tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1220057250271426855.post3078824455328184670..comments2023-06-08T10:14:58.258-04:00Comments on The Yeoman Farmer: Wither Detroit?TYFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14507074580402175405noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1220057250271426855.post-22929229772962591772010-03-14T17:33:15.583-04:002010-03-14T17:33:15.583-04:00Someone needs to try it and do extensive testing, ...Someone needs to try it and do extensive testing, perhaps develop a protocol that relates soil contamination to contamination of different kinds of food grown in that soil. I don't know how plant material is tested for soil contaminants (or if that can even be done) but surely one of the big universities in the area has someone who would be interested in the problem. They might even get some ObamaBucks to study the problem.Bill Whitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17764579160852643673noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1220057250271426855.post-81301346638520372012010-03-09T18:33:53.453-05:002010-03-09T18:33:53.453-05:00Hm. Christmas tree farm (did I come up with that ...Hm. Christmas tree farm (did I come up with that one? Its been so long, I don't remember anymore, lol)...maybe raising trees for pulp paper (pines are especially good for that, grow quickly, etc, and would be a "cash crop" fairly quickly). Another item, might be wood for furniture--some of the rarer trees, like walnut, oak, good cherry, etc. I don't know the items in the soil would affect the wood, but it couldn't hurt, especially after a generation or two of pine tree farming. Those would be longer term investments (perhaps interspersed with firewood tree lots? Less 'expensive' woods, but still stuff that is good to burn?<br /><br />I'd go through those ideas before I'd consider anything else, except maybe planting good cover crops that help clean the soil in between the trees? I don't know if that'd work, if the crops were left on the ground after maturity, but it couldn't *hurt*.<br /><br />Whatever is done, will take a long time.Rachelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04104786303721290423noreply@blogger.com