Progress 08/01/09 to 07/31/14
Outputs
Target Audience: Efforts that reached target audiences in the Aug 1, 2013, to July 31, 2014, reporting period include: an oral presentation at the USDA OREI PI meeting in Washington DC on January 13, 2014; the first annual Wyoming Organic farming conference, including presentations by PIs Norton, Arnould, and Press and by PhD candidate Renee King, along with many others; one MS thesis defense and one PhD dissertation defense, and publication of an MS thesis and a PhD dissertation. PhD candidate presented results of phosphorus amendment research at the American Society of Agronomy meetings in Tampa Bay, Fl, in October 2013, winning first runner up in the student oral presentation competition. These efforts reached researchers, students, farmers, educators, and the general public. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Training: two graduate students were trained under the project, one Masters in business management, and one PhD in soil science. The project also provided partial funding for a project coordinator who received training on each aspect of the project, and for two postdoctoral researchers, who both received mentorship from senior project personnel, and provided it to students. Professional development: Information on soil phosphorus and other amendments for organic production was presented at University of Wyoming Ag Experiment Station field days each year of the project.These were attended byfarmers, agricultural educators, and consultants.Results of the work were featured as part of the "first annual" Wyoming Organic Farming Conference attended by 50 people in February, 2014. Professional development was supported for students to attend regional, national, and internationalmeetings, at which their presentations provided professional development for attendees, including researchers, consultants, educators, and students. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Communities of interest include organicfarmers, agricultural educators, and researchers. Farmers and educators have been reached during Ag Experiment Station field day presentations, with a field day proceedings bulletin, and at the 2014 Wyoming Organic Farming conference. Researchers have been reached through seminars presented at the University of Wyoming, the annual OREI PI meeting, the Great Plains Soil Fertility Conference, the Western Nutrient Management Conference, and the Soil Science Society of America meetings (2013 best student oral paper award, runner up). Market research results were presented at several international conferences and via publication in peer-reviewed market research journals. Renee Gebault-King, the PhD student supported by this project, spent one year during her graduate program as an instructor in the NSF Science Posse. During this period she exposed elementary and secondary school students and teachers to her research, using it as a tool to teach fundamentals of soil science, scientific process, and organic farming. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The goals of this project address two major constraints to expansion of organic grain production in the northern High Plains region of eastern Wyoming and western Nebraska, as well as other regions: Phosphorus (P) deficiency and upstream/downstream market access. Phosphorus deficiency is a problem in regions like the High Plains with alkaline soils that fix P and that do not have abundant animal confinement facilities that provide composted manure. We evaluated the effects of P amendments available to High Plains organic producers on crop yields and the economic viability of each amendment specifically for organic production in the northern High Plains region. Results show that some commonly marketed inputs are not effective for these alkaline soils, and that some P amendments are made more available for plant uptake when combined with organic acid amendments. This information is helping farmers choose economically viable alternatives for P fertility. Access to markets for both organic inputs and products is difficult for High Plains producers who are relatively isolated and lack cooperative storage, transport, and buying/selling structures. We evaluated market constraints and opportunities in the region, creating a report and presentation that provided valuable information on grain storage, transport, emerging markets, grain quality, input availiability,and other constraints and opportunities. An important outcome of the project is initiation of the annual Wyoming-Nebraska Organic Farming Conference, which has become a collaborative effort between the Universities of Wyoming and Nebraska. The 2nd annual conference is now being planned for February. For this reporting period we accomplished the following: Objectives 1 & 2:Field test the effects of organic-certified humate and P amendments in replicated plots and compare them via partial budget analysis: Research on NOP-approved soil amendments, including soil quality, yield, and cost-benefit analyses,was completed and a PhD dissertation published. The information has been presented to farmers at field days and in an Ag Experiment Station bulletin; to researchers at presentations at the University of Wyoming and the Soil Science Society of America meetings. A scientific paper and extension bulletin are in preparation based on the results. Also,postdoctoral research on weed and cover crop management in organic dry beanswas completed and a paper is in preparation; Objective 3: Investigate up- and downstream marketing issues and opportunities associated with organic farming in the High Plains region. Collection of primary and secondary data on market opportunities and constraints was completed, data were analyzed and presented at several conferences, and publications are in print or press.
Publications
- Type:
Theses/Dissertations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Gebault King, Ren�e A., Phosphorus Dynamics in Calcareous Soils of the High Plains Under Organic Management, Ph.D., Ecosystem Science and Management, August 2014.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Strand, K., E.J. Arnould, M.E. Press. 2014. Tillage Practices and Identity Formation in High Plains Farming. Journal of Material Culture.DOI: 10.1177/1359183514552240.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Strand, K., E.J. Arnould, M.E. Press. 2014. Ideological Challenges to Changing Market Orientation in Commodity Agriculture. Journal of Marketing.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Gebault-King, R.A., and J.B. Norton. 2013. Economic viability of enhanced application rates of humic acid, compost tea, bone meal and rock phosphate on extractable phosphorus of calcareous soils in organic farming systems. Agronomy Abstracts, 2013.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Gebault-King, R.A., and J.B. Norton. 2013. Influence of alternative amendments on soil phosphorus in organic farming systems. Agronomy Abstracts, 2013.
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Progress 08/01/12 to 07/31/13
Outputs
Target Audience: Efforts that reached target audiences in the Aug 1, 2012, to July 31, 2013, reporting period include: presentations at the Wyoming Agricultural Experiment Station's Sustainable Agriculture- and Laramie- Research & Extension Centers field days to farmers, researchers, ag educators, and others. Field Day bulletin article on the soil amendment component of theproject; educational materials based on soil amendment findings presented to Wyoming 5th to 12th grade students and teachers as part of NSF Science Posse; published report on organic marketing opportunities and constraints in August, 2012, targeting ag producers, consultants, millers, and USDA; an MA thesis and two papers on market issues targeting academic audience; presentations at professional meetings of the American Marketing Association conference and the European Operations Management Conference, as well as presentations at academic meetings in France, Belgium, Finland, Denmark, Ireland and England. Changes/Problems: Changes include that PIs Press and Arnould left the University of Wyoming. They continue to work toward completing their roles in the project, however, and will attend the Organic Farming Conference on February 22. PhD student Renee Gebault-King took a one-year position with the NSF Science Posse, which created salary savings on our OREI project and slowed her progress in analyzing and publishing data. For this reason we applied for and received the one-year unfunded extension and now Renee is on track to publish results and graduate in June. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?
Nothing Reported
How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? So far as research and extension presentations, researchpublications, a popular press article, and a field days proceedings bulletin. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? We are planning an Organic Farming Conference for February 22, 2014, in Torrington Wyoming that is generating a great deal of interest. This comes near the end of this project but we intend to create an annual conference starting with this one.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
1. Data collection on soil amendments completed; results presented at field days; publications in preparation; 2. Economic cost/benefit analysis of various soil amendments available to farmers was started by collecting cost information on products, application, transport, etc.; publication of this information is in preparation; 3. Collection of primary and secondary data on market opportunities and constraints was completed, data were analyzed and presented at several conferences, and publications are in review or have been accepted.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2012
Citation:
R. Gebault King, J. Norton, J. Meeks. 2012. Soil Fertility Challenges in Northern High Plains Organic Farming Operations. Field Days Bulletin, University of Wyoming Agricultural Experiment Station.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Strand, K., E.J. Arnould, M.E. Press. Accepted. Tillage Practices and Identity Formation in High Plains Farming. Journal of Material Culture.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Strand, K., E.J. Arnould, M.E. Press. Accepted. Ideological Challenges to Changing Market Orientation in Commodity Agriculture. Journal of Marketing.
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2012
Citation:
Meeks, J., J. Norton, R. Gebault-King, R. Ghimire, U. Norton, J. Ritten, D. Peck. 2012. Long-term project begins yielding results. Reflections Magazine 2012:23-25. University of Wyoming College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2012
Citation:
WIKOFF, R., R.OWENS AND E. ARNOULD. 2012. MARKETING OPPORTUNITIES AND CONSTRAINTS CONFRONTING ORGANIC FARMING OPERATIONS IN THE SEMIARID NORTHERN HIGH PLAINS AND INTERMOUNTAIN REGION IN WYOMING AND WESTERN NEBRASKA: COMPARATIVE OBSERVATIONS OF CONSTRAINTS AND OPPORTUNITIES FROM A NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE. Report prepared for project team and USDA.
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Progress 08/01/11 to 07/31/12
Outputs
OUTPUTS: Renee King, PhD student in soil science at the University of Wyoming, continued trials of organic-approved phosphorus amendments, initiating the third year of cropping system trials in organically grown beans at the University of Wyoming Sustainable Agriculture Research and Extension Center. She also established a greenhouse study to examine effects of the amendments on alfalfa growth and nodulation and mycorrhizae activity. Ms. King also established an on-farm field trial of humic acid soil amendments. Graduate Student Ryan Owens collected and analyzed primary and secondary resource data. Primary research included telephone and in-person interviews with 20+ farmers, distributors, and millers of organic wheat. All interviews were recorded, transcribed, and summarized. Secondary research included collection and analysis of current production yields, acreage, and pricing data from USDA and other sources, and a comprehensive collection and review of current literature, including news articles, peer reviewed papers and articles, and academic research studies. In addition, Mr. Owens analyzed the gathered data and created documentation for extension bulletins, as well as summary findings and recommendations. Katie Strand, who received her MA from UW in 2010, has also taken the lead on a paper covering our findings, submitted to a peer reviewed journal for publication. Robin Wikoff, Ph.D. Candidate in the Systems Science Graduate Program at Portland State University, analyzed wheat data, comparing conventional, organic, food, and feed data, including current and historical acreage planted, bushels harvested, and price trends for conventional and organic food and feed grade wheat. She also interviewed a feed marketer/distributor, a poultry feed miller, and a small scale food grade wheat producer/miler, surveyed organic certifiers for current wheat harvest data, explored export procedures and data, and investigated the poultry feed market. The team is currently preparing a number of extension bulletins for review by other members of the team. PARTICIPANTS: Portland State University was added as a partner organization when co-PIs Arnould and Press changed their academic affiliations from the University of Wyoming to Portland State. Ryan Owens was added to the project team in the spring of 2012. He is a recent graduate of the MBA program in the School of Business at Portland State University with a concentration in Sustainability. He holds a BA in English Literature from Lewis and Clark College. Robin Wikoff was added to the project team in the spring of 2012. She is a Ph.D. candidate in the Systems Science Graduate Program at Portland State University. She is currently working on her dissertation, a qualitative study of materialism and how increasing intrinsically satisfying activities can encourage sustainable lifestyles. She holds a Masters of Science in Systems Science from Portland State University. TARGET AUDIENCES: We targeted professional agronomists and researchers of the Great Plains region with a presentation at the 2012 Great Plains Soil Fertility Conference in Denver, Colorado, in March, 2012. Business academics and practitioners were targeted at two presentations at the Portland State University conference on sustainability. Since the date of the University of Wyoming research station field day changed from July in 2011 to August in 2012 it did not fall within this reporting period. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
Project is in its 3rd year and results of on-station trials are being analyzed. Further, we would say that 1) research reports are under review at scientific journals including Journal of Material Culture and Journal of Marketing; 2) discussions are under way to develop an "organic extension day" at the University of Wyoming research & extension center; 3) draft extension reports have been prepared for further review and dissemination; and 4) preliminary research results have been presented at the Great Plains Soil Fertility Conference, and twice at the Portland State University conference on sustainability. It is too soon to assess impacts on farmer practice at this time.
Publications
- King, R.G, and J.B. Norton. 2012. Impact of alternative amendments on soil phosphorus in organic farming systems. Proceedings of the 2012 Great Plains Soil Fertility Conference, March 6-7, 2012, Denver, Colorado.
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Progress 08/01/10 to 07/31/11
Outputs
OUTPUTS: Twenty three farmers interviewed last year for the project have been reinterviewed this year. Only one participant has dropped out. At the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Extension Center (SAREC), last year's alfalfa crop has been plowed under and corn was planted in late April (this is the third year of a four-year crop rotation). Amendment to be applied in test plots are as follows: humic acids; compost tea, bone meal, rock phosphate; humic acids + bone meal; humic acids + rock phosphate; compost tea + bone meal; compost tea + rock phosphate. This year soil samples were collected shortly after planting and are currently being analyzed for various chemical, biological, and physical parameters. These results will be compared to last year's soil samples, which established the baseline character of the organic plots. This year an additional control plot has been added for analysis. This new control plot is under organic management but receives compost/manure applications; analysis of this plot will provide information on whether the amendments are having any impact on the soil fertility versus compost/manure. Significant upstream marketing constraints include lack of affordable organic seed; lack of affordable, agronomically proven soil amendments, and lack of proven, economical organic weed control technology. In addition, time and knowledge necessary to handle paperwork needed for organic certification hinders adoption of organic farming practices. Significant downstream marketing constraints include lack of available, affordable, segregated off-farm storage, lack of available, reliable segregated transport facilities, lack of market information, thin, volatile markets, and limited forward contracting arrangements. The NRCS EQIP program, which has begun to reimburse use of compost and Austrian peas, is an important stimulator for experimentation with soils improvement. In addition to marketing challenges the team has found that negative attitudes towards organic farming as an ideology and way of life and towards the Federal government, as well as negative social sanctions from others in the farming community, inhibit adoption of economically lucrative organic farming practices. PARTICIPANTS: Renee A. Gebault King is a Master's graduate student in soils science working on the test plots. Katherine A. Strand was a Master's student in anthropology who completed a Master's thesis based on data collected with participating farmers. Results were shared with Wyoming Organic Wheat association members. PIs Eric Arnould, Jay Norton, Melea Press, and John Ritten continue to work on the project. Producers associated with Wyoming Organic Wheat have collaborated with the project team. TARGET AUDIENCES: Organic producers in eastern Wyoming and western Nebraska. Would-be organic producers in eastern Wyoming and western Nebraska. Other stakeholders in the organic wheat marketing system in the high plains of eastern Wyoming and western Nebraska. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
Participating farmers were provided with a report summarizing the results of the first year marketing, agro economic, and soils analytic results. Results of first year soils trials were reported at the SAREC field days. Renee King presented in a poster session for Western Soil Science Society of America on 20 June entitled "Novel soil amendments and their efficacy in organic farming in the intermountain west." The titles for the SAREC Field Days presentations she made (2010 and 2011) are "Soil Fertility Challenges for Organic Farmers in the Intermountain West." Katherine Strand presented two papers: April 2010 Society for the Anthropology of North America Annual Meeting, Denver, CO, Paper Title: Organic Agriculture in the Cowboy State. October 2010 Rocky Mountain Landscape and Memory Symposium: Soundscapes, Places, and Pathways- Laramie, WY, Paper Title: Good Farmer, Bad Farmer, Wheat Farmer, Weed Farmer: Negotiations of Legitimacy in High Plains Farming Communities. Melea Press presented marketing findings to the marketing department at Lille University 2 in Lille, France in April 2011. Eric Arnould presented marekting findings to the 2010 Business and Sustainability Conference at Portland State University.
Publications
- Strand, K.A. 2011. Organic Agriculture on the High Plains: Re-contextualizing Symbolic Capital in the Struggle for Legitimacy and Status. M.A. Thesis. Anthropology. The University of Wyoming.
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Progress 08/01/09 to 07/31/10
Outputs
OUTPUTS: Objective 1: Hired PhD student Renee Gebault King. Start date: June, 2010. In consultation with producers and ag advisers, the team selected eight treatments that will be applied to plots at the SAREC farm, including 1) Biohumus (Ag Ventures); 2) SP-1 (Ag Ventures); 3) Bone meal; 4) Ida-Gro pelletized phosphate (Soda Springs Phosphate); 5) Biohumus + bone meal; 6) SP-1 + bone meal; 7) Biohumus + Ida-Gro pelletized colloidal phosphate; and 8) SP-1 + Ida-Gro pelletized colloidal phosphate Plots have been delineated within the existing organic cropping system experiment. Treatments will be replicated four times and an additional plot fertilized with composted manure, as the remainder of the larger cropping system plot will be included for analyses. These products have been ordered and will be applied after the first cutting of alfalfa. Objective 2: So far, on site we have identified and marked micro plots for organic fertilizer research and located, priced, and ordered all specialty organic fertilizer, but are still awaiting delivery of some inputs. Inputs have proven difficult to locate. As far as focus groups, as we did not locate enough irrigated cash-crop organic producers, we just conducted in-person interviews with local producers to help guide our research. We have collected economic and production data related to organic fertilizer available for this area, and have set up a database to collect production data from the micro-plot study. When we gather harvest data, we will begin to compare the cost and benefits of each of the fertilizers. Objective 3: Hired Katie Strand to assist in data collection and analysis; Start date: September 2009. 1. Secondary data collection began in October of 2009. This process includes a general internet and library search for any information concerning organic agriculture, soil amendments, no-till agriculture, green manure crops, cover crops, and market opportunities. These sources were included in an annotated bibliography that currently consists of 57 entries. 2. The establishment of contacts with organic, minimum till, and conventional producers started in November of 2009. Contact information was primarily found through the Wyoming Business Council's annual publication of the Wyoming Agribusiness Directory. Contact information for western Nebraska agricultural producers was primarily found on the Nebraska Department of Agriculture website http://www.agr.state.ne.us/pub/apd/organic.htm. 3. Fourteen interviews have been conducted and many more are planned. Interviews consist of questions from six categories including: farm characteristics, life on the farm/ranch, crop production, soil amendments, up-stream economic and market opportunities, and down-stream economic and market opportunities. No new knowledge has as yet been disseminated to communities of interest. PARTICIPANTS: Eric Arnould, distinguished professor, Department of Management and Marketing; Jay Norton, assistant professor, Department of Renewable Resources; Melea Press, assistant professor, Department of Management and Marketing; John Ritten, assistant professor, Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics; Renee Gebault King, PhD student; Katie Strand, student employee. TARGET AUDIENCES: Ag advisers and producers. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
Objective 3: Preliminary analysis seems to indicate that several upstream issues present problems for organic producers. First, soil amendments are too expensive and difficult to apply in areas with drought conditions. Amendments, such as manures, do not take effect immediately and producers cannot afford to wait several years for the accumulated residual effect. Second, producers accumulate significant fuel costs due to the need for invasive tillage. Weeds cannot be fully controlled using vinegar, dense planting, or spring crops. Third, organic producers must invest heavily in storage to combat the lack of organic storage facilities at the nearest grain elevators and to combat fluctuating demand in the organic market. Fourth, many need a crop that would work well in a three-year dry land wheat-fallow rotation to increase nitrogen and improve protein content. Organic producers cannot experiment with crops to find the perfect rotation without the assistance of a program like EQIP because those experiments are too costly. Fifth, many producers are unsure of NOP regulations concerning organic amendments and fear that their organic status will be revoked if an amendment becomes restricted after it is already in use. There is uncertainty about the status of untreated manures. This confusion seems to stem from the changing status of various amendments and an unclear communication between producers and certifying agents. Finally, Wyoming lacks abundant information available to organic producers concerning organic production specific to the ecological conditions of the state. Downstream issues seem to present fewer problems to organic producers in the research area.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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