Borlaug and Plantra

In November of 2008 Steve Tillmann, Chris Siems and I had an offsite meeting to set the future direction of Plantra. One of the tasks Steve set for us was writing a vision and a mission statement. I was as enthusiastic as a five-year-old wait for a shot. I think it is fair to say Chris thought it was a waste of time. Steve pulled vision and mission statements from deep within us. Much to my amazement and relief, I strongly believe in both. This morning I realized where our vision really came from and I am deeply honored to realize we are just continuing a path blazed by Norman Borlaug.

A blog entry at Instapundit noted that Norman Borlaug had passed away and had two links. One article referred to him as The Man Who Saved More Human Lives Than Any Other. The other link went to a 1997 article by Gregg Easterbrook titled Forgotten Benefactor of Humanity. That article contained the seeds of the Plantra vision.

By producing more food from less land, Borlaug argues, high-yield farming will preserve Africa's wild habitats, which are now being depleted by slash-and-burn subsistence agriculture.

Our vision
Revolutionize woody plant establishment to make agriculture lands more productive and wild lands more wild.

Borlaug's vision is not limited to subsistence agriculture in the third world. The Borlaug Effect (it deserves a name) can be seen for those who look in every practice of modern sustainable horticulture and agriculture. The beauty of the vision is the way it links Plantra's horticultural and habitat work. When Plantra Grow Tubes get a vineyard into full production a full year sooner we create a surplus of land. That saves 300 year old Coast Live Oaks in California. When Plantra Tree Tubes take a year or two off the time to produce an ornamental shade tree for sale at a lawn and garden center in Illinois, it frees up land for corn and soybeans. That in turn reduces the demand to convert CRP acres back to cropland. That means more wildlife with more wild land.

If you think I'm exaggerating, look at this example. Let's say you currently need a 100 acre field to produce shade trees for sale at Green Acres Lawn & Garden Center. It takes five years to grow the trees to marketable size. The Plantra Tree Tube produces the same tree in four years. That means you only need 80 acres to meet the demand for shade trees. What do you do with the extra land? With 20% fewer acres, less diesel fuel, less fertilizer, less herbicide, less labor and generally less of everything that goes into producing the tree for sale we have saved money and contributed to the environment. We have freed up 20 acres of land and substantially reduced the other economic and ecological impacts to produce a tree.

That was Norman Borlaug's vision and Plantra unknowingly followed in his footsteps. Maybe this is not as surprising as you think. Norman Borlaug's undergraduate degree is in forestry and from the University of Minnesota. Chris Siems and Steve Tillmann both have forestry degrees from the University of Minnesota. Coincidence? I think not.