A TASTE OF HEAVEN
by Pitavasa dasa and Aradhya devi dasi
of New Mayapura Cow Protection

Submit an Article     Email

Hot buttered bread, stacks of syrup-covered pancakes, steaming puffed chapatis, rich halava with whipped cream, crunchy muesli, oatmeal cookies to distribute: all these prasadam delights can be yours, right from your own fields. No supermarket flour will ever give you that taste of heaven which comes from offering with love and devotion a preparation made from grains you grew yourself.

It's true that a certain amount of technique is required to produce clean, healthy and opulent grain crops without pesticides or weed-killers. Only in Satya-yuga is it possible to just throw the grains on the ground and reap a bumper crop year after year. A devotee farmer in our age has to work just as hard, if not harder than other farmers to get the high quality result he is dreaming of. But if Krsna tastes that result, all those difficulties will be forgotten like nightmares in the morning.

Among the factors which directly influence the harvest are: crop rotation, soil preparation, choice of seed, proper sowing, fertilization, spring harrowing, and fighting disease and insects.

CROP ROTATION
The poisons of chemical farming may stay present in the soil and be detected in the crops for several years. To start off your rotation plan, three years of organic pasture rich in clover or alfalfa will assure you of having pure grains to offer. The cows will enrich the land with their dung at the same time. Earthworms will swarm to such fields, attracted by their favorite meal, fresh cow manure. You have only to spread out this compost when the time comes to plant.
In good soil, WHEAT will be the first grain to be sown after pasture, as it requires the most nutrients. The next year can be RYE, and the third OATS.
In acid soil, wheat will be difficult to raise. It would be easier to grow rye and oats instead. You could also try
buckwheat or barley, coming after oats.

After these three years of grain crops, the field should again be planted to pasture and lie fallow for three more years. The last fallow year, you might plant alfalfa or red clover as a cover crop, which would enrich the soil even more. This should be cut, left to dry, then plowed under. Be careful not to plow it under green, as this would cause root diseases.

What happens if you can't let the field lie fallow, because you have debts and you have to sell something to pay them? This is certainly an unfortunate situation, but one in which many young farmers find themselves, much against their will.

The earth s exhaustion will be seen in the increase of fungus diseases, in a lack of available natural nitrogen in the spring, which means less grains at harvest time, and in massive invasions of weeds and insects. However, if it is a choice between growing a crop or loosing your farm, at least grow something that is not too demanding or which could replenish the soil, such as sunflower, peas or alfalfa. Whatever you do, DON T grow wheat - and don t give up hope!

PREPARING THE SOIL
Two months to six weeks before sowing time, cut the grass cover on your field. If it can be chopped and spread out at the same time, this is the best. Let it dry completely.

Now is the time to bring out all the well-composted cow dung you have and spread it on the field - up to 10 tons to the acre. Some of you may not have cows yet, or maybe they haven t been in the barn over the winter. If you don t have enough aged cow dung available, you could use an organic fertilizer instead, of a 5-5-8 or 5-6-4 type. You will need about 100 kg to the acre. Make sure when you buy any fertilizer that it is "guaranteed organic". You will also need to check that it doesn t have bone powder or dried blood added, all organic, of course! There should be a label on the sack, or you can ask for a written guarantee with your bill.

Once the cover crop is dried and the manure is spread, calculate three weeks to fifteen days before your sowing date. Then plow at a depth of 15-20 centimeters. Level the soil with the harrow. Let the earth settle and begin to assimilate the riches you have turned under.
During this time, it is a good idea to have your soil analyzed. To get accurate readings, test every year at the same time, and same place. Climatic conditions and the crops you grow can radically change the soil balance from one year to the next. In order to avoid unpleasant
surprises, take the time to check. If necessary, add an organic mineral supplement of calcium, magnesium, phosphorus or other trace elements as a top dressing. When all is well, prepare the seed bed with the harrow or discs.

CHOOSING YOUR SEED
Choosing the variety of seed you will plant is something like choosing the child you will adopt. All of these seeds will become living, breathing, growing bodies who will eventually give their fruits to be offered in sacrifice to Krsna. That is why the best is never too good, even if it may cost more. When you look out across a rippling wheat field, have you ever thought of all the millions of spirit souls standing there, lifting up their heads toward the sun, bowing in the wind, drinking in the rain (which might carry demigods who wish to take birth), getting ready for the day when Krsna will touch them with His lips? We are actually helping them to advance by our service.

You may be surprised to learn that the majority of cereal seed varieties are meant for animal fodder, in particular beef fattening. These varieties give very disappointing breads and pastries, heavy and falling apart when you try to slice them. A good variety for human consumption should have a protein rate of about 11,5% The dough expansion rate, or W value, should be 150 or more. Other valuable qualities to look for would be high productivity, resistance to disease and insects, not germinating in the field or silo, as well as being especially adapted to your area.
Some varieties used with success in Europe are as follows:

WINTER WHEAT
Galaxie, Soissons, Camp-mu, Baroudeur, Orqual, Rcital, Sideral, Artaban, Amelio Very resistant to disease, but lesser productivity:
Franco, Renan, Sperber
Also good:
Castan, Darius, Prinqual, For warm regions:
Arfort, Florence-Aurore,

SEMOLINA WHEAT
Primedur, Exodur, Neodur

RYE
Petkus, Dankowski-Nowe, Elect, Merkator

OATS (Only white oats in winter varieties can be used for making flakes)
Reha, Oyster, Peniarth

PREPARING THE SEED
Carefully sort and clean the seeds you plan to sow. In order to have strong seedlings, choose the biggest seeds. You will need a machine for this, called a "tara" in Europe. It has a drum which turns and sifts out the seeds from the dust, chaff and smaller weed seeds. We got ours from an old farmer who hadn t used it for years. He thought we wanted to put flower pots on it! When he found out we wanted to use it, he brought the price down. As we drove away, he waved goodbye to us with a big grin.

In some climates, there may be a problem of die-back or other seedling diseases. To protect the seedlings if you have this difficulty, treat the seeds with 150 g of copper sulfate dissolved in 8-10 liters of water for each 100 kg of seed. Spray the seed and mix well. Let the seed absorb the mixture for about 6 hours. Then sow immediately. If for one reason or another you can t sow right away, spread the seed out to dry to prevent molding. If you use copper sulfate, increase the amount of seed you plant per acre, as it can inhibit germination.

SOWING
The sowing date will vary according to the area, from the beginning of October for the coldest regions, to the middle of November for the more temperate zones. If sown too early, there will be more weeds. If sown too late, there is danger of frost killing the fragile seedlings. It may also mean that the springtime branching-out period will be shortened, thus decreasing the number of heads of grain on each plant. It can also increase the risk of scorching in late spring.

On an average, sow 175-180 kg of seed per acre in rows 15-17 centimeters apart. If you sow very late, or if you treat with copper sulfate, increase by 15-20 kg per acre.

Sow at a depth of 1-3 centimeters. Sown deeper than this, the seedlings will exhaust themselves trying to get to the surface. They will be weaker when they do emerge, but many will not make it at all, causing bare spots in the field. French farmers say that sowing in the evening produces cleaner crops. If you can, it's worth a try!

SPRING FERTILIZING
Your seedlings need the most nitrogen just at the end of winter. This is the time when the plant branches out and the stems begin to lengthen. As there is one head of grain to each branch, it is important that there be as many branches as possible to each plant. That depends on the amount of nitrogen they get.

Here at New Mayapura, we can never do anything to help our grains at this time of year, because it is always pouring ram. But if your soil is not soaking wet, and if you can work your field without getting stuck, it would be good to spray on a light dose of liquid manure at this time.
If you don t have liquid manure, an organic nitrogen fertilizer would be all right. A sulphur additive would encourage penetration of the nitrogen and also protect against fungus diseases, dangerous at this period. The latest date for this treatment is March 15.

SPRING HARROWING
Horrified? You're right, it is dangerous if badly done. But done properly, spring harrowing can double your harvest. It encourages the seedlings to branch out more, increases nitrogen intake, and destroys enormous amounts of young weeds. This delicate operation should not be undertaken at all if three conditions are not present. If even one is lacking, you could destroy your whole crop!
First of all, there should be NO danger of FROST. Second, the SOIL should be DRY. And last but not least, the plants should NOT yet be
BRANCHING OUT.

It may be hard to find this moment, but if you do, it s worth taking the chance. You will need a harrow with long supple teeth. Go very slowly, not more than 2-3 mph. The harrowing should be done crosswise to the sown lines.

FIGHTING DISEASE AND INSECTS
When the stem of the seedlings starts to grow, check for mildew spots, especially in dense growth. If necessary, spray with liquid sulphur. At the same time, you can add trace minerals and amino acids to encourage heavier yields. Again, be sure these products are organic before buying. Plant lice are the most frequent insects which attack grains in organic culture. Usually they are not very dangerous and do not require treatment.

HARVEST
From March 15 to harvest time, all you can do is circumambulate your field, chanting loudly. Surya, Indra, Vayu and other demigods are at work. Sometimes disasters happen - windstorms, hailstorms, rain just when the wheat is ripe. That is why the sacrifice of the age is necessary to protect the future ingredients of our offerings to Krsna. It also helps to reduce mental anxiety and pure panic when a black cloud rolls over at the wrong time. We have seen it: rain fell on the neighbor s farm, but the cloud went around our fields. And sometimes it rains on ours but not on his! This is when you need to be a good philosopher: "I ve got a lot of karma to pay. I m not this body. Krsna is in control."

We always ask our neighbor to harvest for us; we pay him with grains. But if you are very enthusiastic, you could try harvesting by hand. When you see that mountain of grains heaped up in your granary, smelling so sweetly of sun and wind and wild flowers, you will surely be tempted as we always are to thrust your arms into that golden mass up to the elbows, taking handfuls and letting them trickle down, shouting "Haribol! Haribol!" And you will surely look just like the picture in Bhagavad-Gita of the family raising their arms to the sky with expressions of whole-hearted joy.

Grains come from rain. Rain comes from sacrifice. And our sacrifice is to chant Hare Krsna and hold a plow.