By Eric Sideman, Ph.D., MOFGA’s Director of Technical Services It always amuses me to think back to when I was young and, like most, I understood very little of what my parents did. Now that I am an adult, most of their former actions make sense. Sometimes they had good reasons for their behavior and
Illustration from “Earthworm Biology and Production,” Leaflet 2828, University of California Cooperative Extension, Berkeley, Calif., 1977. By Jean Ann Pollard Always with us and the farmer’s friend. Right? Is that what you think when you think ‘gardening’ – when you see those long, red angleworms surfacing all over the lawn and under the rhubarb after
Compost is great stuff. The material shown here is recycled into a vibrant soil that feeds the beautiful perennial flowers and herbs on MOFGA’s grounds. Too much compost or other organic matter, however, can increase the phosphorus concentration in soils to the point where the element may become a pollutant. So have your soil tested
Cornell Soil Test Report. Bianca Moebius-Clune, a graduate student at Cornell University, introduced the Cornell Soil Health Test (CSHT) at the 2008 Farmer-to-Farmer Conference, and Dennis King of King Hill Farm in Penobscot, Maine, told how he evaluates soil health on the diversified farm that he and Jo Barrett own and run. The CSHT, the
Wood from white oak (shown here), black locust, cedar and honey locust can be used as an organic alternative to pressure-treated wood. English photo. By Eric Sideman, Ph.D. I have worked for MOFGA for nearly 20 years as the “answer man,” and questions about treated lumber have come in every spring when gardeners and farmers
Fish Emulsion in Media Suppresses Damping-off Organic Crop Rotation Study Shows Favorable Results By Eric Sideman, Ph.D. Soilless mixes were developed for use in containers for seedlings, because field soil does not work well. Soil alone is heavy and poorly aerated. It tends to become waterlogged and sticky when wet. Then it shrinks when it
Erik Nielsen, third from left, with some of the Biosa team in Frederiksvaerk, Denmark. Story and photos by Ron Rosenthall North Americans may soon associate Denmark with more than Hamlet, blue cheese and the Little Mermaid: We may add products from Biosa Danmark ApS that could improve the well-being of farm animals, the yield and
Master Gardeners provided this display of compost containers and a thermometer at Brae Maple Farm one summer. They include a rotating drum (Compos-Tumbler), a bin made from recycled plastic and one made from pallets. A series of three wooden bins in a row (made from pallets or constructed of wood) will enable a gardener to
By Jean English Bocashi is fermented organic material that has been used traditionally in Japan (where it’s spelled ‘bokashi’) as fertilizer. Making bokashi is an ancient art in Japan, with many recipes, often handed down (sometimes along with bokashi starter) through families. According to the Fall 2004 issue of La Cosecha, the publication of Sustainable
Black Gold for Soil, Long-Term Carbon Storage for Earth by Jean English Biochar (or agrichar) is the product of pyrolysis – of burning plant material under controlled, low-oxygen conditions (in a kiln, for example) to produce charcoal. Adding this highly stable form of carbon to soils may increase plant yields (especially on degraded soils); reduce
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