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  • From: "Frank Teuton" <fteuton AT total.net>
  • To: "market farming" <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Re: vegetables/organic manures
  • Date: Wed, 3 Jan 2001 10:55:29 -0500


The four month wait is about bacteriological reduction and the decomposition
of some flavor altering compounds which can be found in manures.

High temperatures (160 degrees F) are harmful in composting as they destroy
a large proportion of beneficial organisms, and do not---repeat, DO
NOT---lead to more rapid decomposition nor the more complete decomposition
of harmful chemicals, both natural and artificial, that may be present in
the compost ingredients. Worse still, such temps may open the ingredients
up to re-colonization by pathogens such as Salmonella.

Composting should be done within ceiling and floor temperatures, or better
still with large quantities of composting worms, for the most complete
transformation into a healthy soil amendment. If weed seeds are a problem,
a brief period of high temperatures (131-155 F) of three days to two weeks
may be needed to destroy them, after which the mass should be reduced in
temperature to between 104 and 122 F for normal composting, or applied in
thin layers to a worm composting system and kept below 85 degrees F.

Worm compost (or vermicompost, or in Latin countries, lumbricompost) can be
produced in as little as 4 weeks, but may profit from a two week sitting
spell to allow fungal re-growth in the castings, and regular compost is
possible within six weeks under absolutely ideal conditions but is more
likely to take 4-6 months under most normal conditions. Good descriptions of
composting and vermicomposting are on the Soil Foodweb website of Dr Elaine
Ingham, www.soilfoodweb.com


I would hope that the use of raw manure on a field in the same season where
baby food crops are being grown is discouraged throughout agriculture and
especially for organic growers. However, on a healthy soil, the fall
application of manure would allow sufficient time for the digestion of it,
including hormones, bacterial pathogens and the like, and present no
problems in the following growing season.

Similarly well composted manures could be safely applied in the same growing
season, as topdressings, etc, without problems.

There are concerns about some ingredients in manures which are not organic,
having persistence and perhaps some carryover effect into crops. Things like
pass through larvicides have been discussed on some of the composting lists.
These days, the principle of caveat emptor is more important than ever; yet,
there are also pesticides and other pollutants in everyone's rain and snow,
and no escape from them for anyone.

Organic guidelines which allow manures from non-organic production,
well-composted, to be used are a pragmatic compromise between the evils of
full blown chemical agriculture and the impossibility of moving to another
planet. It is best if the manures have a nice long composting cycle,
especially after the initial hot phase, or else are fully worked by those
little mixers of the soil, the earthworms, for exposure to the full range of
microbial decomposers. That will give you the best assurance of full
breakdown of any contaminants, short of having a full chemical analysis
done.

A more perfect solution, for which there may be a market, is to produce baby
foods without any manures, using only clean vegetable source composts (or
green manures). Some details for this kind of growing are in The New Organic
Grower, 2nd edition, by Eliot Coleman, and also at Steve Groff's website,
www.cedarmeadowfarm.com .

My two cents,

Frank Teuton


----- Original Message -----
From: "Peter Worsley" <pwors AT svn.net>
To: "market farming" <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, January 02, 2001 9:22 PM
Subject: Re: vegetables/organic manures


> Organic manure is hard to come by unless it is produced on your own
> farm. Even worming medicine for horses is carried over into horse
> manure. Most certifying agencies specify that no produce to which manure
> has been directly applied can be sold for 4 months from date of
> application. This theoretically gives time for antibiotics, etc., to
> break down. Also, most certifiers specify conditions under which manure
> can be composted to break down chemicals more quickly. Most of this has
> to do with compost temperature (160 degrees F) and length of time (at
> least 6 weeks). Best- Peter
>
> Janet Graham wrote:
> >
> > Hi,
> > Someone asked me if organic vegetables are fertilized with organic
> > manure. They are using prepared organic baby food certified by Oregon
> > Tilth and wondered if the fertilizers are safe- no hormones coming
> > through the manure as fertilizer, etc. They are also buying organic
> > fresh vegetables and wonder the same question as they are also making
> > some home-made baby food. The question is if the whole process is
> > organic. Any advice is welcome. Thanks. -Janet
> >
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