Learning Never Ends

This past weekend, I attended the Ohio Ecological Food and Farming Association’s annual conference.  This is the 30th consecutive conference for the organization, so they’ve really been ahead of their time.   There were many great sessions being put on.The first session I attended was all about small plot intensive farming.  The presenter talked about how urban farming faces different issues that rural, such as parking lot oil runoff, different climates in cities, and different wildlife concerns.  He also spoke fairly extensively about contaminated soil, and how to remove the contamination.  Soil in cities is at a higher risk for contamination due to its history – it may have been exposed to lead paint or leaded gasoline, and was most definitely exposed to automobile emissions.  Obviously, we don’t want any heavy metals or other toxic materials to be present where we grow food, since it will be absorbed by plant roots.  There are several ways to remediate the soil:

-mulching (reduces any wind-borne dust)
-emphasize fruiting plants (veggies such as eggplant and peppers), which
-grow ornamentals
-add compost and calcium to the soil, which reduces metal uptake in plants
-use phytoremediation, or cultivating highly absorptive plants to take up metals (mustard, brassicas, native grasses, sunflowers) However, disposal of contaminated plants is a problem.
-excavation – removal
-geotextiles – protective barrier in raised beds, which keeps the toxicity below the barrier.  Limits what plants you can grow – may not be able to grow deep-rooted plants

An audience member also mentioned a researcher at OSU names Nick Basta, who has conducted research on binding the metals in the soil so they will not be absorbed by plants.

I also learned about Intensive Pest Management (IPM) in small fruit productions.  IPM is a management method used in sustainable agriculture.  It’s not entirely organic, but it aims to use minimal pesticides to manage insects.  Fruit can be especially hard to grow organically, so though IPM is not perfect, it’s a nice alternative to conventional.

The most interesting information that I learned was during two workshops: Understanding Soil Biology and Sustainable Beekeeping.  In the soil biology class, I learned that every plant has an optimal carbon to nitrogen ratio.  The researcher conducted studies on soybeans.  He amended the soil with various forms of carbon to discover the best C:N ratio for the soy.  When you find the optimal ratio, the weeds will automatically be suppressed because you have found the best growing conditions for your crops.  They will automatically outcompete the weeds.  The timely release of carbon into the soil also affects the growth of weeds.  The researcher found that sawdust was the best soil amendment for soybeans, at the ratio of 50:1.  The slow release of carbon stimulates microbial activity.  The research presented was best suited to larger scale productions.  It was great information, but implementing the research at Beardsley would be tough, since we’ve got several different vegetables growing in one bed so we wouldn’t be able to find the optimal C:N ratio for each bed.

The sustainable beekeeping class offered some innovative solutions to mite problems that so many beekeepers face today.  There are two types of mites – varroa mites, a parasite that attaches to the bees’ body, and tracheal mites, a symbiotic predator that infests the airways of the honeybee.  To get rid of varroa mites without using any kind of antibiotic, you can do 2 powdered sugar dustings in the spring.  Using a flour sifter, sprinkle the hive two weeks apart with 1 pound of sugar each.  This causes the mites to lose their footing and fall into the screened bottoms, and also causes the bees to clean each other.  Then you simply remove the screen and take the mites far away from the hive.  Tracheal mites are more difficult to get rid of, and the beekeeper is still experimenting with trial and error.  She suggested planting mint around the hive, instead of using menthol, which is very harsh.  You could also use grease patties (vegetable shortening and granulated sugar), which causes the mites to lose their grip.

Overall, a very informative conference.  It was also entertaining, with the colorful Joel Salatin as a guest speaker for the event.

-Claire

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