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Effects of Compost - Response (fwd)
Forwarded message:
> To: sustag-public@amani.ces.ncsu.edu
> Date: Thu, 14 Mar 1996 20:16:23 -0800 (PST)
> From: Elisheva Kaufman <elisheva@igc.apc.org>
> Subject: Effects of Compost - Response
>
> To: Patrick Maddens
> World Sustainable Agriculture Association
>
> From Elisheva Kaufman
> Project Coordinator;
> Ecological Soil Management Collaborative
> <elisheva@igc.apc.org>
>
> Patrick,
> There is great interest in this area internationally as well.
> As coordinator of the Ecological Soil Management Collaborative,
> a proposed project involving US, Palestinian and Israeli
> collaboration for sustainable agriculture, we will research disease
> suppression through compost, and integrated soil fertility strategies
> appropriate for dryland conditions with developing country constraints.
> under the leadership of Dr. Will Brinton, of Woods End, and
> Dr. Fred Magdoff of the University of Vermont (pending funding).
>
> Our goal is to restore degraded soils and promote sustainable ag
> through ecological soil managment practices. Traditional, small
> farmers need low-tech, effective methods to generate their own on-farm
> compost high in disease suppressivecapacity and the soil biodiversity
> that promotes natural bio-controls. Thus the costly, high intensity
> management and heavy expensive machinery of the Lubke approach is not
> helpful. The small American farmer operates with similar constraints.
>
> After much investigation, we found that Woods End could provide us
> with exemplary compost quality evaluation and standards, a compost
> management approach adapted to the economic limits and appropriate
> technology-needs of a developing country, and muncipal and on-farm
> implementation skills to train the local people for self-suficiency
> and sustainability.
>
> We would be most interested in networking with other dryland region
> researchers, and indigenous peoples, on composting methods for disease
> suppression, and related soil life/biodiversity/fertility concerns.
>
> What other compost researchers are looking are the relationship between
> compost managment intensity and disease suppression; in terms of
> compost temperature, the nature of the microbial and fungal growth and
> recipes. It would seem that the closer we recreate the natural humus
> forming conditions of the forest floor, the low temperature and slow
> activity over time, the greater the biodiversity potential. Any thoughts
> on this?
>
> Good Wishes in Your Work,
>
> Elisheva Kaufman
> <elisheva@igc.apc.org>
>
> PS: I have faxed this conversation to Prof. Said Assaf, the director of
> the Palestinian National Agricultural Reseach Center,
> since he is not yet on-line, and emailed it to Dr. Michael Raviv, of
> the Israeli Ministry of Ag. Following is Dr. Ravivs response:
>
> Michael Raviv;
> Thanks for the interesting discussion on compost effects.
> Right now I'm cooperating with a plant pathologist from another
> research center - in the Negev, on similar problems: they have severe problem
> of Alternaria on potato. I prepared for her several composts with defined
> properties and prepared extracts (what you call tea) from them. We
> conducted a through chemical analysis (biological one will be done later on)
> and now we can start linking between compost properties and effectiveness
> against this disease. results of sterilized teas are good but not impressive,
> suggesting a role also for microorganisms prevailing in the teas.