June 2010

Photo of the Month, by Derek Lynch
Soil sampling, and installing hyphal traps to measure mycorrhizae presence in soil, in an organic wheat field at Barnyard Organics farm, Freetown, PEI. Studies such as this are being repeated on farms throughout Canada and form part of a series of new national research projects assessing soil phosphorus dynamics and availability under organic field crop production.

In this issue:

• Research Articles
• Extension Information
• Courses
• Student & Job Opportunities
• Newspaper Articles
• Issues
• Animal Welfare

Research Articles

Soils and Fertility

• Nitrogen management in organic farming: comparison of crop rotation residual effects on yields, N leaching and soil conditions
• Potassium uptake and requirement in organic grassland farming
• Soil Microbial Activity in Conventional and Organic Agricultural Systems

Horticulture

• Effects of vineyard management on biodiversity at three trophic levels

Field Crops

• Effects of Livestock Grazing on Grasshopper Abundance on a Native Rangeland in Montana
• Factors Influencing Partial and Complete Adoption of Organic Farming Practices in Saskatchewan, Canada
• Weed-Competitive Ability of Spring and Winter Cereals in the Northern Great Plains

Livestock

• Prevalence and distribution of gastrointestinal nematodes on 32 organic and conventional commercial sheep farms in Ontario and Quebec
• A randomized controlled trial to compare the use of homeopathy and internal Teat Sealers for the prevention of mastitis in organically farmed dairy cows
• Selection of tannins by sheep in response to gastrointestinal nematode infection

Food and Health

• Birds select conventional over organic wheat when given free choice
• Innovative Pubic Organic Food Procurement for Youth (iPopy)
  • The iPOPY project – a research commitment to more sustainable public food
  • Innovative Public Organic food Procurement for Youth (iPOPY).  Lessons learned from implementing organic into European school meals
  • Providing organic food for millions of Italian pupils. How do we make it?
  • Tracing Food Education for Sustainable Development in iPOPY countries. Recommendations for learning about sustainability and organic food within educational contexts
  • Organic and healthy – two goals in one go. A comparative analysis study among public primary schools in Denmark and Germany
    

Ecology and Environment

• Arable plant communities as indicators of farming practice
• Organic farming in isolated landscapes does not benefit flower-visiting insects and pollination

Consumer Preferences and Behaviour

• Consumers' purchase intention of organic food in China
• Evaluating Consumer Preferences for Organic Food Production Standards
• Growth and Development in the U.S. Retail Organic Food Sector
• Subjective and objective knowledge as determinants of organic vegetables consumption
• U.S. Demand for Organic and Conventional Fresh Fruits: The Roles of Income and Price

Social Science

• Cultivating a Movement: An Oral History Series on Sustainable Agriculture and Organic Farming on California's Central Coast

Organic Science Cluster Background Information and Supporting Documents
Project D: Integrated Management of Horticultural Field Crops

Activity D.1: Agroecosystem management for pest control in organic vegetable production

• Integrating agroecological processes into cropping systems research
• Mechanisms of weed suppression in cover crop–based production systems
• See More...

Activity D.2: System productivity and N flows in two organic vegetable long term rotations

• Managing soil fertility in organic farming systems
• Season-long supply of plant-available nutrients from compost and fertiliser in a long term organic vs. conventional snap bean rotations experiment
• See More...

Activity D.4: Organic production of vegetable transplants for gardeners

• Biological amendment, fertilizer rate, and irrigation frequency for organic bell pepper transplant production
• Nitrogen sources for organic vegetable crops
• See More...
  

Activity D.5: Organic production of peat blocks for vegetable seedlings and detection of abiotic and biotic stresses

• Optimization of substrate and nutrient solution for organic cultivation of medicinal transplants in multicell flats
• Supressiveness of 18 composts against 7 pathosystems : Variability in pathogen response
• See More...

Activity D.7: Development of a weed management system for pumpkins grown for seed in Ontario

• Use of a mechanical roller crimper as an alternative kill method for cover crop
• Utilization of Allelopathy for Weed Management in Agroecosystems
• See More...

Extension Information

• Organic dairy industry growing in Atlantic Canada
• Organic Blueberry Publications (University of Maine)
• Organic Wild Blueberry Production (PDF, 2 MB)
• Grower Survey of Organic Pest Management Practices for Wild Blueberries (PDF, 2.4 MB)      
• Evaluation of Entomopathogens for Biological Control of Insect Pests of Lowbush Blueberry
• Economic Analysis of Organic Pest Management Strategies for Lowbush Blueberries using Enterprise Budgeting (PDF, 1.4 MB)
• Vermicasting (or Vermicomposting): Processing Organic Wastes Through Earthworms (OMAFRA)
• U of G licenses new organic blends to Forterra (Greenhouse Canada)

Courses

• Certificate of Specialization in Organic Agriculture, NSAC Distance Education
  • Fall Semester 2010:
    • Transition to Organic Agriculture
    • Composting and Compost Use
    • Principles of Organic Horticulture
  • Winter Semester 2011
    • Organic Field Crop Management
    • Organic Livestock Production
• Grow Your Own Workshops, NSAC
  • Weeds, Tools and Pests
  • Preserving Your Bounty

Student & Job Opportunities

• Clerk III, Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada (Term), Nova Scotia
• Canada Research Chair (Tier II) in Sustainable Agriculture, Trent University

Newspaper Articles

• Too Much Wildlife?
• Liquid fertilizer needed to sustain organic tomato production
• The Western Producer's Organic Matters Column: Farmer honoured for contributions in organics

Issues

• Robust warming of the global upper ocean
• Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Urinary Metabolites of Organophosphate Pesticides
• Local Food Systems: Concepts, Impacts, and Issues
• The Food Movement, Rising

Animal Welfare

• The effects of 12, 30, or 48 hours of road transport on the physiological and behavioral responses of sheep