Putting Your System Together. George Kuepper Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Transcription

1 Putting Your System Together George Kuepper Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture

2 This publication outlines the origins of organic agriculture. It highlights the concepts, ideas, and milestones that define it as a distinct and sustainable approach to farming that involves more than simply precluding synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. 23 pages. Copies can be downloaded freeof-charge at: cations/organic-philosophyreport.pdf Print copies can be requested from: The Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture P.O. Box 588 Poteau, OK Tel:

3 A Production System that respond(s) to site-specific conditions by integrating cultural, biological and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources, promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity

4 A group of interacting, interrelated, or interdependent elements forming a complex whole. from: Answers.com

5 HEALTHY SOCIETY HEALTHY PEOPLE HEALTHY FOOD HEALTHY SOIL

6 Pioneers Organizations Events Evolution Of and the Influences On American Organic Farming F.H. King R. Steiner & Anthroposophy J.I. Rodale Wm. Albrecht A. Howard E. Balfour Silent Spring L. Bromfield E. Pfeiffer OFPANA/ OTA USDA s OFPA Organic Report NOP Standard Implemented Sustainable Practices from the Asian Continent Convertible Husbandry (America Mid-1800s) High Farming (Europe 1800s) Humus Farming Biodynamics Countercultural Influences Environmental Consciousness Organic By Neglect Organic Farming Organic Certification & Industry Standards Agroecology & Permaculture USDA National Standard Certified Organic Production Eco-Agriculture Integrated Production, etc. Demeter Certified Production

7 Organic Soil Management An Old Saying among Organic Farmers

8 The Soil Food Web 2005 National Center for Appropriate Technology

9 What the Food Web Needs Sunlight Air Water Organic Matter 2005 National Center for Appropriate Technology Nutrient Elements

10 Organic Soil Management Feeding the Soil Food Web means providing organic matter as food. In organic farming, this has been called the Law of Return returning mineral- rich organic material to the soil.

11 Plant Nutrition Under Natural Conditions Digestive processes and nutrient recycling in the Rhizosphere: The Soil Food Web Source of plant nutrition: - plant residues - animal remains - animal wastes Parent Rock Material 11 Soluble Minerals Organic Compounds Other phytamins 2005 National Center for Appropriate Technology Plant Roots

12 Conventional Management ζ ζ ζ Digestive processes and nutrient recycling in the Rhizosphere: The Soil Food Web Organic Matter as Crop Residues Conventional Soluble Fertilizers Parent Rock Material Soluble Minerals 12 Organic Compounds 2005 National Center for Appropriate Technology Other Benefits Plant Roots

13 Humus Farming/Organic Management Digestive processes and nutrient recycling in the Rhizosphere: The Soil Food Web Organic Materials and Methods: Composts Crop Residues Green Manures Livestock Manures Natural Fertilizers Biological Inoculants Rotations w/ sod crops Parent Rock Material National Center for Appropriate Technology Soluble Minerals Organic Compounds Other Benefits Plant Roots

14 Self-Generated Fertility Fixes nitrogen Releases bound nutrients Makes nutrients available Air/water balance Suppresses Disease Natural antibiotics Nematode predation Aeration/Drainage Induced resistance in crops Weed Suppression Less weed stimulation Weed seed predation Easier cultivation Pest Insects Reduced More predators & parasites Natural insect disease agents Induced resistance in crops

15 Organic Farmers claim: Organic Crops Resist Pests Do organicallygrown plants develop induced resistance to diseases and insect pests?

16 Organic Crops Resist Pests Predisposition theory Insect pests as nature s garbage men Organic as plantpositive vs. pestnegative approach

17 Organic Crops Resist Pests Mycorrhizal Associations as an element in stress reduction and induced resistance Root from sorghum with vesicles ("little sacs") of the mycorrhizal fungus called Gigaspora rosea.

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19 CANNON HORTICULTURE PROJECT

20 A Greenhouse Herb Bed Block Bed B N Kerr Center s Cannon Horticulture Plots 2011 Boundaries & Dimensions Total area: 6.67 acres Field A-1.58 a Dimensions: Greenhouse: 22 x 30 Herb Bed: 10 x 32 Block Bed: 5 x 38 Fields A-1, A-2, A-3, A-4: 90 x 282 Field U: 56 x ft K e r r R o a d Field A-2.58 a Field A-3.58 a Buffering: All fields and beds have 25 feet of organically managed buffer. The Greenhouse has 15 feet of organically managed buffer on the NW side. However, no doors or air intakes occur on that side. Field A-4.58 a Field U.35 a C Denotes Hydrants/Irrigation access = approx. 50 ft D

21 Heritage Vegetable Trials (Okra & Sweet Sorghum in 2008 shown)

22 Copies can be downloaded free-ofcharge at: m/publications/summercover-crops.pdf Print copies can be requested from: The Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture P.O. Box 588 Poteau, OK Tel:

23 1. Crop Rotation (the sequencing of crops over time on a field) 2. The inclusion of cover crops and/or perennial forage crops within a crop rotation

24 A-1 A-2 A Tomatoes 2009 * 2010 * 2011 * 2012 Tomatoes 2008 * 2009 Tomatoes 2010 * 2011 * 2012 * 2008 * 2009 * 2010 Tomatoes 2011 * 2012 * Kerr Center s Cannon Horticulture Plots Example of how a tomato crop might be rotated A-1 A-2 A * 2009 * 2010 * 2011 Tomatoes 2012 * A-4 A-3

25 Cover crops are plants you grow or allow to grow, not for harvest, but for purposes such as preventing erosion, improving the soil, and weed control. Can be categorized by season winter & summer

26 A-1 A-2 A-3 A Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2009 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2010 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2011 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2012 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2008 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2009 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2010 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2011 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2012 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2008 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2009 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2010 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2011 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2012 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2008 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2009 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2010 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch 2011 Rye w/peas, clover or vetch * Kerr Center s Cannon Horticulture Plots Winter Season: What you d find In the fields. Fall-seeded winter cover crops

27 2012 Tomatoes Winter Cover Crop Winter cover Crop 2013 Tomatoes This is NOT what we mean by rotation!

28 A-1 A-2 A : Early Vegetables 2012: Summer Cover Crop 2013: Late Vegetables 2014: Summer Cover Crop 2011: Summer Cover Crop 2012: Early Vegetables 2013: Summer Cover Crop 2014: Late vegetables 2011: Late Vegetables 2012: Summer Cover Crop 2013: Early Vegetables 2014: Summer Cover Crop Kerr Center s Cannon Horticulture Plots Crops and Cover Crops DURING THE GROWING SEASON Late Vegetables Summer Cover Crop A : Summer Cover Crop 2012: Late Vegetables 2013: Summer Cover Crop 2014: Early vegetables Summer Cover Crop Early Vegetables

29 One in which a significant percentage of the land is planted to season-long cover crops each year.

30 INSECT & DISEASE CONTROL Clubroot, fusarium yellows, blackleg, & black rot in cole crops Black rot in pumpkins Northern & Western Corn Rootworm in sweetcorn, popcorn and decorative corn Root rots in beans & peas Gummy stem blight in cucurbits Photo: Gummy Stem Blight

31 Early blight in solanaceous crops 2 years Black rot in cucurbits 2+ years Blackleg in brassicas 3-to-4 years Fusarium wilt in peas 4-to-5 years Clubroot in brassicas 7 years White rot on alliums 20 years

32 Brassicas: cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, brussels sprouts Cucurbits: melons, squashes, pumpkins, cucumbers, gourds Legumes: English peas, southern peas, peanuts, beans, faba beans, soybeans Alliums: onions, garlic, chives Solanaceous: tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplant, tomatillo Umbels: carrots, dill, fennel, parsley, celery, Composites: sunflower, lettuce, artichoke, jerusalem artichoke Grasses: popcorn, sweetcorn, sorghum

33 WEED CONTROL Changes in timing of cultivation and mowing Cleaning crops Some crop plants are naturally more competitive with weeds

34 November 1, 2007

35 Bermudagrass

36 Bermudagrass Strengths Perennial Summer season Drought tolerant Encouraged by mowing Many means for propagation and spreading Weaknesses Winter tillage Shade

37 Cover crops grown for the purpose of out-competing and controlling weeds. Crotalaria Pearl Millet Buckwheat Southern Peas

38 Field A-1: Sorghum- Sudangrass Seth Stallings Student Intern 2010

39 SOIL FERTILITY Green Manures build/recycle organic matter Legume crops & cover crops fix nitrogen

40 Green manures are cover crops grown primarily to improve the soil by adding organic matter and nitrogen (in the case of legumes), and making nutrients more available Summer green manure crops include annual sorghums, millets, buckwheat, soybeans, southern peas, sesbania, crotalaria, sweetclover

41 Legumes include: English peas, southern peas, peanuts, beans, faba beans, soybeans, also clovers, sweet clovers, alfalfa, vetch, and lespedeza. Nitrogen is the most limiting crop nutrient in most crop and garden soils.

42 #1 As a winter cover crop when you can t grow most vegetables. #2 As an option for a green fallow planting. #3 In rotation with other vegetables Late Vegetables Cowpeas Green fallow Peas, Beans, edamame soybeans Sweetcorn Soybeans Green Fallow Early Vegetables Sweet potatoes Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant

43 Buckwheat and southern peas are exceptionally good for beneficial insect habitats. Beneficials include pollinators, predatory and parasitic insects, predatory mites and spiders.

44 Prey upon, or parasitize, pest insects

45 Domestic or wild

46 Provides for soil fertility, especially nitrogen Suppresses many crop diseases Thwarts many insect pests Reduces weed pressure Creates a biologically healthy soil which in turn: Self-generates soil fertility Suppresses Disease Reduces insect pests Suppresses weeds

47 G o o d O r g a n i c C r o p O f f - F a r m I n p u t s F e r t i l i z e r s P e s t i c i d e s C o m p o s t, M a n u r e O r g a n i c C u l t u r a l P r a c t i c e s A S o u n d O r g a n i c S y s t e m R o t a t i o n s C o v e r C r o p s B i o l o g i c a l l y H e a l t h y S o i l

48 G o o d O r g a n i c C r o p O f f - F a r m I n p u t s F e r t i l i z e r s P e s t i c i d e s C o m p o s t, M a n u r e O r g a n i c C u l t u r a l P r a c t i c e s A S o u n d O r g a n i c S y s t e m R o t a t i o n s C o v e r C r o p s B i o l o g i c a l l y H e a l t h y S o i l

49 Summer Squash Cucurbit Root Crops beets, carrots, etc. Beans legume Irish Potatoes Solanaceous 8-Year Rotation Proposed by Eliot Coleman Described in The New Organic Grower Tomatoes Solanaceous Sweet Corn Graminae (grass) Cabbage Family + hardy cover crop Brassicas English Peas + winter-killed cover crop Legume

50 G o o d O r g a n i c C r o p O f f - F a r m I n p u t s F e r t i l i z e r s P e s t i c i d e s C o m p o s t, M a n u r e O r g a n i c C u l t u r a l P r a c t i c e s A S o u n d O r g a n i c S y s t e m R o t a t i o n s C o v e r C r o p s B i o l o g i c a l l y H e a l t h y S o i l

51 Kerr s 4-Year Bio-extensive Rotation Winter cover crops of grain rye with winter annual Legumes all plots. Vegetables Green Fallow Typically a warm season smother crop of sudangrass Green Fallow Vegetables

52 Alternate BioextensiveRotation Winter cover crops of grain rye with winter annual Legumes all plots. Vegetables Green Fallow Vegetables Vegetables Green Fallow

53 Alternate Green Fallow Rotation Winter cover crops of grain rye with winter annual Legumes all plots. Vegetables Green Fallow Vegetables Vegetables Green Fallow Vegetables

54 Alternate Green Fallow Rotation Winter cover crops of grain rye with winter annual Legumes all plots. Vegetables Green Fallow Vegetables Vegetables

55 INCREASING NEED FOR OFF-FARM INPUTS Theoretical Relationship Between Green Fallow and Need for Fertilizer and Pest Control Inputs INCREASING PERCENT OF LAND IN GREEN FALLOW

56 Contracted Cabbage Summer Squash Sweetpotatoes Green Beans Sweetcorn Tomatoes & Peppers Contracted Canning Peas U-Pick Pumpkins Sudangrass Green fallow Southern Peas Okra

57 Kerr Road BFRDP Main Demo Plot 2012 (Field A2 Eight-Field Rotation This is a single long raised bed, 10 ft X 280 ft. Plots shown are about 10 ft X 30 ft. (This allows about 5 ft buffer between plots for turning tillers and other equip around.) Okra 1 Eng. peas Dbl Crop: Broccoli, Cabbage, Chinese Cabbage Green Fallow Buckwheat Dbl Crop: Proso Millet Sweet potatoes 1 row Spring-planted Cucumber Peanuts Southern Peas White Potatoes 1 row Caged Tomatoes 1 row Eggplant & Peppers 1 row Beans Dbl Crop: Greens & radishes Greens & radishes Dbl Crop: Beans Sweetcorn 3 rows Dbl Crop: Squash 2 or 3 rows Green Fallow Buckwheat Dbl Crop: Iron & Clay Cowpeas 280 ft

58 Crop Rotation and Cover Cropping on the Organic Farm by Seth Kroeck. NOFA Organic Principles and Practices Handbook Series. 95 p. Gaining Ground by Canadian Organic Growers, Inc COG, 323 Chapel St., Ottawa, ON KIN 7Z p. Organic Crop Production Overview by G. Kuepper & L. Gegner Crop Rotation on Organic Farms: A Planning Manual (NRAES-177) by C. L. Mohler & S. E. Johnson NRAES/Cornell Cooperative Extension, Ithaca, NY. 156 p. Cover Crops on the Intensive Market Farm by John Hendrickson CIAS, University of Wisconsin Madison. 20 p.

59 Anne & Eric Nordell, Beech Grove Farm, Trout Run, PA. Look for their column: The Bioextensive Market Garden In The Small Farmers Journal

60 the international agrarian quarterly Mailing address PO Box 1627 Sisters, Oregon Physical address 192 west Barclay Drive Sisters, Oregon Phone numbers fax

61 Contact Information: George Kuepper Kerr Center P.O. Box 588 Poteau, OK Tel: Fax: