Lund University – Pollinating insects are endangered globally, with a particularly steep decline over the last 40 years. An extensive 3-year study from Lund University in Sweden has found that organic farming methods can contribute to halting the pollinator decline. This beneficial effect is due to both the absence of insecticides and a higher provision […]
By Karen Briere Glacier FarmMedia staff Cody Straza encourages organic growers to use five soil health principles to improve their systems. Trying to implement all five is a challenge, he told a recent organic and low-input field day in Swift Current, but it can be done. Straza and his family operate Upland Organics on 2,100 […]
By Ashley Robinson Glacier FarmMedia staff CNS Canada – Even after a dry growing season the organic crop in Western Canada is looking good, according to buyers from across the Prairies. “I think we’re all hesitant and until it’s in the bin we don’t really know what we’re going to have. (But) I think for the […]
Maria Johnson Glacier FarmMedia staff One Alberta producer’s journey to the field began with a simple question: ‘where do you get your food?’ An innocent question from a subsistence farmer in Kenya in the mid 2000s affected Mike Kozlowski in ways he never imagined. He spent months in the east African country through a Canada Millennium […]
By Alexis Stockford Glacier FarmMedia staff Organic farmers may want to refine that manure before spreading it. Dale Overton, CEO of Overton Environmental Enterprises, urges organic farmers to add a composting step to their fertility programs, something he says will provide better long-term organic matter gain, fight off weeds and save money on fertilizer. Overton’s […]
American Society of Agronomy – Some relationships can be complicated. Take the one between sweet potato crops and soil nitrogen, for example. Too little nitrogen and sweet potato plants don’t grow well and have low yields. Too much nitrogen, however, boosts the growth of leaves and branches at the expense of storage roots. That also […]
Technical University of Munich – Traditional insecticides are killers: they not only kill pests, they also endanger bees and other beneficial insects, as well as affecting biodiversity in soils, lakes, rivers and seas. A team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has now developed an alternative: A biodegradable agent that keeps pests at bay […]
American Society of Agronomy – Researchers have good news for growers. Farmers raising a nitrogen-hungry crop like sweet corn may save up to half of their nitrogen fertilizer cost. The key: using a faba bean cover crop. Faba bean is an ancient crop increasingly used as a cover crop. Cover crops are grown in the […]
By Laura Rance OrganicBiz editor Prairie organic growers can for the first time this spring grow a registered variety of oats that has been developed under organic management. Limited quantities of AAC Oravena certified seed are now available through Fedoruk Seeds at Kamsack, Sask., after a lengthy breeding and development process by Agriculture and Agri-Food […]
Flame-weeding controls weeds for organic farmers American Society of Agronomy – Interest in organic farming is growing. However, controlling weeds without synthetic herbicides, as organic certification requires, is challenging. Scientists are studying alternative tools for weed management. One such tool is propane-fueled flame weeding. Flame weeding sounds as if it means burning plants. But propane-fueled […]
