Why can only earth ponies grow food?

[GuillermoGage 246]

Does growing food literally require some sort of magic? If so, is it in the planting process? can only they handle seeds? Or is it just because they are physically stronger and more suitable for farm labor?

 

Can a unicorn or pegasi still technically plant a crop or garden seed in the ground and would it still grow if it had sunshine, water and good soil? Fluttershy has some sort of garden in her home, right?

 

You know, the pegasi still kind of help grow the food by controlling the weather.

 

I just think it would be lame if the reason was just "pegasi and unicorns are just too busy using their own abilities, and "regular ponies" without horns or wings needed a special purpose in society, so they just got called "earth ponies".

[Pix3M 607]

Better than letting unicorns grow food so they can safely start some stupid ethnic cleaning bullcrap on the earth ponies.

Edited May 29, 2012 by PixMeister

[Nas 2,873]

It's what they're known for, it's what makes them unique to the Pegasi and Unicorns. Which is perfectly necessary IMO.

 

I don't want earths to be known as the bland, ability-less ponies.

[Twilight Yagami 16]

In the play episode it is implied that the earth ponies were solely in charge of the food and whatnot. When they unionized some of the unicorns and pegusi may have agreed to help with food as well but most of the ponies decided to stick with what they knew. The skills needed could have been passed down from generation to generation and while the other two races try to help the best they can I think the earth ponies are the only ones who are really skilled in that field.

[I used to be a stranger 7,994]

It is strongly implied that earth ponies have some sort of quasi-magical connection to the Earth.

[Tom 891]

I read a fanfic that implied that Earth Ponies have there own kind of magic, one that lets them do all that agricultural stuff better. And also lets Pinkie bend the laws of physics.

[Batbrony 16,055]

Hasn't it also been implied by the show that Earth Ponies are stronger and larger built than pegasi and unicorns? Like in "Winter Wrap Up," where Applejack is concerned about having Twilight help pull a plow since she says she's a pretty small pony (i.e. being a unicorn). Just throwing this theory out there.

[Zya 59]

I think pegasi and unicorns can grow plants, just not nearly as well as earth ponies

[NavelColt 22,881]

My guess is the pegasi feel it's not their job, nor would they be good at it because they're mostly in the sky. The unicorns...probably a superiority complex sort of thing that began it. In the end, I think it's because the earth ponies are simply more adept at it because of not having any special abilities like the other two.

[Jalaton 155]

I think they just have some sort of special connection with the earth that allows them to grow food while other ponies can't. Equestria is a magical place.

Edited May 29, 2012 by Jalaton

[Radiance64 7,053]

I think earth ponies are just generally better at it, I think the others are probably capable though.

[MVC NVMXD JVRXD 2,406]

It's their niche in life. Plus, it prevents fascism.

[Espelancer 108]

I think it deals with where each tribe settled and their respective histories.

 

We'll start with the pegasi. The vast majority of the pegasus race has always lived among the clouds. Now, I'm not sure how viable hydroponic gardening would be in the clouds, but it is clearly not the ideal place to grow enough food to feed everyone in Cloudsdale (or Pegasopolis). Clouds have a nasty tendency to rain themselves out, and Cloudsdale constantly needs to make new clouds not only to provide rainwater for the lands below, but presumable to cntinue to have a place to live as well.

 

The unicorns, however, live on the ground, so why don't they grow food? Well, let's look for a moment at the type of terrain unicorns have settled upon. Unicornia was on top of a mountain, and unicorns probably settled Canterlot as well, which is also on a mountain. This is very rugged terrain and is not conducive for agriculture. Not that it is impossible to grow food on a mountain -- the Incans managed to do it -- it is just not very practical when you could trade for it. The unicorn tribe in "Hearth's Warming Eve" received food in exchange for magically raising the sun and the moon -- extremely important for the growing of the food in the first place. In fact, this is probably the reason why unicorns tend to settle atop high mountains -- a knowledge of astronomy seems to be extremely important when it comes to magic, and astronomical observations are best performed at high elevations.

 

So, where have the earth ponies always settled? On the fertile plains, of course. The earth ponies had to have settled on fertile land in the past to have been able to feed all 3 tribes, and they are depicted as being the first settlers of Ponyville, which of course has many apple orchards and irrigable farmland as far as the eye can see. It is no wonder why the earth ponies would drive their economy on agriculture, as the pegasi drove theirs on weather and the unicorns monopolized on magic and astronomy.

 

These aspects of each pony tribe's cultures have clearly survived to this day, and even though the ponies now live intermingled (at least in Canterlot and Ponyville), each tribe's traditions have been passed down from generation to generation. I'm sure there are plenty of pegasus farmers out there, or unicorns who magically clear the skies like a pegasus, or earth ponies who are fascinated with astronomy, but the majority of ponies keep the status quo since it works for everypony. It is these tasks that really binds each pony race together -- probably even moreso than friendship -- since each pony mutually relies on one another for their own survival.

[Snow Shadow 41]

It is a skill to grow food, and thus must be learned.

[cuteycindyhoney 13,309]

The unicorns may be too stuck up. Look at Rarity. She won't even dig up her own gemstones any more. She has her slave, uh, little Spikey Wikey do it. As for the Pegasi, ever try to plant an apple tree on a cloud? It don't work so good!

[Whiteshade 1,426]

Earth ponies are practical by nature, hence they can best satisfy their immediate needs. Pegasi are less so, and unicorns the least practical, but most artistic. Of course, that's just general, and there are exceptions (Octavia ), but that seems to be the trend.

[GuillermoGage 246]

I'm sure there are plenty of pegasus farmers out there, or unicorns who magically clear the skies like a pegasus, or earth ponies who are fascinated with astronomy...

 

Are you sure a unicorn's magic/telekinesis would be powerful enough to move clouds especially if they were far away from them. Pegasi can get to them easier because they can fly.

 

Then again, I'm not really sure how powerful or versatile unicorn magic can be outside of basic telekinesis.

[Dreadmallon 353]

If the Earth ponies didn't have their own specific, unique skillsets and abilities, they'd be total inferiorities to Pegasi and Unicorns.

 

Are you sure a unicorn's magic/telekinesis would be powerful enough to move clouds especially if they were far away from them. Pegasi can get to them easier because they can fly.

 

Then again, I'm not really sure how powerful or versatile unicorn magic can be outside of basic telekinesis.

 

Shown by a certain infant unicorn, unicorns have the ability to use their telekinesis on themselves to give them the ability to fly. This is seen as the unicorn's telekinetic color surrounds them in an aura-like fashion.

Edited May 30, 2012 by Prince Dusk

[GuillermoGage 246]

If the Earth ponies didn't have their own specific, unique skillsets and abilities, they'd be total inferiorities to Pegasi and Unicorns.

 

 

 

Shown by a certain infant unicorn, unicorns have the ability to use their telekinesis on themselves to give them the ability to fly. This is seen as the unicorn's telekinetic color surrounds them in an aura-like fashion.

 

You must be talking about Pumpkin Cake?

 

I think that is just a weird, essentially temporary baby thing, like weird developmental baby-magic, like little kids in Harry Potter, or Jack-Jack in The Incredibles.

 

Even if adult unicorns technically do have the ability to levitate anything they can lift off the ground, including themselves, can they move things much heavier than themselves anyway?

[Dreadmallon 353]

You must be talking about Pumpkin Cake?

 

I think that is just a weird, essentially temporary baby thing, like weird developmental baby-magic, like little kids in Harry Potter, or Jack-Jack in The Incredibles.

 

Even if adult unicorns technically do have the ability to levitate anything they can lift off the ground, including themselves, can they move things much heavier than themselves anyway?

 

Perhaps, in my opinion, it all depends on how powerful you are. If we're talking about somepony like Twilight, than yes, of course she can move a cloud (she moved an Ursa Minor, I mean, c'mon). If we're talking about somepony like Rarity, than no.

[Espelancer 108]

Are you sure a unicorn's magic/telekinesis would be powerful enough to move clouds especially if they were far away from them. Pegasi can get to them easier because they can fly.

 

Then again, I'm not really sure how powerful or versatile unicorn magic can be outside of basic telekinesis.

 

Canterlot uses magic to wrap up winter every year, as Spike suggests in Winter Wrap Up. Part of wrapping up winter is clearing the skies to melt the white snow so that once the sun comes up its warmth and beauty will glow, so clearly at least certain unicorns can exercise some control over the weather with magic. Also, in Boastbusters, Twilight herself produced a light breeze in order to whistle a lullaby through the grass to put the Ursa Major to sleep. This is not even mentioning the amount of power it would take to cause the sun and moon to rise and set.

 

That being said, I think a pegasus can do it much more efficiently, which is why they are the masters of weather. Can you imagine how much magic power it would take to lift millions of gallons of water from a reservoir all the way up to Cloudsdale, or even just to produce the tornado? Unicorn magic is probably sufficient for simple weather jobs, though.

[GuillermoGage 246]

That being said, I think a pegasus can do it much more efficiently, which is why they are the masters of weather.

 

So basically, when the unicorns were making the sun and moon rise, that left them much less time to study other forms of magic? And the pegasi didn't really realize they could control the weather, only that they could fly and live on top of clouds?

 

So before the founding of Equestria, pony life was rather inefficient?

And nowadays, leaving most weather responsibilities to the unicorns leaves them more time for other forms of magic to benefit society?

 

I only saw "Hearth's Warming Eve" one time.

 

Well, why do Canterlot unicorns still clear the skies if pegasi can do it better? Is it just because unicorns are a majority in Canterlot, so they feel more responsible for doing it?

 

Also, I've been noticing that this tread is turning into a discussion about unicorns, and then about pegasi, and not solely about earth ponies. Oh well.

Edited May 30, 2012 by GuillermoGage

[Jokuc 8,174]

 

 

 

nah, Maybe because they're EARTH ponies?

 

 

[Victoria and Co. 782]

Because they want to have a monopoly on the food business and thus, refuse to share the secrets of farming to anyone else.

[CluelessLlama13 55]

They gotta have some sort of advantage (or thing they're better at) over the pegasi and unicorns! Besides, I think they're more acquainted with the dirt and plants.