something I can do in my little truck garden by hand without chemicals. But when you get into many dozens of acres that becomes costly and economically inefficient for the price. And in southern WI bull thistle is more common than the Scottish ancestry that it betrays
SO, the farmer contracts with a specialist who, in 15 minutes or less can spray a 30-50 acre field. Weeds are gone, chemical resistant plants survive although they've been bathed in an herbicide. Crops grow, weeds are absent. Farmer is satisfied he wasted no time on the problem and it was solved within the business model for his crop.
It's no longer ideology. Faarmers do what capitalism demands. Most of them have loans against the crop. You've got to protect it with "standard" best practices or risk not getting crop insurance payouts for weather damage, and problems working next years loans
The world we live in isn't terribly friendly to butterflies and birds. I sacrifice about $2000 a year to promote butterflies and birds in my wetland and woods. A personal choice that the people around me think is crazy. But then I also do 4 acres of Veggies for Vets, and I give any profit from that to the Vietnam Vets. Crazy I know. Especially for a person like me, not really a centrist, with faith in the notion that progress is about making things better, and giving back to nature, and hungry people is a pretty good thing
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