BOOK
Improving organic crop cultivation
Prof. Ulrich Köpke | Dr H. Spieß | Dr B. Schmehe | Dr C. Vollenweider | Dr Steven P. C. Groot | Dr Maaike H. J. E. Raaijmakers | Prof. C. Watson | Dr E. A. Stockdale | Prof. Peter Von Fragstein und Niemsdorff | Prof. Bernhard Freyer | Dr Maike Krauss | Dr Paul Mäder | Dr Joséphine Peigné | Dr Julia Cooper | Dr Peter Sørensen | Dr Luca Bechini | Dr Lars Stoumann Jensen | Prof. Lidia Sas Paszt | Dr Slawomir Gluszek | Prof. Michael J. Goss | Dr Adrian Unc | Dr Wilfried Ehlers | Prof. M. R. Finckh | Dr S. M. Junge | Dr J. H. Schmidt | Dr O. D. Weedon | Dr Bernhard Speiser | Dr Hans-Jakob Schärer | Dr Lucius Tamm | Prof. Paolo Bàrberi | Dr Susanne Padel | Dr A. Muller | Dr M. Meier | Dr C. Schader | Dr A. Gattinger | Dr M. Steffens | Dr Thomas F. Döring | Dr Lukas Pfiffner | Dr Laura Armengot | Dr Kirsten Brandt | Dr R. Onwonga | Dr K. P. Sibuga | Dr H. Nduku | Dr L. Sigsgaard | Dr A. Saria | Dr L. Shechambo | Dr M. Montoro | Dr C. Chepkoech | Dr Q. Genga | Prof. Raphael Wahome | Dr N. Halberg | Dr H. Høgh-Jensen | Prof. Victor Olowe | Prof. Sang Mok Sohn | Prof. Roberto Ugás
(2018)
Additional Information
Book Details
Abstract
Global sales of organic products have grown significantly, yet organic farming remains a small percentage of overall agricultural production with lower yields than conventional methods. Organic crop cultivation thus faces a range of challenges if it is to grow significantly. This volume reviews the wealth of research addressing these challenges.
Part 1 reviews developments in improving cultivation across the value chain, from breeding more robust, low input varieties to ways of maintaining soil health and improving crop nutrition. Part 2 discusses the key topic of pests and diseases with reviews of integrated pest and weed management as well as organic plant protection products. Part 3 covers ways of monitoring the environmental impact of organic farming whilst the final part of the book discusses ways of supporting organic cultivation in the developing world.
With its distinguished editor and an international team of expert authors, this will be a standard reference for all those interested in understanding, improving and promoting organic farming.
Sample content
Not sure what you're getting if you buy this book? Click on the cover image below to open a PDF and preview pages from the book or watch our informative video introduction."Arable and particularly horticultural crops are central to organic agriculture. There remain tremendous challenges in research whilst the best sustainable practices are still not fully adopted by all organic farmers. A comprehensive reference book covering the latest research on improving organic agriculture is therefore indispensable and currently missing. With their wealth of expertise, the editor and the authors fill this very gap."
Professor Urs Niggli, Director of the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), Switzerland
Global sales of organic products have grown significantly, yet organic farming remains a small percentage of overall agricultural production with lower yields than conventional methods. Organic crop cultivation thus faces a range of challenges if it is to grow significantly. This volume reviews the wealth of research addressing these challenges.
Part 1 reviews developments in improving cultivation across the value chain, from breeding more robust, low input varieties to ways of maintaining soil health and improving crop nutrition. Part 2 discusses the key topic of pests and diseases with reviews of integrated pest and weed management as well as organic plant protection products. Part 3 covers ways of monitoring the environmental impact of organic farming whilst the final part of the book discusses ways of supporting organic cultivation in the developing world.
With its distinguished editor and an international team of expert authors, this will be a standard reference for all those interested in understanding, improving and promoting organic farming.
Table of Contents
| Section Title | Page | Action | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Improving organic cropcultivation | i | ||
| Contents | v | ||
| Series list | xi | ||
| Introduction | xvi | ||
| Part 1 Crop breeding and cultivation | 1 | ||
| Chapter 1 Key issues in breeding and trialling robust cereal cultivars for organic farming | 3 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 3 | ||
| 2 The origins and aims of organic crop breeding | 6 | ||
| 3 Key issues for new cultivars in organic farming systems | 6 | ||
| 4 Breeding targets | 13 | ||
| 5 Plant health | 16 | ||
| 6 Quality requirements | 22 | ||
| 7 Conclusions | 24 | ||
| 8 Future trends | 25 | ||
| 9 Where to look for further information | 26 | ||
| 10 References | 27 | ||
| Chapter 2 Organic seed production, certification and availability | 33 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 33 | ||
| 2 Organic seed quality control issues: seed maturity | 35 | ||
| 3 Seed disease and pathogen control | 36 | ||
| 4 Application of biologicals to seed | 41 | ||
| 5 Seed priming, pelleting and storage | 42 | ||
| 6 Seed certification and testing | 45 | ||
| 7 Organic seed regulations | 47 | ||
| 8 Organic seed production: contamination issues and availability | 49 | ||
| 9 Summary | 55 | ||
| 10 Future trends | 56 | ||
| 11 Where to look for further information | 56 | ||
| 12 References | 57 | ||
| Chapter 3 Maintaining soil fertility and health in organic crop cultivation | 61 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 61 | ||
| 2 Some key themes in soil fertility and soil health | 63 | ||
| 3 Case study: interactions between soil management and the delivery of soil functions/ecosystem services | 69 | ||
| 4 Conclusion and future trends | 76 | ||
| 5 Acknowledgements | 77 | ||
| 6 Where to look for further information | 77 | ||
| 7 References | 79 | ||
| Chapter 4 Cover crops in organic crop cultivation | 87 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 87 | ||
| 2 Soil structure and erosion control | 89 | ||
| 3 Nutrient cycling | 89 | ||
| 4 Weed, pest and disease control | 90 | ||
| 5 Promoting biodiversity | 92 | ||
| 6 Carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas emissions | 94 | ||
| 7 Integration of cover crops in no-till cultivation | 95 | ||
| 8 Conclusions and future trends | 96 | ||
| 9 Where to look for further information | 96 | ||
| 10 References | 97 | ||
| Chapter 5 The role of crop rotations in organic farming | 105 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 105 | ||
| 2 Principles of crop rotation | 106 | ||
| 3 Precrop effects in crop rotations | 107 | ||
| 4 Nutrient effects of legumes and other rotation crops | 109 | ||
| 5 The role of rotation crops in suppressing weeds, diseases and pests | 117 | ||
| 6 Rotations and crop yields | 120 | ||
| 7 Designing a crop rotation | 122 | ||
| 8 Measuring and modelling crop rotations, nutrient and humus balances | 126 | ||
| 9 Crop rotations on stockless farms | 129 | ||
| 10 Conclusion and future trends | 132 | ||
| 11 Where to look for further information | 133 | ||
| 12 References and further reading | 133 | ||
| Chapter 6 Conservation tillage in organic farming | 153 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 153 | ||
| 2 Main benefits of conservation tillage | 155 | ||
| 3 Main challenges of conservation tillage | 159 | ||
| 4 Future trends | 164 | ||
| 5 Conclusion | 170 | ||
| 6 Where to look for further information | 170 | ||
| 7 References | 171 | ||
| Chapter 7 Manure management in organic farming | 179 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 179 | ||
| 2 Manure composition and properties in different livestock systems | 181 | ||
| 3 Manure storage and treatment | 184 | ||
| 4 Manure field application methods | 189 | ||
| 5 Turnover and availability of manure N in soil | 193 | ||
| 6 Utilization of P, K and S in manures | 198 | ||
| 7 Plant-based manures (green manures) | 200 | ||
| 8 Future trends and conclusion | 201 | ||
| 9 Where to look for further information | 202 | ||
| 10 References | 203 | ||
| Chapter 8 Organic fertilizers and biofertilizers | 211 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 211 | ||
| 2 Biofertilizers | 212 | ||
| 3 Consortia of microorganisms to improve the \neffectiveness of organic fertilization | 216 | ||
| 4 Animal excrement: manures, slurry and guano | 217 | ||
| 5 Products and by-products of animal origin | 218 | ||
| 6 Products and by-products of plant origin for fertilizers | 220 | ||
| 7 Composts | 226 | ||
| 8 Untreated minerals and by-products of selected\nindustrial processes | 227 | ||
| 9 Biochar | 227 | ||
| 10 Conclusion | 228 | ||
| 11 Where to look for further information | 228 | ||
| 12 References | 229 | ||
| Chapter 9 Improving water management in organic crop cultivation | 243 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 243 | ||
| 2 Key aspects of organic farming affecting availability and use of water | 255 | ||
| 3 Developments in water management in organic agriculture | 261 | ||
| 4 Conclusion | 263 | ||
| 5 Where to look for further information | 263 | ||
| 6 References | 264 | ||
| Part 2 Crop pests and diseases | 269 | ||
| Chapter 10 Disease and pest management in organic farming: a case for applied agroecology | 271 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 271 | ||
| 2 General principles of plant protection in organic agriculture | 272 | ||
| 3 Case study: soil regeneration and effects on potato health | 276 | ||
| 4 Integrating diversity through evolutionary breeding | 283 | ||
| 5 Requirements for agroecology-based ecological plant protection | 289 | ||
| 6 Conclusion and future trends | 292 | ||
| 7 Acknowledgements | 293 | ||
| 8 Where to look for further information | 294 | ||
| 9 References | 294 | ||
| Chapter 11 Direct plant protection in organic farming | 303 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 303 | ||
| 2 Current practices in organic plant protection | 305 | ||
| 3 Currently authorised materials | 307 | ||
| 4 Dynamics of authorisation of materials in the EU | 310 | ||
| 5 Efforts to replace copper fungicides | 316 | ||
| 6 Future trends and conclusion | 318 | ||
| 7 Where to look for further information | 319 | ||
| 8 References | 320 | ||
| Chapter 12 Integrated weed management in organic cropping systems | 323 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 323 | ||
| 2 Key weed management challenges: intra-row weed control | 326 | ||
| 3 Key weed management challenges: problematic weeds and weed management in reduced- and \nno-till organic systems | 330 | ||
| 4 Integrated weed management and sustainable organic crop production | 333 | ||
| 5 Future trends | 335 | ||
| 6 Where to look for further information | 336 | ||
| 7 References | 337 | ||
| Part 3 Standards and monitoring | 343 | ||
| Chapter 13 Setting and reviewing standards for organic farming | 345 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 345 | ||
| 2 Historic development of organic standards and control systems | 346 | ||
| 3 Principles of organic production | 348 | ||
| 4 Regulation of organic production | 349 | ||
| 5 The future of organic standards development | 356 | ||
| 6 Future trends and conclusion | 359 | ||
| 7 Where to look for further information | 361 | ||
| 8 References | 361 | ||
| Chapter 14 Measuring and improving the environmental performance of organic farming | 365 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 365 | ||
| 2 Notions of environmental performance | 369 | ||
| 3 Efficiency, consistency and sufficiency | 370 | ||
| 4 Methods for assessing environmental performance | 371 | ||
| 5 Improving performance | 377 | ||
| 6 Conclusions and future trends | 378 | ||
| 7 Acknowledgements | 379 | ||
| 8 Where to look for further information | 380 | ||
| 9 References | 380 | ||
| Chapter 15 Eco-functional intensification of organic farming | 383 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 383 | ||
| 2 Material and energy flows | 385 | ||
| 3 Ecological regulation | 388 | ||
| 4 Technical developments | 389 | ||
| 5 Challenges | 392 | ||
| 6 Conclusion | 394 | ||
| 7 Where to look for further information | 395 | ||
| 8 References | 395 | ||
| Chapter 16 Biodiversity as a prerequisite of sustainable organic farming | 401 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 401 | ||
| 2 Biodiversity and land-use intensity | 402 | ||
| 3 Impact of organic farming on biodiversity | 406 | ||
| 4 Biodiversity at different spatial scales | 416 | ||
| 5 Impact of organic farming on selected\nfunctional groups | 418 | ||
| 6 Future trends and conclusion | 421 | ||
| 7 References | 422 | ||
| Chapter 17 The impact of organic agriculture on diet and health | 435 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 435 | ||
| 2 Associations between organic consumption and diet choices | 437 | ||
| 3 Organic foods and health | 440 | ||
| 4 Combined impact on health of organic foods in diet | 450 | ||
| 5 Future trends | 452 | ||
| 6 Conclusion | 453 | ||
| 7 References | 454 | ||
| Part 4 Organic crop cultivation in \nthe developing world | 461 | ||
| Chapter 18 Supporting smallholders in organic crop cultivation: the case of East Africa | 463 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 463 | ||
| 2 The field study approach | 464 | ||
| 3 Challenges and innovations in pest, weed and soil fertility management | 466 | ||
| 4 Conclusion | 473 | ||
| 5 Future trends | 473 | ||
| 6 Where to look for further information | 474 | ||
| 7 References | 474 | ||
| Chapter 19 Improving organic agriculture in the developing world: Africa | 477 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 477 | ||
| 2 Status of organic agriculture in Africa | 479 | ||
| 3 EOA-I in Africa | 481 | ||
| 4 Steps to improving organic agriculture in Africa | 481 | ||
| 5 Conclusion | 488 | ||
| 6 Where to look for further information | 488 | ||
| 7 References | 489 | ||
| Chapter 20 Improving organic agriculture in the developing world: Asia | 493 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 493 | ||
| 2 Key crops grown in Asia | 493 | ||
| 3 Organic production in Asia | 494 | ||
| 4 Rice production systems | 495 | ||
| 5 Types of organic rice farming | 497 | ||
| 6 Organic vegetable production | 498 | ||
| 7 Improving organic agriculture in Asia | 502 | ||
| 8 Conclusions and future trends | 504 | ||
| 9 References | 505 | ||
| Chapter 21 Organic agriculture and agroecology in Latin America | 509 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 509 | ||
| 2 Principles | 512 | ||
| 3 Organisations and movements | 513 | ||
| 4 Production and business | 516 | ||
| 5 Institutions and policies | 525 | ||
| 6 Performance of organic systems | 526 | ||
| 7 Summary and future trends | 531 | ||
| 8 Acknowledgements | 532 | ||
| 9 References | 532 | ||
| Index | 539 |