Courtesy of Wally S., Wally’s Urban Market Garden, Saskatoon, SK
Because of SPIN’s scale, organic practices are quite feasible, and that includes for insect pest management. The method of choice is hand picking. Even acre size areas can be controlled that way.Bugs are brushed off by hand into a pail. Bugs can also be brushed into walkways and stepped on. The under side of leaves can be examined for eggs, which can be squished by hand.
SPIN is not a plant it and forget it system. It is very hands-on. I’m out constantly working my plots, so I can usually spot problems very quickly and take care of them before they become completely unmanageable. But sometimes you just don’t win. The Colorado beetle made its way to Saskatoon last year and completely infested my potato crop. So I just yanked it early and planted something else.
That’s the benefit with a multi-locational farming operation. Problems are isolated and don’t wipe out your entire production.
