Organic Cropping/ Agroecology Week

I have learned a lot this week and definitely feel more confident in my growing skills. Very exciting. I also got sick this week, hence my lack of posts, but am better now and ready to write.

This week we discussed the why’s and how’s of organic, or better, pesticide and synthetic fertilizer free agriculture. This type of farming or home-growing may seem new to many of us but did you know that before 1909 there was no such thing as chemical agriculture, and in fact all farming was done so organically? It wasn’t until after the World Wars, when a surplus of deadly chemicals (the same type that produces agent orange) were generated that some geniuses decided to use them on our food supply. At first it seemed a dream come true. The plants really liked all the nutrients that these chemicals could provide (at first). By the 1950′s America had established the Green Revolution thanks to Haber-Bosch and we became officially hooked on the chemicals (for now and some). Fortunately some notables such as Sir Albert Howard, Rudolf Steiner and J I Rodale shed some light in the harm that chemical ag was causing our planet and the need to revive organic ag with some stringer methods for best production. Today, this is what I am focusing on: learning and sharing knowledge about how to grow food in the most productive way without causing harm to my surrounding ecosystems.

The first thing to really study is SOIL and its vital importance to the health of our food and ultimate our own lives. Healthy soil is full of micro-organisms, has good aeration, the capacity to hold on to water and nutrients and can be replenished by the farmer. After a more lengthy and detailed discussion of soil biology, soil fertility management and a long list of beneficial microbes we moved on to explore the wonderful world of compost and the use of cover crops.

In the following days we discussed Agrobiodiversity.  Diversity is super important when it comes to growing anything because it supports less pests, creates structural diversity, more food security, avoids economic risk, improves nutritional needs, beneficial relationships, creates constant income, and is more adaptable to change.  Important to this biodiversity is a wide variety of healthy seeds.  Many people are used to purchasing seeds from large companies, perhaps from the largest and most controversial of all, Monstano.  But saving your own seeds is a good practice to ensure that you continue to have quality food at a low cost.  We were recommend to read Seed to Seed by, Suzanne Ashworth which I plan to pick up when I get a chance.  This book will share all the information needed to properly save seeds and get the most out of them.

The past two days we have gone over different irrigation techniques, including how to install drip tape.  We also reviewed Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and brewed our own home-made organic pesticide from neem and guanabana leaves and chili peppers.

What we all gathered form this week is that an organic farmer may have to deal with all the same challenges as a conventional farmer, but does so in an holistic way that works with nature and not against it.  An organic farm yields 90-100%, frequently the same or higher the chemical-based agriculture.  This is a strong case for it, but what’s even better is the fact that organic agriculture is resilient which is the capacity to absorb shocks while maintaining function… i.e. as the climate changes organic will remain as the stronger, if not, the only producer.  Too bad the majority of ag in the states is not organic.  This needs to be changed.