What is Organic Farming, Really

5/14/2015 What Is Organic Farming, Really?

https://www.yahoo.com/health/what-is-organic-farming-really-118730997188.html 1/4

What Is OrganicFarming, Really?Clean Eating | May 14, 2015

Ever wondered what makes your produce organic?Our resident farmer, Mary Milsap Brower of BluestemFarm, explains all.

By Clean Eating

Organic farming is defined in large part by what organicfarmers dont do. Organic farmers dont use syntheticfertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides. Organic farmers dontuse hormones, antibiotics, or genetically modified organisms(GMOs). These substances are 20th century innovationsmeant to resolve specific agricultural problems, but each onehas its own negative long-term impact on health or theenvironment.

Beyond what organic farmers dont do, the term organic isalso a legal description. Organic farmers submit to outsidereview and annual inspection to ensure their practices,records of seeds and soil amendments and fields align withthe definitions set forth by the National Organic Program(NOP).

Not everyone understands, however, that the protocolgoverning organic farming also sets forth a group of positive,holistic practices that promote ecological balance, soilconservation, and biodiversity. By valuing these processes,organic farmers help advance the values of healthy soil,healthy plants, and healthy human beings. But just how doesone go about enhancing ecological balance? Or promotinghealthy soil? This time of year, farmers all over North



Anerica are planning the 2015 growing season. Here are a fewconsiderations we are weighing at my own organic farm.

Building Fertility and Biodiversity in the Soil

In addition to sunlight and water, all plants need minerals togrow. Healthy soil has good mineral balance and contains adiverse population of friendly microbes. Plants grown inhealthy soil are more vigorous and better able to ward offdisease and pests.

Atmyorganicfarm,wesupportsoilfertilityandbiodiversityby:

Reducing the amount we till, or disturb, the soil. Thisserves to protect the natural structure of the soil as wellas the microbial communities present in distinct soilhorizons.Testing the soil each year. When theres a mineraldeficiency, we add specific types of compost, rockpowders, and micro-nutrients to make up for it.Rotating animals through resting garden areas. Theextra organic matter in well-composted manure helpsretain moisture in the soil, makes it more fertile, andcreates a stable home for microorganisms.Avoiding pesticides. By using physical barriers, delayedor early plantings, and crop rotation, we throw off pestswithout the use of poisons.Avoiding herbicides. Instead we manage weeds throughcover cropping, shallow cultivation, and hand-weeding.Not using synthetic fertilizers, which disturb soilmicrobes, and easily leach out to other areas.



Cover Crops

Cover crops are often planted in late fall, after the mainharvest. Usually not intended for human consumption, theyhold the soil in place so that bare ground is not eroded byrain and wind. Theyre often cut and left where they are inthe field so organic matter and important nutrients feed thesoil.

Thebenefitsofcovercrops:

If bare soil is left unplanted after a harvest, minerals likecalcium and boron, nitrogen and sulfur leach away everytime it rains.By out-competing unwanted weeds, cover crops help usreduce the need for hand-weeding or chemical weedsuppression.Cover crops maintain the structure of the soil andprovide habitat for a diverse community of microbesthat are beneficial to food plants.

Crop Rotation

When a single crop is grown in the same spot year after year,pests and disease easily establish themselves. To avoid thisinvitation, we constantly move diverse plantings of unrelatedvegetables around within the garden.



Croprotationisimportantbecause:

The simple act of moving a crop to a different area helpsus outwit some insect pests, and naturally reducespressure from many plant diseases.Different types of plants require different diets ofminerals. By rotating crops to new locations eachseason, the soil gets a chance to recover from thedemands of each specific crop.Even soil needs to rest sometimes. We systematicallyallow different parcels of land to lie dormant, or fallow,each year.

Why Buy Local?

Putting all these systems in place takes an abundance ofplanning and practice. At my organic farm, we feel thatsubmitting to the rigors of certification makes us better atwhat we do. It also ensures that we support an entire organicsupply chain whenever we buy organic seeds, planting stock,or farm inputs such as fertilizer, compost and hay. Thesechoices keep additional pollutants out of the environment asa whole, not just our own farm.

Organic food is becoming more widely available in most ofthe country, and today even box stores carry lines of organicproducts. But when you choose to shop at a local farmersmarket, or join a small farms Community SupportedAgriculture (CSA) membership program, you support thework of environmental conservation, food security, andpublic health, along with your own local economy. Evenbetter, when you have a relationship with the person growingyour vegetables, you can ask direct questions about thespecific practices he or she uses to grow safe, nutritious food.

MaryBrowerownsBluestemFarm,asmallorganicfarminnorthernMichigan.Learnmoreatwww.bluestemfarm.net.

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What is Organic Farming, Really