The local grain growing revolution (book)

Uprisings: A Hands-On Guide to the Community Grain Revolution

If we want to reduce our environmental impact, build resiliency in our community and improve food security, it's up to us to make it happen. In many North American communities, the instrument of change is ... grain. Grain is the perfect metaphor for how we've lost control of our food supply, and with it the skills and tools to feed ourselves. Uprisings shows how communities can take back their power by reviving local grain production to improve food security, local economies, and the environment.

 

Heritage chickens and ducks (book)

Pure Poultry: Living Well with Heritage Chickens, Turkeys and Ducks

Pure Poultry is the first book in nearly a hundred years to focus specifically on heritage breeds of chickens, turkeys and ducks and their role in a self-reliant lifestyle. Providing an alternative to commercial breeds and hybrids, heritage breeds each boast their own unique characteristics and personality traits, and are a valuable (and entertaining) addition to a sustainable food system.

Academic research on essential oils (#journal)

The Journal of Essential Oil Bearing Plants 

Not a journal that The Digest will be featuring regularly, but I wanted to bring it to people's attention if they have an interest in essential oils, their properties and their production.

To celebrate IPC 2013, a Cuban agroecology article (#journal)

Agroecology and the Development of Indicators of Food Sovereignty in Cuban Food Systems

The recent volatility of food crop prices and the rising cost of inputs—fossil fuels, fertilizers, and pesticides—have made it nearly impossible for many of the world's smallholder farmers to continue managing their agroecosystems, leaving their countries dependent on ever more costly food imports. Thanks to its mass organizations and popular participation in national policy, Cuba is one of the few countries with the capacity to implement food sovereignty, which could help it minimize the threats posed by food price fluctuation, extreme climatic events and the persistent U.S. hostility towards its national project. Guided by the principles of agroecology, Cuban researchers are developing indicators of food sovereignty for practical use at the smallholder farm level.

Indonesia's integrated pest management programme (#journal)

Empire Strikes Back: The Making and Unmaking of Indonesia's National Integrated Pest Management Program

Indonesia's 11-year national integrated pest management program (IPM) (1989–1999) is considered to be one of the most successful examples of IPM in a developing country. The program is best known for introducing the innovative farmer field school model of agroecosystem-based experiential learning, subsequentl disseminated and adapted  throughout the world. In the 12 years since the termination of the program in 1999, government support for the national IPM program has wavered, contributing to a resurgence of the pesticide-induced resurgent pest problems that had led to its establishment. This article examines the socio-political basis and drivers of Indonesia's retreat from IPM.

Nitrogen fixing trees crucial in tropical forests (journal)

Key role of symbiotic dinitrogen fixation in tropical forest secondary succession

This study identifies a powerful feedback mechanism in which N₂ fixation can overcome ecosystem-scale deficiencies in nitrogen that emerge during periods of rapid biomass accumulation in young tropical forests. Over a 300-year chronosequence in Panama, N₂-fixing tree species accumulated carbon up to nine times faster per individual than their non-fixing neighbours, and showed species-specific differences in the amount and timing of fixation. As a result of fast growth and high fixation, fixers provided a large fraction of the nitrogen needed to support net forest growth (50,000 kg carbon per hectare) in young forests. These findings show that symbiotic N₂ fixation can have a central role in nitrogen cycling during tropical forest development.

Potential of multi-functional agriculture (journal)

Multifunctional Agriculture in the United States

The authors evaluated possible changes to current farming practices in Minnesota to provide insight into how farm policy might affect environmental, social, and economic outcomes. They found that environmental and economic benefits can be attained through changes in agricultural land management without increasing public costs. The magnitude of these benefits depends on the magnitude of changes to agricultural practices. Environmental benefits include improved water quality, healthier fish, increased carbon sequestration, and decreased greenhouse gas emissions, while economic benefits include social capital formation, greater farm profitability, and avoided costs. We suggest that redirecting farm payments by using alternative incentives could lead to substantial environmental changes at little or no extra cost to the taxpayer