[Ellendra]

I can recall my years as a teenager when us kids would get together and plow/disc three or four garden plots with the neighbors tractor, then come back and plant seeds. Corn, tomato, squash, beans......we never worried about it afterwards because it was almost guaranteed to produce a crop.
I wonder why it seems to be so much of a hassle today.

Some of it might be the seeds. While I was studying plant breeding I learned some things about the seeds industry that didn't exactly inspire confidence. A lot of vegetables are being selected to grow in very specific conditions, or they're being chosen for characteristics other than how well they handle things like drought, heat, pests, and competition.

Some varieties still have that reliance, but they can be hard to find.

[Ellendra]

“reliance” = resilience.