Agriculture in New Eiffel

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Tomatoes being grown in New Eiffel in August 2020
A Ficus carica in Plitvice

Agriculture in the Principality of New Eiffel was unique due to the micronation's position as a small, urban landlocked enclave of London, England. The agriculture industry was insignificant due to the little need for local farming alongside other limitations, including low earnings and limits on farming on arable land. New Eiffel imported all of its food from the United Kingdom, and the nature of New Eiffel was fundamentally urban and none of the land got reserved for significant agricultural use. Nevertheless, recreational farming did occur, and was kept entirely organic. Weeds posed a significant threat to the agricultural industry. The city of Plitvice had the largest agricultural industry in the principality.

Land use

Due to New Eiffel's small size of 611 square metres (6,576 square feet) and reliance on imports from the surrounding United Kingdom for food, few areas of land had to be allocated for farming. Because of this, the nature of New Eiffel was fundamentally urban and none of its land was reserved for significant agriculture or other exploitation of natural resources; less than 2.36 square metres (25.4 square feet)—0.3 percent—of land was reserved for farming. As such, most open expanses of arable land, such as the Rugbull Field in Plitvice, were reserved strictly for recreational use, born out of necessity due to the micronation's intensely limited territory. Geologically, the ground of New Eiffel consisted solely of sandy and clay soil, which was problematic for agriculture.

Industries

Despite possessing access to advanced agricultural technology, all farming was kept entirely organic. The available arable land in New Eiffel was insignificant, and as such the principality had produced a limited number of industries—blackberries; figs; apples (Granny Smith cultivar); and tomatoes. Plitvice had the largest agricultural industry of any city in New Eiffel. Blackberries were not actually cultivated within New Eiffel, but rather Rubus allegheniensis had occasionally grown over the border barrier. Their edible fruit was regularly picked and eaten. A fig tree (Ficus carica) in New Eiffel Gardens, Plitvice had existed prior to the micronation's foundation. Apples of the Granny Smith cultivar were produced by the apple tree (Malus domestica) New Finland Monument, which was estimated at between 40–50 years of age when New Eiffel existed. As an elderly tree, the rate of which it would produce healthy apples was irregular. The tree marked the boundary between Plitvice and Új Repülő. Four tomato plants (Solanum lycopersicum) were planted and grown in New Eiffel Gardens since August 2020. Most farming was recreational, and as such New Eiffel exported none of its crops.

Pests and weeds

Weeds posed a threat to New Eiffelic agriculture

While pests were insignificant, weeds posed a noticeable threat. The Solanum lycopersicum leaves were regularly eaten by garden snails, and spider mites occasionally fed on the Ficus carica, though clearing them proved to be simple. Groundsel (Senecio), Persicaria hydropiper, dandelions (Taraxacum) and couch grass (Elymus repens) were the most invasive weeds in New Eiffel, posing a particular threat to the crops grown in New Eiffel Gardens. Weed Removal Industries, a weed control service run by Janus Smith, was founded in March 2020 as the only weed control service in the principality. It used manual removal methods such as directly pulling weeds out of the ground and digging them out with a screwdriver. Due to the prevalence of weeds, Weed Removal Industries' total revenue was reported at £65 (65,000 New Eiffelic ping).

See also