Why Do We Care About Organic Farming?

Carolyn and her husband George are creating an organic haven on almost eight acres of local land. LEAVES will be following their progress as they experience obstacles and successes such as the recent avian stamp of approval. 
Working with sisters Lois and Mary, the couple is treating their farm as an ecosystem within itself as they determine what to plant and how to steer the progress of the farm. 

Beginning with some low lying land and a clear vision, they first had to solve the problem of standing water on the property. They did the work themselves using bulldozers and excavators, changing the drainage patterns and creating a healthy pond teeming with lively activity. 

Some of the resulting exposed land, the subsoil, was not fertile enough to grow food crops, so the next step in creating a viable producing parm was to plant cover crops to feed the ground. Buckwheat and red clover were the plants of choice to help strengthen the soil for future crops. 

This first year's plantings will not be salvageable because of the overwhelming weeds competing with the buckwheat and red clover. To reduce the amount of weeds, the cover crops are cut low to the ground, preventing the weeds from going to seed. As the years progress, the weeds' hold on the farmland will lessen; the weed seeds that survive will eventually be choked out by the crops themselves, or eaten by birds frequenting the many birdhouses Carolyn and George are putting on the property. 

Determining the market for the farm's produce is also in the works. 
With some expert guidance from Gordon Johnson at the University of Delaware Extension service, the farm is making steady progress toward not just healthy production of crops, but also toward certification as a true organic farm. This process takes years to complete, and the farm ust meet stringent guidelines to receive this certification. 

As fall approaches, for Carolyn and George, the next immediate goal is to establish composting and get a mulch laying machine.