Organic Principles

 There are several principles that characterize certified organic

farming.

 These principles include:

 Biodiversity

 Integration

 Sustainability

 Natural Plant Nutrient

 Natural Pest Management

 Integrity
 Organic Principles

 Biodiversity:

 Diverse ecosystems have a higher degree of stability.

 Farms with a diverse mix of crops have a better

chance of supporting beneficial organisms:

Pollinators

Pest management

Microbes for better nutrients cycling, disease

suppression and N-fixation
 Organic Principles

 Biodiversity

 Practices to mimic biodiversity include:

Intercropping

Companion planting

Crop rotation
 Organic Principles

 Integration

 Good organic practices integrate their various

enterprises.

 Example:

Forage legumes + Non-legume crops in rotation.

Manure from livestock enterprises is conserved as a

nutrient resource and recycled back.

 Additional advantage of integration is economic

sustainability.
 Organic Principles

 Sustainability

 Organic farmers are able to reap market premiums

for certified production.

 Organic farms perform well on many measurable

indicators associated with sustainability:

Energy

Environmental protection
 Organic Principles

 Natural Plant Nutrition

 Chemical fertilizers alter the soil pH (increase acid).

 There is often over-application of the fertilizer with

conventional systems.

 Soluble inorganic nutrients are prone to leaching.

 Chemical fertilizers are associated with nutrient

imbalances.
 Organic Principles

 Integrity

 Refers to a system in place and actions undertaken to assure

that consumers of organic produce get what they have paid for.

 Organic products must be protected from contamination and

mixing with non-organic products.

 Proper record keeping is very important.

 Production practices such as use of buffer strips to reduce

chemical drifts from neighboring fields and roadsides are
adopted.
Organic Principles
 Organic Principles

 Composting

 Composting is one of the easiest and cheapest ways of recycling

and it is something that all of us can do in our own back garden.

 Why Compost?

 Helps your local Environment.

 Reduces the amount of garden and kitchen waste going to Landfill.

 Saves you money.

 Helps your garden grow naturally.

 Organic Principles

 Composting
 Organic Principles

How to Compost...
 Locate your composter on bare soil. Somewhere in your garden that is easily
accessible all year round.

 Mix your green and brown materials evenly when composting.

 When composting you should put a lot of materials in all at once.

 Chop large items into smaller pieces to help with the process.

 Ensure that your compost is moist but not wet:

 when squeezed in your hand, a few drops of water should be produced.

 Add water if it is too dry

 cover and add dry material if too wet.

 Organic Principles

 How to Compost...
 If you wish, add compost accelerator (young nettles are an
excellent natural accelerator) to help speed up the
composting process.

 Keep adding materials, remembering to agitate the

contents every couple of weeks throughout spring and
summer to keep air flowing through.

 Your compost is ready when it is dark in color and smells

like earth. This can take from 6 to 18 months depending on
the materials used and the time of the year.
 Organic Principles

 What should you compost?

 Grass Cuttings

 Hedge Cuttings

 Vegetable Peelings

 Tea Bags

 Egg shells

 Coffee Grounds

 Ripped Cardboard & Paper

 Organic Principles

 What should you not compost?

 Meat, Fish or Cheese

 Coal ash

 Cooked Leftovers

 Metals, Glass or Plastic

 Nappies
 Experimental Results of using compost

Collards Le af Are a V s Poultry Litte r Application Rate

0.25

0.20
)
2
Leaf Area (m

0.15

0.10

0.05

0.00
Control 4 ton / acre 6 ton / acre 8 ton / acre

Poultry Litte r Application Rate

Githinji L., 2009
Experimental Results of using compost and Cover Crops

Sweetpotato foliage dry matter (Mg)ha 0.30 Sweetpotato foliage dry matter in 2009
-1

0.25

0.20

0.15

0.10

0.05

0.00
Control (no Cover crop only Cover crop Cover crop Cover crop Cover crop
cover crop) (no BL) +0.5 Mg BL ha -1 +1 Mg BL ha -1 +2 Mg BL ha -1 +3 Mg BL ha -1

Treatments

Kpomblekou-A and Hamido., 2009

Experimental Results of using Compost and Cover Crops

8
Sweetpotato storage root yield in 2008 and 2009
Sweetpotato storage root yield (Mg ha)
-1

0
Control (no Cover crop only Cover crop Cover crop Cover crop Cover crop
-1 +1 Mg BL ha -1
cover crop) (no BL) +0.5 Mg BL ha +2 Mg BL ha
-1 +3 Mg BL ha -1

Treatments

Kpomblekou-A and Hamido., 2009