ABSTRACT
Until about four decades ago, crop yields in U.S. agricultural systems depended on internal resources, recycling of organic matter, built-in biological control mechanisms, and rainfall patterns. Agricultural yields were modest but stable. Production was safeguarded by growing more than one crop or variety in space and time in a field as insurance against pest outbreaks or severe weather. Inputs of nitrogen were gained by rotating major field crops with legumes. In turn, rotations suppressed insects, weeds, and diseases by effectively breaking the life cycles of these pests. A typical corn-belt farmer grew corn rotated with several crops, including soybeans, and small-grain production was intrinsic to maintain livestock (USDA, 1973). Most of the labor was done by the family with occasional hired help, and no specialized equipment or services were purchased from off-farm sources (Altieri, 1995; Gliessman, 1999). In the developing world, small farmers developed even more complex and biodiverse farming systems guided by indigenous knowledge that has stood the test of time (Thrupp, 1997). In these types of farming systems, the link between agriculture and ecology was quite strong, and signs of environmental degradation were seldom evident.
