also higher on organic farms, and 2 of the sixteen species sighted were found only on organic farms.

Vegetation

Approximately ten studies have been conducted to compare non-crop vegetation between organic and conventional farming practices. Hedgerow, inner-crop and grassland observations were made within these studies and all but one showed a higher weed preference and diversity in or around organic farms.

Most of these studies showed significant overall preference for organic farming preferences especially for broad-leafed species, but many grass species showed far less on conventional farms likely because pesticide interaction was low or non-existent.

Organic farm weed population and richness was believed to be lower in mid-crop land because of weed-removal methods such as under sowing.

Switching from conventional to organic farming often results in a “boom” of weed speciation due to intense chemical change of soil composition from the lack of herbicides and pesticides. Natural plant species can also vary on organic farms from year-to-year because crop rotation creates new competition based on the chemical needs of each crop.

Farmers’ Benefits from Increased Biodiversity

Biological research on soil and soil organisms has proven beneficial to the system of organic farming. Varieties of bacteria and fungi break down chemicals, plant matter and animal waste into productive soil nutrients.

In turn, the producer benefits by healthier yields and more arable soil for future crops.

Furthermore, a 21-year study was conducted testing the effects of organic soil matter and its relationship to soil quality and yield. Controls included actively managed soil with varying levels of manure, compared to a plot with no manure input.

After the study commenced, there was significantly lower yields on the control plot when compared to the fields with manure. The concluded reason was an increased soil microbe community in the manure fields, providing a healthier, more arable soil system.

Detriments to biodiversity through organic farming

Organic farming practices still require active participation from the farmer to effectively boost biodiversity. Making a switch to organic farming methods does not automatically or guarantee improved biodiversity. Pro-conservation ethics are required to create arable farm land that generates biodiversity.

Conservationist ideals are commonly overlooked because they require additional physical and economical efforts from the producer. Common weed-removal processes like undercutting and controlled burning provides little opportunity for species survival, and often leads to comparable populations and richness to conventionally managed landscapes when performed in excess.

Another common process is the addition of biotopes in the form of hedgerows and ponds to further improve species richness. Farmers commonly make the mistake of over-using these resources for more intense crop production because organic yields are typically lower. Another error comes from the over-stratification of biotopes. A series of small clusters does not provide adequate land area for high biodiversity potential.


Here is the Wikipedia page

Friday, April 21, 2017

Nearing a Point of No Return




Are we headed for a societal collapse?


I've been trying not to concern myself with things that are out of my control lately. One of those things is the thought that society as we know it could possibly someday collapse. And maybe someday is not that far away.

However, as much as I try to pretend the recent events throughout the world, such as the wars in the middle east, weather related earth changes and the rise of a seemingly different political order are just cyclical, I find myself wondering what a collapse of the monetary systems of the world or a general societal collapse would look like.

Many think a collapse of the financial system started in 2008 and has never fully recovered. The ever increasing stock market seem to signal a recovery, yet why are so many retail outlets closing? If the economy was recovering why would companies be laying off employees and closing branches?

Could this be the beginning of the end for western economies, who seem to survive on consumers making purchases even when it means going into debt to do it? Have people simply stopped buying unnecessary items and are now hoarding cash, or have online sites like Amazon made it so convenient people simply cannot help making their purchases from the comfort of their kitchens?

Could that change in buying habits have happened that quickly?

One recent article authored by the BBC does a great job of explaining how societies have historically collapsed, and what it looked like when they did. Here's an excerpt of that article:

...there are two factors that matter: ecological strain and economic stratification. The ecological category is the more widely understood and recognized path to potential doom, especially in terms of depletion of natural resources such as groundwater, soil, fisheries and forests – all of which could be worsened by climate change.

Under this scenario, elites push society toward instability and eventual collapse by hoarding huge quantities of wealth and resources, and leaving little or none for commoners who vastly outnumber them yet support them with labor. 

Eventually, the working population crashes because the portion of wealth allocated to them is not enough, followed by collapse of the elites due to the absence of labor. The inequalities we see today both within and between countries already point to such disparities. For example, the top 10% of global income earners are responsible for almost as much total greenhouse gas emissions as the bottom 90% combined. Similarly, about half the world’s population lives on less than $3 per day. 
 
Although the man made climate change narrative is still up for debate, the widening income gap is certain and quite obvious to anyone paying attention. Financial enrichment of the folks at the top of the food chain, caused primarily by their ability to participate in a soaring stock market, is well known. Being at the right place at the right time, with resources, has it's advantages. What is not known is how long this rising gap in income will go on, and what will happen when it can no longer be tolerated by the other ninety nine percent.

Whatever causes the collapse, one thing is for certain. There will be many people at or near the centers of government and commerce that will say it came as a total surprise and was totally unexpected.

History tells a different story.

If you want to insulate yourself from some of the troubles ahead, consider investing in a piece of paradise here at our ranch. You can grow vegetables and fruit and live a pretty uneventful life, which might be as welcome a change for you as it has been for me.
 

Sunday, April 9, 2017

Expat Guide to Panama Household Help



Thinking of making a move to Panama, but don't know if you can afford it?


Hiring household help is one thing worth considering and adding into your budget for retirement in Panama.
 
In Volcán, you might get a good gardener for $25 a day, which would be a fair amount to pay someone. In Río Sereno, $10 or $15 would be the norm to hire someone to work on a farm, because it is a much more rural community and there are fewer, almost no, expats there....yet!
 
In Río Sereno we call a gardener a “farm man.” They typically charge about $10 - $15 a day for general help. Specialized help like welding, construction management and finish carpentry are generally more, but nowhere near what you would pay in the U.S. for that same help.
 
Finca Cazador is 12 acres.We have a subcontracted farm helper available for all sorts of household help, heavy lifting and gardening help. He charges by the hour or by the day, and is available early in the morning, all day, and into the evening.

Much of the work he does here is related to keeping undergrowth controlled.
 
The problem with Panama is not getting stuff to grow, it’s keeping everything under control. Here in Panama, things grow where you don’t want them to grow. 
 
In some parts of our off-grid community here at Finca Cazador, we have 10 feet of black topsoil! That means you can grow almost anything very easily, but you have to spend a few hours a month cutting back the overgrowth. Because labor is so inexpensive here, you can plan on a minimal expense for household help, who generally have the tools and years of experience managing plant life.
 
One of the other things to consider is the quality of the work the person you get does. Is that somebody you want in your house? Is that somebody you can trust? 
 
It’s a relationship just like everything else. The biggest problem with most expats who come here is that we’re talking about hiring Panamanians, but the expats don’t take the time to learn Spanish.  
 
Maybe you're thinking of moving to Panama and you want to find a place that's comfortable, inexpensive and safe and you don't want to have to do all the work yourself. 
 
Maybe you want to spend your time experiencing the beauty and fresh air abundant in this area. In this part of Panama, the cost of household help is very low, and it helps the families, and the local economy tremendously when you hire them.
 
If you'd like to come take a tour of the farm, simply send us a message.