An Agro-ecosystem Design Plan

Hilltop Farm

prepared by

C. Crawford, M.S.

North Carolina State University

Close to Rails to Trails Access

Demographic Description Hilltop Farm

Moderate Climate: • Ave. annual temperature 57.8 F, 33-54 in.

precipitation

Acreage: • 21.42 acres total

• ~ 5.05 acres clear

Agrosilvopastoral system • Crops, pasture animals, timber could be

managed on same land

Potential Crops

Vegetable • 16 crops: eggplant, garlic, spinach…

Fruit • 2 crops: muscadine grape, strawberry

Flower • 8 crops: tulip, gerbera daisy, lily, lavender…

Cover crop: • Cold season: crimson clover, rye, hairy vetch

• Warm season: sorghum-sudangrass, soybean

Muscadine Grape Vineyard

One Acre

Strawberry Field:

Pick your Own

Proposed Animals

Incorporation of animals: • 2 goats, 10 chickens

• Diversify income

• Prepare and fertilize soil

• Recycle nutrients on farm

• Clear underbrush for next season

Animal rotation plan: • Jan-Feb: pasture chickens upper land parcel

• Chickens rotated on lower land rest of year

• Goats rotated in temporary fencing weekly

Chickens

Prepare Soil

Jan-Feb

Goats

Clear

Pasture

all year

Common Species in Natural Area

rhododendron (Rhododendron)

flowering dogwood (Cornus florida)

mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia)

sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum)

sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua)

yellow-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera)

shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata)

loblolly pine (Pinus taeda)

Virginia pine (Pinus virginiana)

white oak (Quercus alba)

scarlet oak (Quercus coccinea)

southern red oak (Quercus falcata)

northern red oak (Quercus rubra)

post oak (Quercus stellata)

Soil Management

Soil type: • 8B--Clifford sandy loam, well drained, 5% slope

• Sandy loam 0-6 in, clay loam 6-55 in

• Fine, kaolinitic, mesic Typic Kanhapludults

• pH 5.8 (NRCS 2004)

Management plan: • Cover cropping

• Conservation tillage

• On-farm nutrient recycling

• Living mulches

Soil Management

Tillage: • Conservation tillage, shift towards no till

• Retro-fit tractor » Designed to cut, roll crop biomass into soil for

increased SOM

Manure management: • Compost goat, chicken manure

• Spread on fields after 6 months

Soil Amendments

Nitrogen • On-farm compost, cover crops, manure, feathermeal

Phosphorus • Rock phosphate

Potassium • Potassium sulfate

Magnesium, pH • Dolomitic lime to increase pH from 5.8

Soil Structure & Microbial Activity • Seaweed to condition soil

• Worm castings improve structure, add microorganisms, and nutrients

Pest Management

Potential crop pests: • Cutworms, grape root borer moth, potato tuberworm,

japanese beetle, slug, nematodes

Mechanical pest barriers: • Foil/cardboard tubing for cutworm protection

• Screen in potatoes for potato tuberworm protection

• Create mound around grape vines to protect against grape root borer moth

Handpicking/scouting weekly

Pest Management

Traps: • Japanese beetle traps

• Shallow beer can to trap slugs

Interplanting: • Mulberry tree border around vineyards for birds

Importation: • Parasites of greenhouse whitefly

Prevention practices: • Guard dogs for larger mammalian pests/predators of

chickens or goats

Proposed Marketing

South Boston Farmers’ Market • Sell vegetables, fruits, flowers

• Value-added products

Value-added products: • Goat cheese, goat milk, eggs, jams

Upscale restaurants • Bistro 1888, South Boston, VA

• Molasses Grill, Halifax, VA

Farm to school programs • Charlottesville, VA involved in program

• Utilize contacts in school system

Income Diversification

Farm tours

Horseback trail riding

Pick your own strawberries

Sell grapes to local wineries

Resources/Funding

USDA Grants and Loans for Small

Farms: Alternative Farming Systems

Information Center

CFSA Incubator Farm Programs

USDA National Agricultural Library:

Rural Info Center

References Coffey, Linda. “Goats: Sustainable Production Overview” ATTRA. 2004

Baldwin, Kenneth & Nancy Creamer. “Cover Crops for Organic Farms” CEFS.

Roos, Debbie. “Soil Management Grower Profiles: Alex Hitt, Peregrine Farms” NC Cooperative Extension.

Roberts, Roland. �”Vegetable Rotations, Successions, and Intercropping” Texas Agricultural Extension Service.

Farmtoschool.org

Guera, Martina and Holly Born. Strawberries: Organic Production. ATTRA. 2007.

NRCS Soil Data Mart. Halifax County and the City of South Boston. 2004.

The Cooperative Soil Survey. Soil Data Map Unit Interpretation Report. Halifax County and the City of South Boston. 2004.

Simone, Eric et al. “Drip-irrigation systems for small conventional vegetable farms and organic vegetable farms” IFAS Extension. 2008.

Cover Crops: Selection considerations for cover/companion crops on Vineyards and Orchards. S&S Seeds. 2007.

Poling, Barclay and Connie Fisk. “Muscadine Grapes in the Home Garden” NCSU Horticulture Information Leaflets. 2006.

Roos, Debbie. Pasture Poultry. Growing Small Farms. Chatham County Center NC Cooperative Extension.

Jones, Doug and Debbie Roos. Planting and Harvesting Guide for Piedmont Vegetables and Herbs. Chatham County Center NC Cooperative Extension. 2009.

Sorenson, Kenneth et al. “Insects and Related Pests of Vegetables”. NCSU Center for Integrated Pest Management.

Pest Management. ATTRA National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service. 2009.

Grants and Loans for Farmers. USDA National Agriculture Library Alternative Farming Systems Information Center. 2008.

Happy Farming!