DEVELOPMENT OF MEDICINAL HERBS, NEW HORTICULTURAL CROPS, AND ORGANIC AND SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION SYSTEMS FOR VEGETABLES

• Sponsoring Institution: National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Project Status: TERMINATED
• Funding Source: HATCH
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 0204634
• Project No.: NC06832
• Project Start Date: Oct 1, 2010
• Project End Date: Sep 30, 2015

Project Director
Davis, J.

Recipient Organization
NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIV
(N/A)
RALEIGH,NC 27695

Performing Department
Horticultural Science

Non Technical Summary
To keep agriculture profitable in North Carolina, it is necessary to explore production of new high-value crops, enterprises, and alternative production methods. The objective of this program is to increase diversity, sustainability, and profitability of agriculture in N.C. and the Southeastern U.S. through development of medicinal herbs, new horticultural crops, and organic and sustainable vegetable production systems. The demand for U.S. grown Chinese medicinal herbs is increasing and we will study ten or more species to determine if they are appropriate for production in western N.C. An emphasis will be placed on producing a higher quality product than is usually found in imported products. Echinacea is a popular North American medicinal herb that is currently grown in N.C. but research needs to be done to determine how to produce a more consistent product. N.C. is home to a large number of craft breweries that would like to incorporate locally grown hops into their beer. Farmers are planting hops across the state with little information on how best to grow them. We are studying soil fertilization, disease and insect control, and brewing qualities to help the new hop farmers produce the high yields of premium quality hops. Truffles are one of the most expensive agricultural products produced, but most of the truffles consumed in this country are imported from Europe. There is an emerging truffle industry in N.C. that is need of research on how to reliably produce them. There is a growing population of organic farmers in western N.C. that need research on production problems unique to the soils and climate in this region. An organic unit is being started to address these needs. The first studies planned will examine organic weed control methods and organic broccoli production. Consumers are willing to pay high prices for organic heirloom tomatoes, but they are a challenge to grow in the humid Southeast. We are working to develop heirloom-type hybrid tomato varieties that are well-suited to this climate and an organic production system that will allow N.C. growers to produce for this market. All of these efforts are directed at helping western N.C. farmers increase their profitability and keep farmland actively producing by taking advantage of a growing demand for locally grown and organic food, new crop opportunities, and more sustainable production practices.

Animal Health Component

(N/A)

Research Effort Categories

Basic

(N/A)

Applied

(N/A)

Developmental

(N/A)

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
205	0680	1060	10%
205	1440	1060	20%
205	1460	1060	10%
205	1461	1060	10%
205	1470	1060	10%
205	2220	1060	20%
205	2230	1060	10%
205	2299	1060	10%

Knowledge Area
205 - Plant Management Systems;

Subject Of Investigation
1440 - Cole crops; 1470 - Mushrooms and other edible fungi; 2220 - Medicinal crops, non-narcotic; 0680 - Other products of the forest; 1460 - Tomato; 2299 - Miscellaneous and new crops, general/other; 1461 - Peppers; 2230 - Hops;

Field Of Science
1060 - Biology (whole systems);

Keywords

organic

sustainable agriculture

medicinal herbs

chinese herbs

actaea

new crops

echinacea purpurea

hops

humulus lupulus

truffles

tuber melanosporum

heirloom

tomatoes

solanum lycopersicum

broccoli

brassica oleracea

peppers

capsicum annum

Goals / Objectives
To keep agriculture profitable in N.C., it is necessary to explore production of new high-value crops, enterprises, and alternative production methods. The goal of this program is to increase diversity, sustainability, and profitability of agriculture in N.C. and the Southeastern U.S. through development of medicinal herbs, new horticultural crops, and organic and sustainable vegetable production systems. The objectives of this project are to a) develop viable commercial production systems for several medicinal herbs, b) explore the feasibility of producing a variety of new crops, and c) improve the sustainability of vegetable crop production through organic agriculture and improved production systems. Field days and hop yard tours will be held annually to allow producers, buyers, and the public to observe the field studies and visit with the researchers. Information about these trials will be disseminated throughout the course of the studies through websites, including eXtension, and various social media and listservs. Presentations will be made at professional meetings and grower conferences. Upon completion of the studies, extension bulletins and scientific journal articles will be published.

Project Methods
Experiments on Chinese medicinal herbs will consist of six on-farm and one research station test plantings of ten herbs that market studies show are in demand. Locations will be treated as replications. Data will be collected on survivability, vigor, diseases, insects, and yield. Cooperators will conduct analyses of medicinal components and quality tests. If a pending proposal is funded, North American and Asian Actaea species will be added to those seven test sites with duplication in three other states. At each location, there will be four replications of the two species in a split plot design. Plants will be harvested over five years. Cooperators will conduct biochemical analyses and organoleptic tests. The response of Echinacea purpurea to soil pH and nitrogen will be investigated in a greenhouse study. Plants will be grown at three soil pH levels and three nitrogen rates in a randomized complete block design with nine replications. Plants will be harvested at three growth stages. Samples will be provided to a cooperator for biochemical analysis. A hops (Humulus lupulus) variety trial is being conducted by a cooperator in eastern N.C. with this investigator responsible for monitoring four established hop yards in western N.C. At all five locations, soil fertility, disease and insect control, and brewing properties are being studied. If a pending proposal is funded, a hop variety trial will also be established in western N.C. A small test orchard of filberts (Corylus avellana) inoculated with black Perigord truffles (Tuber melanoporum) was established to test for mycorrhizae survivability, fertilization, disease control, and economic viability of truffle production in the region. To provide support to the organic farmers in western N.C. an organic research unit is being established at one of the research stations. Initial studies will include a weed control study on bell peppers (Capsicum annum). The treatments will include black plastic mulch, black landscape fabric, straw mulch, and clean culture (bare ground). The experiment will be a randomized complete block design with four replications. Data will be collected on weed populations, time spent on weed management, disease and insect presence, and yields. A broccoli (Brassica oleracea) variety and planting date study will also be included. Six varieties and two planting dates will be studied in a randomized complete block design with four replications. If a pending proposal is funded, a large multi-state project on organic production of heirloom and heirloom-type hybrid tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum) will be initiated. To improve the sustainability of vegetable production in western N.C., a multi-state project to create an eastern broccoli industry is being initiated. It will include extensive variety trials and on-farm studies. All studies will be analyzed using standard methods appropriate for agricultural research. Farmers will be invited to field days and workshops to observe these studies and see the results for themselves. Grower surveys conducted before and after the studies will help refine the studies and determine their usefulness.

Progress 10/01/10 to 09/30/15

Outputs
Target Audience:Farmers, future farmers, extension agents, other professionals who advise or serve farmers, and buyers of raw agricultural commodities. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Twenty-one invited presentations were given on growing and marketing medicinal herbs, hops, organic vegetables, stevia, and truffles at conferences, workshops, and festivals in North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. The demand for information on growing hops led us to offer monthly hop yard workshops on the research station which were very well attended. We also joined with hop growers in Virginia to offer the first NC-VA Hops Conference. We sold out our 200 tickets very quickly and video-taped the entire event so those who couldn't get tickets could still see and hear the whole event. Our program now participates in two of the Mother Earth News Fairs with an educational booth, hands-on demonstrations, and presentations. These events have helped us reach more of the general public to educate them on the importance of agricultural research and extension. We also participated in several workshops in Virginia with colleagues from various non-profits and other universities to teach people how to grow medicinal herbs for the commercial market. These were well attended and buyers were very involved. The interest in western North Carolina in growing more herbs for manufacturers led us to offer a workshop on Good Agricultural and Collection Practices for Medicinal Herbs which we video-taped and posted and also published a leaflet on. Extension agents, local agronomists, and others working with the agricultural community often participated as instructors or were invited to attend these events. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results from our studies are regularly disseminated through websites, blogs, social media (Facebook and Twitter), YouTube, and listservs. We also present at conferences, workshops, and other events in the state and throughout the Southeast. Research results were also presented and discussed at professional meetings such as the American Society for Horticultural Science conferences. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Broccoli: The interest in producing large-scale, wholesale broccoli continues to grow in North Carolina. Our part of the project focused on western North Carolina where no wholesale broccoli was produced when this study started five years ago. Through this multi-state project involving breeders and researchers from public universities and private industry, new varieties and breeding lines were developed specifically for East Coast conditions. There are growers in western North Carolina who are now growing broccoli on a limited wholesale scale. They would like to expand production but we need to work together to address how to provide access to appropriate icing and cooling facilities. Hops: Our program initiated the first hops research program in the South Atlantic region. Over the past five years the number of hop yards has exploded and there are now clusters of growers in NC, VA, MD, TN, KY, and SC. Hops are a daylength sensitive crop that are best suited to the northern latitudes and all available commercial varieties were bred for those conditions. Our project helped to identify varieties that produce the best in our region, but yields are still low. We have recently initated a breeding program to create varieties for our region. Natural Products and Medicinal Herbs: Over the past several years, many raw material buyers and manufacturers have expressed interest in buying locally grown and sustainably harvested medicinal herbs. We conducted a large multi-year, multi-location study on two species of Echinacea to determine the influence of local conditions on yields, quality, and biochemical constituents. We continue to help build relationships between growers and buyers, and maintain small studies on propagation and production of a variety of woodland botanicals and Chinese medicinal herbs. Organic Tomatoes, Cucurbits, and Broccoli: As the organic industry has grown it has become apparent that vegetable varieties developed for conventional production are not always the best for organic growers. Better disease and insect resistance, tolerance to weed pressure, nutrient scavanging ability, nutrition, and flavor are the factors most often cited by growers. We have been involved in multi-state breeding projects on tomatoes, summer squash, cucumbers, and melons to evaluate new lines and compare them to existing varieties under the often challenging growing conditions in western North Carolina. We also conducted a series of research station and on-farm studies to evaluate and compare existing broccoli varieties for organic, fresh-market growers. We have identified the best broccoli varieties for local growers and the organic cucurbit project has identified some promising lines we expect will lead to new varieties. The tomato project has only had one year but there are some breeding lines that are exhibiting superior qualities. Stevia: Several large companies are now contracting with growers in the Southeast to grow stevia, but little is known about growing it in this environment. There had been a study with large-scale producers in eastern North Carolina, but growers in western North Carolina were interested in knowing if it could be grown there, too. Disease, weed control, and overwintering are the three major issues of concern with growing stevia in western North Carolina. Our studies showed that the use of high plant populations on raised beds with white or black plastic mulch kept production costs low and improved yields compared to bare ground treatments. The plastic mulch provided some overwintering protection, but survival was still less than 20%. Overall, yields were very low compared to what is reported in eastern North Carolina and Georgia. Our conclusion is that stevia can be grown in western North Carolina for direct sales but with existing lines, it is probably not economically feasible for large scale production. Black Perigord Truffles: There are established truffle orchards scattered throughout the Southeast, most notably in North Carolina, Virginia, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Only a few of these orchards are producing truffles and growers are anxious to know how to improve yields. We keep close tabs on research results from Europe, Australia, Chile, New Zealand, and China, but new findings and the clear differences in regional conditions and soils make it clear that we have a lot to learn and there is no one right way to grow truffles. To help our growers, we initiated a study to identify a cost-effective and practical method for growers to monitor colonization of their orchards. Results from these studies should be available next year.

Publications

• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Crumley, J.L. 2015. Effects of Genotype and Environment on Agronomic Performance and Phytochemical Profile of Echinacea purpurea and Echinacea angustifolia. MS Thesis, Department of Horticultural Science, North Carolina State University.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Bjorkman, T., M. Ozores-Hampton, L. Zotarelli, M. G. Hutton, J. Davis, R. Morse, C. Hoepting, P. Smith, and W. Morris. 2015. Commercial performance of broccoli varieties selected for a new climate. HortScience 50(9):S322-S323.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Davis, J., L. Qu, and K. Gaskill. 2015. Mulching, closer spacing, and double harvesting increased stevia biomass yield in western North Carolina. HortScience 50(9):S263-S264.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Davis, J., L. Zhou, J. Crumley, and J. Balles. 2015 Challenges with multiple growers providing consistent raw materials using Echinacea as an example. HortScience 50(9) Supplement: S98-S99.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Mazourek, M., J. Davis, M. Hoffmann, M. Colley, J. Murphy, P. Ojiambo, A. Seaman, C. Smart, T. Kleese, R. Hadad, C. Stewart, and J. Reid. 2015. ESO-Cuc eastern sustainable organic cucurbit project. HortScience 50(9):S332.
• Type: Other Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2016 Citation: Chamberlain, J., J. Davis, M. Duguid, D. Ellum, S. Kruger, H. Marcano-Vega, J. McCoy, S. Prisley, and J. Zasada. Production Methods, Chapter 2. Non-timber Forest Products National Assessment. USDA Forest Service.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Davis, J., S.E. Johnson, and K. Jennings. 2015. Herbicide carryover in hay, manure, compost, and grass clippings. AG727W (revised). NC Cooperative Extension, NC State University, Raleigh, NC. 7 pages.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Kemble, J.M., ed. 2015 Southeastern Vegetable Crop Handbook. J.M. Vance published it, hardcopy and online. (J. Davis is NC state coordinator and one of 60 authors from twelve institutions from NC, SC, GA, AL, LA, KY, TN, VA, FL, OK, TX, and MS.), 278 pages.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Schultheis, J.R., J.M. Davis, C.R. Crozier, and D.L. Osmond. 2015. Lime and fertilizer suggestions for vegetable crops. Revision. In: NC Agricultural Chemicals Manual. N.C. Coop. Ext. Service, N.C. State Univ., Raleigh, NC. p.51-54.
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2015. Organic production in NC website. http://ncorganic.org
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2015. Herbs, Mushrooms, & Alternative Crop website. http://ncherb.org
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2015. NC Specialty Crops website. http://ncspecialtycrops.org
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2015. Blog for organics and alternative crops. http://ncalternativecropsandorganics.blogspot.com . �� 22 posts. Average 8,000 views per month.
• Type: Other Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2016 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2016. Good Agricultural and Collection Practices fo Medicinal Herbs. NC Cooperative Extension Service Bulletin.

Progress 10/01/13 to 09/30/14

Outputs
Target Audience: Farmers, future farmers, extension agents, and other professionals who advise or serve farmers, including extension agents,crop consultants, regional agronomists, and agricultural products sales people. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Twenty-four presentations invited presentations were given at various grower conferences and events in North Carolina, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Virginia on how to produce a wide range of agricultural products. Most of these are new and emerging crops including medicinal herbs, broccoli, organic tomatoes, truffles, hops, stevia, and luffa gourds. Workshops and conferences were offered on how to grow and market woodland botanicals, hops, tomatoes and other vegetables, and organic vegetables. Participated in the United Plant Savers led Ginseng Summit in Rutland, OH. This event brought ginseng researchers, extension specialists, relevant non-profits, buyers, ginseng growers and wild-harvesters together to discuss what can be done to conserve the plant and grow the wild-simulated ginseng industry. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Results are regularly disseminated through websites, blogs, social media, and listservs. Workshops and conferences have been held and presentations given at events throughout the region. A webinar on non-timber forest products was produced. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? During the next reporting period we plan to create more web based educational materials, including production guides and videos. We are also completing several multi-year projects which will result in journal articles.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Matching Farmers with Farmland: the WNC Farmlink program. This multi-agency program, led by NCSU and housed in the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy office in Asheville has successfully matched 10 farm seekers with land owners, made over 42 introductions, and have three new farmers farming on new land. Natural Products and Medicinal Herbs: We continued to work with the medicinal herb growers' cooperative which was established in western NC in 2012. They are now selling herbs to wholesale buyers and manufacturers in our region. Hops: The regional interest in growing hops for the craft brew industry has exploded with the construction of three major breweries taking place in western North Carolina. We are now aware of 80 hop yards in the state ranging from a tenth to three acres in size. Broccoli: The interest in producing broccoli continues to grow throughout the Southeast. Variety recommendations were changed in the Southeastern Vegetable Production Handbook based on results from our trials in NC, VA, and SC.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2014. Hemp construction in the United States and efforts to grow the raw material here. ASHS, Orlando, FL. HortScience 49(9):S77.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Zhou, L. J. Crumley, J. Balles, and J.M. Davis. 2014. Influence of seed source on chemical composition of Echinacea purpurea and Echinacea angustifolia grown as medicinal herbs in two environments. ASHS, Orlando, FL. HortScience 49(9):S187.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Crumley, J. L. Zhou, J. Balles, and J.M. Davis. 2014. Seed size does not affect germination or vigor of Echinacea angustifolia. ASHS, Orlando, FL. HortScience 49(9):S186.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Sams, C.E., D.A. Kopsell, A. Saxton, P. Griffiths, T. Bjorkman, M.W. Farnham, J.M. Davis, M. Hutton, and W. Morris. 2014. Analysis of genetic and environmental effects on broccoli cultigens in diverse environments in the Eastern United States. ASHS, Orlando, FL. HortScience 49(9):S349.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Davis, J.M., K. Gaskill, and L. Qu. 2014. Evaluation of hop cultivars for commercial production in North Carolina. ASHS, Orlando, FL. HortScience 49(9):S377.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Farnham, M.W., Z. Stansell, P. Griffiths, J.M. Davis, M. Hutton, and T. Bjorkman. 2014. Using regional broccoli trial data to select experimental hybrids for input into advanced yield trials. ASHS, Orlando, FL. HortScience 49(9):S242.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: 2014 Southeastern Vegetable Crop Handbook. J.M. Kemble, ed. The Grower. (JMD was one of 66 authors from twelve institutions from NC, SC, GA, AL, LA, KY, TN, VA, FL, OK, TX, and MS.), 276 pages.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2014. Identifying the best broccoli varieties for organic growers in WNC. Stewardship News 34(1):4-5, Carolina Farm Stewardship Association Newsletter.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2014. From Ginseng to Mushrooms: Goodies from Your Woods. First in a series for the American Tree Farm System organized by the eXtension Forest Farming Community of Practice. https://www.treefarmsystem.org/ntfpgoodies14
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2014. Herbs, Mushrooms, & Alternative Crop website. http://ncherb.org .
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Davis, J. 2014. Current opportunities and best practices for ginseng. Papers presented at the 2014 Hickory, NC meeting of the Southern Region of North America International Plant Propagators Society. P. 1-6. http://ipps-srna.org/?page_id=786
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2014. Organic production in NC website. http://ncorganic.org
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Davis, J.M. 2014. Blog for organics and alternative crops. http://ncalternativecropsandorganics.blogspot.com

Progress 10/01/12 to 09/30/13

Outputs
Target Audience: Farmers, future farmers, extension agents, and other professionals who advise or serve farmers, including extension agents, crop consultants, regional agronomists, and agricultural products sales people. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Fifteen invited presentations were given at various grower conferences and events in North Carolina, Delaware, Georgia, and Virginia on how to produce a wide range of agricultural products. Most of these are new and emerging crops including medicinal herbs, broccoli, organic tomatoes, truffles, hops, stevia, and luffa gourds. In-service training for extension agents and specialists was offered on Emerging Crops. Workshops and conferences were offered on how to grow and market woodland botanicals, hops, tomatoes and other vegetables, and organic vegetables. A special conference was held to introduce farmers, extension personnel, and other agricultural advisors to the opportunities for biodyanmic production. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Results are reqgularly disseminated through websites, blogs, social media, listservs. Workshops and conferences have been held and presentations given at events throughout the region. For non-timber forest products, an almost 200 page report was submitted. A video was created for bloodroot production. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? During the next reporting period we plan to create more web based educational materials, including production guides and videos. We are also completing several multi-year projects which will result in journal articles.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Matching Farmers with Farmland: the WNC Farmlink program. This program was initiated late in the year and there are already 18 farm seekers and 12 land owners actively using the service. Natural Products and Medicinal Herbs: We continued to work with the medicinal herb growers’ cooperative which was established in western North Carolina in 2012. They are now selling herbs to wholesale buyers and manufacturers in our region. We have educated, trained, and/or assisted approximately 500 growers, interested growers, extension agents, and other industry stakeholders in various aspects of the medicinal herb supply chain and natural products industry in WNC and beyond. With other project partners, our collaboration has resulted in close to a $1m investment in the natural products industry in Western North Carolina over the past year and a half. Eleven growers have been connected to new business opportunities to sell medicinal herbs. Forty-five growers have reported that they have added a total of 485 acres over the past two years that are dedicated to medicinal herb production. Some of these growers may be in SC, GA, TN, but the majority are in NC. In the past two years, those surveyed reported earning a combined total of approximately $47,730 from medicinal herb sales. Hops: The regional interest in growing hops for the craft brew industry has exploded with the construction of three major breweries taking place in western North Carolina. We are now aware of 80 hop yards in the state ranging from a tenth to three acres in size. Broccoli: The interest in producing broccoli continues to grow throughout the Southeast. Variety recommendations were changed in the Southeastern Vegetable Production Handbook based on results from our trials in NC, VA, and SC. Biodynamics: Demand from large retailers, such as Whole Foods, is driving demand for biodynamic produce. We have taken the lead in being the educators and researchers for biodynamic vegetable, herb, and fruit production in WNC.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Farnham, M.W., P. Griffiths, J.M. Davis, M. Hutton, W. Morris, C.E. Sams, D.A. Kopsell, and T. Bjorkman. Regional Hybrid Broccoli Trials Provide a Means to Further Breeding Efforts of This Increasingly Important Vegetable Crop. ASHS. HortScience 48(9):S129. (Abstr.)
• Type: Other Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2013 Citation: Dressler, A., M. Bloomquist, and J. Davis. 2013. 2013 Report on Special Forest Botanicals of Southern Appalachia. U.S. Forest Service. 196 pages.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Munsell, J. J. Davis, and J. Chamberlain. 2013. Forest Farming. Chapter 7. Training Manual for Applied Agroforestry Practices. 2013 Edition. The Center for Agroforestry, University of Missouri., p. 115-126.
• Type: Books Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: 2013 Southeastern Vegetable Crop Handbook. J.M. Kemble, ed. The Grower. (JMD was one of 63 authors from twelve institutions from NC, SC, GA, AL, LA, KY, TN, VA, FL, OK, TX, and MS.) 276 pages.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Crumley, J., L. Zhou, J. Balles, and J. Davis. 2013. Comparing phenotypical variation among Echinacea purpurea and Echinacea angustifolia varieties grown as medicinal herbs in two environments. S. Region ASHS. HortScience 48(9):S17. (Abstr.)
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2013 Citation: Davis, J., S. King, and R. Austin. 2013. Conducting variety trials for an emerging Southeastern hops industry. S. Region ASHS. (was left out of the published abstracts in HortScience by mistake).
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Davis, J. and E. Bernstein. 2013. Studies in support of western North Carolina mountain broccoli production. S. Region ASHS. HortScience 48(9):S41. (Abstr.)
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Bernstein, E.R. and J.M. Davis. Participatory Evaluation of Broccoli Varieties Grown Under Organic Conditions in Western North Carolina. ASHS. HortScience 48(9):S364. (Abstr.)

Progress 10/01/11 to 09/30/12

Outputs
OUTPUTS: In 2012, we continued development of the organic unit at the Mountain Research Station in Waynesville, NC. Community college students volunteered to put in a block of farmscaping and the organic certification process was started. We initiated a two year participatory broccoli variety screening project on the organic unit. A grower advisory committee helped select the varieties to be tested and a field day was held during which the attendees rated the varieties. Our research and outreach activities on commercial production of hops continued to expand. The variety trial at the Mountain Horticultural Crops Research Station in Mills River was in its second year of production. A field day and post-season grower meeting were held to exchange information learned from the research and growers' experiences. Presentations on hops production were given at meetings and conferences around the state. The multi-state East Coast Broccoli Project was also in its second year of production. We continued with the Phase I studies for screening public and private broccoli breeding lines and initiated the Phase II trials looking at five planting dates. These studies were included in the field day with the other broccoli study and presented on at the Winter Vegetable Conference in Asheville. We also started working with three local vegetable growers on producing broccoli by providing them with several of the commercial broccoli varieties that had performed well in the replicated trials. Our Chinese medicinal herbs trials were continued on the Mountain Horticultural Crops Research Station and on nine on-farm sites. During a half-day hands-on workshop we harvested, washed, evaluated, and started drying roots and flowers of many of the herbs in the test plots. A study comparing production of six varieties of Echinacea purpurea and E. angustifolia at two research stations in the southern mountains and the upper piedmont was initiated. Plants will be harvested and analyzed after one, two, and three years of growth. The Black Perigord truffle demonstration/research orchard was maintained for the third year at the Mountain Research Station. Growers visited the orchard to learn about the production system, pruning method, and Eastern Filbert Blight control efforts. In a project with Alabama and Arkansas, we led a two-day training on organic agriculture for extension agents and other agriculture education professionals. This was an intensive, advanced level, interactive hands-on training that involved farmers and chefs and required trainees to work through hypothetical scenarios as well as assist the cooperating farmers with real-life problems. A webpage was created from this training as a resource for educators. Information was gathered on collection, commerce, populations, and trends in sales of twelve special forest botanical plants. Parts of this project are being done in cooperation with specialists at Virginia Tech University. In cooperation with NC A&T State University, extension agent training was conducted on agroforestry. All of these projects and their activities were documented on websites, a blog, Facebook, and Twitter. PARTICIPANTS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. TARGET AUDIENCES: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
Regional interest in growing hops for the craft brew industry has exploded with the construction of three major breweries taking place in western North Carolina. We are now aware of 80 hop yards in the state ranging from a tenth to three acres in size. This is a 38% increase over last year. Results from a survey sent to our hops email listserv revealed that 98% of respondents know more about growing hops now than they did two years ago, 93% are more knowledgeable about varieties than they were two years ago, and 98% said there is more information available about growing hops than two years ago. The information from our variety trials continue to influence growers' decisions as they establish and refurbish their hops yards. The interest in producing broccoli continues to grow throughout the Southeast. Variety recommendations were changed in the Southeastern Vegetable Production Handbook based on results from our trials in NC, VA, and SC. A medicinal herb growers' cooperative was established in western North Carolina. Most of these growers were, and continue to be, on-farm cooperators in our Chinese medicinal herb studies. They are now selling herbs to wholesale buyers and manufacturers in our region. The eXtension Forest Farming Community of Practice was launched. Much of the information on that site is being developed from our studies on forest botanicals. Numerous articles appeared in the media, radio, farm publications, regional magazines, and newspapers, on hops, broccoli, and medicinal herbs.

Publications

• Davis, J.M., R. Austin, and S. King. 2012. Growing hops in North Carolina: Variety trials in the central piedmont and southwestern mountains of North Carolina. HortScience 47(9):S365.
• Bjorkman, T., J.M. Davis, M.W. Farnham, M. Gomez, P. Griffiths, M. Hutton, D.A. Kopsell, J.R. Myers, C.E. Sams, and J. Smith. 2012. A transdisciplinary approach to developing an eastern broccoli industry. HortScience 47(9):S408.
• Davis, J.M. 2012. Assisting farmers to produce high quality medicinal herbs. HortScience 47(8):976-978.
• Kemble, J.M., G.E. Boyhan, J.M. Davis, R.L. Hassel, R.G. Snyder, and A.L. Wszelaki. 2012. After 12 years-the Southeastern Vegetable Crops Handbook and the SE Vegetable Extension Workers meeting. HortScience 47(9):S37.
• Sams, C.E., D.A. Kopsell, M.W. Farnham, P. Griffiths, M. Hutton, J. Davis, and W. Morris. 2012. Glucosinolate variation among six cultigens of broccoli grown in five diverse East Coast locations. HortScience 47(9):S358.
• Sams, C.E., M.W. Farnham, P. Griffiths, M. Hutton, J. Davis, and W. Morris. 2012. Broccoli pigment profile of six cultigens grown in five East Coast locations. HortScience 47(9):S358.

Progress 10/01/10 to 09/30/11

Outputs
OUTPUTS: In 2011, we continued development of the organic research and extension unit at the Mountain Research Station in Waynesville, NC. Four research projects were conducted there. Two were part of this program, the second year of a study on weed control options for organic pepper production and a preliminary study on growing cowpeas and pigeon peas. The third study was an evaluation of fungicides for organic tomato production led by a plant pathologist, and the fourth study was led by a tomato breeder and is a continuation of the organic heirloom and heirloom-type hybrid tomato studies that we have been collaborating on since 2004. Our research and outreach activities on commercial production of hops was expanded. A research hop yard was established on the Mountain Horticultural Crops Research Station in Mills River to compliment the one established by our soil scientist collaborators in Raleigh the previous year. The new yard contains ten varieties. The East Coast Broccoli Project was initiated with one of the main screening sites being located at the Mountain Research Station in Waynesville. Thirty-six varieties and advanced breeding lines were evaluated in two plantings. Matching trials were conducted in Maine, New York, Virginia, and South Carolina. Small trials of ten Chinese medicinal herbs were initiated or expanded on the Mountain Research Station and on nine on-farm sites. Herbs from these trials are being used for lab analysis and test marketing. A collaborative project on Echinacea purpurea was continued with a second year greenhouse study on the effects of soil pH and fertilizer rates on the chemical composition of the plants. A small Black Perigord truffle demonstration/research orchard was maintained for the second year at the Mountain Research Station. We are attempting to control Eastern Filbert Blight with pruning and fungicides. PARTICIPANTS: NC State University faculty involved in these studies included Dr. Frank Louws in Plant Pathology, Dr. Dilip Panthee in Horticultural Science, and Rob Austin and Scott King in Soil Science. Dr. Louis Jackai from NC A&T State University, Dr. Nadja Cech at University of NC-Greensboro, Dr. Thomas Bjorkman from Cornell University, Dr. Mark Hutton from the University of Maine, Mr. Morris Wythe from Virginia State University, Dr. Carl Sams from University of Tennessee, Dr. Mark Farnham, USDA, and Dr. Brett Taubman of Appalachian State University were collaborators from other institutions. Partner organizations included the NC Natural Products Association, NC Tomato Growers Association, and the Southern Appalachian Hops Guild. The organic studies were included in a public field day and a two-day community on-farm tour. An organic broccoli workshop was held in the upper mountain region of the state. A hops tour introduced people to the new research hop yard. TARGET AUDIENCES: The primary audience for these efforts are farmers and potential farmers in the Southeastern United States who are looking for new crops, to transition to organics, or to improve current production practices. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
There is statewide interest in growing hops for the craft brew industry that resulted in many hop yards being planted and planned from the mountains to the coast. Concern for problems that these new growers might encounter resulted in a diverse group of people collaborating to assist the developing industry. Two grant funded projects provided one on one support to eight growers and resulted in adequate soils and fertility information to be developed to create a hops code on the state soil test reports. The best performing varieties in the new research hop yard were Zeus, Cascade, and Galena. The performance of these varieties is already influencing growers' decisions. A hops workshop and a hops festival held on the same day in WNC were attended by an estimated 800 people. We estimate that there are more than 50 small commercial hop yards in North Carolina with at least another 30 planned to come on-line in 2012. The organic research and extension unit continues to grow and attract attention. It was included in a vegetable field day and two-day community farm tour. For the second year, landscape fabric and plastic mulch were most effective in reducing the labor required for weed control on organic peppers. There are more than 19,000 farms in WNC that could potentially be impacted by the research program developed through this project, of which well over 300 are estimated to be organic. Outreach into the community has helped promote the program, and collaborative partnerships are developing with local community organizations as well as with regional organic and sustainable agriculture programs. Over 200 consumers participated in the organic heirloom and heirloom-type tomato taste tests. Two of the advanced hybrids and a commercially available open-pollinated variety, Blush, rated the highest in the taste tests. The small truffle research and demonstration orchard is being used by the Southeastern truffle industry to help get a well-funded research program established in the region.

Publications

• Cecil, C.E., J.M. Davis, N.B. Cech, and S. M. Laster. 2011. Inhibition of H1N1 influenza A virus growth and induction of inflammatory mediators by the isoquinoline alkaloid berberine and extracts of goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis). Int. Immunopharmacol. 11(11):1706-14.
• Davis, J.M. and J. Harrison. 2011. Producing shiitake mushrooms: a guide for small-scale outdoor cultivation on logs. AG-478 (revised), p 1-8. NC Cooperative Extension, Raleigh, NC.

Progress 10/01/09 to 09/30/10

Outputs
OUTPUTS: In 2010, we initiated the establishment of an organic research and extension unit at the Mountain Research Station in Waynesville, NC. A coordinator was hired to survey farmers, local community members, university faculty, county extension agents, and relevant non-profits to determine the needs for such a program in western North Carolina. Directors of organic and small-farm units across the country were interviewed to get their advice on starting a new program. Four small research projects were conducted in the organic unit. One was to study weed control options for organic pepper production and included black plastic mulch, landscape fabric, straw, living cover crop, and bare ground. An emphasis was put on costs of production for weed control, especially labor needs. The second study was to compare five varieties of broccoli grown in a certified organic system. This study gave us experience growing crown broccoli and generated preliminary data for a large, five year, multi-state project that will start in 2011. Row covers were required to protect the plants from flea beetles. The third study looked at production of grafted tomatoes in an organic system. And the fourth study was a continuation of the organic heirloom and heirloom-type hybrid tomato studies that we have been conducting since 2004. A workshop was held so farmers, potential organic farmers, and home gardeners could observe the studies first hand, talk to the researchers, participate in taste tests, and provide feedback on the development of the organic unit. To reach even more commercial vegetable growers, a poster was created for the pepper weed control project and presented at a large field day held at the Mountain Horticultural Crops Research Station. A small ginseng project continues to be done in collaboration with Salem College, a private women's liberal arts college. Students came to the site several times during the growing season to participate in the research. The research and outreach on commercial production of hops was expanded. A hop yard was established in Raleigh by the cooperating soil scientists on the project. Our western efforts were focused on working closely with four growers in their hop yards. Extensive soil testing was done to help develop a fertility plan for western N.C. grown hops. Disease and insect samples were collected, diagnosed, and suggestions for control and prevention were provided. A field tour of two hop yards and a micro-brewery was conducted and a meeting of all the cooperating growers, researchers, and extension personnel was held to share "lessons learned". Black Perigord truffles are of increasing interest and a small demonstration/research orchard was established at the Mountain Research Station. Social media was used to reach new audiences. This included a blog, Twitter account, and Facebook page in addition to existing websites and listservs. PARTICIPANTS: Rob Austin and Scott King, Soil scientists, NCSU, on hops project. Bill Yarborough, agronomist, NCDA&CS, on hops project. Sue Colucci, extension agent, on hops project. Hannah Barrack, extension specialist, on hops project. Amy Hamilton, research specialist, on all projects. Tyler Nance, summer assistant, on all projects. Emily Bernstein, research associate, organic unit. Nita Eschew, chemistry professor, Salem College, ginseng project. Dilip Panthee, breeder, NCSU, heirloom tomato project. Frank Louws, plant pathologist, NCSU, grafted tomato project. Undergraduates from Salem College were involved in the ginseng project. A high school chemistry class in Haywood County used the broccoli project to learn about experiment design and statistics. The organic unit workshop provided farmers and home gardeners with an opportunity to learn what publically funded agricultural research is about. TARGET AUDIENCES: Target audiences for our research and extension efforts included farmers, future farmers, conventional farmers looking for new opportunities, extension agents, community members interested in food production, and community college and high school students. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
The new organic research and extension unit attracted a great deal of attention. Over 115 people turned out to participate in the workshop, taste test, and interactive session on the development of the unit. The effectiveness of using landscape fabric and plastic mulch to reduce labor required for weed control on organic peppers was clearly evident. The fact that landscape fabric can be reused for many years was particularly interesting to many growers. The broccoli plants had been covered with row covers when they were very young to protect them from flea beetles. Workshop attendees removed the row covers and were impressed with the size of the broccoli and how effective the row cover was at eliminating further damage. Giving a presentation on the organic pepper project at another field day of mostly conventional farmers exposed them to information about organic agriculture that they probably would not have learned about otherwise. Several of these farmers have expressed interest in growing organic vegetables in the future. One farmer, who had expressed interest in our organic projects in 2009, planted 3.5 acres of organic vegetables in 2010. He claims he made a profit and will expand production next year. Nineteen more faculty in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences have indicated that they would also like to conduct research in the organic unit in the future. The ginseng project exposed a group of female college students to research in agriculture, native plants, and medicinal herbs. Some of them expect to pursue these new interests through internships during the summer. The hops field day, research project, and lessons learned meeting were rated as highly beneficial by the existing hops growers and those working with them. We believe that these efforts were important factors in our success in obtaining another grant to expand research in 2011 on hop varieties and cultural practices. News of the new organic research unit has resulted in many suggestions from farmers on research needs and interests. The blog, Twitter account, and Facebook page continue to reach new audiences of growers and other people interested in agriculture issues. It has opened up new networking opportunities and facilitated rapid transmittal of time sensitive information.

Publications

• Cech, N.B, V. Kandhi, J.M. Davis, A. Hamilton, D. Eads, and S.M. Laster. 2010. Echinacea and its alkylamides: Effects on the influenza A-induced secretion of cytokines, chemokines, and PGE2 from RAW 264.7 macrophage-like cells. Int Immunopharmacol 10:1268-1278.
• Davis, J., S. Johnson, and K. Jennings. 2010. Herbicide carryover in hay, manure, compost, and grass clippings. NC. Cooperative Extension Service, AG-727W.
• Chamberlain, J.L., D. Mitchell, T. Brigham, T. Hobby, L. Zabek, and J. Davis. 2009. Forest Farming Practices. Chapter 9, North American Agroforestry: An Integrated Science and Practice. 2nd Edition, H.E. Garrett, Ed. American Society of Agronomy, Madison, WI.

Progress 10/01/08 to 09/30/09

Outputs
OUTPUTS: In 2009, research projects included comparing twenty heirloom and heirloom-type hybrid tomatoes grown in an organic production system, testing a variety of formulations and rates of a microbially active biochar product on tomatoes grown under different fertility regimes, studying changes in bioactive chemical constituents in ginseng grown in the forest and under artificial shade over the course of the season, collecting preliminary data for initiating studies on hops and truffles, and planning an organic research unit for a mountain research station. This year's heirloom tomato project is the continuation of a long-running series of studies conducted at the Mountain Research Station. As in previous years, a workshop was held so commercial farmers, potential organic farmers, and home gardeners could observe the plants first hand, talk to the horticulturist and breeder, participate in the taste test, and visit with extension personnel and industry representatives. The biochar product was also included in the workshop. To reach more commercial tomato growers, posters were created for both projects and presentations were made with them at the much larger tomato field day held at the Mountain Horticultural Crops Research Station. Presentations on the organic heirloom tomato project were also made at grower conferences throughout the region. The ginseng project is being done in collaboration with Salem College, a small, private women's liberal arts college. Students came to the site several times during the growing season to participate in the research. The Asheville region is well known for its large number of high quality micro-breweries. A number of enterprising individuals began commercial hops production to serve this industry. Information on soils, fertility, disease and weed management, and economics were collected to identify future research needs. A field tour of two hop yards and a micro-brewery, was conducted and three regional education meetings were held. Growers were encouraged to work together to share information and a blog was created to facilitate this. Truffles are of increasing interest and a small demonstration/research orchard is being established to help address the many production questions that have arisen. Presentations on truffles were made at several grower conferences throughout the region. Even though western North Carolina has a high concentration of organic farmers, there is no established research program to address their unique production issues. A grant was obtained to help create an organic research unit on the Mountain Research Station. News of this grant was released on local listservs. In an effort to reach a wider audience with updates on research projects and related extension activities, a blog, Twitter account, and Facebook page were launched for this program. Existing websites were updated, relevant listservs were posted on, leaflets were updated, and articles written. PARTICIPANTS: Dr. Dilip Panthee is the new tomato breeder collaborating on the organic heirloom and heirloom-type hybrid tomato project. This project collaborates with the Organic Growers School and the North Carolina Natural Products Association. TARGET AUDIENCES: The target audiences are extension agents, commercial farmers, organic farmers, the many new and potential farmers in the region, hobby farmers, and in some cases, home gardners. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
The organic heirloom tomato workshop attracted more interest this year than usual as many organic farmers and gardeners were curious to see what methods were being used to control late blight on the tomatoes. The effectiveness of growing varieties with disease resistance was evident, and as a result, there have been many inquiries from farmers and gardeners about where to purchase the two new hybrids, Plum Regal and Mountain Magic, that will be available for the 2010 growing season. Many organic farmers have reported that they will be testing more organic fungicides next year as preventive sprays if late blight is forecasted for the region. Even though there were no obvious treatment differences to be observed in the biochar project, for many attendees, this was their first exposure to biochar and thus they learned what it is and the potential benefits that we were testing for. Giving presentations on these projects at another field day exposed a group of farmers to information about organic agriculture that they probably would not have learned about otherwise. Several of these farmers later attended a meeting with buyers looking for more organic produce from the region. The ginseng project has exposed a group of female college students to research in agriculture, native plants, and medicinal herbs. Some of them expect to pursue these new interests through internships during the summer. The hops field day, educational meetings, and blog were rated as highly beneficial by the existing hops growers and people considering hops as a new crop. We believe that these efforts were important factors in our success in obtaining a small grant to initiate research in 2010 on hops varieties and fertility. Soil samples collected from several highly successful truffle orchards are the beginning of a database of information we are building for this new crop. Individuals are more likely to try growing truffles now that their extension agents have access to real production information from the region. News of the new organic research unit has resulted in many suggestions from farmers on research needs and interests. The blog, Twitter account, and Facebook page have reached a whole new audience of growers and other people interested in agriculture issues. It has opened up new networking opportunities and facilitated rapid transmittal of time sensitive information.

Publications

• No publications reported this period

Progress 10/01/07 to 09/30/08

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Activities: In 2008, research topics included heirloom tomatoes, medicinal herbs, and organic agriculture. For heirloom tomatoes, a large field study was conducted to compare production of three heirloom tomatoes with three new heirloom-type hybrids. All were grown in a conventional system, an organic system based on use of Serenade and Neem Oil, an organic system based on Brandt Consolidated OMRI approved products, and a control system which received no insect or disease control. A smaller field study was conducted at another location to compare production of the same varieties of heirloom and heirloom-type hybrid tomatoes as the large field study. They were all grown in the Brandt Consolidated organic system. For medicinal herbs, as part of a multi-disciplinary grant project, Echinacea purpurea was grown in a range of soil pH x nitrogen rates treatments to determine their effect on specific active compounds. As part of another cooperative project, ginseng seedlings were grown in the forested and artificial shade situations to study changes on a variety of bioactive chemical constituents over the season and with stage of growth. A new shade structure has been constructed and a wide variety of woodland medicinal herbs and ramps are being propagated in the woods and under artificial shade structures for studies to be started in 2009. To determine the influence of previous medicinal herb research and outreach efforts, a survey of the North Carolina medicinal herb production was conducted and is being analyzed. For organics, in addition to the heirloom tomato studies, an organic research unit is under development. Events: The small heirloom tomato study was included in the Specialty Crops Field Day in Laurel Springs, NC. The large heirloom tomato study was included in the 100th Anniversary Celebration of the Mountain Research Station in Waynesville, NC. Two workshops on organic heirloom tomato production, with taste tests, were held at the Mountain Research Station in Waynesville, NC and the Upper Mountain Research Station in Laurel Springs, NC. Two three-day in-service training sessions on organic horticulture were held for extension personnel in Pittsboro and Valle Crucis, NC as part of a grant funded project. Services: Growers and extension agents were assisted through phone, email, and on-farm visits. A medicinal herb growing and marketing service was provided to assist North Carolina herb farmers with selling their herbs. Websites are constantly updated and extension agents are notified of such through email. Products: Organic Horticulture Training Notebook and website for agents. The websites, ncorganic.org, ncherb.org, and ncspecialtycrops.org were updated. Dissemination: Twenty-eight oral presentations were given throughout North Carolina and the Eastern U.S. to educate extension agents, farmers, and the general public about organic agriculture, medicinal herbs, specialty crops, and natural products. Seventeen bulletins, leaflets, popular press articles, and newsletter articles were written. A book was revised and a book chapter written. Three posters were presented at professional meetings. PARTICIPANTS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. TARGET AUDIENCES: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.

Impacts
Organic and Heirloom Tomatoes: As in the previous three years, we were able to demonstrate that organic tomatoes can be produced in western North Carolina. We continue to refine production methods and identify which products are most effective. Septoria is becoming an increasing problem. The improved heirloom-type hybrid tomatoes performed well in the field and were rated as superior to the heirloom tomatoes in taste tests. More growers are now producing heirloom and organic tomatoes in western North Carolina. Retail prices exceeded $5.00 per pound during most of the growing season. Medicinal Herbs: Interest in growing and marketing medicinal herbs continues to be strong and farmers are requesting more information on best management practices that will improve yields and quality. The studies on Echinacea and ginseng are not complete, but early results indicate that bioactive constituents can be manipulated through production methods. There are many farmers who have grown medicinal herbs for a short period of time but no longer do so because of instability of markets and low prices. New growers, however, continue to enter into medicinal herb production. Net returns are variable depending on product and markets and range from $300 to over $14,000 per acre. Organic Agriculture: Organic agriculture continues to be a growth area in western North Carolina. To better serve the needs of these growers, an organic research unit is being established.

Publications

• Davis, J.M. 2008. Growing and marketing heirloom tomatoes. The Tomato Magazine. 12(1):20-22.
• Persons, W.S. and Davis, J.M. 2007. Growing and Marketing Ginseng, Goldenseal, and Other Woodland Medicinals. Bright Mountain Books, Fairview, NC. Updated.
• Chamberlain, J.L., Mitchell, D., Zabek, L., Davis, J., Brigham, T., and Hobby, T. 2008. Forest Farming. Chapter 9, North American Agroforestry . American Society of Agronomy (in press).
• Davis, J.M. and Gardner, R. 2008. Growing heirloom and heirloom-type tomato hybrids in organic and conventional production systems. HortScience 43(4):1259 (poster).
• Davis, J.M. 2008. The Farm prosperity project: An integrative project to improve farm profit with farmland protection and high value crops. HortScience 43(4):1291. (poster)
• Schultheis, J.R., Davis, J.M., Crozier, C.R., Hoyt, G.D., and Osmond, D.L. 2007. Lime and fertilizer suggestions for vegetable crops. Revision. In: 2007 NC Agricultural Chemicals Manual. N.C. Coop. Ext. Service, N.C. State Univ., Raleigh, NC. p. 57.
• Davis, J.M. 2008 Commercial luffa sponge gourd production. Department of Horticultural Science, NC State University. Horticulture Information Leaflet 120:1-3 (revised).
• Davis, J.M. 2008. Culinary herb production promising for farm markets. Vegetable Growers News 42(3):28-29.
• Davis, J.M. 2008. From arnica to yarrow: The ABCs on growing and selling medicinal herbs. NC Herb Association Newsletter, Spring Edition p. 2-4.
• Davis, J.M. 2008. Herb production and marketing for farm markets. NC Herb Association Newsletter, Winter Edition p. 5-6.
• Davis, J.M. 2008. NC agricultural research station update. Stewardship News, CFSA., Pittsboro, NC.
• Davis, J.M. 2008. Growing heirloom and heirloom-type hybrid tomatoes in organic and conventional systems. Stewardship News, CFSA, Pittsboro, NC.
• Davis, J.M. and Hamilton, A. 2008. Profile of a medicinal plant grower: Chip Webster. NC Specialty Crops Program newsletter, Kinston, NC.
• Davis, J.M. and Gardner, R.G. 2008. Growing heirloom and heirloom type hybrid tomatoes in organic and conventional production systems. CFSA Stewardship News 28(3):1,7.
• Davis, J.M. 2008. From arnica to yarrow: The ABCs on growing and selling medicinal herbs. ASAP Marketing Conference Notebook, Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project, Asheville, NC.

Progress 10/01/06 to 09/30/07

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Activities Three bloodroot field studies were harvested. Lab analyses are underway. A valerian field study was conducted and harvested. Lab analyses are underway. An organic and heirloom tomato field study was conducted and preliminary analysis has been completed. The study included public taste tests. Production and marketing assistance was provided to cooperating medicinal herb growers across the state. Drier construction was completed and driers were delivered to growers in western North Carolina. Testing and fine tuning of the driers continues. An undergraduate student intern completed a short project on organic soil amendments. Events An organic and heirloom tomato field day was held. A natural products conference was held. A regional winter vegetable conference was held. An organic growers school was held. Services Growers and extension agents were assisted through phone, email, and on-farm visits. Products M.S. student successfully defended thesis on bloodroot. http://ncherb.org http://ncorganic.org http://ncspecialtycrops.org Dissemination Numerous oral presentations were made at growers' conferences, community colleges, and universities in North Carolina and Quebec. Several extension electronic publications through the university were created. Popular press articles were written for local audiences. Two scientific journal articles were produced. A book chapter was written. PARTICIPANTS: Individuals PI Jeanine M. Davis Agatha Grimsley Laura Duffie Partner Organizations Brandt AB Tech Community College Land of Sky Regional Council Collaborators or contacts Randy Gardner Kelly Ivors Training or professional development TARGET AUDIENCES: Growers. Future growers. Students.

Impacts
Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis): Three studies designed to develop a commercial production system for bloodroot were harvested. These included propagation, tillage, and companion studies. Roots were harvested after four to six years of growth and the studies were located in the woods and under artificial shade. A large number of plants began disappearing from all the plots located in the woods several years into the studies. This is assumed to be due to disease, but a specific pathogen has not been identified. Since then, many seedlings have grown in those areas and appear quite healthy. Studies under artificial shade structures were also affected, but to a much lesser degree. Final analysis of the data has not been completed, but it is clear that bloodroot grows very slowly in this region and prices would have to be high to make commercial production profitable. It is also clear that yields were greater under artificial shade than in the woods. Medicinal Herbs: This was the fourth year of a project designed to examine the feasibility of producing medicinal herbs on a commercial scale in North Carolina. This year 30 farmers from across N.C. produced organic herbs and sold them to cooperating buyers. Eight national medicinal herb buyers are purchasing herbs from North Carolina farmers. Some of the herbs grown included Echinacea purpurea, Scutellaria lateriflora, Valeriana officinalis, Actaea racemosa and Hydrastis canadensis. Many of the growers are current or former tobacco farmers. The propane fueled tobacco kilns available in eastern NC are well-suited to drying herbs. In contrast, the open air barns used to dry burley tobacco in western NC are not appropriate for most herbs. Small and large electric herb dryers were constructed and distributed to the WNC growers. These are still being fine-tuned for optimum operation. Data obtained from this study indicates that medicinal herbs can provide net returns of $300 to over $14,000 per acre. Information on this project can be found at http://ncspecialtycrops.org/medherbs. Organic and Heirloom Tomatoes: This was the fifth year of field studies on heirloom tomatoes. This year, two heirloom varieties and two heirloom-type hybrids were grown in a conventional system, two organic systems, and a control (conventional fertility with no pest control. Yields from the organic plots were not different than from the conventional plots. The control plots were defoliated by Septoria and late blight. Yields of the heirloom varieties and heirloom-type hybrids were similar. The hybrid tomatoes, however, were more uniform in size and shape and yielded more consistently throughout the season. One of the hybrids stood out in the taste tests. There is a strong market for heirloom tomatoes, particularly those that are organically grown. Heirloom tomatoes are now being produced on conventional and organic farms across the state. With yields of 10 pounds or more per plant and wholesale prices of $2.00 per pound and up, it's easy to understand why growers are excited about learning to grow more heirloom vegetables.

Publications

• Davis, J.M. 2007. Growing and marketing native botanicals. Issues in New Crops and New Uses. Proceedings of the Sixth National Symposium Creating Markets for Economic Development of New Crops and New Uses. J. Janick and A. Whipkey (eds.). ASHS Press, Alexandria, VA, p.274-279.
• Davis, J.M. 2007. Forest farming in North America. Culture de plantes herbacees medicinals et ornementales en foret feuillue. Universite Laval, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. p. 13-14.
• Davis, J.M. 2007. The practical aspects of forest farming woodland botanicals. Culture de plantes herbacees medicinals et ornementales en foret feuillue. Universite Laval, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. p. 15-16.
• Davis, J.M. 2007. Research on bringing goldenseal, a native woodland botanical, into commercial cultivation. North American Agroforestry Conference, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
• Davis, J.M. 2007. Growing and marketing native forest botanicals. North American Agroforestry Conference, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
• Davis, J.M., Evans, R.O., Grabow, G., Jester, W.R., Little, B., Thornton, A.C., and Schultheis, J.R. 2007. Offsetting Drought for Small Scale Vegetable Production in North Carolina. N.C. Cooperative Extension Service, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC. Electronic Publication Number DRO16. (December 1994, revised September 2007).
• Graf, T.N., Levine, K.E., Andrews, M.E., Perlmutter, J.M., Nielsen, S.J., Davis, J.M., Wani, M.C., and Oberlies, N.H. 2007. Variability in the yield of benzophenanthridine alkaloids in wildcrafted vs cultivated bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis L.). J. Agricultural and Food Chemistry 55 (4), 1205 -1211.
• McCoy, J., Davis, J.M., Camper, N.D., Khan, I., and Bharathi, A. 2007. Influence of rhizome propagule size on yields and triterpene glycoside concentrations of black cohosh [Actaea racemosa L. syn Cimicifuga racemosa (L.) Nuttal]. HortScience 42(1):61-64.

Progress 10/01/05 to 09/30/06

Outputs
Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis): Root harvests were conducted after three years of growth in a production system study and four years of growth in a propagation study. The harvests revealed the loss of large numbers of plants from all the research plots located in the woods. This is assumed to be due to disease, but a specific pathogen has not been identified. Studies under artificial shade structures were also affected, but to a much lesser degree than those in the woods. In those studies, after four years of growth, propagule size and type had little effect on root yield. Ramps (Allium tricoccum): Five years ago a study was established to compare spring and fall planting and another to examine the effect of soil pH and soil calcium on growth and yield. Both studies were harvested in the spring. Yields were higher in plots planted in the fall compared to those planted in the spring. Yields were highest when plants were grown in soils high in calcium with a pH around 6.0. Medicinal Herbs: This was the third year of a project designed to examine the feasibility of producing medicinal herbs on a commercial scale. Thirty farmers from across N.C. produced herbs and sold them to cooperating buyers. Some of the herbs grown include Echinacea purpurea, Scutellaria lateriflora, Valeriana officinalis, and Nepeta cataria. Woodland botanicals, such as Actaca racemosa and Hydrastis canadensis, were also produced, but will not be harvested for several years. Many of the growers are current or former tobacco farmers. The propane fueled tobacco kilns in eastern NC are particularly well-suited to drying herbs. In contrast, the open air barns used to dry burley tobacco in western NC are not appropriate for most herbs. To assist the western farmers, small and large electric herb dryers were constructed and distributed throughout the region for their use. The harvested herbs are currently being analyzed for heavy metals, pesticides, and bioactives. Preliminary economic data suggests that medicinal herbs can provide net returns of $300 to over $14,000 per acre. Information on this project can be found at http://ncspecialtycrops.org/medherbs. Farm Preservation and New Crops: Results from this study will be reported under project NC09413. Organic Heirloom Tomatoes: For the second year, three heirloom tomato varieties (Mr. Stripey, German Johnson, and Cherokee Purple) were grown in a replicated trial with three late-blight resistant "heirloom-type" hybrids (NC0652, NC05114, and NC0455). The objective was to compare yield, disease resistance, and taste of the varieties produced in conventional and organic growing systems. Yields from the organic plots were not different than from the conventional plots. Yields of the heirloom varieties were as high, or higher, than the hybrids. The hybrid tomatoes, however, were much more uniform in size and shape and yielded more consistently. throughout the season. Two of the hybrids stood out in the taste tests. NC05114 and NC0455 were rated as good to excellent by 83% of the people surveyed.

Impacts
Medicinal herbs are still a new and relatively untried crop for North Carolina growers. The major objectives were to analyze the economic feasibility of growing medicinal herbs, determine North Carolina's potential role in the industry, and educate growers and county extension agents about the crops. Direct impacts were that over 40 new medicinal herb growers were established in North Carolina over the past three years. Herb drying capacity has been increased in western North Carolina. Net returns per acre for many of these crops are projected at $1,500 or more per acre per year. Eight national medicinal herb buyers are purchasing herbs from North Carolina farmers. There is a strong market for heirloom tomatoes, particularly those that are organically grown. Heirloom tomatoes are now being produced on conventional and organic farms across the state. With yields of 25 pounds or more per plant and wholesale prices of $3.50 per pound and up, it's easy to understand why growers are excited about learning to grow more heirloom vegetables. The heirloom-type hybrid tomatoes were well-adapted to organic and conventional production systems. Several of the heirloom-type hybrids were comparable in flavor and consumer acceptance to popular heirloom tomatoes.

Publications

• Davis, J.M. 2006. The medicinal herbs for commerce project: Creating a reliable domestic source of organic herbs. Medicines from the Earth, 14th Annual Symposium on Botanical Medicine. 2006 Official Proceedings, Gaia Herbal Research Institute, Brevard, NC. , p. 40-41.
• Davis, J.M. and J.T. Greenfield. 2005. Diversifying into a new market-Medicinal herbs. HortScience 40(4):1033.
• Greenfield, J., J.M. Davis, and K. Brayman. 2006. Black Cohosh. Horticulture Information Leaflet 135. Department of Horticultural Science, N.C. State University. http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/pdf/hil-135.pdf. 4 p.
• Greenfield, J., J.M. Davis, and K. Brayman. 2006. Bloodroot. Horticulture Information Leaflet 134. Department of Horticultural Science, N.C. State University. http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/pdf/hil-134.pdf. 4 p.