Resources Category: Organic Crop Production

Explore best practices in organic crop production. Get expert tips on soil management, crop rotation, and sustainable farming techniques to boost your organic yields.

Blueberries: Organic Production

Blueberries are the most widely grown fruit crop in the United States. Blueberries are well-suited to organic culture, and good markets exist for organically grown blueberries. This production guide addresses key aspects of organic blueberry production, including soils and fertility, cultural considerations, pests, weeds, and diseases, as well as marketing. Additional resources are provided for… Continue reading Blueberries: Organic Production

Brambles: Organic Production

This publication focuses on organic practices for blackberry and raspberry production. It discusses cultural considerations including site selection, establishment, pruning and trellising, and it introduces organic practices for fertility, weed, disease, and insect management. It also provides new information on greenhouse production and season extension and addresses economics and marketing.

Cole Crops and Other Brassicas: Organic Production

Cole crops and other brassicas are grown throughout the United States. These crops are an excellent choice for many organic farmers because of the variety of crops in this family and their nutritional qualities, health benefits, compatibility in planting rotations, and pest-suppressive qualities. This publication addresses soils, fertility, planting, irrigation, pest management, harvesting, and marketing.

Companion Planting and Botanical Pesticides: Concepts and Resources

Certain plants can benefit others when planted in close proximity or used as botanical pesticides. This publication discusses the scientific and traditional basis for companion planting associations including trap cropping, weed suppression, physical-spatial interactions, and other relationships. It provides a companion planting chart for common herbs, vegetables, and flowers, as well as a listing of… Continue reading Companion Planting and Botanical Pesticides: Concepts and Resources

Overview of Cover Crops and Green Manures

Cover crops could be considered the backbone of any annual cropping system that seeks to be sustainable. In this publication we summarize the principal uses and benefits of cover crops and green manures. Brief descriptions and examples are provided for winter cover crops, summer green manures, living mulches, catch crops, and some forage crops.

Organic Greenhouse Vegetable Production

Organic greenhouse vegetable production requires extensive upfront investment but can yield premium prices if the grower can identify a marketing channel without a lot of competition. The key to profitable greenhouse vegetable production is keeping annual costs low. The highest costs for greenhouse production are energy and labor. This publication includes information on energy conservation,… Continue reading Organic Greenhouse Vegetable Production

Herbs: Organic Greenhouse Production

This publication discusses various marketing channels for organic herbs and assesses the economic factors to consider for small-scale organic greenhouse production of fresh-cut herbs. It also addresses production methods, including potential for hydroponic production.

Apples: Organic Production Guide

This publication provides information on organic apple production from recent research and producer experience. Many aspects of apple production are the same whether the grower uses low-spray, organic, or conventional management. Accordingly, this publication focuses on the aspects that differ from nonorganic practices-primarily pest and disease control, marketing, and economics.

Pears: Organic Production

This introduction to commercial organic pear production covers pear diseases, disease-resistant cultivars, rootstocks, insect and mite pests and their treatment, Asian pears, and marketing. Two profiles of organic pear growers are included. Electronic and print resources are provided for further research.