March 2010

Photo of the Month by Brenda Frick
A sign of Spring...an early strawberry plant is visited by an eager lady beetle in Lethbridge, AB.

In This Issue:

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

Research

Soils and Fertility

• Compost suppressiveness against Fusarium oxysporum after one-year storage
• Earthworm effects on plant growth do not necessarily decrease with soil fertility
• Effects of fertilizer and spatial heterogeneity in soil pH on microbial biomass indices in a long-term field trial of organic agriculture
• Long-term effects of organic farming on fungal and bacterial residues in relation to microbial energy metabolism
• Root size fractions of ryegrass and clover contribute differently to C and N inclusion in SOM
• A New Decay Series for Organic Crop Production
• Profitability of Cropping Systems Featuring Tillage and Compost

Field Crops

• Forage radish and cereal rye cover crop effects on mycorrhizal fungus colonization of maize roots
• Response of common wheat varieties to organic and conventional production systems
  

Horticultural Crops

• Yield and fruit quality of organically cultivated blackcurrant cultivars 
• Effect of thermal treatments on phytochemicals in conventionally and organically grown berries
  

Ecology and Environment

• Emissions of nitrous oxide from arable organic and conventional cropping systems on two soil types
  

Organic Science Cluster Background Information and Supporting Documents
Project A: Biologically-Based Fertility Management

Activity A.1: Characterizing soil phosphorus dynamics and availability under organic crop production

• Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and organic farming
• Economic and social impacts of organic production systems
• Impact of long-term conventional and organic farming on the diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi
• The influence of crop rotation on the mineral nutrient content of organic vs. conventionally produced wheat grain
• Soil Fertility and Biodiversity in Organic Farming
• See More

Activity A.2: Predictive tools for characterizing mycorrhizal contributions to phosphorus uptake by organic crops

• Mycorrhizal colonization of flax under long-term organic and conventional management
• Molecular diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in onion roots from organic and conventional farming systems in the Netherlands
• Contribution of arbuscular mycorrhiza to soil quality in contrasting cropping systems
• Phosphorus Sources and Management in Organic Production Systems
• See More

Extension

• Have I Got a Product for You!
• Comparing Energy Use in Conventional and Organic Cropping Systems (ATTRA)
• Raising Dairy Heifers on Pasture (ATTRA)
• Cornell University's Organic Fruit Production Guides
  • Apples (PDF, 1.3 MB)
  • Blueberries (PDF, 1.3 MB)
  • Grapes (PDF, 1.0 MB)
  • Strawberries (PDF, 960 kb)
• Cornell University's Organic Vegetable Production Guides
  • Beans (PDF, 1.2 MB)
  • Carrots (PDF, 1.3 MB)
  • Cole Crops (PDF, 1.6 MB)
  • Curcurbits (PDF, 1.4 MB)
  • Lettuce (PDF, 1.8 MB)
  • Peas (PDF, 775 kb)
  • Potatoes (PDF, 2.0 MB)
  • Spinach (PDF, 1.4 MB)

Courses

• Sustainable Local Food Certificate at St. Lawrence College

Consumers

• Is organic food worth the price?

Job & Student Opportunities

• Summer Student Research Intern - Nova Scotia Agriculture College
• Clerk III, Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada - Term
• Farm Apprentice Vegetable Labourer, Nature's Root Farm, New Brunswick

Newspaper Articles

• Organic Farming Methods Enhance Soil Organic Matter

Issues

• The Browning of the Green Revolution

Animal Welfare

• Pain Management in Livestock Husbandry: 2. Castration, Branding & Tail Docking