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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Market-farming Digest, Vol 35, Issue 16

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  • From: Paul Bucciaglia <pbucciaglia AT yahoo.com>
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Market-farming Digest, Vol 35, Issue 16
  • Date: Wed, 14 Dec 2005 11:04:25 -0800 (PST)

Hi David,
 
I have pondered the same question re: organic nutrient sources.  Most small organic farms I know around here use cover crops, compost, and organic blended fertilizers for their nutrient sources in some proportion--on my farm I'd guess it at 50% cover crops, 30% compost, 20% rock powders/blood meal/ bone and seed meal, with the goal of creating healthy, balanced soil.   But I wonder about the big operations out west, especially in arid areas:  do they grow green manures?  How do you produce enough compost for huge fields of lettuce?  How do they manage soil fertility and pests?   And as you suggest, I like to look at my own nutrient balance sheet and try to balance the economic and ecological goals of teh farm, its a hard thing to figure and requires some sacrifice of short term profit.
 
Even on the smallest farms there is almost always a nutrient import of some kind, weather its bagged feed bought for livestock (chicken tractors are a great example); or as in my case, compost materials (leaves and horse manure) trucked in from somewhere else, along with bagged fertilizer.  Part of the reason this is neceasary is that our agricultural systems move lots of nutrients off the fields each year in the form of produce and then send our collective (human) effluent to the river.  So the nutrient cycle is broken on nearly every farm, since application of 'sewage sludge' has so many complications due to the mixing of hazardous waste and human 'waste'.  Most operations I have seen that boast of completely closed nutrient loops are often siphoning nutrients off of one field area (often by grazing or haying) and applying to another (usually in the form or manure or compost spread on the 'good' field where a cash crop is grown), or are drawing down nutrients that were already present at high levels.
 
Anyways,  lots of food for thought.
 
Paul Bucciaglia
Fort Hill Farm, New Milford CT


Message: 2
Date: Tue, 13 Dec 2005 22:44:44 -0500
From: "David Inglis"
Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Hydroponics
To: "'Market Farming'"
Message-ID: <005301c60060$bc9b90d0$2e01a8c0@Dave>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"





Just to throw the cat among the pigeons.

It is my observation that, more and more soil based 'organics' is
getting closer to water based 'organics' in its thinking anyway. This
to the point that increasing amounts of Organic food is produced based
on nutrients presented to the crops not the soil. The soil is treated as
not much more than rock wool to hold the plants upright, the main
concern being whether a particular nutrient source is ok with the
Organocrats. This is the inverse of its origins. When I find my own
thinking drifting in this direction, on self examination, I almost
always find the motive to be economics. The good news is this will be a
self limiting philosophy that will pass.

I am going back to 'Terraponics'.

Enjoy your 'Winter mellow' Paul, you earned it.

David

Mahaiwe Harvest CSA

W.Mass.

Z5



Paul Bucciaglia
Fort Hill Farm
Organic Vegetables, Herbs, and Flowers
18 Fort Hill Rd.
New Milford CT 06776
(860) 350-3158
www.forthillfarm.com

"But your flag decal won't get you
Into Heaven any more.
They're already overcrowded
From your dirty little war.
Now Jesus don't like killin'
No matter what the reason's for,
And your flag decal won't get you
Into Heaven any more."

John Prine, 1971

  • Re: [Market-farming] Market-farming Digest, Vol 35, Issue 16, Paul Bucciaglia, 12/14/2005

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