What if farmers didn’t have to plow up the ground every year? And what if they didn’t even have to re-seed their crops every year? Wouldn’t that be amazing and revolutionary?
Grain from the perennial plant, Kernza®. Image of Kernza® perennial grain, developed by plant breeders at The Land Institute. (https://landinstitute.org/our-work/perennial-crops/kernza/). ©️ The Land Institute.
It would indeed. Agriculture would be revolutionized, because humans have depended on annual crops since the birth of agriculture. If farmers didn’t have to sow new seeds each year to grow our primary commodity and staple crops (corn, wheat, soybeans, etc.), the agricultural system would change in significant and positive ways.
Right now our staple crops are annual plants and therefore experience their full life cycle in one growing season. In other words, they fully mature, produce seeds, and then die; those same plants will not grow back the next year. Annual varieties of rice, wheat, oats, corn, soybeans, etc. form the foundation of our diets (in part, because they can be transported and stored without refrigeration for much longer than veggies, fruits, and meats). However, these staple foods require yearly disturbance of the soil for planting. It’s estimated that “annual crops account for roughly 70% of the human population’s food calories and the vast majority of planted croplands worldwide.”[1] (They provide a lot of domesticated animals with their calories too!) Having no other option than to plow and plant our staple crops is a major ecological problem. As we’ve seen in earlier posts on the problems of plowing (parts 1 and 2), our dependence on annual crops—and therefore on plowing and, more recently, on herbicides—results in ecological degradation (and sometimes destruction).
Because of these problems, a growing number of scientists all over the world are trying to develop perennial crops. Perennial plants flower and develop seeds during the summer for several (or many) years in a row. Although their above ground vegetation might die back during winter, their roots remain alive underground and quickly send up new shoots in the spring. The perennial plant then expands during the new growing season and flowers, produces seeds, and goes dormant over the winter.
Perennial plants, such as native prairie grasses, live year after year. They therefore develop strong, deep root systems. Their roots reach much deeper than annual grasses and therefore can access nutrients and water farther underground (see the image to the right comparing annual wheat to perennial wheatgrass). Reaching deeply into the soil is vitally important during droughts. And because these perennial plants have such healthy root systems, they hold precious soils in place when winds blow and waters flow. Additionally, perennial plants do not have to expend precious energy and nutrients to grow whole new root structures each growing season. And because perennials can quickly produce new leaves in the spring, they are more likely than annuals to out-compete any weeds tempted to grow near by.
Recognizing these powerful attributes of perennial plants, plant geneticist Wes Jackson endeavored in the 70s to develop perennial crop varieties. He began The Land Institute in Salina, Kansas to research and develop perennial varieties of wheat, legumes, oilseeds, rice, sorghum, and wheatgrass (which produces grains much like wheat). The Land Institute has made great strides in developing a perennial wheatgrass called Kernza®. Its grains provide “more minerals and more of some vitamins” than traditional wheat flour.[2]
The scientists who have been perfecting Kernza® for wider cultivation have recently given their blessing to its commercialization. A few farmers are growing Kernza®, a few bakers and cooks are incorporating it into their recipes and products, and a few consumers are purchasing Kernza® and its products (where and when available). But all these activities along the food chain need to expand. Our society and earth could benefit from more (1) farmers growing Kernza®, (2) grain millers milling it, (3) bakers and food processors transforming it into edible, nutritious, and affordable foods, (4) and consumers buying and enjoying Kernza® products.
Kernza® is just one of many perennial crops being developed for human consumption so that we can have a true food revolution—one that is good for soils, water, animals, people, and entire ecosystems. Because perennial crops would reduce fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions significantly, they’d be great a way to stem the tide of global warming. Because they would hold dirt in place, they’d slow and perhaps even reverse the loss of topsoil. Because they have deep root systems, they’d require less water and decrease agriculture’s use of freshwater for irrigation. Perennial food crops provide an excellent approach to feeding people in ecologically-healthy ways for generations! I’ll discuss Kernza® more in future posts, so stay tuned!
Image from https://landinstitute.org/our-work/perennial-crops/. The picture compares annual wheat plants and perennial wheatgrass plants. © The Land Institute
If you’d like to be a part of supporting this agricultural revolution, please contact me at scripturecreationandlife@gmail.com.
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[1] https://landinstitute.org/our-work/perennial-crops/
[2] Lee DeHaan, Email, 4-8 April 2014 2014.
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