Certification 1
If prohibited chemicals have been applied to a field, how long do you have to wait before that field can be certified organic?
3 years
How long do you have to wait to harvest a crop after applying raw manure to the soil?
120 days if the edible portion is in contact with the soil surface or soil particles, 90 days if the edible portion is not.
Insects with simple digestive systems can only digest soluble nitrogen compounds, such as ammonium (NH4) or nitrate (NO3). Why is this important.
If a plant can process the simple nitrogen compounds into complete proteins, these insects will not eat it.
What is the one thing Ray Achuleta would like to see all across America?
Keep the soil covered. Make America green.
Name 3 Biodynamic preparations
Horn Manure, Horn Silica, Horsetail or Equisetum, Yarrow, Chamomile, Nettle, Oak Bark, Dandelion, Valerian
What types of paper cannot be used in a compost pile?
Glossy paper or paper with colored ink
Why is there a restriction on when a crop can be harvested after applying raw manure to the soil?
To prevent contamination of the crop with pathogens from the manure
What role do trace elements play in giving plants resistance to insect and microbial pests.
Trace elements are necessary parts of enzymes which perform many functions in plants. Without the enzymes the plants will not be healthy.
What is input substitution?
Substituting an organic approved input for a synthetic chemical input.
What is a system of farming that regenerates the soil but uses deep tillage?
Grow Biointensive
What does it mean if a product has the OMRI logo on it?
It has been reviewed by the Organic Materials Review Institute and they have determined that it meets the organic standards
Where on a farm can a soap solution be used to kill weeds?
Roadsides, ditches, around buildings, around non-edible crops.
At which stage of the plant health pyramid do plants produce secondary metabolites?
Stage 4, the highest stage
What are 3 benefits of black plastic tarps?
Smother weeds, retain moisture, protect soil from erosion, create favorable environment for microorganisms
Why does rotational grazing benefit the soil but continuous grazing degrades the soil?
Rotational grazing keeps the plants in the stage of rapid growth where they are producing lots of sugars through photosynthesis and exuding them from their roots into the soil to feed the microbes. The hooves of the livestock press organic matter into the soil. The plants have time to recover before they are grazed again. With continuous grazing the plants are eaten until they are too small and stressed and they never have a chance to recover. They are growing slowly and have little sugar to put into the soil.
What is the National List, with respect to organic certification?
It lists synthetic inputs that are allowed and non-synthetic inputs that are not allowed for use in organic production
What should the initial carbon to nitrogen ratio be in a compost pile?
Between 25 and 40
What effect to plant secondary metabolites have on insect pests and how do we experience these plant secondary metabolites?
They can repel or kill insect pests but we experience them as enhanced flavor.
What are three purposes of the berms between sections of field on JM Fortier's farm?
Windbreak, attract beneficial insects, attract birds
Why does a power harrow cause less damage to soil than a rototiller?
It disturbs the soil only shallowly. It does not mix the layers of the soil. It stirs the soil more gently.
What are the three areas covered by regenerative organic certification?
Soil health, animal welfare, farmer and worker fairness
What are the temperature and turning requirements for a compost pile that contains manure?
Temperature between 131 and 170 for 15 days and turned 5 times
How does Dan Kittredge connect our senses of taste and smell to reducing climate change
Healthy soil sequesters carbon, reducing CO2 in the atmosphere. Healthy soil grows healthy plants, which produce more nutritious food which tastes and smells better.
Explain Eliot Coleman's wrong side of the tapestry analogy.
On the right side of the tapestry we see clearly how all parts of nature work together to create a perfectly functioning system. This is like a regenerative system that works with natural systems. The back side of the tapestry it is not clear and it is hard to see what is going on. It appears that the system needs a lot of help to function. This is like conventional agriculture trying to control nature and to supplement what appears to them to be problems with nature's systems.
The whole is more than the sum of the parts. How is this principle from the science of consciousness exhibited in regenerative agriculture?
All of the parts (soil organic matter, soil organisms, plants, beneficial insects, etc.) work together to create a whole system that creates healthy nutritious food.