The Bovine Bugle

Finding out what makes the grass grow

Last week I attended a pasture walk at Forgues family farm in Alburg, VT. The Forgues' have been working with Bill Murphy, author and professor emeritus of agronomy at UVM, on an organic fertilization and irrigation trial over the last three years. I've managed to make it to the walks the past two years, and didn't want to miss the one today. Their findings have been very interesting.

Of all the different soil amendments they have used during the field trial, compost has made the biggest difference in amount of feed produced per acre. Other amendments, such as fish/seaweed fertilizer, crab shell, and chilean nitrate, did not affect growth as well as the compost. This, of course, makes me feel pretty good considering our composting operation here on the farm. Instead of spending money buying fertilizers to put on our land, we can use what we produce right here on the farm to keep our soils and fields healthy and productive.

After walking the pastures and visiting the field trial site, it was time to share a meal, visit with old friends, and make some new aquaintences. It's always great to share with each other what's happening on each other's farms. You never know what tidbit of information you might hear that you can take back to your farm to make improvements in your operation. Too soon it was time to head back to the farm, but these pasture walks always seem to get you excited again about farming, grazing, and organic production.

Got a question about soil amendments, or anything else on an organic dairy farm? Use the comment box below and I'll try to get you an answer here in the blog very soon.

--Jonathan, Howmars Farm
Franklin, Vermont

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Posted by Blogger Chris at July 18, 2005 10:37 AM