The One-Straw Revolution: An Introduction to Natural Farming (New York Review Books Classics)

This is an awesome book for numerous reasons, waayyy too many to count. The original author is perhaps a genius who was way ahead of his time. It is very interesting to learn that you can 'farm" without a ton of Chemical fertilizers, sustain a family of 5 on about 1.25 acre plot, do not need a rice Paddy for growing rice and can grow it in a "dry field", typically "green manure" and some animal &/or human manure (yes, human) are enough to replenish the nutrients in a field or growing plot (if I understood that part correctly), vegetables grown without chemical fertilizer in a "natural setting" taste much better and have more nutrients for your body, when sowing seeds you can do so "randomly" instead of in rows and can/will get better results, daikon radish and other vegetables can/will resow themselves year after year if done so properly (how?? read this book), it is actually cheaper to grow organic vegetables, however, consumers typically think a lower price means lower quality and vice versa, I could go on and on but I'm f Done writing this. If you enjoy farming or growing vegetables then this book will not disappoint you, especially if you would prefer to grow them more naturally and healthier for you and your family, plus easier too!. The author of this book makes many good points about farming, growing vegetable sustainably, and how to do so much easier than the typical farmer/person does these days. You ask Who should you blame this on? The chemical companies, of course. The "big pharma" of the farmer. He said in the past Farmers in Japan would typically take off 3 months during the winter time to go hunting animals/game for food because they had the time to do so and it was enjoyable. As chemicals became more prevalent in the farming process the farmers work actually got harder and took more time. Sounds crazy to me but I 100% believe it. I can't say enough good things about this book I wish the author were still alive and I was able to meet him. After reading this book I am now even more interested in a "living off the grid lifestyle" & growing food sustainably for myself, without all the backbreaking work I thought was involved with farming. This 'new method' of farming the author describes is actually a very very old method & by not using chemicals & using a more natural approach to farming, it will actually make things easier for you the farmer/grower, plus make the food you grow taste better and be better ( nutritionally) for you.

Since I don't want to get cancer from my own garden, I have been researching ways to make the vegetables grow without poisoning them/us. Excellent book here. I started experimenting with cover crops, then grew things amidst the native plants that were already in the field. When I have success with a certain crop, say red beans, I know they work well with my cover crop (red clover for the honey bees). I no longer have to water the garden -- watering it just attracts things that prey on my vegetables, so it never made any sense, but the stuff can't get dry... Then I planted native edibles like plantain, chicory, and dandelions. They bring in pollinators, too. We had a great crop of beans, bitter melon, mints, lavender, and sweet potatoes, along with tons of dandelion salad. And, almost NO WEEDS. The soil looks healthier, too. I'll put the leaves from the parking area on the garden later. A spring tip: Plant garlic and bitter greens of some type (healthy) first. The animals will sample it and become disgusted. Start bitter melon indoors, add that next. The deer hate it -- they nibbled the tips, only one time, hehe. Fry the bitter melon with pork/meat/ghee. The American translator added a note that said you can't do this in the US...that makes no sense, I implemented it just fine. I doubt that gardens in Maryland and New York are different from the rest of the country.

I believe this to be a very fresh, earth-centered yet spiritual book which is ultimately not a how-to book, which those who have unfavorably reviewed it expected it to be, nor is it wholly a philosophical treatise. What it is, is thoroughly interesting! One would think it had just been written, which does have something to say for the philosophical nature of the text, rather than something written close to 40 years ago. You may disagree with Fukuoka's philosophy, but his results seem to speak for themselves. If what he "returned" to doing by mimicking nature were not successful, then much of the book would be kabuki dramatics, titillating Western audiences yet without much more substance. He speaks of the individual experience branching out to the universal. Most everyone will not be farming rice, yet even in the rice producing parts of the world his practice would be quite dynamic, let alone taking the principle and applying in to your own local environs. This is a fantastic book, which is imbued with philosophy without the weight of formal philosophy. If I were to sum up the text, I think it best to be called a meditation on sustenance, and a beautiful one at that.

Good read, it was assigned for class but I definitely enjoyed and learned

This book will generally appeal to two types of people:1-those wishing to learn farming or gardening using the most sensible, natural methods known while also doing the least amount of work and being rewarded with bountiful harvests and 2-those seeking spiritual enlightenment through communion with nature. I am one of the first type mentioned. I pretty much skimmed over the Zen Buddhism/Taoism, slowing to study the parts where Mr. Fukuoka talks about his methods and experiences in farming the natural way. I tend to write in my books, highlighting and underlining the passages that speak to me, instead of taking seperate notes. My copy of this book now has alot of added ink--sometimes I have underlined entire pages. The amount of useful information in this book is astounding. It's full. I'm not seeking enlightenment, or I would say it is full to overflowing. While I don't have a farm, I do keep a backyard garden, and I have found the techniques Mr. Fukuoka teaches to be especially useful and time/energy saving for me. You don't have to have a green thumb for his methods to work either. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to begin farming or gardening the natural way, especially if you want to get in on the now popular "Go-Green" trend, as his methods call for No Tilling, No Fertilizer, No Pesticides, and No Weeding. Sounds like "No Work" right? Well, there is work involved, but it is minimal compared to the modern methods of farming and gardening. You will want to check into this one. I did, and I have not once been sorry for it. Five big, bright shiny stars from me to you, Mr. Fukuoka.

The One Straw Revolution is a book more about philosophy than farming. Fukuoka's point of view completely changed my outlook. He explains, quite eloquently, that we (humanity) know next to nothing about the natural system which grew and sustains us. Our ignorance outweighs our understanding of how the web of life is interconnected. We do not understand how the system works; so, our actions, no matter how well intentioned, inevitably disrupt function. So, the least we can do is the best we can do. This is not a call for laziness; but, instead a call for reflection on how to accomplish your goals with the least disruption of nature. The natural system (or God's plan, if you swing that way) already knows best how to fix the problems we create. The best way to heal our damage is to allow nature to do its work; and, repair the damage we have done. Altogether, most of the problems we face with our environment are our own doing. Human agricultural methods are very good at turning forests into deserts. Our "solutions" are only band-aids that result in even more problems than the problems we originally created. Because of our eternally incomplete understanding, letting nature fix the problems we have created is the only solution. Make seed balls and spread them!

Influential

This book would appear to be about farming. But actually, it's about the deepest truths of life. Fukuoka shares his life experience telling how he had a revelation in nature and then spent years trying to live what he learned from that insight. He became a natural farmer, working with nature and living a simple, hard-working lifestyle. But what he shares tells us a truth that applies to every situation, every career, every person. I read this book in high school and it changed my life. I bought it again to read (30 years later) and I see how much of this truth I have been unable to live because I got caught up in the world. Every word is like a healing agent. As I read them, they enter my mind and remind me of what really matters. If you feel we live in a tangled, chaotic world which has lost its way, read this book and be reminded that the answers to our problems are with us all the time and with some effort, we can find these answers for ourselves in our own context.

Must read. This is the book I will revisit again and again

alles super

This book is proof that fertilizers and pest control (biocides) are no good for our earth -- or for us! Good information for people interested in permaculture, no-till gardening or no-till farming, organic food production, etc.

Excellent book

Sienta las bases de la agricultura natural, inteligente y regenerativa.