Sustainable, Organic, & Biodynamic Approaches to Fertility & Plant Health
Dr. Lynne Carpenter-BoggsBIOAg CoordinatorCenter for Sustaining Ag & Natural Resources (CSANR), WSU
WSU BIOAg Program
A new program of WSU’s Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources (CSANR)
Sustainable AgricultureSustainable Agriculture
Social Economic
Environmental
BIOAg as an intersection of ideas
Sustainable
BIOAgBIOAg
Organic Biologically-
Intensive
BIOAg
=
Organic and/or bio-intensive, if it’s sustainable.
Organic agriculture: A legally defined and regulated practice that focuses on use of natural materials & non-use of synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, etc.
Biologically Intensive: using renewable biological materials & processes.
Sustainable: Producing high quantity and quality food & fiber with long-term economic, environmental, & social viability.
WSU BIOAg Program
► An integrated research, outreach, and education program
Striving for Sustainability
•
Sustainability: concept
providing for the best for people & environment both now & in the indefinite future.
1987 Brundtland Report, sustainability is: "Meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs."
Brundtland definition is
Very much like the seventh generation philosophy of the Iroquois Confederacy,
mandating that chiefs always consider the effects of their actions on their descendants through the seventh generation in the future.
Sustainability: NOT a NEW concept
Climbing Mt. Sustainability
Soci
al
Econ
omic
Environmental
Striving for Sustainability
•
"Sustainable agriculture" defined by Congress in 1990 Farm Bill as an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site-specific application that will, over the long term:
satisfy human food and fiber needs enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which the agricultural economy depends make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls sustain economic viability of farm operations enhance quality of life for farmers & society
Sustainable AgricultureSustainable Agriculture A longA long--term goalterm goal
EconomicallyEconomicallyViableViable
EnvironmentallyEnvironmentallySoundSound
Socially AcceptableSocially Acceptable
A direction to move in
Not a fixed set of farming practices
Better to say “more sustainable”
Easier to define what is not sustainable
“A question, not an answer”
Pest management successes – IPM, biocontrol, reduced risk products
Apple - Cydia pomonella (coddling moth) control – change over time
Lead arsenate
DDT
Azinphos-methyl
Pheromone mating disruption
Codling moth granulosis virus
??
Conventional then
Conventional now
Sustainability is Relative
Practice Changes that Increase Sustainability
Drip irrigationDirect seeding for soil conservationAlternatives to agricultural burning Methane digester for animal manurePrecision N applicationBiodiesel for farm equipmentHabitat plantingsN fixing cover cropsReplace toxic pesticides with biocontrolsWorker training, housing, health insurance
Sustainable system development : stages of change
Dr. Stuart Hill : "Shallow sustainability focuses on efficiency and substitution strategies with respect to the use of resources. Deep sustainability, in contrast, re-evaluates goals in relation to higher values and redesigns the systems involved in achieving these goals to that this can be done within ecological limits."
National Organic ProgramNOP Definition of “organic”:
A production system, managed in accordance with the USDA
Regulation, to respond to site- specific conditions by integrating
cultural, biological, and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources, promote
ecological balance, and conserve bio-diversity.
Organic Standards: Overview•
Crop production standards, livestock production standards, handling standards.
•
Organic System Plan with focus on preventative management. An agreement between an operation and the certifier describing how organic integrity will be maintained.
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Verification of three years of organic land management.
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Use of only approved materials and inputs.
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On site inspections and annual application for certification required.
Characteristics of Organic Production
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Reliance on on-farm nutrient sources, fewer purchased inputs
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Holistic- emphasis on soil building, soil health, crop rotation, nutrient recycling
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Requires natural rather than manufactured nutrient sources
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Essentially all manufactured or synthetic fertilizers and pesticides are prohibited
Organic Crop Standards: Soil Fertility
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No raw manure applications within 120/90 days before harvest.
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Distinct composting guidelines.
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No destructive cultivation practices.
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Use of cover crops, crop rotations, and maintenance of soil organic matter.
•
Producer must maintain or improve the soil and minimize soil erosion.
Characteristics of Organic Production: Philosophy of Fertility
Feed the soil, not the plantBuild a rich living soil and farm, and this will sustain healthy plants
Consequence: Organic systems more dependent on active soil biology for nutrient mineralization.
Organic fertilization requires mineralization to release nutrients
organic
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7Months after application
mineral
% to
tal n
utrie
nts
rele
ased
025
5075
100
Authorized Methods and Materials (Organic Matter )
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Cover crops
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Manure (special guidelines)
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Green manures, crop residues, peatmoss, seaweed…
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Composted food and forestry by-products
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Sewage sludge, septic waste prohibited
Green Manures
Green manure = crop incorporated into soil while green
•
Add organic matter
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Fix nitrogen
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Suppress weeds & pests
•
“Catch” cropsMustard green manure crop between
wheat and potatoes; Idaho
Bio-intensive• Prevention first:
Resistant varietiesCrop rotations Maintaining beneficial species habitatSanitary cultural practicesBarriers: physical and/or timing
• Approved materials used only when crop rotation, biological control, and cultural practices are insufficient to control pests.
Pest Management
Disease Management
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Mixed cropping•
Plant, row spacing
•
Vigorous plants are more resistant to disease
Healthy, microbially-active soil suppresses root diseasesCompost: disease-suppressive soilCompost extracts
Weed Management
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Long-term plan based on weed ecology
Crop rotations to suppress, smother weedsAllelopathic cover cropsTimed cultivation to reduce weed stands and prevent seed setMulch in high value cropsLivestock grazing
•
Few quick-fixesVinegarFlamingBrassica seedmeals
Biodynamics
What is it?How is it used?What does it do?
Biodynamics
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Created by philosopher Rudolf Steineralso
Anthroposophy•
Anthroposophic art and medicine
Waldorf schoolsCamphill communitiesEurythmy dance
•
Demeter, Weleda brand certification
Differences in Ideas: BD vs. conventional
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View whole farm as an organism•
Heal the soil, people, plants, earth
•
Astronomic, cosmic effects
•
Organic + subtle forces
Cosmic /Planetary
Mineral
PlantAnimal
Human ENERGYCYCLES
Differences in Practice: BD vs. conventional
•
Manage & design farm for self-support•
Organic fertility management
compost is primary fertilizerrotations for N fixation, weed controlrecycling nutrients
•
Natural & homeopathic pest control•
Livestock integrated in most farms
•
Biodynamic Preparations
BD Preparations fermented products of:
•
Field, Crop SpraysCow manureSilicaEquisetum
•
Compost preps YarrowChamomileStinging nettleOak barkDandelionValerian
Preparation 500 Cow Horn Preparation
Very low dose application~ 2 Tbsp per acre
Soil Effects•
Biodynamic farms have better soil quality than conventional farms
more organic matter•
more available N, P
•
buffered pH•
more microbes, mesofauna and earthworms
•
better soil structure•
Great benefit from compost
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Differences in microbial activity & community
Compost Effects•
Slightly higher temperature
•
Slightly faster to matureLower respiration rateMore enzymatic activityDifferent microbial communityMore nitrate
Potential modes of operation (Western)
•
Nutrients – macro & micro•
Microbial inoculants
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Stimulants / Inhibitors / Hormones / Signals
Plant hormonesMicrobial signals
Hormone (i.e. auxin)
Hormone Receptor
Signal Transduction
Gene Expression
Plant Growth & Development Response(i.e. rooting)
Action of Homeopathy & HormonesDo not cause effects “in a vacuum”Effects may not appear linear
Stimulate a biological response or cascade which causes the observed effect
So
•
What works for me?
•
Try it.
Don’tTreat Don’t
Treat
Don’tTreat
TreatTreat Don’t
Treat
1 2
3 4
TreatTreat
Soil organisms do not constitute the life of the soil;they are the actual organs of a living organism.
Sattler and Wistinghausen, 1992