Farmers committed to the overall goal of sustainability in agriculture have banded together to support legislative action favorable to that goal. Specific objectives relate to addition of organic amendments to soils to improve fertility, avoidance of excessive use of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, crop rotation, species diversity among crops, protection of wildlife habitats, and support of family-operated farms. Currently applicable legislation is believed to be unfavorable to some of these objectives and needs modification.

Organic producers have traditionally understood the value of conserving the natural enemies of the pests of the crops they grow. An equal appreciation of the value of importing new species of natural enemies is also needed. Given this understanding, the interests of organic farmers could then be promoted by efforts to stimulate greater activity by government agencies in charge of such importations. Furthermore, the focus of such importations could be altered to target more precisely pests of crops most commonly grown by organic producers. This would benefit organic farmers by permanently solving or greatly reducing the intensity of problems from many introduced crop pests. The potential benefit of a coordinated federal and state program of classical biological control could be very large for organic farmers. There is an increasing interest nationwide in expanding the use of classical biological controls. Organic producers now have the opportunity to add their influence to this trend to reshape the country's pest control agenda away from chemicals and toward biological controls and to focus this at least in part on those pests of greatest concern to organic producers. To do so, however, organic producers will have to learn a new lesson, i.e., the difference between native and imported pests and the value of importation as a means to control the latter.

In the United States, trees constitute an element in agriculture whose importance has been inadequately appreciated. In actuality, they are highly important in several ways. From the time of the earliest settlements, they have served as a source of building materials and energy. They protect the soil against erosion by wind and water. When used as windbreaks adjacent to crop fields, they protect crops against the damaging effects of wind on crop yields. As windbreaks for livestock, they increase feed conversion efficiency, improve weight gains, and increase the survival rate ofnewborns. They provide habitat for wildlife and contribute aesthetically to the appearance of the countryside. They protect water resources. Trees need to have the story of their great benefits more widely and emphatically told.