The end of a long rainy day. . . . Tomorrow I'll make my final preparations for the first Farm Beginnings class, which happens day after tomorrow (Saturday). I'm spoiled--I'm not looking forward to spending all day Saturday indoors even though I do look forward to teaching the class.

More on the big ag front:

Monsanto Under Investigation For Antitrust Abuses

and from Tom Laskaway:

The Superweeds are Winning and Monsanto Blames Farmers

At the end of the article, Laskaway observes that it won't be the intellectuals who change ag. He goes on to quote a Rodale Institute report on superweeds:

• Agriculturalists around the world are looking for better answers than have come so far from herbicide-focused efforts. They seek productive systems based on evolving local farmer wisdom. These deal with all pests—weeds included—as part of an approach integrating soil health, biodiversity, advanced understandings of biological interactions, and just enough steel to give crops the edge they need.

And, as Laskaway concludes, "That sounds about right."