Category: Soil

Spring Growth 2008

Russ Libby, MOFGA’s executive director, opened MOFGA’s 2008 Spring Growth Conference in March by asking, “What are the implications of changing energy prices and changing climate on Maine farmers?” He acknowledged Maine Rural Partners and the Risk Management Agency for underwriting the cost of the conference. Climate Change, Species Change George Jacobson, state climatologist and

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Using Cottonseed Fertilizer

Far Better Options Exist by Alex Owre High-nitrogen content (6-2-2) cottonseed meal is an organic fertilizer that lowers the pH of soil, poses little danger of burning plants, and provides nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium as well as many minor plant food elements. It is cheap and readily available. In some states, however, cottonseed meal is

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Basics of Organic Soil Fertility

By Eric Sideman, Ph.D. Copyright 2006 In 1648, Jean-Baptiste van Helmont did a great experiment and had clear results, but he drew the wrong conclusion. Still, he was among the first on the path to understanding the role of soil in plant nutrition. He placed 200 pounds of soil in a pot and planted a

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Redefining Soil Fertility

There is No Soil Fertility Without a Healthy Forest Branches under 3 inches in diameter, from deciduous trees, can be chipped to make a soil-building, crop-fertilizing amendment.  English photo. by Céline Caron Terms in italics are defined in the glossary at the end of this article. Have you ever wondered how a forest can grow

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The Dirt on Potting Soil

The Dirt on Potting Soil by Craig Idlebrook Copyright 2006 Last year, I tried container gardening after grabbing the first bags of potting soil I found at the local big box store. If the bags had been any more generic looking, they would have said “ACME.” The packaging had almost no information about the content

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