The New Agriculture Network's on-line newsletter with seasonal advice for field crop and vegetable growers interested in organic agriculture.
Next issue will be posted June 11. Read previous issues through our calendar of issues.
Evaluating financing options for expansion
Maria I. Marshall
Department of Agricultural Economics
Purdue University
Whole Foods Market, Inc. has established a loan program for local producers. This program provides farmers the opportunity to receive a loan of up to $50,000 to expand their current operation. However, the main question is whether or not you are ready to expand, rather than if this particular loan program is right for you. If you are ready to expand your operation, then you should evaluate the different financing options available to you.
You should ask yourself if you are in a position to expand your operation. You should also have an understanding of how the loan will be used to either increase sales or decrease costs. Any capital expense or equipment purchased should make you more efficient. For example, it should allow you to produce more for the same amount of labor or produce the same amount for lower costs. Expansion could also entail an investment in marketing strategies such as increased advertising, branding, packing or sales personnel. Use the expansion matrix in Table 1 to think about how your different expansion ideas will improve your operation.
Table 1. Expansion matrix
Capital Expanse/Equipment |
Improvement |
Example: Label applicator |
Decrease labor costs |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Any expansion should be well-thought-out and planned. Most banks will require some type of written business plan. How elaborate that business plan is will depend on the amount borrowed and the bank itself. However, all banks or loan programs will require a detailed financial plan. A financial plan will include a balance sheet, income statement and cash flow statement. Most banks will require the past three to five years of your financial statements and a forecast for three years of your cash flow statement. The cash flow statement is a snap shot of how cash enters and exits the business. It illustrates monthly cash sales and expenses. The financial plan assures the lender that there is enough cash flow in the business to repay the loan and illustrates the assumptions you have made in terms of sales or costs that will make it so.
Evaluating financing optionsAll loan programs have some sort of “string” attached. The things to consider for any loan is whether or not the “strings” attached to a particular loan are more than you can afford or want to deal with. A general or standard loan “string” is the interest rate that you have to pay to get that loan. The interest rate will be based on how successful your business is and in many cases on your credit score.
The Whole Foods Market loan program requirements that are above what a standard lender would require are:
- You must meet their quality standards.
- You must meet their Animal Compassionate standards.
- You cannot use the loan for operating costs such as material and labor.
- You may have to sign a purchase agreement.
If you are ready to expand, you should compare the Whole Foods Market’s loan program to other methods of financing such as small business loans provided by Farm Services Administration (FSA), Small Business Administration (SBA) and lines of credit provided through your bank. Table 2 allows you to do a side-by-side comparison of different financing alternatives.
Table 2. Compare financing alternativesLoan terms |
Whole Foods Market loan program |
Standard bank loan |
Bank line of credit |
Limits on use of loan |
Capital equipment |
Capital equipment |
None |
Percent of total cost |
80% |
80-95% |
100% |
Interest rate |
|
|
|
Repayment period |
|
|
|
Grace period |
|
|
|
Processing fee |
|
|
|
Penalty for early repayment |
|
|
|
Business plan |
|
|
|
Purchase Agreement |
|
|
|
The example in Table 2 illustrates a comparison across the different loan alternatives. A bank may provide you a loan to purchase new equipment for expansion and use that same equipment as collateral. This would be the same for both the Whole Foods Market loan program and any local bank loan program. However, if you had a line of credit with your bank you can use that money for whatever you need, including operating expenses. For example, if you need more material for labels because you know that you will have a seasonal spike in sales, then you could use your line of credit to purchase that material.
A purchase agreement may work in your favor. A purchase agreement provides a guaranteed outlet for your product at a specific price. However, you must be sure that you are setting an appropriate price for your product in order to make a profit. With a purchase agreement in hand most banks would probably lend you the money for an expansion as the increased sales would be recorded in your cash flow statement, which will allow the bank to see how you would repay them.
One thing to remember is that banks, lenders in general, are not paid to take risks. They want to know that you have a plan to continue to make your business successful. A way to provide that information is to understand how the proposed expansion will help you to be more efficient in order to increase sales or decrease costs.References
Farm Services Agency Loan Program can be found at http://www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA/webapp?area=home&subject=fmlp&topic=landing
Whole Foods Market Local Producer Loan Program can be found at http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products/locallygrown/lplp/index.html
Dan Egel
Extension Plant Pathologist
Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center
Perhaps the two most common diseases of tomato are Septoria leaf spot and early blight. These diseases are often lumped together for several reasons. Both are diseases of the tomato foliage, they are both caused by fungi and although the lesions look a bit different, the diseases may be managed in a similar fashion. If one can learn to recognize and manage these diseases, many growers and their tomatoes will be happier.
Symptoms
Perhaps the most frequent complaint I receive from tomato growers is that their tomato plants are dying from the ground up. Upon further investigation, one or both of the diseases that are the subject of this article are to blame. Both occur on the lower leaves first. Early blight is the more common disease. Typical lesions are round and have a bulls-eye appearance (Image 1). That is, there are minute ridges in the interior of the lesion that form in approximate concentric rings. Septoria leaf spot lesions are also rounded, but have a chocolate brown region that surrounds a lighter gray center (Image 2). Small dark specks in the larger lesions are fungal structures and may be seen with a 10-20 times hand lens. As either disease progresses, lesions may coalesce to form large necrotic areas. Under good conditions for disease spread, either disease can quickly blight entire plants. Both diseases primarily affect the leaves and stems, although early blight may cause a stem end lesion in severe cases.
Biology
Fungi cause both diseases. Septoria leaf spot is caused by the fungus Septoria lycopercisi and early blight is caused by the fungus Alternaria solani. Both fungi survive in the tomato crop debris. Both diseases thrive in typical summer weather-temperatures in the 70’s and 80’s with occasional dews or rains to cause leaf wetness. Early blight is favored by slightly warmer temperature than Septoria leaf blight. Initial infections result when the fungi are splashed from crop debris to the lower leaves of tomato plants. Once lesions are formed on the lower leaves, the resulting spores can splash to additional leaves higher in the crop canopy.
Since both causal fungi mentioned above survive in crop debris, once the tomato crop debris has decayed the disease pressure will be greatly reduced. Tomato growers should rotate away from tomato or related crops three or four years. Fall tillage will help crop debris to decay and thus reduce disease problems.
Growers with a small number of plants may find it useful to remove infected lower leaves and compost them away from the production field. Do not dump culled fruit in the production field. Always use new or disinfected trays and stakes. Avoid pruning or picking when the foliage of the tomato plants is wet since this is an excellent time for spore production and infection.
It may be necessary to apply foliar fungicides to help slow the spread of these diseases. Do not wait until the diseases have been observed before applying fungicides. Try to get a head start on diseases by applying fungicides preventatively. Check with the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI) and your certifying agency to find labeled compounds that may be used to control these diseases.
OMRI lists many materials that are labeled for disease control of early blight and Septoria leaf spot. These compounds include fixed copper compounds, microbial compounds and hydrogen peroxide compounds.
Always read the label carefully for application and safety information. Each label will list the Re-entry Intervals (REI) and Preharvest Intervals (PHI). Do not enter or allow workers to enter treated area during the REI period. PHI is the minimum time that must pass between the last pesticide application and harvest.John Masiunas
Dept. Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences
University of Illinois
In this article I discuss ways you can manage the soil seed bank. Why concentrate on the soil seed bank when designing management programs? Most problem weeds are summer annual weeds. Examples of summer annual weeds include barnyardgrass, giant foxtail, large crabgrass, common lambsquarters, redroot pigweed, velvetleaf, tall waterhemp and ivyleaf morningglory. Summer annual weeds live an entire life cycle within one year; emerging from seed in the spring and summer, growing, flowering, setting seed and dying (Figure 1). They spread and survive by seed that resides in the soil (called a soil seed bank). The weed causing this year’s problems are most likely coming from the soil seed bank.
What is a soil seed bank?
A soil seed bank is the reserves of viable seeds present on the surface and in the soil (Figure 2). The soil seed bank consists of new seed recently shed by plants and older seeds that have persisted in the soil. The seed bank is indicator of past and future weed problems. A few species dominate the seed bank. These are the primary weeds in a crop and are adapted to the cropping system and resistant to control measures. For example, in vegetable cropping systems, common purslane and large crabgrass are often problem weeds because they are resistant to tillage and hand-weeding. Soil seed banks have many infrequent species that are adapted to your area but not to current production practices. These infrequent species include newly introduced species and seed that survived from previous land uses.
What happens to seed in the soil?
The seed bank can be divided into the active versus dormant (persistent) seed bank. The active seed bank consists of seeds that are able to germinate. Dormant seed make up the persistent seed bank and are able to survive for many years. Velvetleaf is an example of a species with a very persistent seed bank. The transient seed bank consist of small seeded annual weed seed without a hard seed coat that only persist in the soil a couple of years. Many grasses such as giant foxtail have transient seed banks. This means that if seed input (called seed rain) can be prevented, problems with grass weeds can be reduced.
Table 1. The seed persistence for some common weed species.
| Weed species survival (years) | |
Canada thistle |
21 |
Common lambsquarters |
39 |
Common purslane |
30 |
Common ragweed |
39 |
Dandelion |
6 |
Redroot pigweed |
10 |
Shepherd’s purse |
16 |
Weed seed input (also called seed rain) is critical for maintaining a soil seed bank. Without seed input the seed bank will rapidly decline. Local sources of weed seed predominates the seed rain. Approximately 95 percent of seed rain comes from annual weeds growing in the field. The seed are predominately dispersed near their mother plants causing weed seed banks to be patchy and not uniform across a field. Thus, you can concentrate your management strategies toward areas with the greatest seed densities. Distant sources are important if local seed production is limited such as during new infestations of Canada thistle. How can you reduce weed seed entering the seed bank? Mowing or pulling can be used to prevent seed production. During the 1930’s and 1940’s some farmers used seed collectors on combines to reduce weed seed rain.
Table 2. Examples of seed production by common weed species.
| Species | Seed production/ plant |
| Barnyardgrass | 300,000 |
| Pennsylvania smartweed | 19,300 |
| Redroot pigweed | 117,400 |
| Powell amaranth | 709,500 |
| Common purslane | 52,300 |
| Common lambsquarters | 72,450 |
| Common ragweed | 3,380 |
Failed germination may be the principal process by which seeds are lost from the soil. Only a small portion of seed will emerge during any year. Some research indicates that 95 percent of potential plants die during seedling stage.
How can you encourage unsuccessful germination?
Rotary hoeing or shallow tillage can be used to eliminate the first flush of weed seedlings. Another approach is to use moldboard plowing for deep burial of weed seed. Deeply buried weed seed generally becomes dormant. Fields can be worked early using stale seed bed methods. These methods stimulate early flushes of weeds that can be “burned down” using flaming or vinegar. These early emerging flushes of weeds are the most competitive.
Summer annual weeds emerge at specific times in early spring through mid-summer depending on their adaptation to the environment. Some common emergence times for central Illinois are in Table 3. Buhler and colleagues at Iowa State University have a publication describing emergence sequences for common weeds of corn and soybeans (see http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/pubs/other/files/SA11.pdf) that is useful for Illinois. The Arlington Research Station of the University of Wisconsin has a “weedometer” that predicts emergence of weed for different locations in Wisconsin (http://weedometer.net) that can be used to approximate emergence times in northern Illinois. The timing of weed emergence is important for timing planting and tillage operations to either avoid stimulating a flush of weeds or controlling the major flush of a weed before planting a crop.
Specific emergence times will vary depending on environmental factors such as soil temperature and rainfall, soil aspects such as porosity and nutrient levels, and farming practices such as crop rotation and tillage. Even though the specific time of emergence may vary, the relative order of emergence will remain the same. Flushes of weed emergence are often induced by rainfall and tillage. No-till systems concentrate weed seed at or near the soil surface where failed germination or predation is high. High levels of surface residue such as in a cover crop system reduce and delay weed seed emergence by decreasing soil temperatures, reducing temperature fluctuations, and preventing light from reaching the weed seed.
The rate of emergence also varies among weed species. The rate of emergence is important because it determines how effective single tillage operations will control a flush of weeds. For example, if you can delay planting snap beans from early-May to early-June, common lambsquarters populations can be reduced by more than 80 percent.
Table 3. Approximate emergence times for selected weed species in central Illinois
| Common name | Latin name | First emergence time |
| Common dandelion | Taraxacum officinale | March 22 to April |
| Giant ragweed | Ambrosia trifida | March 20 to April 12 |
| Common lambsquarters | Chenopodium album | March 25 to April 15 |
| Eastern black nightshade | Solanum ptycanthum | April 20 to April 30 |
| Giant foxtail | Setaria faberi | April 25 to April 27 |
| Velvetleaf | Abutilon theophrasti | April 25 to April 30 |
| Common cocklebur | Xanthium strumarium | April 30 to May 2 |
| Jimsonweed | Datura stramonium | April 30 to May 18 |
| Redroot pigweed | Amaranthus retroflexus | May 3 to May 9 |
| Yellow nutsedge | Cyperus esculentus | May 8 to May 13 |
| Large crabgrass | Digitaria sanguinalis | May 8 to May 17 |
Emergence of and ability to control individual weeds also depends on whether or not the seed is dormancy or actively growing. Dormancy refers to a relatively inactive or resting condition that slows down or stops seed germination. Control strategies in organic cropping systems generally do not control dormant weed seed. In general, seeds of summer annual weeds become able to germinate in early spring and become more dormant as soil temperature increases and soil moisture deceases during the summer (Figure 3). Seeds do not abruptly change from dormant to non-dormant. Instead, they pass through a state of conditional dormancy during which they germinate only in a limited range of environmental conditions. For example, summer annual weeds complete after ripening in early spring. This results in the optimum and minimum temperatures for germination being as low as possible and a large percentage of seeds germinating in a short time over the widest range of temperatures. This results in spring flushes of summer annual weeds. In autumn, spring or summer germinating species by autumn lose their ability to germinate at low temperatures. Thus fall tillage that brings summer annual weed seed to the soil surface does not cause germination and will not directly kill the seed. Because many agricultural weeds go through cycles of dormancy, planting or tillage can be timed to follow peak weed emergence times.
What factors can a farmer manipulate to control weed seed dormancy?
Exposure to light breaks the dormancy of many imbibed small seeded weeds such as chickweed and dandelion. Shallow burial can prevent light from reaching these seeds. Also closed crop canopies, cover crops, and crop residues on the soil surface are all methods preventing light-requiring weed seed from germinating. Tillage or cultivation will expose seed to flashes of light and research as early as the 1960s showed increased weed seed germination after cultivation in light versus dark. Night cultivation is generally impractical and continuous night cultivation would likely cause shifts to weed species not needing light. (See Figure 4.)
Weed seed predation can be an important method to reduce inputs into the soil seed bank. Weed seeds store high energy compounds that are also an excellent source for a variety of animals. Common seed predators include: ground beetles, crickets and mice. Significant seed predation occurs in crop fields, which may influence effectiveness of weed management. The rate of seed predation increases as crop canopy develops. Seed predation may be the most significant form of biological weed control that occurs in organic fields. Predators vary in preference for weed seed. Large, high-energy seeds such as cocklebur or giant ragweed seed are more likely to be predated than small seed such as field pennycress. Timing of predation also varies depending on seed rain and the predator. Predispersal seed predation includes feeding on flowers, seeds and developing fruit before they are release from the mother plant. For example, in some populations of velvetleaf over 80 percent of seed can be damaged while still in the capsule. Postdispersal predators consume seeds once they have matured. Seed predators can remove more than 90% of weed seed on the soil surface between fall and spring. Seed predators can be vertebrates (field mice, voles, birds) and invertebrates (ground beetles, crickets, earthworms). Field mice are active year round while insect seed predators are most active in mid-to-late summer through early fall. Tillage or seed burial greatly reduces seed predation. Seed predation can be increased by delaying fall tillage, provided untilled areas with vegetation as refuges for seed predators or maintaining high amounts of residue to provide protection for seed predators.
Tillage affects weed seed distribution.
The majority of seed remain near the soil surface in undisturbed or no-tilled soils. Mold board plowing inverts soil deeply burying seeds. Keeping weed seed near the soil surface will: reduce dormancy, encourage germination, allow more efficient weed management, so the weed seed bank is diminished in the upper level of soil. Deeply burying weed seed will induce dormancy complicating future management. Soil type and tillage type will influence distribution. For example, after mold board plowing 12 percent of seeds present in the top 5 cm of sandy loam soil while 46 percent of seeds present in the top 5 cm of clay soil. How can you use this information? Shift weed seed from dormant to active part of seed bank. Bring weed seed to soil surface. Expose seed to harsh environmental conditions. Encourage predation to enhance mortality of seeds.
Anderson, R. L. 2005. A multi-tactic approach to manage weed population dynamics in crop rotations. Agron. J. 97:1579-1583.
Baskin, J. M. and C. C. Baskin. 1985. The annual dormancy cycle in buried weed seeds: A continuum. BioScience 35:492-498.
Buhler, D. D., R. G. Hartzler, F. Forcella, and J. L. Gunsolus. 1997. Relative emergence sequence for weeds of corn and soybeans. Available at: http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/pubs/other/files/SA11.pdf
Davis, A.S. 2006. When does it make sense to target the weed seed bank? Weed Sci. 54:558-565.
Delate, K. Weed management for organic farmers. Iowa State University. Available at: http://extension.agron.iastate.edu/sustag/pubs/WeedManagemen.doc
Dyer, W. E. 1995. Exploiting weed seed dormancy and germination requirements through agronomic practices. Weed Science 43:498-503.
Curran, W. 2004. Weed management in organic cropping systems. Agronomy Facts 64. Department of Crop and Soil Sciences. Penn. State University. Available at http://cropsoil.psu.edu/extension/facts/agfacts64.cfm
Hartzler, B., M. Liebman, and P. Westerman. 2006. Weed seed predation in agricultural fields. Iowa State University. Available at: http://www.weeds.iastate.edu/mgmt/2006/seedpredators.shtml
OMAFRA Staff. 2006. Principles of integrated weed management: Non-chemical weed control. Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Ontario, Canada. Available at: http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/pub75/1cultura.htmVicki Morrone
Organic Vegetable and Crop Outreach Specialist
Most leaf blowers have the capacity of serving as a vacuum and a blower. There is very little conversion needed to use a leaf blower to suck up insects for sampling purposes, or to provide an eco-friendly way to remove them from crop plants.
| When selecting a leaf blower, find one that has a large diameter opening and tube (approximately 8 inches) to provide adequate coverage per plant. You can even buy one that fits like a back pack with padded straps and a frame; if you want that type of handling. To prevent insects from clogging the system, you should use a nylon cloth. Nylon “knee highs” work great. Just open one up and attach the opened end to the opening of the vacuum with a strong rubber band. This will catch the insects for counting or disposal, depending on your needs. If you have a large number of insects, you need to empty them periodically. To keep them from flying away, you can empty the stocking into a container of soapy water, the soapy film will make it more difficult for them to fly away. |  |
When selecting a leaf blower, find one that has a large diameter opening and tube (approximately 8 inches) to provide adequate coverage per plant. You can even buy one that fits like a back pack with padded straps and a frame; if you want that type of handling. To prevent insects from clogging the system, you should use a nylon cloth. Nylon “knee highs” work great. Just open one up and attach the opened end to the opening of the vacuum with a strong rubber band. This will catch the insects for counting or disposal, depending on your needs. If you have a large number of insects, you need to empty them periodically. To keep them from flying away, you can empty the stocking into a container of soapy water, the soapy film will make it more difficult for them to fly away.
Walt Pett, an MSU professor in entomology, among others in the bug world, uses this system to sample insects for his research. He also uses this to remove Colorado potato beetle from potatoes. He has observed that this system not only removes insect pests from the plant, but also pulls some soil (especially in sandy soils) up and in the process damages any egg masses located on the underside of the leaves. He stated he has not noticed damage to the plants, but he uses it mostly on potato plants to manage the Colorado potato beetle. You may need to be cautious when using it on young transplants. Having a wider suction nozzle will also reduce the tendency to suck up the plant.
Diane Brown-Rytlewski
Plant Pathology
Michigan State University
Editor’s note: This article was first written for a Michigan audience. However, the information including the Penn State web site has applications for most of the Midwest and Great Lakes states.
Powdery mildew
Powdery mildew is the only wheat foliar disease showing up with any regularity this season, and the amounts of it are quite variable. On susceptible or highly susceptible varieties, there is a substantial amount of mildew. With rain and humid weather along with cooler temperatures forecast for the next few days, conditions may be favorable for powdery mildew to come up out of the lower canopy where the temperatures have been cooler and more humid and climb up on the flag leaves and heads. Lower-risk products registered in Michigan for management of powdery mildew on wheat include: Eco-Mate Armicarb, and Sonata. These products are NOP approved for organic production, however, those who are certified organic should always check with their certifying agency before using a new product.
Fusarium head blight
Wheat in Michigan is flowering in many parts of the state. The most critical period for scab infection is at flowering, although some risk of infection continues until around the soft dough stage. As of now, across the state, the risk of scab according to the Penn State Model is low. Parts of the state have been dry, such as around the Montcalm area, and parts of the state have been wetter, such as around Lapeer. In the Thumb area, temperatures are definitely in the favorable range for infection, but rainfall amounts and relative humidity have been low. However, rain for fairly long time periods and cooler temperatures that will keep the wheat heads wet for extended periods were forecasted for the past weekend, so risk may have increased over the weekend.
You can access specific information for a weather station location at the Penn State site http://www.wheatscab.psu.edu/. Go to the risk map tool, click on OK. Select the winter wheat model, click on OK. A map of the U.S. will appear. Click on Michigan (or your state). A state map will appear with the weather station locations, and a state-specfific commentary box.
Click on one of the station locations. You will see an indicator bar showing low (green) medium (yellow) or high (red) risk of epidemic conditions for scab. A graph shows the risk probability for the seven days precious to flowering. The graph information assumes that the current day is the day of flowering. The next graph shows temperature and rainfall for the last 7 days. Click on the arrow next to view model parameters. That will bring up another bar chart that shows you the temperature in number of hours/day when it was favorable for scab (orange bars) the number of hours of rainfall (purple bars) and the number of hours when both the temperature and the relative humidity were in the favorable range for scab (blue bars). So, you can determine when conditions were favorable for scab. Although the model uses temperatures between about 48°F and 86°F, the most favorable conditions for infection are temperatures between 68-86°F, with periods of rainfall longer than 24 hours.
For those of you in Michigan’s Thumb area who want to have a look at the DONCast predictions of vomitoxin levels in wheat across the lake in Ontario, you can access that web site by going to: http://www.weatherinnovations.com/.
Go to models and select DONCast. On the Ontario map, the predicted DON levels for heading on May 31st range from under 1ppm to around 2 ppm.
Wednesday, July 11,
8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
University of Minnesota
Southwest Research and Outreach Center
Lamberton, Minn.
Organic Field Day Schedule of Events
(provided by Carmen Fernholz)
7:30 a.m. Continental Breakfast
8:30 a.m. Field Tours
- Organic Soybean Variety Comparisons
- Soybean Planting Rate and Date Trials
- Forage Effects on Soil Quality
- Organic Corn Breeding and Variety Trials
- Alternative Crop Rotations
- Organic Vegetable Variety Trials
- Approved Herbicide and Pesticide Trials
- Carbon Sequestration Research
11 a.m. Organic No-till with the Rodale Roller
Jeff Moyer, Research Farm Manager, Rodale Institute
Noon Lunch, featuring organic and local foods – Visit Exhibits
1 p.m. Short Presentations by Exhibitors
1:15 p.m. Organic Vegetable Variety Selection and UW Organic Research Update
Erin Silva, PhD, UW Organic Production Specialist
2 p.m. Minimizing Risk in Organic Production
Dr. Craig Sheaffer, UMN Professor of Agronomy
3 p.m. Roundtable Discussion on UMN Organic Research and Outreach Priorities
Jim Riddle and Carmen Fernholz
3:30 p.m. Tour of Prairie Restoration and Organic Conversion Acres
4 p.m. Adjourn
Susan Smalley
C.S. Mott Group for Sustainable Food Systems,
Michigan State University
A new report developed collaboratively by Michigan State University and the Michigan Organic Food and Farm Alliance provides information about Michigan’s certified organic farms and processing businesses. Data from a 2005 statewide survey as well as national surveys conducted by USDA’s Economic Research Service and the Organic Farming Research Foundation provide an important perspective about Michigan’s current organic agriculture status and how Michigan contributes to the region and beyond.
Among the report’s findings:
- About two thirds (66%) of Michigan’s certified organic farmers transitioned from conventional production practices to organic.
- Over 75% of Michigan’s organic farmers have been certified organic for 10 years or less.
- Although the average acreage of organic farms varies considerably depending on the farm type, the overall mean average was 260 acres, with a range of 1 to 2,400 acres. That compares with an overall mean average of 190 acres for all Michigan farms documented in the 2002 Census of Agriculture.
Susan Smalley
C.S. Mott Group for Sustainable Food Systems,
Michigan State University
On April 20, the Michigan Farmers Market Association (MIFMA) celebrated its Membership Kick-Off and hosted a Market-Style Resource Fair in East Lansing, Mich. with more than 100 farmers market managers, farmers, vendors and friends.
This membership kick-off has been months in the making, from the organizations inception in the summer of 2006 to this months event. Project for Public Spaces, an organization supporting farmers markets, parks and other gathering places granted Michigan Food & Farming Systems (MIFFS), in partnership with Michigan State University (MSU), money to develop MIFMA, a state-wide association to promote local food consumption in Michigan by connecting more farmers to consumers through farmers markets.
On the day of the event, MIFMA welcomed 23 new charter members including six farmers markets, six farmers and 11 individual members. Some of the benefits of being a member include: reduced rates at MIFMA sponsored workshops and events; a 10% discount on purchases made at Eat Local Food, a merchandising and art design company focused on farmers markets; reduced rates on Rapid Market Assessments and market evaluation services; and a great network of resources and collaboration with MIFMA members. Members will also be highlighted on the online farmers market directory on the MIFMA web site at www.farmersmarkets.msu.edu.
Many more benefits for MIFMA members are in the works. The leadership team is currently pursuing discounts and reduced insurance for farmers and markets along with developing seminars, electronic benefit transfer training for low-income areas and policy support for members.
For more information MIFMA please visit www.farmersmarkets.msu.edu or contact Dru Montri at (517) 432-3381 or dnmontri@msu.edu.
Indiana
Southeast Indiana, Decatur County – Gary Reding
This May has been dry in our part of southeast Indiana. We have been able to get some good stale seedbed preparation accomplished and will be planting our organic popcorn today and tomorrow. Soybean planting should follow immediately if we do not get much rain Thursday and Friday (May 24-25). We have been able to get our spring manure applied in good order and even have baled some nice first cutting of hay, which (the “nice” part) does not happen very often in May here.
Our crop ground has been disked once and field cultivated once about 10 days apart. We still have some good soil moisture under the top layer and the crops should emerge quickly. We are about 1.8 inches of rain below normal for May. I just hope we do not do the catch-up game while we are trying to rotary hoe shortly after planting.
We were able to get some chicken manure for about 45 acres of popcorn production this year. We will compare that field to others that have cattle compost applied and one field that just follows soybeans. It will be interesting to see what impact the various fertilizer routines have on the yield. We will attempt to side dress some fertilizer into the field where we are following soybeans.
Hay this year is a little short on yield so far and also late due to the hard freeze we had in April. The quality seems to be OK and I hope it will recover quickly for the rest of the season. The first paddocks we intensively grazed seem to be recovering normally.
In the weeks to come, we will be rotary hoeing and cultivating the crops we get planted this week. We will continue to make hay and graze as the summer progresses.
South Central Indiana, Brown County – Dale RhoadsThe up and down weather has caused additional weed problems by germinating early spring, spring and summer weeds all at the same time. It is getting a little dry. I have been watering areas to ensure seed germination and transplant survival. We stopped transplanting some summer stuff due to cold weather, but it never frosted and is warming back up now.
Currently we are finishing up transplanting basil, kale and leeks; applying mulch; and weeding. We will continue those tasks during the next two weeks.
Question
We are doing our first crimping and have some questions about that. I am also interested in discussing some sudangrass cover crop issues on the next call.
Northern Illinois, Kane County – Dave Campbell
We have received less than two-tenths of an inch of rain since April 27. Subsoil moisture is adequate due to good rain last fall and near-normal snowfall last winter. I’ve never seen the topsoil this dry, this early in the growing season. I’m using a culti-mulcher (packer) as a last-pass tillage operation on all of my corn ground in order to seal in what little moisture is in the soil. Normally I would not use a culti-mulcher due to the fact that it usually increases weed pressure, although since lack of moisture is the main issue, I’ve decided to use the packer this spring. Also, it’s been too dry for weeds to germinate anyway. In the past few days, I’ve decided to do all of my tillage work in the mornings or evenings until we receive a beneficial rain.
I’ve finished planting a couple of fields of corn late last week. I will plant another field of corn this afternoon, and I hope to finish planting corn late Wednesday or Thursday (May 23-24). I will be planting the next two fields into dry dirt and probably will only rotary hoe corn once instead of twice, due to very dry conditions and due to no weed pressure whatsoever.
In the next two weeks, I’ll finish planting corn, rotary hoe corn, and clean up and service equipment. I may also start cutting first-cutting hay next week.
West Central Illinois, Fulton County – Anne Patterson of Living Earth Farm
It’s now very dry. I’m spending a lot of time dragging out hoses at one property and hoops and shade cloth. I will have to set up the irrigation system on the other half acre if I don’t get any rain this week. Many things aren’t germinating due to lack of significant rain since May 4, and that which has come up isn’t always thriving.
Currently I’m harvesting spinach, lettuce, asparagus, rhubarb, chives and sorrel. I’m transplanting eggplant, sweet potatoes, summer squash, basil and peppers. I’ve had to buy more onion plants to fill in the gaps of the mysteriously disappearing onion plants. Do deer eat onions? I’m seeding cleared beds of spinach with cover crop of 60 percent buckwheat and 40 percent cow peas. I will plant the area with a cover crop, work it in and let it fallow, then setup for winter cover crop seeding. I plant romaine lettuce weekly and transplant out every four weeks. I am cutting romaine for a restaurant starting this week. Jim and our employee, Ben, just completed building a deer fence around our small bramble patch. I am weeding even though it is very dry.
Herbs and flowers have been a bit neglected so I hope to catch up with these in the next two weeks. I still have a new large raised bed for cut flowers and vegetables to be built. I will continue to water new fruit trees and transplants.
QuestionI need to know who recommends spaders and what kind?
West Suburban Chicago, Lake County – Steve Tiwald of Green Earth Institute
The warm, dry weather is a problem. We have not had significant rain in more than five weeks. We have lost our spring crop of bok choi because it has bolted due to the heat.
With the passage of the last frost of the spring (we hope!), we are diligently doing the transplanting operation to get the warm season crops transplanted into the field – tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, summer squash, cucumbers and basil. We continue our periodic seeding of lettuce into greenhouse trays. We are also trellising our sugar snap peas, using the Florida weave.
In preparation for transplanting our winter squash seedlings into the field, we will be putting aged horse manure in a furrow in the center of each strip, and then using our spading device to work it into the soil.
Our first CSA pickup will take place June 12, so we are beginning to clean out the barn and arrange it for use as the CSA pickup venue.
IowaNorthwest Iowa, O'Brien County – Paul Mugge
After the very heavy and hard rains in early May, it turned hot and dry. Temperatures are in the 80s every day with 30-40 mph winds. It has really dried the surface out. The conventional guys are planting beans in dry soil, but conditions are perfect for my ridge plant system. My corn is mostly emerged with excellent stands. I missed a harrowing on one field because the corn came up so fast (six days) that I was killing too many plants.
I finished planting soybeans on Monday, May 21, except the endrows, which I will wait a week or so to get another flush of weeds because that ground is tilled. I struggled with the first field that I planted because my ridge planter kept falling off the ridge – it’s very frustrating. It still plants alright, but it will make cultivating a challenge and it makes my neighbors ask what I’ve been smoking. I re-built some angled gage wheels and they keep the planter nicely centered on the ridge now and it works much better. This is prime time for weed control, of course, so I am rotary hoeing corn and beans on schedule as weather allows.
During the next two weeks I will continue rotary hoeing. Probably one more pass on the corn and three on the beans if weather allows. The forecast is for a rainy period. The alfalfa is approaching the time for first cutting and cultivating corn won’t be far behind.Michigan
South Central Michigan, Calhoun County – Anthony Cinzoni
The dry weather has slowed planting and crop growth. Currently we are laying plastic, transplanting cucumbers, summer squash and tomatoes. We are cultivating cole crops, onions and potatoes.
In the next two weeks, we plan to lay plastic, plant tomatoes and peppers, and seed winter squash and beans in the greenhouse.
East Michigan – John SimmonsIt has been alternately cool and wet, warm and wet, and warm and dry through most of May, which has kept soils from drying. Temperatures have warmed and rains have held off the past week, and fields are drying. We seem to have entered a pattern where the fields are dry enough to start working every other Tuesday, the same day as the New Ag Network conference call.
I plan to start field preparation for corn/soy/sunflower planting today (Tuesday, May 22). I’m shipping seed and continue to prep and maintain machinery – grease, adjust, etc.
In the next two weeks I will prep and plant oat cover on sunflower stubble; prep fields for corn, sunflower and soybean planting; and place cattle on pasture.
QuestionsAny news of aphids? Rust?
Minnesota
Western Minnesota, Lac qui Parle County – Carmen Fernholz
Since our e-newsletter the weather has been quite warm and windy. In fact, the top soil is quite dry – down 2 plus inches – and ground worked on the wet side has become quite hard. Some of the conventional corn is losing its green color; I suspect it may be a nitrogen shortage because of the compaction. I see the same symptoms in my oats field that was worked and planted on the wet side. There are showers predicted over the next several days that will hopefully help to remedy the situation.
We just finished planting corn and are now waiting for several days before starting soybeans. All of the ground was worked once about two weeks ago. Hopefully some rain in the next day or two will give some more weeds an opportunity to germinate. I am also watching closely to see whether I need to harrow the corn in the next day or so, or wait until after the possible showers. My rule, however, is “When in doubt, harrow.”
The next two weeks will be spent planning and planting soybeans and harrowing the corn, and possibly the soybeans, and then getting the cultivator ready. I am also watching the alfalfa as it will probably be ready to cut by this coming weekend.
Information about permission to reprint or post our articles. Funding to initiate this network was provided by the American Farmland Trust and EPA Region 5. Web site hosted by the MSU IPM Program. Contact webmaster. |
 |