Both programs provide funding for projects that promote environmentally
sound, economically viable and socially acceptable agriculture. This issue
highlights recent findings findings from several Northeast SARE and ACE
projects.
SARE, formerly the Low Input Sustainable Agriculture Program (LISA)
receives its funding from the US Department of Agriculture. ACE is a joint
effort of the USDA and the US Environmental Protection Agency.
The Northeast Region includes Conn., Del., the District of Columbia, Maine,
Md., N.H., N.J., N.Y., Pa., R.I., Vt., and W.Va.
Innovations is free. To join our mailing list write Innovations, Hills
Building, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT 05405-0082.
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CONTENTS
ECOSYSTEM-BASED APPLE PRODUCTION MAKES THE GRADE
NJ CORN GROWERS USE SOIL TEST TO CUT N COSTS
SUSTAINABLE ALTERNATIVES FOR BERRIES
FARM TESTS ALTERNATE ROTATIONS
PASTURE PROJECT UPDATE
COVER CROPS FOR VEGETABLE PRODUCTION
NEW COVER CROP RESOURCES FOR NORTHEAST PRODUCERS
MAINE DIRECTORY COMING IN 1994
RESOURCES
PUBLICATION ORDER FORM
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ECOSYSTEM-BASED APPLE PRODUCTION MAKES THE GRADE
Early results from a long-term orchard management study in West Virginia
suggest that "ecosystem-based" planting practices can save growers money
while fostering vigorous growth in young trees.
During the first three years of the study, which focuses on apples grown
for the processing market, ecosystem-based techniques met benchmarks that
commercial growers consider important for any new orchard's success. They
effectively suppressed parasitic nematodes and contributed to increased
fertilizer use efficiency in young trees.
Moreover, they did so without many of the costs and environmental
side-effects associated with conventional practices.
"So far we've met our major objectives of reducing environmental impacts
while maximizing orchard efficiency," says Tara Baugher, of the West
Virginia University.
The project, a comprehensive evaluation of ecosystem-based, long-term
management systems for processing apples on a whole-orchard scale, is in
part supported by ACE grants. It began in 1989 with the removal of a
40-year-old Rome apple orchard.
Thus far, the researchers have focused on soil management, nematode control
and tree establishment. In later years, researchers will evaluate disease
and pest control tactics that minimize pesticide inputs.
Project participants have established a 14-acre test orchard at the West
Virginia University experiment station. The site was divided into six
two-acre main plots with each plot randomly assigned one of two treatments,
either conventional production practices or ecosystem-based practices.
Pre-planting site preparation in 1991 and 1992 included planting an
endophyte-infected K-31 fescue sod in the ecosystem-based plots and a corn
rotation in the conventional plots.
Investigators recently reported that the fescue, as a rotation crop and
later as a killed sod orchard management system, resulted in "increased
sustainability" as compared to a conventional corn rotational/herbicide
strip system.
The ecosystem plots had populations of parasitic nematodes comparable to
plots treated with a conventional nematicide, Baugher says. Perhaps more
importantly, however, the diversity of nematode predators was greater in
the ecosystem plots.
In terms of tree and soil health, fertilizer use efficiency was greater in
the ecosystem plots, particularly in the Fuji and Liberty plots, as
measured by soil and leaf nitrogen levels.
The researchers' analysis of nitrogen inputs and losses suggests that
significant nitrate immobilization may have occurred in the killed sod
system due to increased organic matter levels, and that following
fertilization, more nitrogen was held in the topsoil for uptake by the
apple trees.
Investigators found no differences in growth parameters between trees in
the conventional and ecosystem plots. Economically, however, the
ecosystem-based practices outperformed the conventional practices.
Orchard planting costs in 1992 were $82 lower - roughly a three percent
cost reduction - in the ecosystem based management plots.
Baugher attributes the difference to two factors. The conventional system
required more machinery use, and chemical costs were higher in the
conventional system because of the use of a residual herbicide.
Moreover, Baugher notes that although the overall cost advantage is with
the ecosystem practices, orchard preparation costs in the first two years
of the project were about $43 per acre higher for the ecosystem-based plots
than for the conventional.
"The $82 cost reduction in year three shifted the overall cost advantage to
the ecosystem-based management system for the pre-plant and establishment
phases of the study," she said.
The project has an advisory committee which includes processors, growers,
and consumer and conservation representatives. Among them is I. Garth
Youngberg, executive director of the Henry A. Wallace Institute for
Alternative Agriculture.
Over the long term, Youngberg says, the project should "document and
explain to growers and consumers the multi-faced benefits of integrated
orchard management systems, particularly when compared to conventional
approaches."
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NJ CORN GROWERS USE SOIL TEST TO CUT N COSTS
By adapting a soil nitrogen test to New Jersey conditions, a team from
Rutgers University Cooperative Extension and 30 farmers are showing that
corn growers can significantly cut nitrogen fertilizer while maintaining
yields.
The farmers who used the presidedress soil nitrate test (PSNT) cut nitrogen
use by an average of 40 pounds per acre - a savings of $12 per acre. In
some fields, the team reports, farmers reduced nitrogen fertilizer rates
from150 pounds per acre to no application at all.
Those reductions translate to benefits for both farmers and the
environment. All combined, growers involved in 1993 trials (on 1,720 acres)
saved about $15,000 in fertilizer costs. They reduced the amount of
nitrogen they would have applied to their fields by 52,179 pounds.
"I feel this project has been very successful in its main objective - to
extend the use of the PSNT to New Jersey field and sweet corn growers,"
says project coordinator Joseph Heckman, soil fertility specialist at
Rutgers. "Although more research is needed to more clearly define the
critical level, we will be able to begin to recommend the use of PSNT to
sweet corn growers in 1994."
The PSNT is an in-season soil test that provides information about the
nitrogen-supplying capacity of a soil. It provides the information corn
growers need to obtain high grain yields without over-application of
fertilizer
"Crop production levels can be maintained and nitrate leaching into
groundwater can be reduced when soil test information substitutes for
fertilizer applied as crop insurance," Heckman says.
To use the test, farmers measure soil nitrate levels when the corn is 6
inches to 12 inches tall. In the case of farmers who grow field corn in the
100- to 170-bushel per acre yield range, they should sidedress if the test
shows concentrations of less than 25 ppm nitrate. Farmers who have
demonstrated an ability to produce yields over 170 bushels per acre may
want to use a higher critical level.
In 1993, the team documented the effects of PSNT on 1720 acres. Of the
total, 1362 acres were manured, and 358 acres were non-manured. The test
sites included both sandy-textured, coastal plain soil and finer textured
or loamy soils in the piedmont.
The results showed that in 67 percent of the fields, PSNT recommendations
lowered the nitrogen fertilizer use from the farmers' usual practices. In
11 percent of the fields, PSNT recommendations were for no change, and in
22 percent the PSNT results indicated more nitrogen than the farmers had
intended to apply.
Most of the work with the PSNT has been with field corn. However Heckman
reports interest in the PSNT is high among New Jersey sweet corn growers.
While the team has not yet recommended PSNT for sweet corn, preliminary
results from the team's field calibration research shows that when sweet
corn is grown on manured soils, the critical nitrate-N concentration is
similar to field corn. Because market quality is a major concern with sweet
corn, the team suggests sidedressing unless test levels are above 25 ppm on
manured soils or above 30 ppm on non-manured soils. More research is being
done to define the critical nitrate-N level.
The team also cautions that use of the PSNT is not without risk. Waiting to
apply nitrogen as a sidedress at the 12 - to 18-inch growth stage causes a
shift in time for labor and machinery requirements, that can overlap the
busy hay season. The weather can also pose a problem for sidedressing.
Finally, there can be risks with the misuse of the PSNT, which requires
different procedures from traditional soil tests. Careful collection,
handling and drying of the soil samples is crucial to preventing false
readings and incorrect fertilizer recommendations.
Still, Heckman says the project shows opportunities for saving farmers
money and protecting the environment. If the PSNT were used on all the
20,000 manured acres of field corn in New Jersey, the potential annual
savings to farmers and the environment are estimated at $240,000 and
800,000 pounds of nitrogen.
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SUSTAINABLE ALTERNATIVES FOR BERRIES
Killed sod groundcovers can provide a viable alternative to herbicides in
strawberry production, 1993 results from a SARE-supported project
show. "Yields have been equivalent to plots treated with conventional
herbicides," reports project coordinator Barbara Goulart, a horticulture
professor at Penn State University.
The groundcover trials were just one component of an ambitious, multi-state
project aimed at developing alternative production strategies for
strawberry and raspberry producers. Thirty researchers, Extension agents
and growers from Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and West
Virginia are participating in the SARE-supported study.
Here are some highlights from the project's 1993 work:
* Researchers recovered a parasite of the tarnished plant bug from a S.
Deerfield, Mass. release site. The recovery marks the first in the nation,
and is a significant step in the development of biological controls for
tarnished plant bug, one of the most common raspberry and strawberry insect
pests. Currently, says Goulart, growers primarily rely on chemical controls
for tarnished plant bug.
* Row covers increased marketable yield, reduced the number of tarnished
plant bug nymphs and reduced feeding injury on strawberries.
* A three-year evaluation of the impact of cultural practices on raspberry
root disease showed that cultivar susceptibility and bed type are the most
influential factors determining whether raspberry plant are debilitated by
Phytophthora root rot. Investigators obtained excellent yields from the
cultivar Newburgh in raised bed plots, but no yield from the cultivar Titan
on flat beds.
* A grower survey showed that while small fruit growers find chemical
control of pests to be effective, they are interested in experimenting with
new technologies. "Growers indicated a willingness to adopt new
technologies, and indicated a willingness to adopt even when profits would
be reduced by as much as $200 per acre," the team said in its report.
The project will conclude at the end of 1994, with more emphasis on
strawberry than raspberry production in its final year. Investigators will
continue work on non-chemical techniques of soil sterilization and/or
fertility and integrated pest management techniques for weed, insect and
disease control.
The project publishes the Northeast SARE Small Fruits Newsletter twice a
year. To subscribe, write to Arthur Tuttle, Dept. of Plant Pathology,
Fernald Hall, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003.
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FARM TESTS ALTERNATE ROTATIONS
First-year results from a farm-based soil conservation project in southwest
Pennsylvania showed "favorable results" for sustainable practices in sweet
corn and pumpkin production, project coordinator Allen Matthews says.
"Perhaps the most significant information . . . for local farmers is the
production data comparisons between the sustainable and conventional
project fields," Matthews said in a recent report. "For example, costs of
chemical sprays were reduced over $60 per acre in sustainable pumpkin and
sweet corn fields."
Through the project, the Matthews family is testing an alternative
conservation plan on five acres of their Washington County farm. The plan
was designed to reduce rotations from seven to four years. It uses living
clover mulches, narrower field strips, grass roadways, reduced tillage and
winter cover crops to reduce sediment loss. Integrated pest management
practices are being implemented on the farm to reduce pesticide use.
Matthews hopes to demonstrate a rotation system through which family farms
like his can prevent soil loss and maintain profitability. These issues are
of vital importance to the roughly 1,500 vegetable producers who farm in
and around the foothills of the Pennsylvania Appalachian Mountains. In
1991, this nine county area produced approximately $6.4 million in
vegetable farm income. But required Soil Conservation Service conservation
plans could have a significant economic impact because they increase the
years in rotation for vegetable producers.
In the first year of the Matthews project, comparison fields of similar
slope, soil type and easterly exposure were established on the farm. With
the help of the local conservation district, a sediment collection system
was designed and installed to evaluate soil loss by the two cropping
systems.
In terms of measuring soil loss, first year results primarily reflect the
impact of the initial diversion construction, which disturbed a significant
amount of ground and created difficulty in establishing cover crops early
in the growing season.
The conservation district found, however, that there was little difference
between the two systems in terms of soil loss. Both systems were within
allowable limits for the area and slopes. Matthews is concerned, however,
that over a seven-year trial, the conventional system with four years of
hay, two of no-till corn and one of vegetable row crops may produce far
less sediment than the four-year rotation with only one year of clover.
In terms of reducing production costs associated with soil management and
pest control, the Matthews family found that "sustainable tilling
practices" required less soil preparation time, resulted in less soil
compaction and yielded similar quantities of sweet corn and pumpkins in the
first season.
"Through reduced use of chemicals, the sustainable pumpkin fields produced
a per acre value of $2,401 compared to the conventional field's $2,229 per
acre value," Matthews reports. "This included less farm labor in no-till
planting, less chemical use, and similar seed, fertilizer and harvesting
related costs.
"The conventional sweet corn fields yielded slightly more ears of corn per
acre (2 percent). However, when reduced input costs from planting, and
reduced pesticide use are considered, the sustainable fields produced
nearly a 10 percent per acre value more than did the conventional fields,"
Matthews says.
The project's pepper plantings were a disaster. No cost comparisons could
be made because the sustainable pepper plots yielded minimal fruit.
Matthews believes that the shredded newspaper mulches within the rows of
sustainable peppers leached nitrogen from the soil and minimized fruit
production. Soil and plant samplings showed deficient nitrogen levels in
the sustainable peppers.
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PASTURE PROJECT UPDATE
Last winter, Innovations reported in-depth about a Vermont-based pasture
management project. That project wrapped up its SARE-funded activities last
December, and its 1993 findings provide more proof that grass farming is
both practical and profitable.
Economic analyses show average feed savings of $233 per cow on well-managed
pasture, compared to confinement feeding. In related case studies, grazing
also reduced labor by up to 59 percent. Feed-study results suggest that
cows grazing well-managed pasture may consume up to 50 percent more pasture
forage than previously thought. If these findings are confirmed, they
suggest that farmers can reduce supplemental rations and save more money.
The project, coordinated by University of Vermont agronomist William
Murphy, began in 1988 with research on optimal grazing frequency and
intensity in dairy, beef and sheep operations. Over the years, it also
developed an effective model for grassroots diffusion of alternative
technology. Fifty Vermont dairy farmers are participating in the project's
Pasture User Support Group Network. Monthly meetings and pasture walks give
participants a chance to share problems and solutions.
Most farmers participating in the support groups in 1993 reported cutting
production costs and spending less time on field work and barn chores.
Enterprise analyses from eight farms that provided sufficient economic data
showed they increased profits per 100 weight of milk by 71 percent in their
first year in the support group.
Future areas of study include rearing dairy replacement calves on pasture,
and liquid manure application on paddocks used for grazing. The exact scope
of both research and outreach activities will, however, be determined by
funding.
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COVER CROPS FOR VEGETABLE PRODUCTION
New England vegetable growers who use hairy vetch/grass cover crops can
maintain yields while significantly reducing - or eliminating - the need
for other sources of nitrogen, first-year results from a SARE-supported
study show.
"The (participating) farmers were definitely impressed with the cover crops
- that they can supply the nitrogen that they need," says Stephen Herbert,
Extension agronomist at the University of Massachusetts (Amherst)
Department of Plant and Soil Science.
Herbert is the coordinator of the three-state project aimed at expanding
New England vegetable growers' use of cover crops that include legumes. Its
focus is to demonstrate these cover crops' economic and environmental
benefits, and to address constraints producers have identified to adopting
legume cover crops. Among the obstacles: grower reluctance to reduce
nitrogen fertilizer, the cost and availability of hairy vetch seed, and the
logistics of shifting to an alternative cropping system.
When seeded in combination with a cereal grass as a winter cover crop,
legumes can provide more organic matter, protect the soil, and suppress
weeds better than either one alone. Hairy vetch in particular, say project
participants, may be an advantageous legume for New England vegetable
growers because it can survive the region's cold winters and provide
significant nitrogen for the following crop.
As the project begins its second year, 35 farmers and eight
researchers/Extension specialists from Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont are
participating in the project. The effort includes both farm-based
demonstrations and replicated experiments on university research stations.
First-year trials showed no reduction in yield of any of the cash crops due
to the reduction in nitrogen applied on the 12 participating farms in
Massachusetts.
Some growers reported drought stress. The stress, however, was not unique
to the cover crop trials. In fact, "a couple of growers remarked that the
land that had hairy vetch appeared to be more tolerant of the dry
conditions," the team reported.
In the replicated experiments, researchers found that cover-cropping with
legumes can successfully replace nitrogen fertilizer in sweet corn systems
in central Maine.
In these trials, researchers found that alfalfa undersown to barley (in May
1992, with a hairy vetch/rye cover crop established after the barley
harvest) produced significantly more biomass than rye alone. This study is
being repeated in the 1993-1994 field season.
In Massachusetts, researchers conducted replicated experiments aimed at
quantifying the nitrogen response from alternative cropping systems. In one
trial, researchers evaluated hairy vetch as a fall-growth cover crop. This
system could be implement on farms where early sweet corn or brassicas are
harvested and the land would otherwise stay fallow until the fall, when
winter rye would be seeded.
In this experiment, a cover crop of oats and hairy vetch was seeded in
early August, giving it time to achieve a large amount of biomass before
winter. The oats were winter-killed, preventing erosion and "mopping up"
left-over nitrogen, the researchers say. The following spring, sweet corn
was seeded the same day the cover crop was harvested. First-year results
show that the system provided good yield results, even without the use of
nitrogen fertilizer.
Areas which will need additional study, according to the project team,
include: the control of insect pests, such as seed corn maggot, that could
increase with the use of vetch; the identification of vetch varieties that
survive Maine winters consistently; and comparisons of winter and summer
cover cropping strategies.
Of particular concern is a management strategy that balances the need to
plow vetch early to allow timely planting of subsequent cash crops with the
need to delay plowing to maximize biomass and nitrogen production.
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NEW COVER CROP RESOURCES FOR NORTHEAST PRODUCERS
Need fast information about cover crops for the Northeast? Consider a
new series of fact sheets from the Rodale Institute. For more in-depth
explanations try Rodale's soon-to-be-released book on cover crops.
With a quick glance, fact sheet readers can determine different cover
crops' tolerance to cold, heat, drought, flood and shade. The fact sheets
provide information on brassicas, the important cover crop grasses and
legumes.
Designed for cropping systems in the Northeast, the 20 factsheets provide
essential information on uses, management, pest problems and the varieties
that are available. They also offer information on planting dates in each
of the hardiness zones. Factsheet 20 is a summary to help select cover
crops appropriate for nearly any situation.
The fact sheets were written by Marianne Sarrantonio and Betsy Lyman, based
on experiences and experimental results from a wide range of growers and
scientists in the Northeast. The fact sheets were reviewed by farmers,
research and extension faculty prior to publication.
The Northeast Cover Crop Handbook, also written by Sarrantonio will be
released in mid-1994. While farmer-oriented, it provides a more thorough
and thoughtful discussion of incorporating soil-improving cover crops into
various cropping systems.
Through a "concept-and-example" approach, Sarrantonio explains methods of
selecting cover crop species, and ways farmers can use cover crops to
manage nitrogen and improve soil quality. It includes an extensive
appendix which presents in more "recipe" format specific management
recommendations for several species of cover crops.
Northeast farmers, researchers and Extension personnel provided extensive
review of the manuscript. Their comments influenced the book's format.
The fact sheets sell for $6 for a set or 50 cents each. To purchase, send
your order and a check to:
Rodale Institute Research Center, c/o Karin Clifford, 611 Siegfriedale
Road, Kutztown, PA 19530, or call 610-683-1400.
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MAINE DIRECTORY COMING IN 1994
Maine farmers who want to learn about sustainable agricultural practices
will soon be able to use a new directory to hook up with other Maine
farmers with expertise in those techniques and systems.
The farmer-to-farmer directory is part of a SARE-supported project being
done by the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA).
Scheduled to be released in late 1994, the directory will include short
descriptions of individual sustainable practices or whole farm systems.
More than 100 farmers will be listed. They will have demonstrated expertise
in a variety of areas, including: mechanical weed control using
state-of-the-art cultivating equipment; crop rotations that include the use
of green manures, cover crops and living mulches; erosion control measures;
pest management, including Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and
non-chemical insect and disease management; on-farm composting; manure
management; and marketing innovations.
Project coordinator and MOFGA staffer Eric Sideman says the project is
aimed at overcoming what survey after survey has shown to be a barrier to
farmers adopting sustainable farming methods - first-hand contact with
enough successful growers who are using those techniques.
"Surveys of conventional farmers have identified the lack of useful
information as the major impediment to adoption of sustainable practices,"
he says.
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RESOURCES
The Real Dirt
Based on interviews with more than 60 farmers in eight states, this book
summarizes practical methods for ecological soil, pest, disease, crop,
greenhouse and livestock management.
"What an amazing catalogue of ingenious responses to variable conditions
faced by farmers," says Williamstown Massachusetts farmer Sam Smith. "It
will encourage the creativity of aspiring and experienced farmers."
The Real Dirt was edited by Miranda Smith and members of the Northeast
Organic Farming Association and the Cooperative Extension. The Northeast
Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program provided
funding for the book. It is available through SAN (see instructions below)
or through the Northeast organic growers association nearest you. $13.95.
Managing Cover Crops Profitably
Here's a practical introductory guide to using cover crops to save money,
prevent soil erosion and prevent pest problems. Funded by the Sustainable
Agriculture Network, it was produced and edited by the Rodale Institute.
The book explains the benefits and challenges of using cover crops, and
provides practical information about using different legume and grass cover
crops. You'll also get a region-by-region guide to proven strategies, as
well as listings of expert contacts who can help you get started. 114
pages. $9.95.
Sustainable Ag. vs. Weeds