Pub Date : 2023-05-19DOI: 10.12924/of2023.09010001
Rehema E. Mwaipopo, Abdul Jafari Shango, Philip B. Maswi, R. Majubwa, J. Maro
{"title":"On-farm Validation of Coffee arabica and Aloe vera Extracts for Management of Seed-Borne Bacterial Leaf Spot Disease of Tomato","authors":"Rehema E. Mwaipopo, Abdul Jafari Shango, Philip B. Maswi, R. Majubwa, J. Maro","doi":"10.12924/of2023.09010001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12924/of2023.09010001","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":36542,"journal":{"name":"Organic Farming","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44741695","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-12-16DOI: 10.12924/of2022.08010003
D. Nandwani, K. Dhakal
{"title":"Growth and Yield Responses of Leafy Vegetables Grown in Organic and Conventional Agriculture Systems","authors":"D. Nandwani, K. Dhakal","doi":"10.12924/of2022.08010003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12924/of2022.08010003","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":36542,"journal":{"name":"Organic Farming","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43167827","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-06-14DOI: 10.12924/of2022.08010001
M. Reckling, M. Grosse
Diversification of organic farming systems is a key practice to address current challenges in crop and livestock production. It has the potential to increase the resilience to climate fluctuations and counteracts climate change to some extent by reducing emissions and increasing carbon storage. Diversified crop-livestock systems can also contribute to stop the dramatic loss of biodiversity. Organic farms are already more often mixed crop-livestock farms with more diverse crop rotations, including perennial leys, compared to conventional farms [1]. However, there is a need as well as potential for further increasing diversity on organic farms [2]. On-farm research is an emerging field aiming to transform global agriculture [3] by involving farmers and associated actors in the design and evaluation of farming systems. Research in organic farming could use this potential more widely and systematically to co-design solutions with farmers and advisors. There are inspiring examples of how “living collaborations” with farmers and other actors help to co-design diversified cropping systems e.g. with a focus on legumes [4–6]. However, the co-design process is complex, difficult to describe and often not reported in regular research papers. The journal Organic Farming (ISSN 2297-6485; doi: 10.12924/librello.OF) provides a platform for contributions in diverse areas related to organic farming and food production and will especially welcome articles describing the process and results derived from on-farm research. Recent papers in the journal show a diversity of on-farm research such as farmers assessing the carrying capacity of traditional farming in South East England [7], insights from modified ‘Stable Schools’ as a consulting tool for organic dairy herds in Northern Germany [8] and related to on-farm organic group certification, a proposal for improving internal control systems’ performance [9]. We call for submissions from practically relevant work in organic farming especially with a systems’ perspective and integrated solutions for diversified crop-livestock systems. Since 2021 the journal is led by a new team of two Editors-in-Chief, Dr. Meike Grosse and Dr. Moritz Reckling. We thank the former Editor-in-Chief, Prof. Dr. Thomas Felix Döring for his strong commitment to the journal.
{"title":"On-farm Research to Diversify Organic Farming Systems","authors":"M. Reckling, M. Grosse","doi":"10.12924/of2022.08010001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12924/of2022.08010001","url":null,"abstract":"Diversification of organic farming systems is a key practice to address current challenges in crop and livestock production. It has the potential to increase the resilience to climate fluctuations and counteracts climate change to some extent by reducing emissions and increasing carbon storage. Diversified crop-livestock systems can also contribute to stop the dramatic loss of biodiversity. Organic farms are already more often mixed crop-livestock farms with more diverse crop rotations, including perennial leys, compared to conventional farms [1]. However, there is a need as well as potential for further increasing diversity on organic farms [2]. On-farm research is an emerging field aiming to transform global agriculture [3] by involving farmers and associated actors in the design and evaluation of farming systems. Research in organic farming could use this potential more widely and systematically to co-design solutions with farmers and advisors. There are inspiring examples of how “living collaborations” with farmers and other actors help to co-design diversified cropping systems e.g. with a focus on legumes [4–6]. However, the co-design process is complex, difficult to describe and often not reported in regular research papers. The journal Organic Farming (ISSN 2297-6485; doi: 10.12924/librello.OF) provides a platform for contributions in diverse areas related to organic farming and food production and will especially welcome articles describing the process and results derived from on-farm research. Recent papers in the journal show a diversity of on-farm research such as farmers assessing the carrying capacity of traditional farming in South East England [7], insights from modified ‘Stable Schools’ as a consulting tool for organic dairy herds in Northern Germany [8] and related to on-farm organic group certification, a proposal for improving internal control systems’ performance [9]. We call for submissions from practically relevant work in organic farming especially with a systems’ perspective and integrated solutions for diversified crop-livestock systems. Since 2021 the journal is led by a new team of two Editors-in-Chief, Dr. Meike Grosse and Dr. Moritz Reckling. We thank the former Editor-in-Chief, Prof. Dr. Thomas Felix Döring for his strong commitment to the journal.","PeriodicalId":36542,"journal":{"name":"Organic Farming","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42405563","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-10-05DOI: 10.12924/of2021.07010007
A. Benzing, H. Piepho
Organic certification, especially for smallholders, often uses group certification procedures. An internal control system ( ICS ) visits all farmers, and then the external certification body (CB) inspects a sample to assess the ICS ' performance. Harmonised methods for measuring the ICS ' reliability are missing so far. Here, we define criteria of " ICS performance", propose a new procedure for quantifying this performance and, based on this procedure, suggest that the sample size can be determined using classical statistical methods for survey sampling, instead of using the square root or a percentage of group size as in current practice.
{"title":"A Proposal for Improving Organic Group Certification Quantification of Internal Control Systems' Performance and Sample Size Determination","authors":"A. Benzing, H. Piepho","doi":"10.12924/of2021.07010007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12924/of2021.07010007","url":null,"abstract":"Organic certification, especially for smallholders, often uses group certification procedures. An internal control system ( ICS ) visits all farmers, and then the external certification body (CB) inspects a sample to assess the ICS ' performance. Harmonised methods for measuring the ICS ' reliability are missing so far. Here, we define criteria of \" ICS performance\", propose a new procedure for quantifying this performance and, based on this procedure, suggest that the sample size can be determined using classical statistical methods for survey sampling, instead of using the square root or a percentage of group size as in current practice.","PeriodicalId":36542,"journal":{"name":"Organic Farming","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47159092","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-07-16DOI: 10.12924/of2020.06010014
Paul L. Smith, G. Nobes
Traditional farming in South East (SE) England is presented as a highly-evolved form of sustain- able farming. The carrying capacity of traditional farming on a 2.75 ha family smallholding in SE England is assessed from production data recorded over a period of 8 years. The key elements of the farming system were mixed farming (livestock, dairy, arable and horticultural), self-sufficiency in terms of inputs and organic principles. Ten types of food were produced with the aim to comprise all the elements of a balanced diet. The holding and farming system are described and an analysis of the food produced is presented, in terms of weight and energy content, for the years 2010 to 2017. An average carrying capacity of 0.64 people ha − 1 was demonstrated on the basis of food energy content alone. Carrying capacity increased to 1.09 people ha − 1 when production was re-proportioned to align with the UK Government’s currently recommended balanced diet. The latter figure is similar to carrying capacity estimates, derived from national statistics, for the UK’s total farmland in the middle part of the 20 th Century but significantly lower than theoretical predictions of national carrying capacity.
{"title":"Carrying Capacity of Traditional Farming in South East England: A Case Study","authors":"Paul L. Smith, G. Nobes","doi":"10.12924/of2020.06010014","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12924/of2020.06010014","url":null,"abstract":"Traditional farming in South East (SE) England is presented as a highly-evolved form of sustain- able farming. The carrying capacity of traditional farming on a 2.75 ha family smallholding in SE England is assessed from production data recorded over a period of 8 years. The key elements of the farming system were mixed farming (livestock, dairy, arable and horticultural), self-sufficiency in terms of inputs and organic principles. Ten types of food were produced with the aim to comprise all the elements of a balanced diet. The holding and farming system are described and an analysis of the food produced is presented, in terms of weight and energy content, for the years 2010 to 2017. An average carrying capacity of 0.64 people ha − 1 was demonstrated on the basis of food energy content alone. Carrying capacity increased to 1.09 people ha − 1 when production was re-proportioned to align with the UK Government’s currently recommended balanced diet. The latter figure is similar to carrying capacity estimates, derived from national statistics, for the UK’s total farmland in the middle part of the 20 th Century but significantly lower than theoretical predictions of national carrying capacity.","PeriodicalId":36542,"journal":{"name":"Organic Farming","volume":"6 1","pages":"14-22"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-07-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47117345","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-05-12DOI: 10.12924/of2020.06010013
Verena K. Hansmann, O. Volling, V. Krömker
The aim of this study was to examine the opinions of farmers on a consulting project, which was established for organic dairy farms in Northern Germany involving different animal health experts who participated in the meetings. Furthermore, the properties of measures that are of decisive importance for implementation on the farms were identified to improve consultancy services for dairy farming. Once a year, the farmers met on a host-farm in one of three groups consisting of five to nine farms, a facilitator and an expert. At each meeting, a host-farm was visited and the analysed data of all participating farms of the previous year were presented to the group members. Each farmer had the possibility to report on success stories and issues concerning his herd. During discussions, the farmers first proposed mutual farm-specific measures for improving herd health and animal welfare. Afterwards, the expert named possible interventions and commented on the given measures of the farmers. All measures were noted by the facilitator. At the end of each meeting, each farmer could choose which of the given measures he wanted to implement. Open group-interviews as well as anonymous questionnaires for the farmers were used at the meetings in winter 2016/2017 to evaluate their perception of this consulting project and to determine which properties of measures were important for implementation on the farms. Based on the results of this study, the participating farmers were very positive towards this kind of consulting project. They favoured the participation of an expert during the meetings and the analysis of farm specific data. Farmers mostly chose measures for implementation proposed by farmers and approved by the expert, followed by those proposed by the expert only. Measures were chosen when they were practical in the implementation, effective, efficient and took a low additional workload for implementation.
{"title":"Modified 'Stable Schools' as a Consulting Tool for Organic Dairy Herds","authors":"Verena K. Hansmann, O. Volling, V. Krömker","doi":"10.12924/of2020.06010013","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12924/of2020.06010013","url":null,"abstract":"The aim of this study was to examine the opinions of farmers on a consulting project, which was established for organic dairy farms in Northern Germany involving different animal health experts who participated in the meetings. Furthermore, the properties of measures that are of decisive importance for implementation on the farms were identified to improve consultancy services for dairy farming. Once a year, the farmers met on a host-farm in one of three groups consisting of five to nine farms, a facilitator and an expert. At each meeting, a host-farm was visited and the analysed data of all participating farms of the previous year were presented to the group members. Each farmer had the possibility to report on success stories and issues concerning his herd. During discussions, the farmers first proposed mutual farm-specific measures for improving herd health and animal welfare. Afterwards, the expert named possible interventions and commented on the given measures of the farmers. All measures were noted by the facilitator. At the end of each meeting, each farmer could choose which of the given measures he wanted to implement. Open group-interviews as well as anonymous questionnaires for the farmers were used at the meetings in winter 2016/2017 to evaluate their perception of this consulting project and to determine which properties of measures were important for implementation on the farms. Based on the results of this study, the participating farmers were very positive towards this kind of consulting project. They favoured the participation of an expert during the meetings and the analysis of farm specific data. Farmers mostly chose measures for implementation proposed by farmers and approved by the expert, followed by those proposed by the expert only. Measures were chosen when they were practical in the implementation, effective, efficient and took a low additional workload for implementation.","PeriodicalId":36542,"journal":{"name":"Organic Farming","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-05-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46747534","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-04-28DOI: 10.12924/of2020.06010001
Rubaiya Murshed, Mohammad Riaz Uddin
The development of organic agriculture in Bangladesh has been slow. According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (2018), approximately 12,000 farmers in Bangladesh produce organic crops on around 7,000 hectares of land. The transition from conventional to organic farming has been an issue of debate, especially in the context of developing nations such as Bangladesh. The debate stresses the urgency for the transition to preserve environment and health and to ensure a safe, sustainable and environmentally friendly food production system, but also emphasizes the pressure of maintaining food production for a large growing population. We focus on the debate in the context of Bangladesh, and question whether it is the proper time and stage in the development process to attempt the transition from conventional to organic food production systems. We ask why the organic rice market is not expanding in Bangladesh and explain the slow market growth through the two main factors of income constraint and lack of awareness among people about the environmental and health detriments of non-organic farming. The exploratory study finds that it is not mainly the lack of awareness but the income constraint that can be principally attributed to the slow expansion of the organic rice market in Bangladesh. Through exploring consumers’ awareness about organic farming methods and their demand for organic products, this study shows how income as a major constraint, besides price, affects consumers demand for organic and non-organic rice in Bangladesh. Income being identified as the major barrier reveals the potential of the organic rice market to grow in the future, as Bangladesh continues its journey towards becoming a middle-income country.
{"title":"Organic Farming in Bangladesh: To Pursue or not to Pursue? An Exploratory Study Based on Consumer Perception","authors":"Rubaiya Murshed, Mohammad Riaz Uddin","doi":"10.12924/of2020.06010001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12924/of2020.06010001","url":null,"abstract":"The development of organic agriculture in Bangladesh has been slow. According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (2018), approximately 12,000 farmers in Bangladesh produce organic crops on around 7,000 hectares of land. The transition from conventional to organic farming has been an issue of debate, especially in the context of developing nations such as Bangladesh. The debate stresses the urgency for the transition to preserve environment and health and to ensure a safe, sustainable and environmentally friendly food production system, but also emphasizes the pressure of maintaining food production for a large growing population. We focus on the debate in the context of Bangladesh, and question whether it is the proper time and stage in the development process to attempt the transition from conventional to organic food production systems. We ask why the organic rice market is not expanding in Bangladesh and explain the slow market growth through the two main factors of income constraint and lack of awareness among people about the environmental and health detriments of non-organic farming. The exploratory study finds that it is not mainly the lack of awareness but the income constraint that can be principally attributed to the slow expansion of the organic rice market in Bangladesh. Through exploring consumers’ awareness about organic farming methods and their demand for organic products, this study shows how income as a major constraint, besides price, affects consumers demand for organic and non-organic rice in Bangladesh. Income being identified as the major barrier reveals the potential of the organic rice market to grow in the future, as Bangladesh continues its journey towards becoming a middle-income country.","PeriodicalId":36542,"journal":{"name":"Organic Farming","volume":"6 1","pages":"1-12"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-04-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42022529","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2019-12-30DOI: 10.12924/of2019.05010066
S. K. Birthisel, Gracen A. Smith, Gavriela M. Mallory, J. Hao, E. Gallandt
Soil solarization using clear plastic is a promising weed management strategy for organic farms in the Northeast USA. Based on grower concerns that the practice might negatively affect beneficial soil microbiota, we conducted experiments to measure the effects of 2 and 4 weeks of solarization in a field and a closed greenhouse. Soil microbial communities were assayed by dilution plating on semi-selective agar media. Populations of general bacteria, general fungi, bacilli, and florescent pseudomonads were unaffected by field solarization, but fluorescent pseudomonads were reduced following greenhouse solarization. At plastic removal, soil biological activity was reduced non-significantly in the field and by 45% in the green- house. Soil biological activity fluctuated following field solarization, being significantly suppressed at 5 but not 14 days after plastic removal. In the greenhouse, biological activity remained suppressed up to 28 days after plastic removal. Solarization increased available nitrogen in the field and greenhouse. Four weeks of solarization reduced viability of buried weed seeds by 64% in the field and 98% in the greenhouse, indicating that the practice can cause substantial weed seed mortality. Maximum soil temperatures, measured at 10 cm depth under solarization, were 44◦ C in the field and 50◦ C in the greenhouse; temperatures were theoretically sufficient for the reduction of some soil borne pathogens. A subsequent experiment measured the effects of solarization and tarping (black plastic) on soil biological activity. During mulching, biological activity was unaffected by treatment, but 14 days after plastic removal, biological activity was reduced in the solarized treatment as compared with the control. Overall, these results suggest that solarization can deplete the weed seedbank. Although soil biological activity was reduced by solarization, it may bounce back after a period. Greenhouse solarization achieved higher temperatures and was more lethal to weed seeds and some microbiota than field solarization.
{"title":"Effects of Field and Greenhouse Solarization on Soil Microbiota and Weed Seeds in the Northeast USA","authors":"S. K. Birthisel, Gracen A. Smith, Gavriela M. Mallory, J. Hao, E. Gallandt","doi":"10.12924/of2019.05010066","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12924/of2019.05010066","url":null,"abstract":"Soil solarization using clear plastic is a promising weed management strategy for organic farms in the Northeast USA. Based on grower concerns that the practice might negatively affect beneficial soil microbiota, we conducted experiments to measure the effects of 2 and 4 weeks of solarization in a field and a closed greenhouse. Soil microbial communities were assayed by dilution plating on semi-selective agar media. Populations of general bacteria, general fungi, bacilli, and florescent pseudomonads were unaffected by field solarization, but fluorescent pseudomonads were reduced following greenhouse solarization. At plastic removal, soil biological activity was reduced non-significantly in the field and by 45% in the green- house. Soil biological activity fluctuated following field solarization, being significantly suppressed at 5 but not 14 days after plastic removal. In the greenhouse, biological activity remained suppressed up to 28 days after plastic removal. Solarization increased available nitrogen in the field and greenhouse. Four weeks of solarization reduced viability of buried weed seeds by 64% in the field and 98% in the greenhouse, indicating that the practice can cause substantial weed seed mortality. Maximum soil temperatures, measured at 10 cm depth under solarization, were 44◦ C in the field and 50◦ C in the greenhouse; temperatures were theoretically sufficient for the reduction of some soil borne pathogens. A subsequent experiment measured the effects of solarization and tarping (black plastic) on soil biological activity. During mulching, biological activity was unaffected by treatment, but 14 days after plastic removal, biological activity was reduced in the solarized treatment as compared with the control. Overall, these results suggest that solarization can deplete the weed seedbank. Although soil biological activity was reduced by solarization, it may bounce back after a period. Greenhouse solarization achieved higher temperatures and was more lethal to weed seeds and some microbiota than field solarization.","PeriodicalId":36542,"journal":{"name":"Organic Farming","volume":"5 1","pages":"66-78"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42174638","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2019-12-30DOI: 10.12924/of2019.05010052
S. K. Birthisel, E. Gallandt
Stale seedbeds are commonly used by organic vegetable farmers to reduce in-season weed density. The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of soil solarization (clear plastic) with subsequent flaming for stale seedbed preparation. A secondary objective was to compare the efficacy of solarization with tarping (black plastic). Solarization is an established weed management practice in warmer climates, but its efficacy in the humid continental Northeast USA was unknown. We hypothesized that solarization during May-June in Maine, USA would increase weed emergence, and could thereby contribute to depletion of the germinable weed seedbank and, with subsequent flaming, creation of an improved stale seedbed. We expected that firming soil with a roller prior to solarization would further increase weed emergence. Across four site-years of replicated field experiments and two on-farm trials we found that, contrary to expectations, 2 weeks of solarization reduced apparent weed emergence (density) in comparison to nonsolarized controls by 83% during treatment, and 78% after 2 weeks of observation following plastic removal and flaming. Rolling did not significantly affect weed density. Soil temperatures were elevated in solarized plots, reaching a maximum of 47◦ C at 5 cm soil depth, compared to 38◦ C in controls. Weed community analyses suggested that solarization might act as an ecological filter limiting some species. Addressing our secondary objective, two replicated field experiments compared the efficacy of solarization with tarping applied for periods of 2, 4, and 6 weeks beginning in July. Across treatment durations, solarization was more effective than tarping in one site-year, but tarping outperformed solarization in the other; this discrepancy may be explained by differences in weed species and soil temperatures between experiments. Overall, solarization and tarping are promising stale seedbed preparation methods for humid continental climates, but more work is needed to compare their relative efficacy.
{"title":"Trials Evaluating Solarization and Tarping for Improved Stale Seedbed Preparation in the Northeast USA","authors":"S. K. Birthisel, E. Gallandt","doi":"10.12924/of2019.05010052","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12924/of2019.05010052","url":null,"abstract":"Stale seedbeds are commonly used by organic vegetable farmers to reduce in-season weed density. The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of soil solarization (clear plastic) with subsequent flaming for stale seedbed preparation. A secondary objective was to compare the efficacy of solarization with tarping (black plastic). Solarization is an established weed management practice in warmer climates, but its efficacy in the humid continental Northeast USA was unknown. We hypothesized that solarization during May-June in Maine, USA would increase weed emergence, and could thereby contribute to depletion of the germinable weed seedbank and, with subsequent flaming, creation of an improved stale seedbed. We expected that firming soil with a roller prior to solarization would further increase weed emergence. Across four site-years of replicated field experiments and two on-farm trials we found that, contrary to expectations, 2 weeks of solarization reduced apparent weed emergence (density) in comparison to nonsolarized controls by 83% during treatment, and 78% after 2 weeks of observation following plastic removal and flaming. Rolling did not significantly affect weed density. Soil temperatures were elevated in solarized plots, reaching a maximum of 47◦ C at 5 cm soil depth, compared to 38◦ C in controls. Weed community analyses suggested that solarization might act as an ecological filter limiting some species. Addressing our secondary objective, two replicated field experiments compared the efficacy of solarization with tarping applied for periods of 2, 4, and 6 weeks beginning in July. Across treatment durations, solarization was more effective than tarping in one site-year, but tarping outperformed solarization in the other; this discrepancy may be explained by differences in weed species and soil temperatures between experiments. Overall, solarization and tarping are promising stale seedbed preparation methods for humid continental climates, but more work is needed to compare their relative efficacy.","PeriodicalId":36542,"journal":{"name":"Organic Farming","volume":"5 1","pages":"52-65"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49665989","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2019-10-02DOI: 10.12924/of2019.05010037
S. Baltazar, Raphaël Boutsen, L. Delanote, V. Delobel, K. Dewaele, Willem A. Stoop, M. Visser
In Belgium and The Netherlands, bread wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) is getting attention within a growing movement looking for more sustainability of wheat cropping and breadmaking. The few varieties available are pure lines that do not match the wide range of environments and organic farming practices, so that yields and milling quality are often disappointing. Composite Cross Populations (CCP) have been created with the idea of evolutionary plant breeding through on-farm mass selection and seed saving. In 2015–2016, one such CCP of winter wheat was cropped side by side with a pure line variety in four organic farms with different wheat cropping practices, as a first step to answer some of the concerns arising from farmers’ networks we work with. Seeding rates ranged from the standard high to the very low ones practiced under the System of Wheat Intensification (SWI). Multivariate data analysis confirmed greater differentiation of the CCP both compared with pure line varieties and within populations on farms where inter-plant competition was less intense. Low seeding rates thus seem to enhance the phenotypic expression potential of a CCP, yet this is a neglected fact among participatory plant breeders. Since both CCP and SWI have great potential for ecological intensification within organic farming, we argue that more work is needed on finding new ways of combining innovation in farming practices and on-farm plant breeding, which also implies new ways of organising research.
{"title":"Questioning Seeding Rates and its Influence on Phenotypic Expression of Wheat Populations for Participatory Plant Breeding—First Findings from Field Research across Organic Farms in Belgium and the Netherlands","authors":"S. Baltazar, Raphaël Boutsen, L. Delanote, V. Delobel, K. Dewaele, Willem A. Stoop, M. Visser","doi":"10.12924/of2019.05010037","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.12924/of2019.05010037","url":null,"abstract":"In Belgium and The Netherlands, bread wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) is getting attention within a growing movement looking for more sustainability of wheat cropping and breadmaking. The few varieties available are pure lines that do not match the wide range of environments and organic farming practices, so that yields and milling quality are often disappointing. Composite Cross Populations (CCP) have been created with the idea of evolutionary plant breeding through on-farm mass selection and seed saving. In 2015–2016, one such CCP of winter wheat was cropped side by side with a pure line variety in four organic farms with different wheat cropping practices, as a first step to answer some of the concerns arising from farmers’ networks we work with. Seeding rates ranged from the standard high to the very low ones practiced under the System of Wheat Intensification (SWI). Multivariate data analysis confirmed greater differentiation of the CCP both compared with pure line varieties and within populations on farms where inter-plant competition was less intense. Low seeding rates thus seem to enhance the phenotypic expression potential of a CCP, yet this is a neglected fact among participatory plant breeders. Since both CCP and SWI have great potential for ecological intensification within organic farming, we argue that more work is needed on finding new ways of combining innovation in farming practices and on-farm plant breeding, which also implies new ways of organising research.","PeriodicalId":36542,"journal":{"name":"Organic Farming","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-10-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42296858","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
京公网安备 11010802042870号
京ICP备2023020795号-1
扫码关注我们
求助内容：
应助结果提醒方式：