Organic farm serves as learning resource

UT’s organic farm, part of the UT Institute of Agriculture, is in its relative infancy. But the farm is already off to a booming start with a host of projects and research that has proved invaluable to agricultural science students.

Started in the fall of 2007, the farm “is a 90-acre farm with 21 acres in production and 14 of which are under an organic transition,” said Annette Wszelaki, plant sciences extension specialist. “The transition of USDA organic certification is a three-year process that starts from the time of when the last prohibited substance is used on the farm.”

During a tour of the farm as part of Make Orange Green Week, Wszelaki said, to the surprise of students, that being organic does not mean pesticide-free but only free of non-approved substances.

The organic farm, located off John Sevier Highway, is not a farm in the traditional sense, due to the fact that much of the fruits and vegetables produced are used for research and not eating.

Students and professional researchers have access to conduct field research and do experiments of their choosing. The farm’s applied research projects include conservation tillage techniques, high-tunnel production and the assessment of native insects and their effects on crops and production.

Students and researchers are conducting over 14 projects and experiments. One project in particular deals with the usage of cover crops, a crop that is planted in offseason for the purposes of enriching and protecting the soil, as well as helping prevent weed growth.

“Cover crops have so many benefits and are widely used by organic farmers instead of the traditional fertilizers in many cases,” Wszelaki said.

Cover crops offer an alternative, chemical-free way to enrich the soil and offer benefits when cash crops are not being grown.

“Why has conventional farming gotten away from using cover crops?” Gordie Bennett, UT sustainability manager, said.

The answer was that many modern fertilizers clearly indicate what is being put in the soil, and there is not a mystery as to what nutrients the soil is receiving. Though ground covers can prove tricky, as indicated by three recent test trials, it is more sustainable and falls in the parameters of organic farming.

“Ground cover is important, but, over the long term, conventional agriculture can’t prevent nutrient depletion and eventual erosion problems in the soil,” David Owen, junior in food science, said.

The ground cover study is one of many different scientific studies that can be done on the organic farm.

Students that toured the farm had positive remarks about the trip and all felt they had walked away learning something new.

“(The tour) made me realize how many different foods there are,” Owen said. “It sounds stupid, but it’s one of the consequences of a limited diet. Just because green pepper, tomatoes and onions are the only plants you can get on a pizza doesn’t mean they are the only edible plants out there.”

The farm is a growing resource for students in agriculture and related fields of study.

“We are just starting out, so we have a lot going on and a lot more to come,” Wszelaki said.