Crop Production

Showing 81-100 of 211 results

Video Screenshot of text explaining aquaponics with a man pointing to crops in a bin

Integrating Traditional Foods with Aquaponics in the Desert Southwest

The Challenge Cochise County, Arizona, where Aaron Cardona’s Arevalos Farm is located, is classified by the USDA as a food desert with high poverty rates, as well as high rates of diabetes and obesity. To help confront these problems, Cardona decided to look into aquaponics, which had not been experimented with in the desert regions […]

Man on a pedestal teaching a group of people outside

Western Pollinator Conservation Planning Short Course

The Challenge Hives of European honeybees, commonly purchased for pollination services, have become more difficult to obtain due to decline from disease and Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Native bees can make a significant contribution to crop pollination. Protecting, enhancing, or providing natural habitat on farms is the best way to conserve native pollinators. The USDA, […]

Rows of soil with wires holding up long branches from the ground every few feet, with each row receiving a different treatment

Water Management in Sonoma County Grape Production

The Challenge As in all of California, water is a scarce resource in Sonoma County, a region in Northern California with more than 400 wineries and almost 60,000 acres of vineyards. Wine grape growers face increasing competition for water from different interests, various regulations, and a need to protect threatened and endangered salmonids found in […]

Raising Locally-Adapted and Disease Resistant Queens in Illinois

It is no secret that we are losing bees at higher rates than ever before: On average, beekeepers lose 33 percent of their hives each year. This unfortunate occurrence is known as Colony Collapse Disorder, caused by many different factors such as disease, the varroa mite, pesticide poisoning and habitat loss. And while most […]

Integrated Pest Management in Alabama

Organic vegetable growers in the Deep South face a constant battle with pests. In Alabama, new information is leading to better crop protection and more profitability, thanks to the work of Ayanava Majumdar, Alabama Extension entomologist and Southern SARE state coordinator. As a SARE state coordinator, Majumdar is tasked with bringing sustainable agriculture information […]

Improving Nutrient Use Efficiency in Montana Wheat

"This was a landmark study because we knew we were losing nitrogen, we just didn't know how we were losing it," says farmer Curtis Hershberger. When nitrogen fertilizers are applied to the soil surface using certain application practices, a significant amount can be lost when the nitrogen converts to ammonia gas and enters the […]

Is Fish Waste Compost Worth the Mess and Effort?

A South Carolina farmer discusses the results of using fish waste compost in vegetable production.

Berry Soil and Nutrient Management Guide for Educators and Growers

This manual has been designed as a comprehensive guide for educators and commercial berry growers interested in improving berry crop soil and nutrient management.

Ensuring Sustainable Field Crop Agriculture in the Face of a Changing Climate

This curriculum on sustainable agriculture and climate change can be used with clientele, such as farmer groups. The PowerPoint presentation may be adapted to suit your needs and your region of the country. It contains a written script in the notes section. It has general information relative to all types of agriculture and a few specific resources for field crop agriculture. To help you evaluate the effectiveness of this curriculum with your clientele, the authors have included an evaluation form that you can distribute after your presentation.

cover crops for pollinators and beneficial insects

Cover Cropping for Pollinators and Beneficial Insects

This 16-page bulletin will help you use cover crops to encourage populations of pollinators and beneficial insects on your farm while you address your other resource concerns.

High Tunnels and Other Season Extension Techniques

From low covers to high tunnels, from hoop houses to greenhouses—producers are finding ever more innovative ways to extend the growing season, and their income stream.

Cover Crops for Sustainable Crop Rotations

Cover crops are one of the best ways to improve soil health, reduce off-farm inputs and protect natural resources. Find a wealth of educational materials developed out of decades of SARE-funded cover crop research.

Farm to Table: Building Local and Regional Food Systems

More and more, farmers, ranchers, ag professionals, community organizers and others are striving to reconfigure the nation's food system so more value stays in food-producing communities.

Researcher and farmer holding a tillage radish

For Vegetable Farmers, a New No-Till Tool in Forage Radish

Vegetable farmers who want the myriad benefits of winter cover crops may be setting themselves up for a hectic spring schedule, when the challenge of planting during a narrow window of good weather becomes more complicated by the need to first terminate that winter crop. To make their lives a little easier, University of Maryland […]

Abundant High Tunnels Provide a Community Boost in West Virginia

For years now, small-scale vegetable farmers have been turning to high tunnels—cheap, unheated structures similar to greenhouses—as a cost-effective way to extend the growing season and their on-farm income stream. But while high tunnels were popping up throughout many cold Northeastern states, in West Virginia they were not. Until 2008 that is, when West Virginia […]