But Rockwood's mismanagement and failure to understand basic hydraulics proved devastating, as heavy rains pushed the Colorado's muddy water over its banks in 1905, destroying nearly 100, 000 acres of newly planted crops.
He said farmers would normally have planted their potato crops in January but had been unable to do so.
That acre is typically divided into four or five small plots that are planted with different crops so as to minimize risk.
Local economies also suffer when villagers can't sell their grain or eat the crops planted along the river because the water is so polluted.
In particular, Green candidates will highlight control of GM food and GM crops planted against local will, the failure of energy policy to get to grips with climate change, nuclear power and nuclear weapons.
For decades farmers had been spraying Roundup on the ground before planting, killing all leafy weeds in its path with a chemical that conveniently broke down in the soil, so it wouldn't poison crops planted later.
Women gather beans and other crops planted along the banks, leach the cyanide compounds out of manioc, a root that grows well in the poor soil, and then roast it to make a crunchy flour eaten throughout Brazil.
The concept: When crops are planted without tilling, the soil holds more carbon, which means less goes up into the atmosphere.
Fast-growing crops would be planted in the tropics, where sunlight is abundant.
It is inevitable that a storm this severe will cause damage to crops and logistics, with the result of reduced supplies and therefore, higher prices, until new crops can be planted, harvested and brought to market.
Finally, once the biofuel crops have been planted, grown and harvested -- often with the direct involvement of fossil fuels in the form of fertilizers, pesticides and petrol to power farm equipment -- they then have to go through a distillation and fermentation process to actually turn them into fuel.
At the beginning of the rains, both food crops and leguminous trees are planted.
ECONOMIST: A new twist on an old idea is improving farm yields in Africa
Farmers have reportedly planted 80% of the area they usually fill with crops, and are expecting lower than average yields.
Embrapa's latest trick is something called forest, agriculture and livestock integration: the fields are used alternately for crops and livestock but threads of trees are also planted in between the fields, where cattle can forage.
Their goal: crops that limit the use of pesticides and fertilizers while delivering more food per acre planted.
Sugar cane, which is planted in the summer, is a water-intensive crop and farmers may shift to other crops temporarily, industry executives said.
Crops are often damaged by witchweed, a widespread crop parasite that usually germinates after a cereal crop is planted.
ECONOMIST: A new twist on an old idea is improving farm yields in Africa
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