Though it may seem laborious to grow plants that will never be harvested, cover crops can bring many benefits to Canadian farmers. At the EFAO conference’s webinar: Greenlander! Expanding the use of cover crops in organic vegetable farming, cover crop farmers and experts Jeff Boesch from Cedar Down Farm and Reid Allaway from Tourne-Sol Co-operative Farm shared insights drawn from years of experience with cover cropping.
How can organic farmers reduce tillage on their farms? In this webinar, Brett Israel from 3Gen Organic, Aaron Bowman from Bowmanview Farms, Jake Munroe from OMAFRA and Mel Luymes discussed this struggle.
The Canadian Organic Trade Association has just released its State of Organics: Federal-Provincial-Territorial Performance Report 2021, which summarizes the current state of support for the organic sector from all levels of government. This year’s data shows that while Ontario consumers have shown enthusiasm for the organic industry – as discussed in OCO’s Ontario Organic Market Report 2021 – the province lacks significant support for the growth of organic agriculture. So where are opportunities for improvement?
With so many external stressors threatening our natural ecosystems, some farmers have turned to rebuilding or preserving natural spaces on their farmland. If done correctly, this practice can prove enormously beneficial to the farm and its surrounding environment. So what kinds of natural landscapes can farmers rebuild, and what kind of care will these new spaces require?
Grains are extremely valuable to organic farmers—they can serve as a main crop, as feed or as a cover crop to reduce weeds and build soil health. At the EFAO conference’s Grain Buyers Meet and Greet, sponsored by the Organic Council of Ontario, organic small grain growers from across Ontario’s organic sector had the opportunity to network and address some of the most common questions and concerns regarding small grain production and marketing.
