Why aren’t weeds listed as GMO’s?

65 000,000 B.C.

Asteroid strikes Earth (again).   Dinosaurs and plants wiped out from massive fireball, dust, ash, and smoke in Earth’s atmosphere.  Evidence indicates that plant and animal life soon returned, providing an abundant food source and suitable climate for the human race 64 million, 900 thousand years later. Of course, during an Ice Age, there wasn’t a lot of variety in the vegetation on the family dinner table.  Rise of agriculture,  developing natural fertilizers and the inevitable battle by farmers sorting out weeds and desired edible plants.  Separating the wheat from the chaff so to speak.

2017 A.D.

Farming is a skill that few suburban Californians possess.  Some have the time and interest to devote resources to growing avocados, citrus, grapes, vegetable or ornamental flowers.  After a couple of years of benign neglect, and with the recent rains,  I bought a few fruit trees to place in the backyard.  Challenges: Dog urine has already stunted or killed my xeriscape-friendly plants. What is thriving is physically separated from the critters by a wall. The front yard is relatively unscathed as the dogs do not “go” out front.

However, amid the dog pee and fecal deposits,  bermuda grass, purslane, common spurge, nettles and mallow THRIVE in the decomposed granite and clay.    It must be that millions of years of evolution have genetically-modified what I  see as noxious weeds, into tough pee-resistant survivors.  I need my A-game.   Unless an asteroid strikes us again,   I will strive to keep dog pee, weeds, water and fertilizer in harmonious balance   If a big rock hits,  weeds will likely survive to rise again.