Book Review: Organic Farming

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Posted on : 11:55 AM | By : Anonymous | In :

I got a book yesterday at Borders called Organic Farming: Everything You Need to Know.  It's by Peter Fossel, who started an organic farm when he lost his job, and now makes a living from the earth.  While relatively short compared to some farming books (158 pages), it has full color photos of examples and farms which make it a nice read.


What we bought it for is the invaluable information on greenhouse management and running a farmstand.  For example, what vegetables sell the best and how to display them from the author's personal experience.  It would have never occured to me that when a basket of apples gets emptier, to put the apples in a smaller basket so it looks like you still have a lot.  But at the same time not to have too many varieties of apples or customers get overwhelmed.  It's got some excellent tips and practical farming information about organic methods that are invaluable.

One thing that made an impression on me is that the author sort of equated the soil to a plant's immune system.  If the soil is unhealthy, the plant will become more susceptible to pests and disease.  I had assumed (I'm not sure why) that an organic farm is just going to get a certain amount of bugs and sick plants because that's what happens.  But if the soil is healthy, the plant will be healthy and better able to fight those kinds of things off.  Another amazing thing I learned is that plants need to fight these things or they won't have as much antioxidants, which is something that we humans need.  

Some of the things I already knew and have other books that go into more detail but if you are wanting to sell your produce, this book is an excellent resource.

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