bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Crop-yield and economic comparisons of organic, low-input, and conventional farming systems in California's Sacramento Valley
Authors: Clark Sean , Klonsky Karen , Livingston Peter , Temple Steve 
Published: October 2009

AbstractWe compared the crop yields and economic performance of organic, lowinput, and conventional farming systems over an eight-year period based on research from the Sustainable Agriculture Farming Systems (SAFS) Project in California's Sacramento Valley. The SAFS Project consisted of four farming-system treatments that differed in material input use and crop rotation sequence. The treatments included four-year rotations under conventional (conv-4), low-input, and organic management, and a conventionally-managed, two-year rotation (conv-2). The four-year rotations included processing tomato, safflower, corn, and bean and a winter grain and/or legume doublecropped with bean. The conv-2 treatment was a tomato and wheat rotation. In the lowinput and organic systems, inorganic fertilizer and synthetic pesticide inputs were reduced or eliminated largely through crop rotation, legume cover crops, composted manure applications, and mechanical cultivation.All crops, except safflower, demonstrated significant yield differences across farming systems in at least some years of the experiment. Yields of tomato and corn, the most nitrogen (N)-demanding crops in the rotations, responded most years to the farming-system years treatments, while bean and the winter grain/legume displayed treatment differences less often and instead tended to vary more with yearly growing conditions. Nitrogen availability and/or weed competition appeared to account for lower crop yields in the organic and low-input systems in some years. The economics of all farming systems depended mainly on the costs and profits associated with tomato production. The most profitable system was the conv-2 system due to the greater frequency of tomato in that system. Among the four-year rotations, the organic system was the most profitable. However, this system's dependence on price premiums leads to some concern over its long-term economic viability. Among the low-input cropping systems, corn demonstrated clear agronomic and economic advantages over conventional production methods. Based upon these findings, we suggest that future research on organic and low-input farming systems focus on developing cost-effective fertility and weed management options based upon improved understanding of N dynamics and weed ecology.
Breeding corn for adaptation to two diverse intercropping companions
Authors: O'Leary N. , Smith M.E. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractIntercropping is an agricultural system widely practiced in the tropics and becoming more widespread in temperate regions. The vast majority of varieties currently grown in intercrop have been developed in and for monoculture, although some breeding programs specifically focused on intercrop systems have been initiated. It is not clear if selection in monoculture is adequate to identify varieties adapted to intercrop, nor is it clear if varieties selected for intercrop performance with one companion will be adapted to another crop combination. The aims of this study were to determine the extent to which selection of corn in monoculture would identify types adapted to growth in corn—bean or corn—clover intercrop, and to determine how selection in one of the intercrops (corn—bean or corn—clover) would compare with selection in the other. The corn used consisted of two groups that had been selected in monoculture, and two that had been selected in corn—bean intercrop. All groups were evaluated in monoculture, corn-bean intercrop, and corn—clover intercrop. Analysis of variance showed that the ranking of the four selection groups was not significantly different when the two intercrops were compared, but was significantly different (P < 0.05 for comparison of clover intercrop and monoculture, and P = 0.07 for comparison of bean intercrop and monoculture) when either of the two intercrops was compared with monoculture. Correlation analysis of corn traits and corn yield in the three cropping systems revealed more similarities between the intercrops than between either intercrop and monoculture. Plant height and leaf area index were more strongly negatively correlated with days to flower in both intercrops than in monoculture. Correlation analysis also revealed some differences between the intercrops, particularly with bean and clover yields. Clover yields were not adversely affected by early growth and maturity of corn, but bean yields were. We conclude that selection of corn in monoculture is not ideal when lines adapted to cornclover intercrop or corn—bean intercrop are desired. Furthermore, selection in either intercrop will identify corn types adapted to the other, as early vigor and maturity allow best corn performance in both crop combinations. Thus, individualized breeding programs may not be required to adapt a crop to growth in association with relatively different companions.
Impact of irrigated agricultural practices on environmental quality and human health in the West Bank
Authors: Abu-Amrieh M. , Sabbah W. , Isaac J. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThis paper examines the effects of irrigation practices and related activities on the environment and human health in the West Bank. Irrigated agriculture in the West Bank covers an area of 9,473 ha and utilizes 93 million cubic meters of irrigation water annually. The current annual use of fertilizers in the irrigated areas is 18,980 tons of chemical fertilizers and 198,900 to 265,200 tons of organic fertilizers. The total annual use of pesticides (excluding methyl bromide) in irrigated agriculture is 153 tons, of which 27 tons are internationally banned products. Methyl bromide is a dominant soil fumigant in the West Bank with a total estimated annual use of 400 tons, 44% of which is used on vegetables planted in plastic houses and high plastic tunnels. The soil solarization method to control soil-borne diseases is used by only 0.5% of the surveyed farmers. This study indicates that some farmers have suffered health problems due to exposure to pesticides, from the lack of protective clothing. Of the surveyed farmers, 19% suffer from poisoning symptoms and 1% are affected by methyl bromide fumigants. The total quantity of plastic sheets was estimated at 4,750 tons, at least 50% of which becomes waste. Eighty-eight percent of the surveyed farmers collect and burn the plastic wastes on the field, which could harm both the environment and human health through toxic fumes. Some water-related diseases occurred in the study area. Seventy-nine people were affected by leishmaniasis and 14 others by dysentery. Despite the heavy use of fertilizers, water quality analysis did not show high concentrations of nitrate.
Trying and buying locally grown produce at the workplace: Results of a marketing intervention
Authors: Ross Nancy J. , Anderson Molly D. , Goldberg Jeanne P. , Houser Robert , Rogers Beatrice Lorge 
Published: October 2009

AbstractAlthough consumers have a high opinion of locally grown produce, they do not consider origin as important as other factors in produce selection. Inconvenience is a major barrier to purchasing local produce. In a rural community in Maine, the Farm Fresh Project tested an intervention designed to exploit consumers' high regard for locally grown produce and also overcome the inconvenience of buying it. Each week for six weeks in the summer of 1997, employees at three worksites were offered tastings of locally grown produce, information about the produce, and an opportunity to order it at their workplaces. Changes in purchases of locally grown produce were compared with changes among employees at three matched control worksites. More than a quarter of workers at intervention worksites ordered produce through the project. Significant numbers of employees at intervention worksites who had not bought locally grown produce earlier in the summer bought it at outlets in the community during the four weeks following the intervention. Visits to the community farmers' market, purchases at roadside stands, pick-your-own purchases, and purchases of locally grown produce, both overall and at locations other than at the farmers' market, increased significantly in the intervention group. Among workers at control sites, only roadside stand purchases increased significantly. It appears that the opportunity to taste and purchase locally grown produce at a convenient venue, the workplace, motivated consumers to overcome barriers to purchasing locally grown produce at less convenient venues outside of the workplace. Temporary farm stands at workplaces may offer a promising new direct market for farmers.
Castile—La Mancha: A once traditional and integrated cereal—sheep farming system under change
Authors: Caballero Rafael 
Published: October 2009

AbstractFarming systems are often complex elaborations of the human societies to which they belong, with many traditional and social implications. Untangling the main social and structural constraints may improve productivity without an increase in environmental costs. Integration of cereal and sheep farming throughout the Mediterranean basin has been traditional. Mutually beneficial relationships between the sheep industry and cereal farming, and the vital role of forage legumes in meeting the modest needs of sheep for nitrogen, are stressed. This agropastoral system, however, is endangered in central Spain mainly because the pastoralist (sheep owner) is land-less, while the cultivator (land owner) has little interest in enforcing the law; fees for grazing rights are very low. Farmers, particularly young farmers, reject the current sheep operation because of the harsh working conditions. Restructuring of the grazing system would require a new policy scenario that would link European Union farm subsidies to structural reforms and would stress cooperative behavior.
Do health benefits explain the price premiums for organic foods?
Authors: Kuchler Fred , Ralston Katherine , Tomerlin J. Robert 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThis paper examines whether the dollar value of health benefits that consumers derive from organic food could account for the price premiums they pay. Price and sales data from realized transactions are inadequate to reveal consumer preferences for health benefits. Our exploratory alternative method estimates the value of health benefits to a hypothetical consumer who assesses risks as risk assessors do and values a unit reduction in all fatal risks equally, regardless of the source of any risk. Under these assumptions, our estimates of the value of health benefits derived from substituting an organic diet for a conventionally produced diet approach zero. For a common organic product, apple juice, we estimated the cost of reducing risks by buying the organic characteristic. The cost of averting each adverse health outcome is 27 to 461 times as large as the value of benefits. If the characteristics of our hypothetical consumer match those of the typical consumer, two inferences follow from our estimates of benefits and costs. First, the typical consumer is unlikely to purchase organic food for health reasons. Second, consumers who choose organic food could differ from typical consumers in several dimensions: perceptions of the level of risk from dietary intake of pesticides, perceptions of the nature of adverse health outcomes from pesticides, or in the importance attached to other attributes of organic food. Our analysis is exploratory partially because there are several behavioral assumptions implicit in the values we calculate. Also, we focus on risks that can be quantitatively estimated, measuring the probability of an adverse health outcome with readily accessible data. Currently, only cancer risks can be measured in terms of probabilities from readily accessible data.
Farmland preservation and sustainable agriculture: Grassroots and policy connections
Authors: Korfmacher K.S. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractOver the long run, a sustainable food production system requires both a sufficient base of agricultural land and agricultural practices that do not degrade the land. However, current policies and programs for protecting agricultural land are not systematically integrated with those promoting sustainable agriculture. There are various ways that policymakers, agricultural support organizations, and researchers could better integrate farmland preservation and sustainable agriculture efforts. This paper suggests several approaches for developing such connections including: coordinating local, state, and federal policies, conducting related research, and developing integrated outreach and education programs.
An assessment of reduced herbicide and fertilizer inputs on cereal grain yield and weed growth
Authors: Stevenson F.C. , Johnston A.M. , Brandt S.A. , Townley-Smith L. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractAlthough crop production and weed growth could change if herbicides and fertilizer inputs were reduced, the short-term impact in an annual cropping system in the Northern Great Plains is not well understood. Data were collected from 14 sites in Saskatchewan, Canada, to investigate the influence of weed control method (cultural vs. herbicides) and N and P fertilizers on crop yield of fall rye, spring wheat, and barley, and the presence and number of weed species. Cultural weed control included 25% greater crop seeding rate, preseeding tillage closer to the time of seeding, and fertilizer N banding in closer proximity to the seed. Four weed species (wild oat, lambsquarters, wild buckwheat, and field penny cress) occurred more frequently in plots with cultural weed control compared with herbicide weed control for all cereal crops. However, straw and grain yields of all crops were unaffected by weed control method at all sites. The addition of fertilizer had a major impact on crop growth and some weed species. Green foxtail occurred more often in unfertilized compared with fertilized plots for all cereal crops. Straw and grain yields of all cereal crops were higher in fertilized compared with unfertilized plots. Crop yield response to fertilizer inputs was not consistent among sites for the three cereal crops. Producers making drastic reductions in fertilizer inputs may experience reductions in crop yields because of limited nutrient levels. However, the results indicate that herbicide inputs could be reduced or eliminated periodically with no short-term yield loss in cereal cropping systems.
Factors influencing resident attitudes regarding the land application of biosolids
Authors: Lindsay Bruce E. , Zhou Haojiang , Halstead John M. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractResidential household owners were surveyed in two different New Hampshire communities that varied in terms of population size, degree of rurality, and per capita income, each with no activities in land application of biosolids. Logit models were developed and logistic regression analyses were carried out for each community. The empirical results suggest that the perception by residents of the potential economic benefits and negative impacts from land application of biosolids can be very influential in achieving public acceptance. From a policymaker's viewpoint, this suggests the need for sound educational programs that explicitly describe the economic benefits, negative impacts, and potential risks that typically occur with land application of biosolids. Supportive studies are needed to complement the educational programs. These measures will allow residents to weigh the relative benefits and costs to determine their positions on this approach to management of biosolids and to discount emotional judgements and misinformation. The media needs to ensure that newspaper, magazine, and television reports are accurate and taken from reliable sources. Survey results suggest that the less volume of information presented by the media, the more supportive residents are of land application. Therefore, with such sensitivity by respondents to quantity of information, it is imperative that media outlets place high priority on the quality and accuracy of materials presented. Socioeconomic characteristics of the respondents did not influence attitudes toward acceptance or rejection of biosolids application, thus eliminating the difficulty that social stratification could cause in achieving acceptance.
Biodynamic preparations: Short-term effects on crops, soils, and weed populations
Authors: Carpenter-Boggs Lynne , Reganold John P. , Kennedy Ann C. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractBiodynamic agriculture is an organic farming system that utilizes fermented herbal and mineral preparations as compost additives and field sprays. This study was conducted to determine whether biodynamic preparations affect lentil and wheat growth and yield, soil fertility, or weed populations in the short run. Each of four nutrient treatments, biodynamically prepared compost, non-biodynamic compost, mineral NPK fertilizer, and no fertilizer, were tested with and without biodynamic field sprays. Crop yield, crop quality, and soil fertility were similar in plots treated with mineral NPK fertilizers, biodynamic compost, or non-biodynamic compost. Use of compost raised soil pH from 6.0 without compost to 6.5 with compost. Compost application reduced the broadleaf weed population by 29% and reduced the grass weed population by 78%. Biodynamic sprays altered soil and grain N chemistry, but the effects are of unknown biological significance. Use of the biodynamic field sprays correlated with higher yield of lentil per unit plant biomass, lower grain C and crude protein contents, greater content in soft white spring wheat, and greater content in soil. In general, soils and crops treated with biodynamic preparations showed few differences from those not treated. Application of composts with or without the preparations produced similar crop yields with lower weed pressure, compared with equal nutrients supplied by mineral fertilizer, but any additional short-term benefits from biodynamic preparations remain questionable.
Use of fabric and compost mulches for vegetable production in a low tillage, permanent bed system: Effects on crop yield and labor
Authors: Feldman R.S. , Holmes C.E. , Blomgren T.A. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractWe tested the usefulness of mulching with polypropylene landscape fabric and compost as alternatives to bare soil for growing red cabbage and watermelon. Polypropylene landscape fabric has features similar to the polyethylene film that is popular for commercial vegetable production, but its durability permits multi-year use, which would reduce excessive waste produced from the typical single-season use of polyethylene film. On the other hand, compost used as mulch enhances soil development while providing weed suppression and water retention, among other benefits. Yields of red cabbage and watermelon were measured for 3 years in plots receiving either 10 cm compost, landscape fabric, or no mulch. Labor associated with crop production and weed suppression was measured as time spent on each task. Cabbage yields over 3 years followed the treatment order of compost > no mulch > fabric, while for melon yields it was compost > fabric > no mulch. Total labor required over 3 years for both crops, according to treatments, was fabric > compost > no mulch. However, labor for the fabric-treated plots dropped sharply after the first year, because fabric was left in place after initial placement. Labor for unmulched cabbage plots increased over time due to weeding and transplanting; labor for unmulched and compost-mulched melon plots increased for the same reasons. Compost provided the highest crop yields with a moderate labor investment. Surface-applied compost substantially increased underlying soil nutrient levels. The study indicates that polypropylene landscape fabric may be a potential alternative to the more traditional polyethylene film for permanent beds in vegetable production.
A Geographic Information System for identification of potential alternative crops utilizing soil and climatic variables in the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming
Authors: Young J.A. , Vance G.F. , Munn L.C. , Christensen B.M. , Schaad M.S. 
Published: October 2009

AbstractThe Bighorn Basin is an important agricultural region in Wyoming. To promote expansion of economic prospects within the Bighorn Basin, we explored the feasibility of introducing alternative crops into the area. Currently, the major crops in this region are sugar beet, barley, alfalfas, and dry beans. Diversification of agricultural cropping systems within the Bighorn Basin is an important step in enhancing the state's economy. This research provides preliminary results for evaluating diversification by determining crops that may potentially be cultivated in the Bighorn Basin region. Four of the 28 alternative crops investigated in this project include amaranth, buckwheat, canola, and faba bean. A Geographic Information System (GIS) was used to combine spatial data identifying areas with unique combinations of characteristics (e.g., soils, frost-free period, temperature, etc.) for introduction of new crops. The GIS was used to compile data layers for different soil and climatic variables. A soils data layer was developed for the study area using a predictive model based on the region's surficial geology, bedrock geology, and elevation. Monthly minimum, mean, and maximum summer temperatures, precipitation, growing degree-days and frost-free season were obtainedfrom weatherstations located in the Bighorn Basin, where 30-year averages have been collected by the National Climate Data Center. Using geostatistics, information obtainedfrom weather stations was utilized to develop continuous data layers for 31 climatic conditions related to the study area. A compilation of growth parameters for 28 alternative crops included various soil and climatic conditions that were used to identify areas with potential to support these new crops. Maps of alternative crop production areas suggested that 8 crops (amaranth, chickpea, onion, quinoa, saffiower, sesame, sorghum, and sunflower) could potentially be cultivated in eastern Bighorn Basin where temperatures are warmer, another 12 crops (broccoli, buckwheat, canola, carrot, cauliflower, crambe, Kentucky bluegrass turf seed, leek, lentil, lettuce, mint, and radish) could be produced in western Bighorn Basin where temperatures are cooler, and 8 additional crops (asparagus, beet, cabbage, cowpea, faba bean, field pea, medic seed, and tall fescue turf seed) may possibly be cultivated throughout the Bighorn Basin study area in suitable soils. The alternative crop production area maps derived from this projectwillbe useful to potential growers, land-use planners, and county and state agencies in the Bighorn Basin seeking information on different agricultural practices and new production systems.