The One-Straw Revolution
Leaving a career as a plant pathologist, the author took over the family farm in Japan consisting of rice fields and a mandarin orchard, where he developed and practiced pioneering methods of permaculture well before the term itself was coined. His account of his Zen-inspired way of sustainable agriculture has become a classic in the literature of permaculture.
Stats for nerds
24recommend
47mentions
31people
2008–2026years
70% recommend30% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- Recommend The One-Straw Revolution An Introduction to Natural Farming by Masanobu Fukuoka, it's a mind blower of botanical re-engineering.
- For some further reading on health food starting from the land:
The One Straw Revolution
Everything I Want To Do is Illegal
The biggest reason this wont happen without an equal political collapse, is that the likes of Kraft-Heinz so dutifully mentioned here, have perfected "food control." Regulatory capture means this kind of changeover is simply illegal in too many distinct ways.
- If anyone enjoyed this feature, you might also want to check out The One Straw Revolution, which is about permaculture and its philosophy. It's one of the few books I've read.
- We purchased a farm many years ago that had become eroded after many years of conventional farming. In our quest to transition to regenerative practices, and things like organic, we've definitely had the realization that most people have no idea where their food comes from, or why it costs what it does.
The margins in most farming are razor thin. Our neighbors who grow conventionally spend tons on inputs like fertilizer, for a shockingly small amount of money [in return per acre]. A year of extreme weather – more and more common – throws the whole thing out the window.
People say they want organic, but then they balk at the price without realizing how much labor goes into it when you're not just spraying to control weeds (or, more shockingly, to stop growth on your food crop at just the right time).
All of that said, a lot of the negativity directed toward anyone who has the dream of growing their own food is often coming from a conventional mindset. There are alternative approaches. A few great books are "Permaculture" by Mollison, "One Straw Revolution" by Fukuoka, "Restoration Agriculture" by Shephard.
As I mentioned elsewhere in the thread, it doesn't have to be all-or-nothing – you can start with some perennial herbs on your balcony. Larger scale, I'm an advocate for things like agroforestry practices, becoming more and more interested in agrivoltaics. You can go a very long way with a few dwarf fruit and nut trees, an understory of berries, and a few raised beds managed with no-dig methods.
If nothing else, you learn first-hand the challenges (and joys) of growing food, become more connected to the world that sustains us, and maybe gain a better appreciation for the people who work really hard for very thin margins to keep us all fed.
- This technique has been used in Japan. It’s documented in “One Straw Revolution” by Masanobu Fukuoka published 1970s.
In the book he also reported increased yields.
Note: It is a wonderful book, nice read.
- A book that talks about this at a different level is One Straw Revolution by Masanobu Fukuoka that follows the idea of Do Nothing Farming https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_farming
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